On Thursday, February 22, the Premier online cinema begins showing the comedy serial action film “Red 5”. The director was Evgeny Shelyakin, who had previously worked on the projects “Happy End”, “Aunt Martha”, “About Love. For adults only", "Kitchen. War for the hotel."
The series begins with Alexander Bekeshev (Denis Shvedov), call sign Red 5, traveling to the East to neutralize a terrorist group. His name alone causes the militants to panic. Bekeshev reports to headquarters about the liquidation of the gang, but it turns out that he mixed up the operation code and destroyed the camp of representatives of a friendly country. Because of this, Bekeshev is fired.
The hero cannot adapt to peaceful life and sees a catch in everything. Tired of his short existence in civilian life, Bekeshev turns to his former colleague Anatolich (Gosha Kutsenko) for help. He gives him an unusual case: criminals with superpowers escaped from a KGB laboratory during a fire, Bekeshev needs to catch them and return them to the cryogenic freezing center. At the same time, Anatolich reports that one day Cheburashka escaped from the secret center. Because of this, I had to contact Soyuzmultfilm and popularize the super-creation in order to reduce anxiety among citizens, as people began to notice the unusual beast on the streets. Bekeshev replies that Anatolich “stole his childhood.”
As Bekeshev’s partner, Anatolich chooses a first-class but extravagant hacker nicknamed Granny (Roman Kurtsyn), who opens any locks and encrypted codes.
He got the nickname because of his habit of constantly quoting his relative. Due to her temperament, Granny often finds herself in absurd situations, and at times unwittingly creates obstacles in her work.
© Still from the TV series “Red 5” (TV series 2023 – ...)
The special agents - the characters of Shvedov and Kurtsyn - contrast with each other, which is expressed not only in their characters, but also in their appearance. Both actors look natural on the screen and play roles in their usual roles - Shvedov plays a serious, rude, slightly nervous man with a stern look, possessing combat skills. Kurtsyn's hero is a carefree, simple-minded and somewhat stupid person who brings variety to the boring life of a single agent. At the same time, Granny is an ace in the household: he cooks excellently, cleans things up, and also knits well, which confirms his nickname.
"Red 5" is a light and witty satire on spy detective stories. The film contains references to Bond and the Mission: Impossible series, and in one of the scenes there is a hint of Luc Besson's action film Leon.
In another episode, Anatolich and Bekeshev find themselves at a secret base, where they enter through a wooden outhouse. This is reminiscent of a scene in the French comedy Conscripts Go to War (1974), where an outdoor toilet is used as a secret passage into a house.
At first glance, “Red 5” does not seem to be a very original and unremarkable project, but from the first episode it gains attention with its high-quality acting, outstanding dialogues and jokes.
© Still from the TV series “Red 5” (TV series 2023 – ...)
The fascinating plot, as required by the genre, is light and predictable, while watching the development of events and the comical situations in which the heroes find themselves is quite interesting. Some scenes absolutely cause uncontrollable laughter. For example, at some point Bekeshev dreams that he is in Korean captivity, where he is being tortured in the most sophisticated way. The hero does not give up and does not intend to reveal secret information. However, the real torture for him is the singing of a girl with a cracked and squeaky voice. In reality, she takes vocal classes from her neighbor-teacher and periodically pisses off Bekeshev with her creepy singing.
High-quality visuals also attract attention. Cinematographer Andrey Danelyan managed not only to capture beautiful and breathtaking footage, but also to create a vibrant visual attraction. For example, during a fight, the cinematographer resorts to 360-degree filming, which allows him to observe the characters from different angles, and slow-motion editing helps to capture the coordination of their movements.
“Red 5” is a worthy comedy that will appeal to fans of the genre who prefer to relieve stress after difficult work days and relax by watching simple films.