Red One (2024)

‘Red One’ Delivers a Lump of Coal in Your Holiday Movie Stocking. Dwayne Johnson and director Jake Kasdan labor hard to make ‘Red One’ an instant Christmas classic, but it feels like the present nobody really wanted.

Not to be confused with Netflix’s ‘Red Notice,’ another algorithm-induced action movie starring Dwayne Johnson and a Marvel superhero, ‘Red One’ aims to be something for everyone: it’s not just an action movie, but it’s also trying to be a fantastical Christmas story and a heartwarming family yarn. As often happens, however, the effort to please all audience quadrants results in something bland, boring, and derivative.