So I finally saw Red Dawn (2012).

[Dash87]

What an unwatchable mess. No wonder it was shelved for years. I wish it stayed there.

While the first one was campy and beyond unrealistic to the point that it was hilarious, this one just sucked. It lacked the cheesiness of the first movie, but wasn't interesting either.

Overall, a waste of time. I admit I "speed watched" it, but I didn't seem to miss anything. Watching this entire movie would have been too torturous.

[Aristus]

1. Yeah, 'cause those intrepid North Koreans could just, you know,

take over an entire continent, no problem...

I liked the original when I was, like, 15 years old. But anyone older than that who sees any value in it (other than watching the young Lea Thompson and the recognizable Jennifer Grey) clearly has some intellectual and emotional growing to do...

[Dash87]

2. It's a guilty pleasure for bad movie enthusiasts.

I love the campiness and Cold War era exaggeration. It's so ridiculous that it's good.

[Aristus]

4. One of my many reasons for being disappointed in the original film

was due to the fact that I was developing a fascination for Soviet military hardware at the time, and looked forward to seeing Soviet-built tanks, etc, in the film.

I was disappointed that the tanks they showed were mock-ups of the real thing; although I remember being impressed that the designer of the mockups remembered that Soviet-built tanks have forward-opening turret hatches.

However, since the Gulf War, the capture of Soviet-built Iraqi tanks and APC's have made them more familiar to enthusiasts in the US.

[gejohnston]

5. It was fun to watch before I went in the military but afterwards I couldn't help but ponder:

Last edited Tue Oct 8, 2013, 08:55 PM - Edit history (1)

Why would the Soviets establish an airhead in some small town in Colorado? Did that platoon get blown off course or what?
Were Soviet paratoopers so poorly trained and disciplined to start mowing down non combatants for no reason?
These kids can't be the only partisans running around, supply lines would be cut off, so nothing for the gunships, ammo, would reach the Cubans and Russians there. IIRC, the Soviets didn't have much in the way of strategic airlift, and where are they going to land an An-225 in the middle of nowhere? Not only would their troops be spread out too thin, being the target of every store clerk turned resistance fighter in addition to remaining defending regular army forces it would be a logistical nightmare.
BTW, if these guys were such great marksmen, why were they spraying automatic fire everywhere? You would think someone would sneak in the town library and read up on how the French Underground operated.

Or do I take boilerplate fiction too seriously?

[Dash87]

6. Thinking about the original too much will make your head hurt. Everything about it is ridiculous.

Seriously, there's not one plausible or believable scene in it. John Milius (sp?) admitted that it was an unrealistic daydream of his. A lot of 1980's movies were dopey, though, which at least gives it an excuse. Red Dawn (2012) doesn't have an excuse and just sucks.

[gejohnston]

9. you will appreciate this

http://www.cracked.com/article_18812_5-reasons-red-dawn-secretly-subversive-anti-war-film.html

Remakes always suck compared to the original. If the original sucked, the remake will suck even more.
So, how does North Korea have enough gas to invade us? Reminds me of the Rambo movie set in Afghanistan. When the movie played in the USSR, the people who dubbed it in Russian had them as "German troops" wearing Soviet uniforms.

[Dash87]

10. lol I remember seeing that.

I would also like to add,

#6 - The entire American Southwest is so pathetic that they did nothing to repel the Soviet invasion. Even worse, they're eating each other!

[gejohnston]

12. I embarrased the crap out of by GF

watching it once. It was after getting out of the army, and about to go into the air force. I busted out laughing at the ambush scene on a steep hill. I explained that the Russians would should have hit the gas and not jumped out, or at least that is what we do. A more effective way of stopping the convoy would have been a single round in the lead vehicle's engine block or radiator. That was the last time we watched the movie together.

But North Korea? Sure this isn't a remake of [iThe Mouse that Roared]?

[pinboy3niner]

15. You're a 2-branch vet?

More power to you.

I know a woman who left her service after her rape, then enlisted in another branch after 9/11.

And I know one vet who did three branches. That one still leaves me puzzled.

[sharp_stick]

25. I love that n/t

[NuclearDem]

29. Well, that was actually the premise of a fairly so-so video game that came out around the same time.

It actually gave a backstory where North Korea started expanding militarily throughout East Asia, and a Saudi-Iranian conflict essentially paralyzed the US.

It wasn't much of a game to speak of, but at least they actually tried to make it plausible.

[Paladin]

7. Quit thinking about it.

Just because the bad ol' Russkies implemented gun control in the little Colorado town, doesn't mean it was a movie worthy of any extended consideration.....

[gejohnston]

8. I didn't say anything about guns

I was talking about military stuff. BTW, I doubt the Soviets would know what a ATF form 4473 was, most people in the US don't even if they filled one out.
I have read in different places that the Allies, including us, did similar gun confiscations as we advanced in Germany and Italy. During occupation, not even the polizi carried guns on duty. Private gun ownership was legalized once again in 1956 when they reverted back to the 1928 law. Strict laws didn't come about until the early 1970s because of terrorist groups like Red Faction Army etc.

[Paladin]

16. You didn't HAVE to say anything about guns.

84% of your DU posts are lodged in the Gun Control/RKBA group. Your views are well-known. And let me save you the research time: the original "Red Dawn" was a huge hit amongst the Gun Enthusiast crowd. John Milius has some talent as a film maker, but he sure as hell didn't show it in that flick---watch his "The Wind and the Lion" instead; first-rate movie, with plenty of guns to look at, as well.....

[Tuesday Afternoon]

17. we are in the Lounge now. Do you follow ge around ...? some would consider that stalking ---

just saying.

[Paladin]

18. Wishful thinking on your part. (nt)

[Tuesday Afternoon]

19. just an observation from someone who has seen both of your names appear in RKBA because they

happen to post there, too. Making the comment without the implication that one is NOT a Democrat for posting in there.

capiche' ??

[Paladin]

21. I gave up any regular posting in RKBA a long time ago. (nt)

[Tuesday Afternoon]

22. all the more reason that what you said above is unkosher and somewhat ...

tacky.

but, you knew it when you posted it.

Have a good day, Paladin ... odd name - given your comments but, I think that has been discussed before.

Peace.

[gejohnston]

28. cool story,

but I doubt that I'm that famous/infamous, and I don't know what it has to do with the topic at hand.
I'll be sure to check out the flick.

[Dash87]

11. Bring me Form-blah-blah - we'll go kill all of the gun owners, which is basically everyone!

I love cheap political commentary insertions in inappropriate movie situations. Like they would even care when the entire friggin' American Army is hammering at them on the front lines. No wonder they lost.

[Downtown Hound]

24. Not defending the movie or anything (it was pretty bad)

But they did say that it was actually a Russian invasion of the U.S. East Coast with the North Koreans (supplied by the Russians) occupying the Pacific Northwest.

It was actually supposed to originally be China that invaded the U.S in the remake. But due to either pressure from the Chinese government or the filmmakers desire for more money by access to growing Chinese film markets (take your pick, I've heard both theories) it was changed to North Korea.

The reasons the movie was shelved for years is because first of all, MGM (the studio that produced the original Red Dawn and owned the rights to it) went bankrupt, leaving the film in legal limbo for years. And the second is because they had to go back and digitally alter much of the footage to turn the Chinese invaders into North Koreans.

Pretty much any way you slice it, every scenario they present is pretty ridiculous. Not Russia, not China, and certainly not North Korea, has the war machine to invade and occupy the United States.

[warrior1]

3. I never saw the first either

[OriginalGeek]

13. lol, me and a girl I liked skipped school (Vo-tech)

to go see the original. It was our first date.

Last July we celebrated our 27th anniversary.

I re-watched the original on Netflix a couple months ago and laughed all the way through it - never saw most of it the first time. was busy with this girl I liked.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

20. Thread Winner!!

[davidpdx]

14. From what I've heard it isn't worth watching

The world is a different place then in the 80's.

[Taverner]

23. "Well yeah, there are rules here. This isn't Nam!"

You do know Walter Sobchek wrote the original

[Kaleva]

26. Haters are going to hate

[Dash87]

27. Dan Bradley is going to show up at my door now and pull a "Jay and Silent Bob."