DVD Red Eagle

Why indeed? How could the maker of a fantastic movie as Tears of the Black Tiger end up doing such a cliché, dull, and idiotic action flick? Not even the action is well directed, suffering from the jerky-camera syndrome of this day and age. The script is such a mess, why the year 2016? The eco-friendly message is forced and preachy, the characters are one dimensional, from the goofy detective to the bad guys, and the pacing is off and all over the place. Then comes the ending and slaps you in the frigging face. Sorry mr wisit but if you need two entire movies to tell such a broken story you are doing something wrong.

Is not a movie you hate so much as a movie you want to pat in the back. We really don't need another "gritty" reboot of a super hero, we just need a well made action/adventure flick.

To begin with, being a superhero fan in general and a fan of Asian movies will definitely help as to whether or not the viewer will find this film worthwhile. I happen to be both, and for the most part, I enjoyed this decently done movie.

First, the cons: The plot, mainly involving the protest of a nuclear power plant being constructed, was somewhat interesting, but since the movie is over two hours long, it does drag on at times and by the end, you just don't care what happens all that much. Time seems to jump around a lot too. The story includes multiple flashbacks, most of them are to help establish Red Eagle's background, which is fine, but they occur too often throughout the movie and some are just a tad overdone. The acting isn't all that great either. There's really zero chemistry between Red Eagle (Ananda Everingham) and his "companion" Vasana Tienpradab (Yarinda Bunnag), and after they pull off this awkward, rushed, no real nudity, sex scene in a huge refrigerator full of ice blocks, it looks like they're going to high five when he drops her off.

Last, the pros: Clearly, the action. You can never have enough action, but it's peppered throughout the movie just enough to remind you that you're still watching an action movie. At times, the cinematography, the lighting, the color, and the special effects are spectacular. Occasionally, when Red Eagle breaks an enemy bone somewhere, you'll see an in-motion X-ray of the actual bone breaking like in Romeo Must Die and Final Destination 4. One of the high points of the movie, about halfway in, is when Red Eagle meets up with an assassin called Black Devil that was hired to kill him. A long, awesome fight sequence ensues; complete with a chase over building tops, a well executed sword fight, and a showdown on the ceiling of a falling elevator. Also, the few, unexpected Red Eagle's gadgets that spring up from time to time serve as a nice Batman-like touch. A big refresher too is the fact that Red Eagle doesn't hold back on any moral issues when fighting the bad guys. They don't have their hands cuffed, but cut off rather, and a high amount of blood-soaked fatalities spread over most of the battles.

I must admit, some action movies, after watching once throughout, I will watch again, but just skip through the talking to just the action itself. This is one of those type of films. I still did enjoy the entire film overall and do recommend it, especially to anyone to enjoys the crime fighting genre. So give it a try and once you get through it, you'll see what I mean.