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RED DAWN (2012)Movie Reviews
Action adventure about a group of young American patriots who band together to liberate their town from invading foreign paratroopers. Cast:Chris Hemsworth, Adrianne Palicki, Josh Hutcherson, Josh Peck, Isabel Lucas, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Connor Cruise, Edwin Hodge, Alyssa Diaz, Brett Cullen, Michael Beach, Will Yun Lee, Matt Gerald, Kenneth Choi, Ron YuanDirector:Dan BradleyRelease Date:November 21, 2012DVD Release:March 5, 2013From:FilmDistrictRating:PG-13Length:1 hr. 54 min.
Red Dawn (2012) played to poor reviews. • Eric Eisenberg wrote for Cinema Blend, "...an uninspired mess.... The film has the structural integrity of a house after a category five tornado." • And Radheyan Simonpillai wrote in Toronto Now, "The action is a mediocre substitute for playing 'Call Of Duty.' " More Reviews Below...
Red Dawn (2012) Positive Reviews (41 Reviews, reviews below)
Mary Pols, Time: POOR "...plays like a hokey advertisement for the National Rifle Association, injected with high school pep rally enthusiasm.... so bad it's almost good..."(See all of Mary Pols's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 944 words, 11/21/12
Jake Coyle, Associated Press: POOR(cg) "...an ill-advised remake... the supreme example of Hollywood's Cold War nostalgia, when the Russkies offered up an easy, de facto villain."(See all of Jake Coyle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 579 words, 11/20/12
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: MODERATE(cg) "Under the direction of longtime stunt coordinator Dan Bradley ('The Bourne Ultimatum'), the cast looks pretty while playing with guns -- but nothing more."(See all of Lisa Schwarzbaum's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 206 words, 11/23/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: WEAK(cg) "...reassures us that an invasion by communist North Korea can be vanquished by members of a high school football team and their girlfriends..."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 641 words, 11/21/12
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: WEAK "...timid and unfocused. Reasonably dopey fun on its own, it simply can't stand up to the real-world issues it steps on like a land mine."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 441 words, 11/21/12
Kyle Smith, New York Post: WEAK(cg) "...the two new screenwriters' big ideas for freshening up the material are woeful.... The dull, predictable direction is the perfect match for a watery, nondescript cast."(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 554 words, 11/21/12
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: MODERATE(cg) "Many of the original film's booby-trap scenarios are repeated here, but without Milius' grandiosity and nihilism.... It's not a disaster. It's just drab."(See all of Michael Phillips's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 476 words, 11/21/12
Rafer Guzman, New York Newsday: MODERATE(cg) "...consistently goes soft... As empty entertainment, the movie is almost passable. But what's the point of a brighter, lighter 'Red Dawn'?"(See all of Rafer Guzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 295 words, 11/21/12
Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine: POOR "Watching a bunch of frantic chase scenes featuring characters you don't care about ends up feeling like a lot of noise and little else."(See all of Bilge Ebiri's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 654 words, 11/21/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: WEAK(cg) "...reassures us that an invasion by communist North Korea can be vanquished by members of a high school football team and their girlfriends..."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 641 words, 11/21/12
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: POOR "Single-mindedly action-oriented to the point where Milius's original seems ruminative... What high school quarterback would be wearing a Dinosaur Jr. shirt in 2012?"(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 278 words, 11/21/12
Liam Lacey, Toronto Globe & Mail: WEAK(cg) "...panders to the worst kind of racist and jingoist impulses, though the movie is so preposterously insincere, it feels like those adjectives should be in air quotes."(See all of Liam Lacey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 424 words, 11/21/12
Radheyan Simonpillai, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "...if you go in with low expectations, you might actually find this a decent distraction at times... The action is a mediocre substitute for playing 'Call Of Duty.' "(See all of Radheyan Simonpillai's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 204 words, 11/15/12
KEY CITIES (11 Reviews)
Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: WEAK(cg) "Ultimately, the problem is the same problem with the first one. Despite the more realistic battle scenes, nothing in it feels more fateful than a football game."(See all of Michael O'Sullivan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 622 words, 11/21/12
Stephen Whitty, New Jersey Star-Ledger: WEAK(cg) "For a movie that's supposed to be about bravery and independence, 'Red Dawn' doesn't have much of either.... there's no edge to anything..."(See all of Stephen Whitty's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 549 words, 11/21/12
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: POOR(cg) "The most striking thing about the film is not that it's dumb, but that it's unnecessary. And irrelevant. And makes no sense for 2012."(See all of Mick LaSalle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 503 words, 11/21/12
Soren Andersen, Seattle Times: WEAK(cg) "...a kiddie version of 'The Expendables.' It's all about the boom-boom... this new version literally waves the flag. Empty patriotism in an empty-headed movie."(See all of Soren Andersen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 339 words, 11/21/12
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: WEAK(cg) "This world is divided between the makers and the takers, and after just a few minutes of 'Red Dawn,' you'll realize there's not much more you can take."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 379 words, 11/21/12
Steve Persall, Tampa Bay Times: FAIR(cg) "...exactly who in this quiet suburb has anti-aircraft artillery ready to shoot down enemy planes?... After a while all you notice are the head-slapping moments..."(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 522 words, 11/21/12
Tom Long, Detroit News: MODERATE(cg) "Considering what a ridiculous boy's fantasy it is, and how wooden some of its actors are, 'Red Dawn' isn't that bad. OK, it is that bad. But it's kind of fun-bad..."(See all of Tom Long's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 323 words, 11/21/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (9 Reviews)
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: POOR "Single-mindedly action-oriented to the point where Milius's original seems ruminative... What high school quarterback would be wearing a Dinosaur Jr. shirt in 2012?"(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 278 words, 11/21/12
Eric Eisenberg, Cinema Blend: WEAK(cg) "...an uninspired mess.... The film has the structural integrity of a house after a category five tornado. The pacing is egregiously mishandled..."(See all of Eric Eisenberg's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 606 words, 11/20/12
Elise Nakhnikian, Slant: POOR(cg) "...too often tries to compensate for weak visuals by leaning on steroidal sounds... As one of the kids succinctly puts it: 'Dude, we're living Call of Duty. And it sucks.' "(See all of Elise Nakhnikian's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 580 words, 11/16/12
Radheyan Simonpillai, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "...if you go in with low expectations, you might actually find this a decent distraction at times... The action is a mediocre substitute for playing 'Call Of Duty.' "(See all of Radheyan Simonpillai's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 204 words, 11/15/12
Edward Adams, Atlanta Creative Loafing: POOR(cg) "...uninspired.... The theme of the American spirit gets drowned in syrupy character conflicts between brothers, love interests and loss."(See all of Edward Adams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 619 words, 11/21/12
Mark Jenkins, NPR: WEAK "...clunky... energetic but incoherent. The pace slows for the deaths of named characters, but the rest of the action could just as easily be break-dancing as combat."(See all of Mark Jenkins's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 588 words, 11/20/12
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: WEAK "...timid and unfocused. Reasonably dopey fun on its own, it simply can't stand up to the real-world issues it steps on like a land mine."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 441 words, 11/21/12
Hugh Ryan, Salon: POOR "There's an old military adage that says that an army is always still fighting their last war. Do we really need to be fighting the ones from 30 years ago?"(See all of Hugh Ryan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,188 words, 11/20/12
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Joe Leydon, Daily Variety: MODERATE "...delivers enough thrilling action sequences and rock-'em, sock-'em fantasy-fulfillment... actors must deliver dialogue that ranges from serviceable to risible."(See all of Joe Leydon's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 717 words, 09/27/12
Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Dan Bradley is a former stunt coordinator, which accounts for the well-staged action sequences that take up the bulk of the film's relatively brief 93-minute running time."(See all of Frank Scheck's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 541 words, 11/15/12
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: WEAK "...timid and unfocused. Reasonably dopey fun on its own, it simply can't stand up to the real-world issues it steps on like a land mine."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 441 words, 11/21/12
15.1 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Red Dawn (2012)'s reviews are separated by an average 15.1 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
Red Dawn (2012) (41 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Red Dawn (2012)'s reviews cover 77.4% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 20,529 words involume (average is 20,172 words). Length:The film's reviews average 501 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Red Dawn (2012) Coverage, Volume & Length (41 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 6.8 Hours Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Red Dawn (2012)'s reviews on average broke 6.8 hours before opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is Red Dawn (2012)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
Red Dawn (2012) (41 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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