Many Prime Video viewers are Rock-ing around the Christmas tree as the festive season continues – by making his box office disappointmentRed Onea massive chart-topping hit. The loud, proud musclebound movie told the same old story as many ofDwayne Johnson’s films, withRed Onebeing put straight on the naughty list of critics, delivering a hugely positive Popcornmeter on Rotten Tomatoes, and becoming a flop in theaters thanks mostly to its astronomical budget.
But just like most movies these days, Johnson is now back on top after what appears to be a decisive victory on its Prime Video debut. The film has easily pushed aside the meager competition, which mostly includes older movies, to outpace the nearest movie with five-times the viewership worldwide. Perhaps this is not that surprising, as Johnson is always a big draw on streaming, but its theatrical release coming in mid-November suggested that people would also not have to wait long to see it drop on streaming either.
Red Onemade $160 million at the box office, but with a $250 million budget, it was always going to be a tough ask for the film to make back its money considering The Rock’s financial stats for his movies. Outside big franchise outings such asFast & FuriousandJumanji, Johnson’s numbers on average fall somewhere in the region of $200-$275 million, butRed Onefailed to break into this area despite earning a 90% score from Rotten Tomatoes audiences.
What is ‘Red One’About?
There have been many movies about Santa not being able to deliver his presents on Christmas Eve due to one catastrophe or another. This time around, an unconventionally buff Claus (played by the ever-popular J.K. Simmons) finds himself in trouble after being kidnapped, and the only person able to launch a rescue attempt is Johnson’s Callum Drift, the head of North Pole security – who could have probably avoided the whole debacle if he had been doing his job right in the first place. Teaming up with hacker Jack O’Malley (Chris Evans) to track down the lost gift-giver, the action comes thick and fast as the pair take on evil snowmen, Krampus, and more in plenty of crowd-pleasing punch-ups in the snow.
The film plays out pretty much like every other Johnson vehicle (not surprising considering the story comes from his Seven Bucks partner Hiram Garcia, with script by Fast franchise veteran Chris Morgan) and that is exactly why it has pleased those who eat up everything The Rock cooks. However, those who have become a little bored with brash,CGI-driven superhero-style movieswill not find anything earth-shattering here to make them sit up and pay attention.
The Real Myth Behind ‘Red One’s Grýla, Explained
‘Red One’s Grýla has been around a lot longer than you might think.
As Christmas fast approaches,Red One’s release strategy was as obvious as the plot of the movie. Its cinematic release was always secondary to its Prime Video debut, which was positioned at the perfect time to ensure the film hit the streaming market at exactly the right time to have the biggest impact. In that, Amazon MGM Studio has excelled.
After Santa Claus is kidnapped, the North Pole’s Head of Security (Dwayne Johnson) must team up with a notorious bounty hunter (Chris Evans) in a thrilling, globe-spanning mission to save Christmas. This action-packed holiday adventure mixes comedy and festive magic, with an ensemble cast that includes Lucy Liu and J.K. Simmons.
