Photo by:

“RED” offers plenty of laughs and explosions. Willis can still fight. Malkovich is nuts. Mirren takes the gold. But where in the world is Morgan Freeman?

“RED” has the perfect mix of action and comedy, at least after a few minutes into the movie.

Bruce Willis does a good job beating up bad guys, John Malkovich makes good laughs, and Helen Mirren provides the best scenes.

Willis plays retired CIA agent Frank Moses. After repeatedly calling Sarah (Mary-Louise Parker), a woman Frank has had a crush on for a long time, he finally gets the chance to meet her. But when assassins threaten him and Sarah, Frank rounds up the old gang to uncover a long-held government conspiracy.

The old gang includes Helen Mirren as Victoria, with Morgan Freeman and John Malkovich playing as Joe and Marvin, respectively. They all have fun blowing up sets and shooting at CIA agents.

The first 20 minutes is a bit less entertaining than the rest of the movie, because Mirren, Freeman and Malkovich are all absent. Fortunately, Karl Urban (who plays CIA agent William) and Willis help keep the beginning from getting too mediocre.

The action sequences are surprisingly brilliant. violent, yet funny. Seeing old people smacking around young assassins fails too get old throughout the movie.

The best action sequences come from Mirren.

As funny as some of her scenes are, Mirren’s best comes when she lets out bullets while wearing a dress. Mirren’s character is the coolest in the movie, followed closely by Malkovich’s Marvin.

The group of agents travel all over the world, so the scenery always feels new and exciting. Whether running between exploding freight containers or sniping enemies around a snowy mansion, the audience will not get bored.

In fact, the only real problem with “RED” is that it feels too short, even at nearly two hours.

Some characters do not get much time on screen. The most notable instances are with the antagonists and Morgan Freeman.

Freeman is simply not in the movie as much as the other actors, and it will be a major disappointment for his fans. Nevertheless, he’s great when onscreen.

Once in awhile, some of the information passing between characters and viewers veers away from the better parts of the movie, but this is only a slight problem.

Overall, the story is simple, fun, and sometimes a bit unexpected.