Red Notice: Just too much fun

Movie Review: Red Notice (2021) on Netflix

Red Notice, starring Dwayne Johnson, Gal Godot, and Ryan Reynolds, is just too much fun. That's mostly because Ryan Reynolds is in it to add quirky humor, but also because Dwayne Johnson is kind of a cornball himself. Together, well, you're going to have a great time watching this combination of James Bond flash-bang and Indiana Jones swashbuckling adventure. Said enough?

Gal Godot is there for the sizzle, and sizzle she does. Think of her role as Wonder Woman 1984, and just change her outfit to modern femme fatal spy and you get the idea. She handles a spear and a pistol with equal ease!

This film is heavily plot driven, but the motion is accelerated by intense chase scenes, fight exchanges, and lots of quick give-and-take dialogue between the characters, which keeps the pace lively. Don't plan any bathroom breaks during the film! This is an action film.

Here's the gist of Red Notice: Good guys, bad guys, and guys in between are on the hunt for three rare eggs artistically created and gifted to Cleopatra and then mysteriously separated over time. One is in a museum, one is in a private collection, and one hasn't been seen for hundreds of years. A multi-billionaire wants to reunite them as a wedding gift for his daughter. Dwayne Johnson plays an FBI profiler who arrives on the scene aware someone is plotting to steal the museum egg. Ryan Reynolds plays the second most successful art thief, who tries to steal the museum egg and wants to move onto the privately held egg. Gal Gadot plays the first most successful art thief, who is plotting to outdo Ryan Reynolds' character and show up Dwayne Johnson, and beat them to finding the third egg. And let the thieving begin.

This is a great romp. You won't know who to trust. I would rate Red Notice an A++ for way above average.

Criminal: Not a Fun Spy Romp, But Great Character Depth and Plot Complexity

Movie Review: Criminal (2016)
Version: Library borrow

What starts off with a small role for Ryan Reynolds opens the door for a huge role for Kevin Costner in 2016's Criminal, a gruff yet thoughtful action thriller set in the gritty streets of London.

The pace sets quickly with Bill Pope (played by Reynolds) chasing down leads on a shadowy hacker with nuclear launch codes to sell, driving through the streets of London and gunning down bad guys. But he quickly reaches his end in an empty warehouse, where he is brutally tortured for the information he has and then left for dead. Britain's MI6 and the CIA rescue him and keep in alive long enough for Dr. Franks (played by the stoic Tommy Lee Jones) to transfer his memory to an agent who can act on his leads. But the CIA doesn't want to try this untested technology on just any human. They reach out for someone expendable, someone who would be no loss if things got ugly, turned deadly. Jericho (played by Costner) is a dangerous convict with no emotional connection to others, a killer without remorse, basically an animal who is chained to the center of a cell to keep him away from any other human contact. The CIA's Quaker Wells (played explosively by Gary Oldman) has him transferred to London, where the technology is brutally applied to Jericho's mind, and he is set free to fund the hacker "The Dutchman" (played by Michael Pitt). Little by little, Pope's memories filter into Jericho's mind, giving him clues where to find The Dutchman and a bag of money promised to him. It also exposes Jericho to Pope's memories of his wife Jill (played by Gal Gadot) and his daughter Emma (played by Lara Decaro), and where they live. The hunt is on, and so is a slow evolution of Jericho from desperate killer to loving husband and father in search of redemption and saving the world from the threat of bad guys who want access to American nuclear launch codes.

This isn't your usual spy thriller nor your normal action film. It starts out fast and furious like a typical spy film, then settles back to an earthy, gritty, dark, and dank deep-state conspiracy sci-fi pic, only to evolve again into a human-interest story about a man fighting for his identity and his soul while being pursued by people on all sides obsessed with hunting down a guy with secrets to sell. Caught in the middle is the mother and her daughter, engaged with a dangerous man with hints of the husband and father they think is dead yet can only slowly hope live inside another man they really don't know.

Kevin Costner often plays very thoughtful characters and he brings that sensitivity to this otherwise unseemly role. He is violent, careless, intruding, and self-absorbed on the one had, while on the other you can see the wheels turning in his mind as the Pope character begins to influence Jericho's persona. And this makes the film a multidimensional experience, giving you hope for the character as you follow his progress through his seemingly impossible mission. He has been severely wounded by the surgical procedure to force the technology on his, he has bad headaches, and you can't help but feel for Jericho. And Costner pulls off the role, probably not the kind of character he might have chosen to play earlier in his career, with precision and excellence.

It's a pity that Reynolds' role was so short, because he's becoming known more recently for taking on action films and he's pretty good in them. His role as Bill Pope is no exception. I would like to have seen him more in this film.

Gal Gadot also shines in her role as the frantic mother and grieving wife, not to mention the fearful hostage and then the hopeful cohort to Jericho.

Gary Oldman is the badass of bad guys, forcing Jericho to undergo the procedure and then releasing him to find The Dutchman, promise Jericho the hidden stash of cash if he finds The Dutchman, and then when he thinks MI6 has located The Dutchman, abandoning Jericho in the streets of London. These are the roles Oldman has become more recently familiar with, and he plays it deftly here.

So, while Criminal is not a fun romp as spy thrillers go, it is a good film for its depth of characters and complexity of plot. I'd recommend it for older teens and adults. It might be too violent for youngsters.

Wonder Woman: A Class Above Most Other Superhero Movies

Movie Review: Wonder Woman (2017)
Version: Library borrow

While my daughter and I saw Despicable Me 3 in the theater, my wife saw Wonder Woman. She said it was a great movie, and having seen it now myself, I can say she was right! I loved Wonder Woman, a class above most other superhero movies I have seen lately.

Diana is the princess of the Amazons, living on an island hidden from the god of war Aries, where she lives a sheltered life of privilege and protection. She has been secretly trained by her aunt, her mother the queen thinking she will never be in danger because their world is shielded from discovery. And then a war plane crashes off the coast and German war planes and warships come crashing through the shield to find the pilot, Steve Trevor, who tells her of the evil beyond her shores. Diana decides she can't stay in her safe haven while the world struggles beyond, and she leaves with Trevor to use her powers to save the world. And from there, it's Wonder Woman against the powers of World War I Germany and, she is sure, Aries who motivates them. Trevor is at her side, along with a small crew of memorable soldiers of fortune, who help Diana take down a huge host of bad guys.

Portrayed in the old TV series as a hot chick with amazing powers, this new film version features a woman superhero with substance. Diana is clearly a force to be reckoned with, and while she shows human vulnerabilities, there is never a moment in the story where she can't overcome them. Far from it. Yes, it's her uncertainties that put her in danger, yet it's when Diana realizes her full potential and the responsibilities of privilege that she dominates what at first seem like weaknesses to beat her enemies. And while the men cower behind metal in battle, Diana steps out to fearlessly battle bullets and bombs to win the day. She's one badass Wonder Woman.

Wonder Woman features a great cast. Gal Gadot is commanding as Diana, with Robin Wright as her imperial mother, Antiope. Chris Pine is irrepressible as Steve Trevor. The lovable soldiers of fortune are played by Saïd Taghmaoui as Sameer, Ewen Bremner as Charlie, and Eugene Brave Rock as The Chief. You won't find a more eery pair of bad guys than Danny Huston as Ludendorff and Elena Anaya as Dr. Maru (Dr Poison). David Thewlis fits in there somewhere as Sir Patrick, although I refuse to tell you how -- you'll just have to watch it to find out.

Now, no film is perfect, and Wonder Woman has its flaws. For instance, there are the occasional plot holes. Such as the battleship that pierces the island's shield to find Trevor's downed plane, but then just disappears without explanation when the story tellers are through with it as a threat. And Trevor suddenly appears with a German uniform to sneak into a military installation, without telling where he gets it. Those are just a couple of examples. But you can forgive these indiscretions when you enjoy the basic plot of the movie and characters and the acting.

There are so many superhero movies these days, it's easy to get tired of them and say, "Oh, not another one!" But I can tell you, Wonder Woman isn't just another superhero movie. It has great depth, with good writing, great acting, and a fresh take on an old story line. See it!