Red State (2011)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Randy T

  
  Obviously inspired by Rev. Fred Phelps (Topeka, Kansas) and David Koresh (Waco, Texas), Kevin Smith's <i>Red State</i> is an indictment of cults, zealots and law enforcement tactics. Nicely crafted and superbly cast. Highly recommended.

• Matthew R

  
  Most of the current college generation is aware of the large filmography of director Kevin Smith, bringing many of us such cult favorites as Mall Rats, Clerks and Dogma. However, the most recent work of Kevin Smith was the independent film Red State. Unlike all of his previous films,… More
  Most of the current college generation is aware of the large filmography of director Kevin Smith, bringing many of us such cult favorites as Mall Rats, Clerks and Dogma. However, the most recent work of Kevin Smith was the independent film Red State. Unlike all of his previous films, Smith created a horror-action film that has a bite of its own that makes what I can consider to be the strongest film of his whole career. Released in 2011, the film played in very select cities and its theatrical run was brief. This is mainly due to the fact that Smith self-distributed the film after âthe film played to a good but not great reaction in its world premiere (at Sundance) and announced to the audience (after auctioning the film to himself for $20) that he would release the film on his own said LA Times reporter John Horn. It is quite true that the critical reaction to the film has been mixed, splitting the reaction amongst critics down the middle, however I believe Red State is a wonderfully executed film. Shot on RED-ONE Digital cameras, the film is an overblown satirical commentary on the members of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas. Ironically enough, the Westboro church members are actually mentioned by name in the film as a comparison to the fictional fanatical church members in the film. The movie starts out following a trio of teenage boys searching through local online sex lines, trying to find loose local women. They trek out to the woman's house (a mobile home in the woods) and then, while consuming the woman's alcohol, are drugged and pass out. They awake during a fanatical church sermon by the main antagonist of the film, Abin Cooper (played by Michael Parks), which I now consider to be one of the scariest performances put on screen in recent years. The rest of the film depicts the efforts of these boys to flee the compound and the fervent beliefs of all of the church members referring to homosexuality and its subsequent effects on humanity. With superb cast members such as John Goodman (The Big Lebowski), Patrick Fischler (Mulholland Drive), Kevin Pollak (The Usual Suspects) and Melissa Leo (The Fighter), and a range of various other talent, the acting in this film is realistic, well blocked and very captivating. These performances are helped along by the brilliant cinematography by David Klein, which creates a taught and anxious setting where audiences are taken to face the horrors that the characters are living through, and we suffer along with them, whether we want to or not. All of these elements (along with superb art design by Susan Bolles ("Scrubs") and Cabot McMullen ("Spin City")) Kevin Smith directs his screenplay extraordinarily well, which contain very length and passionate monologues, and very testing scenes of violence and torture. However, unlike the many works of directors Eli Roth (Hostel) and Darren Lynn Bousman (Saw Franchise), these scenes are not placed to get solely a shock factor, they comment on the dangers of unchecked ideology in the face of fanaticism, similar to the tyrannical ways of Jim Jones hold over the People's Temple. It is scary, realistic, and wickedly funny when it wants to be, thrilling and complex. Are there elements that could use work? Of course, as any movie would say, but what Red State does well, it does it extremely well. A film that so many have ignored for the past year, it is a movie that can soothe the wants and tastes of many a movie fan.

• Spencer S

  
  It was a good honest try, it really was, for Kevin Smith, writer and director of so many slacker comedies from the past decade that reflect heavy dialogue and a knowledge of a people who he himself claims to not be. He delves again into an area he knows nothing about with this sharp… More
  It was a good honest try, it really was, for Kevin Smith, writer and director of so many slacker comedies from the past decade that reflect heavy dialogue and a knowledge of a people who he himself claims to not be. He delves again into an area he knows nothing about with this sharp commentary on something that has become a focal point to many of these unpredictable horror films coming out as of late. This wasn't ultimately a stretch of the imagination, and I think people give Smith far too much credit for something that has been played out, and so much better, in so many other indie horror films. The reason I see so much potential for Smith in the coming years and maybe reimagining this genre, is because he really does know his dialogue, however crude and eclectic. He makes these characters really pop, well, except for the three boys who seem snatched from all his other films, but since they aren't the focal point of the film I give forgiveness easily. What also sets this film apart is the amazing cast that was assembled for this. We've got John Goodman of all people, who is one of the best supporting, or leading, actors of our time, and remains the one lasting impression I took away from this. He's tortured, but not in a maudlin way, he's a strict G-Men, but doesn't overcompensate. He's just the right level of everything, and he lends the most of himself. Other amazing performances come from the incomparable Melissa Leo as a Christian cult fanatic, Michael Parks as their homicidal leader, Stephen Root as the guilty sheriff, and Kyle Gallner as one of three boys who are captured. No, I don't believe this is a direct middle finger to organized religion, but just a convenient setting for a story about a worshipping bunch of living martyrs who do horrible things to people and believe in them wholeheartedly. It loses it's horror by being tame at many points, including using guns as their weapons of choice. What's so horrific about a piece of machinery that resides in many homes in America? It's not very graphic, or horrible such as the over the top Hostel and the psychological Audition. I would give it a watch nonetheless, in order to appreciate a filmmaker taking a chance.

• Emily A

  
  Ooh. This movie's got problems. I don't think Kevin Smith really gets horror, you know? For example, monsters in horror movies can be armed any number of cruel garden tools or implements with which to visit pain upon the flesh of the unwary. Guns are pretty much the absolute… More
  Ooh. This movie's got problems. I don't think Kevin Smith really gets horror, you know? For example, monsters in horror movies can be armed any number of cruel garden tools or implements with which to visit pain upon the flesh of the unwary. Guns are pretty much the absolute least scary weapons they could wield. Imagine that you've escaped attacks from a werewolf, a bunch of Cenobites and Leslie Vernon, then you're confronted by an armed tactical forces guy who's screaming at you. Comparatively, he just ain't scary. This movie needed more pain and terror - and interesting plot twists - and fewer long-ass Hellfire sermons and protracted gunfights. Smith's distinctive dialogue is second to none, but he really drops the ball when it comes down to coming up with cool ways of freaking out an audience. This movie is a bit of a mess which is a shame, because it could have been way better.

• ♥˩ƳИИ &

  
  Cast: Michael Parks, John Goodman, Melissa Leo, Kyle Gallner, Michael Angarano, Nicholas Braun, Stephen Root, Kerry Bishé, Kevin Pollak, Marc Blucas, Kevin Alejandro, Anna Gunn Director: Kevin Smith Summary: Director Kevin Smith puts a unique spin on the horror genre in this… More
  Cast: Michael Parks, John Goodman, Melissa Leo, Kyle Gallner, Michael Angarano, Nicholas Braun, Stephen Root, Kerry Bishé, Kevin Pollak, Marc Blucas, Kevin Alejandro, Anna Gunn Director: Kevin Smith Summary: Director Kevin Smith puts a unique spin on the horror genre in this tale of hormonal urges gone awry. Three high school boys answer an online ad from a woman seeking wild sex and soon find themselves in the hands of some dangerous religious zealots. My Thoughts: "This is an perfect example why people fear church, not God, but church. Religion is strong in this film and so is a harsh look at what the government is capable of. I didn't think you could be so scared of a preacher man, but then I watched Michael Parks as Abin Cooper, quite frightening. I've red comments about people saying it's an anti-christian film. I disagree. I think it's a film based on some people who take their religous beleifs too far. I heard that the Westboro Baptist Church picketed every screening and that Kevin Smith actually gave them tickets to see the film. I think that was brilliant. They have their rights to preach and believe what they will, but doing it at funerals is just wrong. Kevin Smith really has stepped out of his norm with this film, and I'd like to see more. The film is thought-provoking, darkly funny, and as twisted as one gets. The great cast and fantastic acting really brings this indie horror/thriller to life. It's definitely one people are going to either love or hate."

• Daniel P

  
  As the front cover says: "An unlikely film from that Kevin Smith." I enjoyed that Smith branched out, but his edits looked cheap, and some of the dialogue was overdone. Where he got it right, though, was in the monologues he wrote for the leader of the ultra-Christian sect… More
  As the front cover says: "An unlikely film from that Kevin Smith." I enjoyed that Smith branched out, but his edits looked cheap, and some of the dialogue was overdone. Where he got it right, though, was in the monologues he wrote for the leader of the ultra-Christian sect at Cooper's Dell; filtered through the gigantic performance Michael Parks gives, they really bring the insanity and the manipulation to life. With fun small parts by Stephen Root and Kevin Pollak, plus John Goodman as an angry ATF agent, there's a lot going for this film, but the religious zealots are just too two-dimensional to take the film seriously. Lots of good lines and guns going off, but nothing too special going on here.

• Anthony L

  
  Red State is a strange one and a hard film to rate, it certainly isn't Dogma 2 - which I was kind of expecting. Kevin Smith has said that what he was trying to achieve with this film was a level of uncomfortableness. He has said that it's like 'Going to sit on a chair… More
  Red State is a strange one and a hard film to rate, it certainly isn't Dogma 2 - which I was kind of expecting. Kevin Smith has said that what he was trying to achieve with this film was a level of uncomfortableness. He has said that it's like 'Going to sit on a chair and just as you are about to sit, I turn it over and you sit on one of the legs, then I turn it over again and the process continues' - unfortunately, he misses the point that after a while, the fact that you know not to expect a predictable storyline, makes it predictable. Anyway, it is unpredictable, original and interesting. It switches from one genres to the next, which I have to say I found refreshing, why do films/stories have to stick to one genres? OK, so QT and Rodriguez did it in From Dusk till Dawn long before, as have other directors but Red State is still pretty individual. It certainly wasn't what I was expecting from a Kevin Smith film. His heart, and more importantly, his head is in the right place. I prefer Lars Von Triers school of thought though, 'A film should be like a stone in your shoe' bit I think they are essentially saying the same thing, Kevin Smith is just a little more brash. I like the way they send up Fred Phelps, a character far more frightening than Freddy Kruger or Micheal Myers - Michael Parks's performance is terrifyingly good, he leads a really good cast who are all on top form. The Westboro Baptist Church actually toured with the film and picketed at every screening, you can't buy publicity like that, which was lucky for Smith as it was pretty much a 99.9% independant movie that only made money as it toured the contry so he was welcoming of any publisity he could get. I liked Red State, I think the independant film making aspect of it, the genres twisting and the religoues and political issues it raises make it very original and interesting, at times it's more 'interesting' than entertaining but credit where it's due, this film deserves recognition. It does depend on your train of thought as to wether you like this film though, middle America scares the hell out of me and it's always easy to see things when your looking from the outside, but I get it but then will the people it's aimed at?

• Chris W

  
  Kevin Smith's 10th, and second to final film is definitely an interesting one. For a few reasons. For one, it's a genre hopper and unlike anything he's done before. It's also a return to his roots in that it's a true independent film in the sense that… More
  Kevin Smith's 10th, and second to final film is definitely an interesting one. For a few reasons. For one, it's a genre hopper and unlike anything he's done before. It's also a return to his roots in that it's a true independent film in the sense that it's self promoted, had no ad campaign, and shot over 25 days and had a budget of somewhere around $4 Million. The film starts off in rather typical Smith fashion with three vulgar horny teens on the prowl trying to arrange group sex with a woman online. When they go to meet up with her, that's when things get nuts. Turns out she a member of a group of psychotic fundamentalist religious extremists a la Fred Phelps and Westboro Baptist Church, and the three teens have been lured into a trap set by the church to demonstrate the act of righteous action. Word gets out about the disappearance of the three and soon the ATF are on the scene and the film shifts again into a full blown showdown reminiscent of notorious incidents at Ruby Ridge and Waco. So, there you go: sex shenanigans, to a horror type of thing, to an action flick. All in all, it's best to just call this a thriller, given the shifting tone of things. I kinda liked the left turns this makes, similar to From Dusk Till Dawn, though not as fun or strong overall. Also, the film isn't funny. It's not supposed to be. There were maybe a couple of ties I got somewhat tickled, but it was of the gallows variety of humor, and probably not intended, but not in the bad kind of unintentional laughter type of way. The film has a lot of neat and good things going for it. It's a great concept for a thriller, and, even though religious nuts are an easy target, there's still enough in the well to make for great discourse and discussion. As per usual though, Smith is better with the ideas than with the execution. He does a decent enough job though, even though the end result is still a flawed mixed bag. I'll start with the bad so I can end strong. Smith's films are talky. This is no secret. This one is too, maybe a little too talky for its own good. The sermon that serves as the centerpiece is great though, that's not where the film is too talky. Where the film struggles the most if with the conclusion. It ends rather abruptly and there's way too much exposition to explain how it concludes, but even then some of the specifics are kidn of neat. It jsut needed to be more tidy and show far more than tell. It's an uneven film, but that's hard to fault too much since genre shifting is involved. Still though, Smith's been doing this long enough to have learned something about filmmaking by now. Okay, here's where the film works: great concept, great cast, strong performances. Michael Parks is a notable character actor, but this is a real showcase for his talents that will hopefully lead him to more prominent and substantial roles. He's chillingly effective as the hateful church leader Abin Cooper and makes for a compelling antagonist. Melissa Leo is also good, though perhaps a tad overboard as his nutty daughter Sara who lures the boys in and gets the film going. John Goodman is quite strong as the ATF agent in charge of bringing the church down. Even though the diasppearance of the boys is somewhat important, the film points out that the church was already being targeted, and the part with the boys is more of a catalyst. Stephen Root is decent as a local sherrif, Kyle Gallner is fine as one of the three teens, and Kerry Brishe is good as one of the church followers who actually seems sympathetic. That's another thing. This film boldly decides to have basically no characters that are really all that sympathetic and likeable. Sure, it makes the film harder to relate to, as well as harder to care about the characters, but in a way, it seems more realistic that way, and adds an interesting dimension of moral ambiguity that just further strengthens the film's "interesting" level. All in all, this is a tough nut to crack. I should probably dock this by a half star, as it doesn't totally come together and work as a coherent whole, but I'll be nice and give it some credit becuase it is an experiment, and sees Smith trying to branch out and do somethign different. Plus, it is very compelling, has osme really good performances, and it's cool seeing the film keep you guessing with the shifts.

• Summer W

  
  It wasn't without its flaws, but overall, Red State is pretty decent. Worth a look.

• A.D. V

  
  Smith should stick to comedy such as it is. His idea of tension is bland, his character development is non-existent and it's so clear he had no idea how to end this film. The acting however is wonderful and I quite enjoyed watching the deranged Parks as well as Leo and Goodman.

• Mark R

  
  While some would argue that a truly great filmmaker is to be able to adapt their skills to almost any story, certain filmmakers seem to work best by locking themselves into a singular style, which they merely tweak here and there with each new film. For the last two decades, no… More
  While some would argue that a truly great filmmaker is to be able to adapt their skills to almost any story, certain filmmakers seem to work best by locking themselves into a singular style, which they merely tweak here and there with each new film. For the last two decades, no director has been a better example of the latter type than Kevin Smith. To describe the type of films he makes, perhaps the simplest description is this: he makes â~Kevin Smith moviesâ(TM). Low-budget, dialogue heavy low-brow comedy is his bread and butter, and on the few occasions where heâ(TM)s deviated from his formula (2004â²s Jersey Girl, 2010â²s Cop Out), the results have been mixed at best. With Red State however, Smith smashes all preconcieved notions about what he is capable of as a director, delivering an intense, fast-paced thriller. Red State feels like a film from an ambitious first time director, and in a sense it almost is. This is not a â~Kevin Smith movieâ(TM), and precisely that reason makes it Smithâ(TM)s most interesting film in years. Thatâ(TM)s not to say that Red State is a great movie, or even a good one. The story begins with three teenagers lured into temptation and subsequently captured by the Five Points Church, an extremist religious group led by the charismatic Abin Cooper (Michael Parks), and builds to a Branch Davidian style standoff between the church and authorities. Drawing comparison with David Koreshâ(TM)s tragic cult and, most obviously, the Westboro Baptist Church was clearly Smithâ(TM)s intent, yet he makes it clear that Cooper is neither Koresh nor even Westboro leader Fred Phelps. Cooper and his family are the terrifying extreme of two of right-wing Americaâ(TM)s most dangerous fascinations: faith and firearms. Itâ(TM)s certainly inflammatory subject matter, yet Smith chooses to point the finger even further, implicating not only Cooperâ(TM)s warped ideas in the violence that occurs, but the authorities, in the form of the ATF, as well. The issues Smith wants to address are ripe for analysis, but having them all crammed in to a relatively brief 88 minutes unfortunately dilutes some of the filmâ(TM)s impact. Red Stateâ~s conclusion is also sure to divide opinion, as Smith himself seems to be unsure how to end the siege at the church and resorts to a ham-fisted deus ex machina ending that kills the suspense he built so well. There are moments of greatness in Red State however. Parksâ(TM) performance as Cooper is captivating as much as it is frightening, and the long sermon he delivers in the middle of the film is genuinely chilling. Just like a church member who stares raptly as Cooper quietly and calmly lectures on the evils in society, you just cannot take your eyes off Parks, a perfect piece of casting. Technically, Smithâ(TM)s direction is also something of a revelation. Never before has it seemed like he was even attempting to inject any dynamic style into the look of his work, yet with Red State Smith seems to be approaching film as a visual medium for the first time, with surprisingly competent results. How people feel about this film is likely to depend on how attached they are to Smithâ(TM)s usual style, but for viewers interested in seeing a director break out of their mold and really try to push their abilities, Red State has plenty to offer. Whether or not he continues to experiment with his next (and potentially final) film, the two-part hockey story Hit Somebody, itâ(TM)s refreshing to see that thereâ(TM)s more to Kevin Smithâ(TM)s talent than he has previously shown us. tinribs27.wordpress.com

• Matt G

  
  Pastor Abin Cooper: Can you take the children out for the lesson, it's about to get grown up in here.<br/><br/>When you hear the words "new Kevin Smith movie", it's guaranteed that it's going to be something epic. There was virtually no possible… More
  Pastor Abin Cooper: Can you take the children out for the lesson, it's about to get grown up in here.<br/><br/>When you hear the words "new Kevin Smith movie", it's guaranteed that it's going to be something epic. There was virtually no possible senario where I wouldn't love 'Red State'. Maybe I'm just a die-hard Smith fan ('Clerks' is my all-time favorite) or maybe I'm just a sucker for an indie flick, but this film just clicked with me, like his other films tend to do. Being a very different genre for Smith, who has usually directed comedies, he seriously impressed me working with this dark, offbeat thriller. We have some pretty fantastic performances from Melissa Leo, John Goodman, and Dermot Mulroney, yet they are completely overshadowed by the terrific performance from Michael Parks, who deserves an oscar for this. In a nutshell, Red State is one hell of a film.

• Sam B

  
  Despite having a lot to say, Kevin Smith has never been fully successful at translating his ideologies onto the screen. While Red State is maybe his best attempt thus far, it still falls short. The long dialogue scenes and random spurts of violence call to mind a less professional… More
  Despite having a lot to say, Kevin Smith has never been fully successful at translating his ideologies onto the screen. While Red State is maybe his best attempt thus far, it still falls short. The long dialogue scenes and random spurts of violence call to mind a less professional Tarantino, though Smith is able to wring some intensity out of the script, largely due to the performances of Goodman, Parks, and Melissa "always insane" Leo.

• Lewis C

  
  If nothing else, Red State is memorable. A trio of horny teenage boys gets baited and captured by an armed to the teeth fanatical cult. The attempted escape of two of them precipitates a Waco on steroids violent showdown between the cult in their compound and ATF agents outside that… More
  If nothing else, Red State is memorable. A trio of horny teenage boys gets baited and captured by an armed to the teeth fanatical cult. The attempted escape of two of them precipitates a Waco on steroids violent showdown between the cult in their compound and ATF agents outside that have botched the situation and are ordered to take drastic measures to clean up their mistake. As a horror movie, it's pretty decent, but it sort of fizzles out by the finale, and the ending is something you'll either think is clever or not as clever as Kevin Smith thought it was. Red State earned enough goodwill from me during its disturbing first half to carry me through its trigger-happy, tone-shifted latter half and earn it a slightly positive rating. Check it out to sate your curiosity, but don't expect to be blown away.

• Josh L

  
  Not what I was expecting from a Kevin Smith movie. It's smarter than his other movies, but also has half-baked ideas and unfinished thoughts on its subject. It switches gears from a horror flick to an action thriller with political subtexts, but I was enjoying the horror aspects… More
  Not what I was expecting from a Kevin Smith movie. It's smarter than his other movies, but also has half-baked ideas and unfinished thoughts on its subject. It switches gears from a horror flick to an action thriller with political subtexts, but I was enjoying the horror aspects more. It's not your typical Kevin Smith movie, and I think that's why I'm not completely satisfied despite it being his most mature work.

• Phil H

  
  Why is this called 'Red State'? a redneck state? lots of blood and death within the state? beats me, I thought it was some kind of merc flick set in Russia haha. Oh boy you gotta love these religious hick American screwballs, usually a simple way to gather tonnes of cash… More
  Why is this called 'Red State'? a redneck state? lots of blood and death within the state? beats me, I thought it was some kind of merc flick set in Russia haha. Oh boy you gotta love these religious hick American screwballs, usually a simple way to gather tonnes of cash from other dumb American hicks but this film is about dangerous gun wielding hick American religious screwballs, but isn't the US full of those anyway? Pretty dumb film really which isn't scary or tense or anything but a bit of a mess with lots of death. The premise is old yet admittedly not entirely predictable as you have no clue who's gonna bite the dust and when. Cast are fine and come across well as a gang of oddball southern yanks with some major homophobic tendencies and John Goodman is fair as the gruff haggard looking assault team leader (his weight loss makes him look old and tired), but the problem lies within the plot and how it unravels. Basically it all happens too quickly, some teen males get drugged and kidnapped by a female (ala 'Hostel'), the religious nuts then proceed to sacrifice a gay man before doing the teens and before we know it there are armed agents surrounding the place and a siege breaks out. The fact the religious nuts wanna sacrifice the young teens doesn't make sense either as they are clearly not gay and the woman that kidnapped them knows it, so why do they want to kill them as gays? there isn't much explanation for anything. The ending isn't much better either frankly with everything merely explained by Goodman and not very good explanations at that, the original concept for the ending sounded much better. Worrying thing is there are plenty of weirdos like this in the US, maybe not killing but certainly dangerously homophobic.

• Nate Z

  
  Kevin Smith, love him or hate him, you can't deny the man is a natural promoter. Earlier in the year, the indie filmmaker self-distributed his first foray into horror films, Red State, on a nationwide tour of screenings. I first saw Red State way back in March when Smith visited… More
  Kevin Smith, love him or hate him, you can't deny the man is a natural promoter. Earlier in the year, the indie filmmaker self-distributed his first foray into horror films, Red State, on a nationwide tour of screenings. I first saw Red State way back in March when Smith visited Springfield, Ohio to screen the film and then answer questions afterwards. I've been trying to wrestle with my critical opinion in the ensuing months. Fortunately for me, Smith has made it extremely easy to revisit my thoughts. Red State eschewed the traditional theatrical release pattern for a new digital-age model. It was available on demand through sable systems, available for download, and even broadcast in special theaters for a one-night only event. A month later the film hit DVD. In its better moments, Red State is the unholy union of Quentin Tarantino's love of language and the Coen brothers' nihilistic, cock-eyed sensibilities. This is strange new territory for the man. I wish I could say Red State is worthy of all the attention, though this sinister, messy, gritty little movie can work its wicked mojo, at least for a while. The Five Points Church is a notorious family-operated cult. Under the guidance of their shepherd, Abin Cooper (Michael Parks), this fundamentalist Christian group pickets the funerals of dead soldiers, haranguing the grieved that their loved ones are dead because "God hates fags" (excuse me for failing to put two and two together). A group of teenage boys (Michael Angarano, Kyle Gallner, Nicholas Braun) is lured to Sara's (Melissa Leo) trailer with the promise of sex. The middle-aged woman plies her young bucks with drinks and they are knocked out. The boys awaken to find they are inside the Five Points compound and witness to Abin Cooper's solution to sinners. Rather than railing with signs, the family has decided to take a more hands-on approach and execute them. While this is going on, a sheriff's deputy alerts the authorities and the ATF rolls up to the compound. Lead by Agent Keenan (John Goodman), the government agency engages in a firefight with the rightwing cult. Ordered to take down the compound, and all witnesses, the various characters will try and escape with their lives, never knowing when that fateful moment of atonement may drop. What Smith does well for a genre novice is to keep his audience constantly upended. Just when we think we've settled on a protagonist and a plotline, suddenly Smith switches gears. The surprises are sudden and often merciless, leaving the audience little room to adjust. In a genre usually beholden to formula, the consistency of Smith's surprises makes for a darkly satisfying viewing. Watching Red State demands due attention. Naturally, not all of these tonal shifts work to the movie's best interest. The final shift, to all-out action thriller, is the most leaden. The Ruby Ridge/Waco-style standoff allows for a lot of gunfire but very little action. We mostly just cut back and forth between the two sides firing and, inexplicably high numbers, being shot in the face. It can get repetitive and seem like all the mounting tension gets squandered. There is a nice storyline within of one family member, Cheyenne (Kerry Bische), forming a plan to save the compound's children and escape. Bische (the lead on the last season of TV's Scrubs) makes fantastic use of her limited screen time to render the anxiety and fear of her character. She's second only to Parks in the performance department as far as I'm concerned. Then the climax comes along and Smith teases being audacious, going in a fire-and-brimstone angle that would completely obliterate audience expectations. And just when it seems like we're about to get something radical... Smith falls back to what he knows - dialogue. For the final five minutes, Smith concludes his narrative with two government officials explaining what happened in florid detail. It's a fairly big letdown. The setup of luring teens to their doom is an old horror staple, though usually the ones doing the sacrifices are card-carrying Satanists. And when exactly would a Satanist be in a situation needing to prove their validity with a membership card ("I'm sorry Mr. Darkseed, but we can't give you the ten percent discount on all those goat skulls unless we see some valid photo ID.")? Smith flips the switch religious allegiance. Instead of Satanists or some other misunderstood fringe religion, the cult is a group of pious Christians. There's plenty of room to work here and Smith refrains from making easy associations; the Five Points nutjobs aren't meant to represent Christians as a whole or Christianity. They are extremists, and they will go to extreme measures. Ostensibly based upon the Westboro Baptist Church and Fred Phelps, you keep waiting for Smith to satirically carve up the clan, but this never really occurs beyond the superficial. Smith's writerly instincts give Abin Cooper a ten-minute sermon/platform where the guy just unloads a hate-filled diatribe against homosexuals and progressives. For many, this will be the make it or break it point of the film. There are some genuinely tense moments to the first half of Red State. There's one scene where the camera holds on Gallner (The Haunting in Connecticut) inside a wired cage. He rattles and screams and generally comes unglued, and we too piece together what he hears, dreading what is to come. The many escapes and narrow calls are also harrowing and finely edited to ratchet up suspense. It seems, though, that Smith's bleak screenplay does not present any characters we can truly root for. Horror has been shifting this way for the past twenty years. Thanks to the rise of the slasher flick, audience empathy has shifted from being with the running/screaming victims to being with the gruesome yet personable killers. Red State has a high body count but you won't feel much when those bodies hit the floor. You'll feel a jolt of shock, but from an empathy standpoint the needle barely registers. Sure, we don't want people to be tortured and we want the abused to escape torment, but that's not the same as characterization. The closeted sheriff (Stephen Root) feels like the start of an idea more than anything else. The trio of teen boys is presented with as little care as any other throwaway slasher flick. They are but meat for the grinder, our entryway into this hidden and spooky fundamental world. These aren't so much characters as bodies waiting to be slain. The people are set up so they can be knocked down. This issue can become troubling when Smith wants us to rethink our loyalties, especially once the siege has begun. He wants us, dares us, to start feeling empathy for members of the Five Points Church. The problem is that the plot's adherence to shock value and the underbelly of human nature has desensitized our empathy. When the ATF starts firing most in the audience will probably just cheer, not reflectively question the moral relativism. I doubt anyone will be switching allegiances midway through. Cults are usually held together with a charismatic leader, and Red State has that in spades with Parks. The man just dissolves into his twisted character, a preacher that uses the Word of God to indoctrinate and arm for his own holy war. Parks has done fine supporting work before in the stable of Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez movies, but Red State is the actor's biggest showcase yet. The man makes your skin crawl the way he can wrap hate into a honeyed, easily digestible product. Abin holds sway over his flock and likewise Parks commands the screen. He provides grandeur and menace to Smith's words. It's not a scenery-chewing performance; Parks doesn't go for the obvious notes when he can hit something deeper and more unsettling. You get a sense that this man fully believes the dogma he teaches, and that makes him all the more terrifying. The other actors peopling Red State are fine, though Leo (Oscar-winner for The Fighter) seems a bit unrestrained especially in contrast with Parks. Goodman (TV's Treme) gets to talk on the phone a lot to his unseen superiors. The end of the film just descends into frenzied yelling on everyone's part. Credited as a horror movie, though I view it more of a survivalist thriller but I suppose genre specifications are subjective, regardless, Red State is miles away from Smith's usual output. The movie has its share of creeping dread and menace, thanks to Parks' transfixing performance. The screenplay is unrepentantly dark, cruelly cutting down lives with shocking acuity. The constant surprises and upheavals are a way to keep the audience guessing, though the shock value starts to wear off by the noisy, repetitive gun battle climax. It's hard to nail down exactly what kind of commentary Smith is presenting. Obviously he doesn't side with the hateful fundamentalists (this is probably why he pulls back at the end), but he also shows the government's reaction to religious zealots to be morally queasy at best. It's hard to get a read what the commentary is, and with horror, if you don't take a stab at commentary then you're just watching high-gloss snuff films. Red State resembles a snuff film in several ways, and not just in its grimy aesthetics. You feel a little dirty after it's over, and you can't help but question your motives for watching it. Plus you can't help but think it could have been better done (note: I have never watched an actual snuff film, you sickos, but the point remains). Nate's Grade: B-

• paul o

  
  Ehhhhh, it just sucked. You can't say this was classic or complete crap. The cinematography was intense but the story was bogus. I mean COME ON, THERE WAS LIKE 4 RANDOM HEADSHOTS JUST TO GRAB MY ATTENTION...COMPLETELY UNNECESSARY

• J P

  
  I wasn't really sure where they were going with this movie. It started out as a story between the three boys then completely shifted focus onto the church and the police squad. Which story were they telling? The kidnapping of the high school boys or the dilemma between the crazy… More
  I wasn't really sure where they were going with this movie. It started out as a story between the three boys then completely shifted focus onto the church and the police squad. Which story were they telling? The kidnapping of the high school boys or the dilemma between the crazy church people and the police? I didn't like how they kind of ditched the three high school boys in the movie. It's like they forgot they even had them in the story. *SPOILERS* I mean they kill them one by one, until one is left, and you don't see him for a LONG time. Then finally his little underdeveloped character is rescued by one of the more sane church people and they swap a little bit of dialogue before they are both killed. I would've liked to see more of the kids in the story. It's like their role in the movie wasn't important at all, so why even include them? The movie shifts focus a lot towards different characters that are so underdeveloped. The characters were just unlikable and pretty underdeveloped. The characters just appear on screen and the movie shifts focus onto the new characters and pretty much forgets about the other characters. The movie shifts a lot....it really sucks at telling a straight forward story. For example, after the boys get in the accident, the officer goes to look for them. When the police officer finds the boys' car, he gets shot and calls for back up. When he calls for back-up, we meet a new character- the guy in the charge of the police squad (his name escapes me). Ever since the new guy in introduced into the story, he's pretty much all we see. We catch a glimpse of the boys and church people every now and then, but pretty much the focus is taken off of the boys and directed towards the police squad. Then at the end, we see the entire movie was a flashback (which is illogical considering the boys never came into contact with the police officer so he therefore never would have known what they were up to). It was just a dumb movie really. So much happening, and in the end the movie ends up killing everyone. It was also boring when the preacher was talking. Yeah he's crazy and talking a bunch of bullshit but it was like a freakin sermon he was preaching in the movie. It was like 20 minutes long! I almost turned it off because I stopped listening to him completely and was getting really annoyed. Thankfully he stopped talking, but I would have LOVED to see more of the boys and that girl. I thought that was what the story was about, but apparently it was not. Movie is definitely not worth seeing again. Cool movie poster though, even if that girl was only in the movie for 5 minutes.

• Nani V

  
  Yikes, where to start with this movie. It starts off with three high school friends driving out to meet a woman off the internet. They later wake up and find themselves in a really messed up situation that they must get out of.

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