Within the first five or six minutes of Red State, I put “already not impressed,” as my status on Facebook. Despite being shot with the new RED cameras, I thought the picture quality was kind of amateur at first. Not only that, but the three boys at the beginning who were supposed to be adolescents clearly looked to be in their mid to late twenties. My first thought was, “Really, 
Kevin Smith? After all the money you’ve banked through Clerks, Dogma, Jay & Silent Bob, etc; this was the best you could come up with?” However, as I continued watching, Red State turned from a huge let down into a decent horror-action film made on $4,000,000.
The plot of Red State starts simple, but grows more complex as the plot evolves. In the beginning, three boys are enticed to an old trailer park home where a middle aged woman promises to have sex with all three of them. Soon, they are blind sided and end up inside a fundamental church who wishes to torture and kill them to please their god. If that wasn’t bad enough, the feds arrive and make matters worse. Now three sides clash – the religious terrorists, the hostages, and the feds – and all are fighting for survival. Red State begins as a horror film, turns into an action film, then bends into the supernatural genre for a beat towards the end. Pretty sweet, right?
Obviously, there are a lot of touchy themes in Red State. The fundamental church makes homosexuals their main target. This sets up the situation of homosexuals vs the church and Bible. Politics and other fundamental organizations are touched on as well. From what I’ve read, I don’t think Kevin Smith wrote Red State with gay vs church in mind. More so, I think he created this film in hopes of showcasing his views of fundamental organizations that are both religious and political. I don’t need to put my political, religious, or ethical views on the internet in a long drawn out way. I’ll just say that I think everyone should have equal rights, to express themselves and do what they want with themselves. However, if I step away from the overlying themes in Red State and look at it as a horror film – no agenda of any kind, just as a straight horror and action film – it achieves everything it set out to do.
Melissa Leo (The Alphabet Killer), John Goodman (Rosanne), upcoming scream king Kyle Gallner (The Haunting In Connecticut, A Nightmare on Elm Street remake, Jennifer’s Body), Michael Parks (Kill Bill franchise), Michael Angarano (Black Irish), and Nicholas Braun (Princess Protection Program…which sounds like a horror to watch, btw) all star in Red State along with some cool cameos by Buffy The Vampire Slayer’s “Riley” Marc Blucas and some girl who was on Passions.
I’ll finish this review up with my random notes that are left over. Red State contains a little bit of torture, just enough to start to make me feel anxious. The political theme of government conspiracy is touched upon at the end of the film. Also, the worst part of the movie is when one of the teens is running from the ultra-religious cult while carrying a fully armed machine gun…and he never fired…once. It may mean I’m a horrible human being, but I would have open fired quick.
Red State is currently available On Demand, and will be released direct-to-DVD on October 18, 2011 via Lionsgate. The film ends with a very strategically placed line – “Shut the fuck up!” You’ll have to watch to understand its relevance.
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