Red Dawn (2012)

The Philistine came on and drew near to David, with
his shield-bearer in front of him. When the Philistine
looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was
only a youth, ruddy and handsome in appearance…
Then David ran and stood over the Philistine; he g
rasped his sword, drew it out of its sheath, and killed
him; then he cut off his head with it.
1 Samuel 17:41-51

I recall the original Red Dawn, released, appropriately in 1984, during the height of the Cold War with a script that could have been written by the executive council of the NRA (a pistol was actually “pried from the cold dead fingers” of a victim of the attacking Soviet-Cuban aggressors).

The current incarnation stretches one’s imagination to the breaking point. Since the Cold War is no longer an issue, the problem is which country has the resources to attack the United States? Wait, let me think about that. Got it! North Korea. They have a huge well-funded army but where did I read that military amateurs discuss operations, but professionals are concerned with logistics? That’s where this story falls short.

Other than that, apart from some minor changes, the script sticks pretty close to the original. A group of boys from the local high school football team manage to escape an airborne attack by a Russian- North Korean coalition and head for the tall and uncut. From there, thanks the leadership of an older brother on leave from the Marine Corps, the kids managed to conduct a successful series of guerilla operations against the bad guys. My question: how could the enemy be so stupid? If I were a North Korean or Russian soldier, I would be highly insulted.

El Tigre (Ed’s apprentice, a.k.a. Rev. Don Smith)