The early buzz for the Red Sonja reboot was largely negative. This was partly due to fantasy falling out of favor in Hollywood and the project losing studio support after a long development cycle. What was once intended as a vehicle for Rose McGowan and director Robert Rodriguez became a passion project for director M.J. Bassett. Thankfully, that passion is apparent, resulting in an ambitious action movie that does not fail for lack of effort.
Red Sonja opens, as most sword-and-sorcery films do, with an idyllic village being destroyed by raiders. The story flashes forward to Sonja (Matilda Lutz) growing to maturity while searching the impenetrable Hyrkanian forests for her scattered tribe. Also searching the forests is Draygan (Robert Sheehan), a would-be emperor seeking the second half of an ancient tome.
Their paths cross when Sonja discovers Draygan and his followers capturing animals for his gladiatorial arena. This offends Sonja, for her people live in balance with nature and do not hunt or kill for sport. Her efforts to free the animals end with her enslaved in the arena. Faster than you can say “I am Spartacus,” Sonja has led an uprising of the gladiators. Soon, she is on the way to becoming the Red Sonja of legend.
Red Sonja’s fatal flaw is trying to do too much
The chief problem with Red Sonja is that it has more story and characters than its two-hour runtime can support. Indeed, the script by Tasha Huo combines a few characters from the comics for greater economy. The best example of this is Osin the Untouched (Luca Pasqualino), who mixes a skald named Osin with another warrior from the comics of Gail Simone called Osric the Untouched.
There is enough plot in this movie for a full season of a streaming series in the tradition of Game of Thrones. However, most of these stories are underdeveloped. Chief among these is the story of Annisia (Wallis Day), who escaped slavery to become Draygan’s bodyguard and dreams of being his empress. She, too, is based on a Gail Simone creation and is similarly haunted by the ghosts of those she killed. However, she lacks the depth of the comic Annisia, who spent years as a fighting slave alongside Red Sonja before becoming her lover.
Thankfully, while Red Sonja is overburdened with story, the action sequences redeem it. M.J. Bassett has a history of depending on practical effects over extensive CGI. This is apparent in the film’s many excellent fight sequences, which give the production a more realistic feel.
The Red Sonja reboot will be an acquired taste for many. Those hoping to drool over a muscle mommy for two hours should save their money for a cosplaying bodybuilder’s Patreon. Robert E. Howard purists (if they agree to see the movie at all) will wax wroth at the seemingly random usage of nations from the Hyborian Age. Fans of the comics and high adventure, however, will have fun.
Grade: 7/10.
