I'm not sure why I'm combining a review of these two movies together. Perhaps because they both contain actors who are well known, well loved, but are starting to push their age brackets. Perhaps because I watched both films recently, and while I greatly enjoyed both, feel there's little substance to really get into a good meaty review for either. Or most likely because, I'm lazy.
Let's start with Red, because I did.
I am a Bruce Willis fan. As such, no Willis movie is ever bad. It's just... not as good as other Willis movies. Having said that, however, Red is not bad, in fact it's quite good.... it's just, not great. I love Willis in it, I loved Freeman, Malkovich, Mirren and Cox, even the girl love interest was palatable. In fact the main characters and actors who played them were all terribly quirky and lovable. The action was fun, the story was... enough to make an excuse to blow shit up with Willis at the fore front, and was it just me, or would Karl Urban play a decent Alan Wake should they ever make a movie of that game? But I digress, everyone was good, all the actions scenes were good and reminiscent of a mix of the ol' 80s style action movies with a bit of twist and flavour with modern day campy, slick action flicks like Oceans Eleven. But I still felt like there was something missing, something that made this movie AWESOME or, I guess, really memorable. I enjoyed it, I would probably enjoy watching it again and again, and perhaps even grow a fondness and better appreciation for it over time mayhaps, but all I can really say for it right now is that, it was good. If you like fun action movies, if you like Bruce Willis, check it out. You won't be disappointed... but you might not be blown away, either.
Three and a bit out of five stars.
Now to The Tourist.
Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp. Could they have possibly picked two prettier actors in the whole wide world? No, no they couldn't have. I am also a fan of both, and while they've both been in movies I've enjoyed, they've also both been in movies I haven't. They always give a good performance, but sometimes there's only so much that can be achieved within the confines of a movie.
Luckily for the both of them, this didn't seem to be the case here. This movie was a pleasure to watch, if you can enjoy a spy-action-love story movie that doesn't test any of its genre's boundaries. It's very typical fare, but it's fare that's done very well. Everything looks gorgeous and exciting, the tasteful humour is warming, the action well paced, the acting well played, and the twist - while predictable - is still enjoyable to watch unfold. This is that spy-love novel you pick up from a book store before boarding a plane. It's clearly produced for the masses, it's not terribly original, but you can't put it down, and guiltily enjoy turning each page.
Three and a half stars outta five.
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