Red One Parents Guide

I wrote this Red One Parents Guide to help you know what is in the movie. All opinions are my own.

I just got to screen the Red One movie that comes out in theaters on November 15, 2024 and stars Dwayne Johnson, Chris Evans, Lucy Liu, Kiernan Shipka, Bonnie Hunt, Kristofer Hivju, Nick Kroll, Wesley Kimmel and J.K. Simmons. The trailers looks really good, but sometimes you worry that you see all the good parts in the trailer and then you are disappointed when you actually see the movie. THIS IS NOT THE CASE. While there are some funny things given away in the trailers, there is so much to this movie and it is packed with humor. There are also some great lessons about love and life and being better.

MY REVIEW OF RED ONE

The movie starts two days before Christmas, with Santa and his team in the mall, where kids and adults alike are waiting to visit with Santa and tell him what they want for Christmas. There are a lot of funny elements here, but also some rude comments (people mad at each other about buying the last gift, etc.) and an innuendo or two. These are all funny in the context of the movie.

Moving forward, Santa gets kidnapped, and the E.L.F. team enlists the help of Jack O’Malley (Chris Evans) to go a track him down. Jack together with Callum (Dwyane Johnson) goes on an adventure all over the world to look for Nick (played by J.K. Simmons). Even a visit with Krampus (played by Kristofer Hivju).

There are a lot of fun original elements in this movie. I personally feel like that’s hard to accomplish these days, so it was fun to watch and not be like “oh. been there done that”. There is funny moments, serious moments, heartfelt, teaching, learning, loving, growing, and tenderness. You will get all the feels – but it’s not emotional (or rather for most people I don’t think you will cry). Just a lot of feel-goods!

The storyline moves along beautifully. It starts out entertaining and engaging and stays that way. You don’t ever get a “move it along” feeling. The on-screen chemistry is great and Evans and Johnson are very good together.

Now with all that being said, I didn’t like a couple of things. The word God is used 10 or more times in different variations. I feel like this makes it less family-friendly. There is also a beach scene where that shows 2-3 girls’ backsides and they are wearing thong-style bikinis. You can read more about both of these below in our Red One Parents Guide.

Red One opens in theaters on November 15, 2024

Red One is rated PG-13 for action, some violence, and language. It runs for 2hr 3m.

There are no end-credit scenes for Red One.

Sex & Nudity & Innuendos – 2/5 – There is also a beach scene where it shows 2-3 girls’ backsides and they are wearing thong-style bikinis, so it’s basically backside nudity. The front isn’t much better in their skimpy little risque bikini tops and skimpy bottoms. It’s not a zoom-in focus, but it’s not a quick thing either. A couple of seconds on screen or more each time. It also shows a man glancing at their backsides. There is also different comments like got a lot of balls, Magic Mike Christmas brigade, rip their carrots off, etc. All are humorous and not overly crude.

Violence & Gore – 2/5 – This is an action movie, so there is a lot of fighting. But it is exaggerated fantasy violence, so people crash through walls, break things, etc. You see them fight giant snowmen, and both guys take some hard hits. Krampus hits people and they fly. He and Callum (Johnson) have a hitting contest, then a fight breaks out. There is also a big battle towards the end. There is no blood detail, or really any injuries, etc that are shown.

Profanity, – 2/5 – 10+ uses of God, Lord, OMG. 7+ uses of shit (and variants), 8+ uses of hell, 2+ uses of ass (hole), 1+ uses of damn, 1 not very well cut off use of “What the actual FUC*”. Also use of words like dickhead, morons, pain in the butt, imbecile.

Alcohol, Drugs & Smoking – 1/5 – A character is seen drinking in a couple of scenes. He is also hungover in one, asking for Aspirin.

Frightening & Intense Scenes – 2/5 – The demonic creatures in Krampus’ lair are pretty disturbing to look at, as is he himself. A man is possessed by a witch, and while it could be frightening to younger viewers, it’s really more humorous.

Other things to note – This is rated PG-13 for a reason. There are some scarier elements to it as well as language and some risquely dressed females. But the overall theme of the movie is fantastic. See the good in everyone, because everyone does have good in them.

Red One is a great action movie. Some scarier/more intense scenes may scare younger viewers. Overall we laughed a lot and really enjoyed the storyline, acting, and theme. Red One is a great movie for the holidays!

Red One Parents Guide

About Red One:

After Santa Claus – Code Name: RED ONE – is kidnapped, the North Pole’s Head of Security (Dwayne Johnson) must team up with the world’s most infamous bounty hunter (Chris Evans) in a globe-trotting, action-packed mission to save Christmas.

Directed By: Jake Kasdan

Produced By: Hiram Garcia, Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia, Chris Morgan, Jake Kasdan, Melvin Mar

Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Chris Evans, Lucy Liu, Kiernan Shipka, Bonnie Hunt, Kristofer Hivju,

Nick Kroll, Wesley Kimmel and J.K. Simmons

Rated: PG-13