Red Notice: A Heist Movie That Steals Nothing But Your Time
FBI agent John Hartley (Dwayne Johnson) is on a mission to capture the world’s most notorious art thief, the elusive Nolan Booth (Ryan Reynolds), who’s planning to swipe one of Cleopatra’s priceless eggs. The arrest goes off without a hitch, but a rival thief known as “The Bishop” (Gal Gadot) outsmarts them both, stealing the artifact right under their noses and framing Hartley in the process. Now, Hartley finds himself in the same prison as Booth. To clear his name, catch The Bishop, and restore Booth’s reputation as the world’s greatest thief, they must team up to find all three eggs. There’s just one catch: the location of the third egg has been lost for over two millennia.
Gal Gadot as Sarah Black in a still from “Red Notice”
“Red Notice” isn’t a film you analyze with cinematic terms. It’s the kind of movie you watch on a weeknight, the kind that won’t offend but will be forgotten the moment the credits roll. It’s the cinematic equivalent of “content” – a soulless, artless product destined to break streaming records on Netflix (which it’s already doing) before fading into oblivion. Until, of course, a similarly pointless sequel is released.
Ryan Reynolds as Nolan Booth in a still from “Red Notice”
What’s interesting is that “Red Notice” is Netflix’s most expensive project to date, making it one of the year’s highest-budget films. In this sense, it’s a perfect representation of modern Hollywood, a quintessence of what major studios are striving for in their strange quest to make increasingly dull action movies. It’s a film seemingly made by the book, following a tried-and-true formula for the ideal blockbuster: a massive budget, numerous locations, global stars, and a plot involving ancient artifacts and Nazi gold. Yet, everything alive has been drained from the formula, leaving only a plastic shell and constant nods to other films. The music is almost “Bond”-esque, and “Indiana Jones” looms large (Reynolds even whistles the famous John Williams melody at one point). Perhaps the creators intended to draw a line and establish a lineage with the past, but instead, the references only remind us that truly great adventure films exist outside of “Red Notice.”
Dwayne Johnson as John Hartley in a still from “Red Notice”
The Problem with Big Budgets
What’s the point of a massive budget if the action scenes (of which there are only a few) are poorly rendered with CGI? Why travel to different countries and boast about it in promotional materials, only to film the actors in close-up against a green screen for the entire movie? What’s the purpose of mentioning Nazi gold and Cleopatra’s myths if the plot focuses on Freudian psychology at a preschool level and Reynolds’ childhood traumas (much like another bad blockbuster with Ryan, “The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard”)? And why is the only unexpected plot twist predictable an hour in advance?
Gal Gadot as Sarah Black in a still from “Red Notice”
A Lack of Creativity
Every scene in “Red Notice” reminds us that this is a film made by people with a pathological aversion to creative risks and any form of creativity. Director Rawson Marshall Thurber, known for “Skyscraper” and “Central Intelligence,” delivers films that stand out for their resounding mediocrity, even within Dwayne Johnson’s less-than-stellar filmography. Johnson himself, having achieved stardom, seems to have completely abandoned any unconventional roles (no more crazy drug addicts from “Pain & Gain”). And Reynolds, since “Deadpool,” has never played anyone other than Ryan Reynolds. In comparison, Gal Gadot, with a single smirk throughout the film, almost seems interesting – although she doesn’t do anything particularly special either.
The Future of Blockbusters
Despite all the negativity, “Red Notice” is worth watching. Not for a good evening – only Reynolds’ quips provide some amusement, and even then, only one in ten lands – but to see what kind of blockbusters we can expect in the new era of streaming. “Bond” has ended, and it’s uncertain when (and how) it will return. Tom Cruise will soon be too old. Marvel got scared of Sam Raimi and is gradually moving to Disney+. Nolan has stopped making money. Villeneuve is more interested in looking at sand than making movies. Someday, maybe, George Miller will make a new “Mad Max,” if he has time. Big cinema is run by people who have no idea how to shoot action, and they ruin the efforts of their (probably very talented) stunt coordinators with poor editing. Only smaller films are trying, but they’ll never see such box office numbers and budgets. The plastic world has won.