Red Notice - How to underuse Hollywood's finest

'Red Notice' is one of those examples of when everything looks good one paper and yet somehow manages to fall short when it's put into practice.  I'm a big fan of Ryan Reynolds, Dwane Johnson and - as Wonder Woman at least - Gal Gadot.  So why wouldn't I be delighted to see them all on screen together for a cheeky little spy, heist, action movie that I don't even have to leave my lounge to watch?

Once upon a time if a film was released 'straight to video/DVD' (and in today's world, 'straight to whichever online streaming service has bought the rights') there was the belief that it would be some low budget forgettable outing with no real stars to speak of.  Well, they got the 'forgettable' bit right.

In short... the three stars all play themselves and phone their performances in, possibly just to collect the hefty paycheck (I hear this was one of the most expensive movies ever to be made directly for a streaming service).  It starts of with shades of 'Tango and Cash' where two opposite characters are falsely imprisoned and now have to work together to escape.  But there doesn't seem to be that much action in the first half of the film, instead choosing that (Marvel-style?) constant wise-cracking humour at every point.  I know the film isn't supposed to be taken seriously, but you really don't need one-liners in every conversation and it really does get a little tiring after a while.

The script then tries to do something original/memorable by making itself overly complicated and throw things in there that you won't see coming.  To be fair... with this one it probably succeeds as the plot turns (I'm not sure whether they're considered 'twists' or not!) are a part of the story you definitely won't see coming as they make no sense at all if you try to think back and recall what's led up to these bombshells.

When it comes to movies on streaming services that you're already paying for, I normally say that these sorts of films are worth a watch if you're a fan of either the genre or one of the main actors.  That's sort of applicable with 'Red Notice,' but there's probably so many other (and better!) action films (most likely from the eighties and nineties) on every streaming platform (or your DVD collection) anyway, that you might as well watch one of those.  I'm already forgetting what went on in this one.  Sorry, Hollywood - just because you get great actors doesn't make for a great film - you need to have a little bit more of an 'edge' to get that winning formula.

5/10 a hard trek, a bit like unicycling to Mordor and back