Set in Middle America, a group of teens receive an online invitation for sex, though they soon encounter fundamentalists with a much more sinister agenda.Set in Middle America, a group of teens receive an online invitation for sex, though they soon encounter fundamentalists with a much more sinister agenda.Set in Middle America, a group of teens receive an online invitation for sex, though they soon encounter fundamentalists with a much more sinister agenda.
IMDb RATING
6.1/10
65K
YOUR RATING
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe Westboro Baptist Church planned to protest Red State at its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. Kevin Smith in turn planned a counter protest which he and his fans took part in. At the premiere the counter-protesters heavily outweighed the handful of Westboro protesters who showed up. This occurred 12 years after Smith's first film to tackle religious controversy, Dogma (1999), drew protests from certain sects of the Catholic Church, one of which Smith jokingly took part in himself.
- Goofs(at around 1h 13 mins) At the end of Cooper's paraphrase of the opening of the seven seals, he throws his arms above his head. He then slowly lowers them- twice. First in an over-the-shoulder shot of actor John Goodman, and again in the next shot, a frontal shot of the good preacher.
- Quotes
Joseph Keenan: People just do the strangest things when they believe they're entitled. But they do even stranger things when they just plain believe.
- Crazy creditsThe cast listing is divided in three parts labeled "Sex", "Religion" and "Politics", representing the respective characters' roles in the movie.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Episode #19.204 (2011)
- SoundtracksSavior
Written by Christopher Kurdes, Marina Kurdes, Bill Reseter, Alessandra Tartivita
Performed by Artikay
Review
Featured review
Red State - Good Not Great.
Kevin Smith's first non-comedy film is a loose actiony horror parable about an extreme right wing Baptist Christian cult, who kidnap and sacrifice "sinners" as part of their services and three young idiots who are tricked into their clutches. A minor traffic accident on their way to the rendezvous inadvertently escalates until eventually it brings an ATF squad to the pastor's compound, but will they be in time to save the trio.
Central to "Red State"s appeal is a towering performance from the late Michael Parks, as Pastor Cooper, the devout head of the family church. He's charismatic and magnetic, despite the warped beliefs he holds and has engendered in his flock. His performance adds a credibility to the idea that his congregation would murder at his behest. The rest of the cast is full of recognisable faces, Anna Gunn and Matt Jones from "Breaking Bad" have small roles. Michael Park's son James appears, as does Stephen Root, Kevin Alejandro, Kevin Pollock and Patrick Fischler. If there is a weakness to the cast, it's probably in the three boys who make the poor choice to meet an older woman at a quiet trailer park. Kyle Gallner, as Jarrod, makes the most of his role as the defacto leader of this group, but the other two boys are perhaps a little underwritten and making us care more for them might have made their scenes of peril resonate more.
Smith's scriptwriting, despite veering away from comedy, remains his greatest strength. Dialogue remains sparky, and relationships (such as between John Goodman's ATF agent and his wife, his unnamed boss on the other end of the phone and his increasingly distressed on site team) feel realistic. Where it fails is the other great criticism that dogs Smith, the action scenes that make up the final third of the film are pedestrian and repetitive and drag on until we reach a truly surprising conclusion. I can't decide even now if I'd have preferred the hinted at ending to have been the truth, or the one we get, but it's a memorable ending.
It was brave of Kevin Smith to make a move so far outside his wheelhouse and he deserves credit for it, even if the result is a bit flawed.
Central to "Red State"s appeal is a towering performance from the late Michael Parks, as Pastor Cooper, the devout head of the family church. He's charismatic and magnetic, despite the warped beliefs he holds and has engendered in his flock. His performance adds a credibility to the idea that his congregation would murder at his behest. The rest of the cast is full of recognisable faces, Anna Gunn and Matt Jones from "Breaking Bad" have small roles. Michael Park's son James appears, as does Stephen Root, Kevin Alejandro, Kevin Pollock and Patrick Fischler. If there is a weakness to the cast, it's probably in the three boys who make the poor choice to meet an older woman at a quiet trailer park. Kyle Gallner, as Jarrod, makes the most of his role as the defacto leader of this group, but the other two boys are perhaps a little underwritten and making us care more for them might have made their scenes of peril resonate more.
Smith's scriptwriting, despite veering away from comedy, remains his greatest strength. Dialogue remains sparky, and relationships (such as between John Goodman's ATF agent and his wife, his unnamed boss on the other end of the phone and his increasingly distressed on site team) feel realistic. Where it fails is the other great criticism that dogs Smith, the action scenes that make up the final third of the film are pedestrian and repetitive and drag on until we reach a truly surprising conclusion. I can't decide even now if I'd have preferred the hinted at ending to have been the truth, or the one we get, but it's a memorable ending.
It was brave of Kevin Smith to make a move so far outside his wheelhouse and he deserves credit for it, even if the result is a bit flawed.
helpful•71
- southdavid
- Mar 15, 2018
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