Ida Red (film)

Last updated

Ida Red
Ida Red.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by John Swab
Written byJohn Swab
Produced by
  • Jeremy M. Rosen
  • John Swab
  • Robert Ogden Barnum
Starring
CinematographyMatt Clegg
Edited byJohn David Allen
Music by David Sardy
Production
companies
  • Roxwell Films
  • BondIt Media Capital
Distributed by Saban Films
Release dates
  • August 11, 2021 (2021-08-11)(Locarno)
  • November 5, 2021 (2021-11-05)(United States)
Running time
111 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Ida Red is a 2021 American action crime thriller film written, directed, and co-produced by John Swab. It stars an ensemble cast that includes Josh Hartnett, Sofia Hublitz, William Forsythe, Deborah Ann Woll, George Carroll, Mark Boone Junior, Beau Knapp, Frank Grillo, and Melissa Leo. It follows an incarcerated crime boss who, living on borrowed time, turns to her son and brother to pull off one huge heist to buy her freedom.

Contents

The film had its world premiere at the 74th Locarno Film Festival on August 11, 2021. It was released in select theaters and on VOD on November 5, 2021, by Saban Films. It received mixed-to-negative reviews from critics.

Plot

Ida "Red" Walker (Melissa Leo), the biological mother of a criminal family, sits rotting in jail. She is a widow as a result of the bust that nabbed her. Now that she's got cancer, she wants to die in freedom. So she plots both a parole and, true to form, a heist.

Her son is a successful career criminal, ethical Wyatt (Josh Hartnett) and so is brother, psycho Dallas (Frank Grillo). There is also sister Jeanie (Deborah Ann Woll), estranged from Ida because she married kind and dim cop Bodie Collier (George Carroll). Their rebellious teen kid Darla (Sofia Hublitz) is drawn to uncle Wyatt and is romantically involved with local dirtbag Petey (Nicholas Cirillo).

Wyatt's having a hard time after a truck heist goes wrong, and cranky FBI Special Agent Lawrence Twilley (William Forsythe), who is partnering with Collier, is on the trail. Dallas, who appoints himself cleaner, nastily shoots people responsible for the screw-up, or their kin.

Cast

Production

Ida Red was inspired by films such as Hardcore (1979), Cruising (1980), Thief (1981), and Heat (1995). [2] In August 2020, it was announced that Frank Grillo, Melissa Leo, Josh Hartnett, and William Forsythe were set to star in the film, with John Swab directing from his screenplay. [3] It was produced by Jeremy M. Rosen, Swab, and Robert Ogden Barnum for Roxwell Films, in association with Bondit Media Capital. This is the third feature collaboration between Swab and Rosen. [3]

Principal photography took place from August to September 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. The film was shot in and around Tulsa, Oklahoma, with strict precautions taken on set, following Oklahoma and SAG-AFTRA COVID-19 protocols. [4] The original music was composed by David Sardy. [5]

Release

Ida Red had its world premiere in the Piazza Grande section of the 74th Locarno Film Festival on August 11, 2021, [1] [6] [7] [8] and its North American premiere at the 25th Fantasia International Film Festival on August 20. [9] [10] Prior to that, Saban Films acquired U.S. and U.K. distribution rights to the film. [11] It was given a limited theatrical release on November 5, 2021, and was simultaneously released on digital and on-demand. [12]

Reception

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 33% of 18 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.2/10. [13] Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 46 out of 100, based on 6 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. [14]

Jay Weissberg of Variety called the film "a proficiently made crime family drama" and wrote, "Good performances and a plot that generally holds the attention could draw audiences." Weissberg also criticized, "Swab's script puts a lot of emphasis on family relations yet sloppily makes numerous leaps that remain unexplained." [15]

Neil Young of Screen Daily described the film as "a brooding, occasionally bloody crime-thriller with noir and western undertones that is chiefly notable for a strong ensemble cast" and stated, "Swab's strong suit lies in the selection and handling of his performers." [16]

Angie Han of The Hollywood Reporter remarked, "Everything in Ida Red is exactly what it seems to be, no less and certainly no more. […] Nothing kills excitement like endless repetition — and Ida Red turns out to be just the latest faint echo of stories we've heard too many times already." [17]

Brandy McDonnell of The Oklahoman wrote, "Swab's vision is getting clearer. With strong performances, solid pacing and intriguing cinematic choices, the Oklahoma filmmaker's gritty new thriller Ida Red proves the evident progress Swab has been making in practicing his craft." [18]

Glenn Kenny of RogerEbert.com gave the film 2 out of 4 stars and opined, "The big heist seems to have been staged in a ghost town. Swab wants to get to Heat but he can't get anything up to a proper temperature." Kenny also commented, "Swab has enough directorial energy to keep the proceedings watchable at the least." [19]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Josh Hartnett</span> American actor (born 1978)

Joshua Daniel Hartnett is an American actor. He began his career playing Michael Fitzgerald on ABC's Cracker (1997–1998), after which he became known as a teen idol through starring parts in films such as Halloween H20: 20 Years Later, The Faculty, The Virgin Suicides (1999), Pearl Harbor, O, Black Hawk Down, and 40 Days and 40 Nights (2002).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melissa Leo</span> American actress (born 1960)

Melissa Chessington Leo is an American actress. She is the recipient of several accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and two Critics' Choice Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AnnaSophia Robb</span> American actress (born 1993)

AnnaSophia Robb is an American actress, model, and singer. She began as a child actress on television, making her feature film debut in Because of Winn-Dixie (2005), followed by the supporting role of Violet Beauregarde in Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005). Her performance as Leslie Burke in Bridge to Terabithia (2007) garnered her recognition and praise, and two Young Artist Awards. She received wider recognition and praise for playing surfer Bethany Hamilton in the 2011 film Soul Surfer and the lead role of Carrie Bradshaw on The CW's series The Carrie Diaries (2013–2014). In 2019, she played the role of Gypsy Blanchard's neighbor Lacey in the Hulu miniseries The Act.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frank Grillo</span> American actor

Frank Anthony Grillo is an American actor. He is known for playing Brock Rumlow / Crossbones in three superhero films and one series of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Sergeant Leo Barnes in two action-horror films within The Purge franchise.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deborah Ann Woll</span> American actress

Deborah Ann Woll is an American actress. She played Jessica Hamby in the HBO drama series True Blood (2008–2014), which earned her a nomination for a Screen Actors Guild Award. She is also known for her role as Karen Page in the Marvel series Daredevil (2015–2018), The Defenders (2017), The Punisher (2017–2019), and Daredevil: Born Again. Her film roles include Mother's Day (2010), Seven Days in Utopia (2011), Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You (2011), Catch .44 (2011), Ruby Sparks (2012), Meet Me in Montenegro (2014), The Automatic Hate (2015), and the commercially-successful Escape Room (2019) and its 2021 sequel. In 2022, she provided the voice and motion capture of Faye in the video game God of War: Ragnarok.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tucker Tooley</span> American film producer

Tucker Tooley is an American film producer. He is the CEO of Tooley Productions LLC.

<i>Body Brokers</i> 2021 American film

Body Brokers is a 2021 American crime drama film written and directed by John Swab and starring Jack Kilmer, Michael Kenneth Williams, Jessica Rothe, Alice Englert, Peter Greene, Frank Grillo, and Melissa Leo. The film concerns a young drug addict brought to Los Angeles for treatment and to start his life over. The man learns the rehab center is not meant to help drug abusers, but is really an organized health insurance fraud ring enlisting addicts to recruit other addicts.

<i>Wrath of Man</i> 2021 action thriller film directed by Guy Ritchie

Wrath of Man is a 2021 action thriller film directed by Guy Ritchie, who co-wrote with Ivan Atkinson and Marn Davies. It is loosely based on the 2004 French film Cash Truck. It is Ritchie's fourth directorial collaboration with lead actor Jason Statham, and the first since Revolver (2005). Holt McCallany, Jeffrey Donovan, Chris Reilly, Josh Hartnett, Laz Alonso, Raúl Castillo, DeObia Oparei, Eddie Marsan and Scott Eastwood appear in supporting roles. In the film, H (Statham) is a new cash truck driver in Los Angeles whose thwarting of a robbery leads to his skillset with guns and mysterious past being questioned.

John Swab is a film director, screenwriter, and producer born in Tulsa, Oklahoma.He is known for King Ivory (2024), Candy Land (2022) and Body Brokers (2021).

Paradise Lost is an American television series created by Rodes Fishburne. It premiered on April 13, 2020, on Spectrum Originals. On July 30, 2020, lead cast member Josh Hartnett confirmed that the show will not be renewed for a second season.

<i>Copshop</i> 2021 film by Joe Carnahan

Copshop is a 2021 American action thriller film directed by Joe Carnahan and written by Kurt McLeod and Carnahan, based on a story by McLeod and Mark Williams. The film stars Gerard Butler, Frank Grillo, and Alexis Louder, and is set in a small-town police station that becomes the battleground between a hitman, a novice police officer, and a con artist.

Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash is a 2021 Indonesian action black comedy-drama film directed by Edwin who also co-wrote the screenplay with Eka Kurniawan based on Kurniawan's best-selling book of the same name. The film had its world premiere in August 2021 at the 74th Locarno Film Festival, where it won the top prize of Golden Leopard for Best Film.

Exterminate All the Brutes is an internationally co-produced documentary television miniseries revolving around colonization and genocide, directed and narrated by Raoul Peck. The series consists of four episodes and premiered in the United States on April 7, 2021, on HBO. It premiered in the United Kingdom on May 1, 2021, on Sky Documentaries. The series takes its name from Sven Lindqvist's book with the same name, on which it is partially based, a phrase which Lindqvist in turn borrowed from Joseph Conrad's novella Heart of Darkness, in which the quote "Exterminate all the brutes" appears.

<i>A Day to Die</i> 2022 American film by Wes Miller

A Day to Die is an 2022 American heist action film directed, co-written and co-produced by Wes Miller. It stars Kevin Dillon, Bruce Willis, Gianni Capaldi, Brooke Butler, Leon, and Frank Grillo. The film was released on March 4, 2022, by Vertical Entertainment.

<i>Paradise Highway</i> 2022 film by Anna Gutto

Paradise Highway is a 2022 thriller film written and directed by Anna Gutto in her feature length debut and starring Juliette Binoche, Frank Grillo, and Morgan Freeman. An international co-production between the United States, Germany, and Switzerland, the film was released in the United States on July 29, 2022, by Lionsgate.

<i>Kaleidoscope</i> (American TV series) 2023 heist drama miniseries by Eric Garcia

Kaleidoscope is an American heist drama television anthology series created by Eric Garcia. The eight-part series, unique for its shuffled order, centers on master thief Leo Pap and his crew attempting an epic heist worth $7 billion, but betrayal, greed and other threats undermine their plans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew Helderman</span> American film producer

Matthew Helderman is an American film producer. He is known for his work in 3022, The Pale Door, Cosmic Sin, Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street and Redemption Day.

<i>Trap</i> (2024 film) Upcoming film by M. Night Shyamalan

Trap is an upcoming American psychological mystery thriller film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The film stars Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Saleka Shyamalan, Hayley Mills, and Allison Pill.

References

  1. 1 2 "Ida Red". Locarno Film Festival . Archived from the original on April 9, 2023. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  2. ↑ Mathai, Jeremy (September 27, 2021). "Ida Red: Release Date, Cast, And More". /Film . Archived from the original on September 25, 2023. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  3. 1 2 Wiseman, Andreas (August 26, 2020). "'Ida Red': Frank Grillo, Melissa Leo & Josh Hartnett Lead Cast In Action-Thriller Shot During The Pandemic". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on January 17, 2024. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  4. ↑ McDonnell, Brandy (September 2, 2020). "Oscar winner Melissa Leo, Frank Grillo and Josh Hartnett starring in Oklahoma filmmaker John Swab's new feature 'Ida Red,' now filming in Tulsa". The Oklahoman . Archived from the original on September 26, 2022. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  5. ↑ "'Ida Red' Soundtrack Album Released". Film Music Reporter. November 5, 2021. Archived from the original on September 25, 2022. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  6. ↑ Vivarelli, Nick (July 1, 2021). "Locarno Unveils Genre-Friendly Lineup Premiering Abel Ferrara's 'Zeros and Ones,' U.S. Thriller 'Ida Red'". Variety . Archived from the original on August 8, 2022. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  7. ↑ Roxborough, Scott (July 1, 2021). "Locarno Film Festival Unveils Lineup". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on June 7, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  8. ↑ Grater, Tom (July 1, 2021). "Locarno Unveils 2021 Line-Up: Abel Ferrara's Ethan Hawke-Starrer 'Zeros And Ones' To World Premiere". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on December 9, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  9. ↑ Foutch, Haleigh (July 21, 2021). "Fantasia Film Festival 2021 Third Wave Unveils 30+ New Titles, Announces Takashi Miike's Latest As Closing Night Film". Collider . Archived from the original on November 23, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  10. ↑ Lang, Jamie (July 21, 2021). "Takashi Miike's 'The Great Yokai War – Guardians' to Close Quebec's Fantasia Festival 2021". Variety . Archived from the original on April 10, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  11. ↑ Ritman, Alex (July 8, 2021). "Cannes: Saban Lands Josh Hartnett, Melissa Leo, Frank Grillo Action-Thriller 'Ida Red' for U.S., U.K. (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on April 4, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  12. ↑ Rivera, Brittany (October 29, 2021). "Ida Red Clip Shows Tense Scene Between Josh Hartnett & Melissa Leo [EXCLUSIVE]". Screen Rant . Archived from the original on November 4, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  13. ↑ "Ida Red". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media. Archived from the original on April 7, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2024. OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  14. ↑ "Ida Red". Metacritic . Fandom, Inc. Archived from the original on May 28, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  15. ↑ Weissberg, Jay (August 12, 2021). "'Ida Red' Review: A Tulsa Crime Family Wants Mama Out of Prison". Variety . Archived from the original on April 10, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  16. ↑ Young, Neil (August 12, 2021). "'Ida Red': Locarno Review". Screen Daily . Archived from the original on September 25, 2022. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  17. ↑ Han, Angie (October 26, 2021). "'Ida Red': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on December 4, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  18. ↑ McDonnell, Brandy (November 5, 2021). "Oklahoma filmmaker John Swab shows cinematic progress with new thriller 'Ida Red'". The Oklahoman . Archived from the original on December 3, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  19. ↑ Kenny, Glenn (November 5, 2021). "Ida Red". RogerEbert.com . Archived from the original on September 21, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.