# Red Dawn (2012 film)
**Red Dawn** is a 2012 American action war film directed by Dan Bradley, a remake of the 1984 film of the same name, in which a group of young people in [Spokane, Washington](https://www.edgepedia.org/spokane-washington) form a guerrilla resistance after North Korean forces invade the United States.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/69135) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1234719/plotsummary/) It was released on November 21, 2012, rated PG-13, with a running time of 93 minutes.[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1234719/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director / writers | Dan Bradley; screenplay by Carl Ellsworth and Jeremy Passmore, based on the 1984 screenplay by Kevin Reynolds and John Milius[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/69135) |
| Release | November 21, 2012 (wide, United States), PG-13, 93 minutes[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1234719/) |
| Cast | Chris Hemsworth (Jed Eckert), Josh Peck (Matt Eckert), Josh Hutcherson, Adrianne Palicki, Isabel Lucas, Connor Cruise, Jeffrey Dean Morgan[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/69135) |
| Budget and gross | $65,000,000 production budget; $44,806,783 domestic gross; $14,276,668 opening weekend[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Red-Dawn-%282012%29) |
| Villain change | Invaders were written and shot as Chinese, then digitally altered to North Korean in post-production at a cost of less than $1 million[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-china-red-dawn-20110316-story.html) |
| Critical reception | 15% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer from 144 reviews; Metascore of 31 on Metacritic[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/red_dawn_2012) • [7](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/red-dawn/critic-reviews/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
The film opens with a montage of news reports and political speeches establishing a weakened NATO alliance, economic crisis in the European Union, and growing cooperation between a militant [North Korea](https://www.edgepedia.org/north-korea) and Russia, while heavy deployment of American troops abroad leaves the mainland exposed.[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1234719/plotsummary/) North Korean paratroopers then invade the city of Spokane, Washington.[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1234719/plotsummary/)
Marine Corps veteran Jed Eckert ([Chris Hemsworth](https://www.edgepedia.org/chris-hemsworth)) and his civilian brother Matt ([Josh Peck](https://www.edgepedia.org/josh-peck)) escape with a group of friends to an isolated cabin, where they witness the execution of their father at the hands of Captain Cho.[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1234719/plotsummary/) Taking their name from their high school mascot, the group calls itself the Wolverines and wages guerrilla attacks against the occupiers.[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Red-Dawn-%282012%29) With the help of U.S. Marines led by Sergeant Major Andrew Tanner, they organize raids that lead the North Koreans to treat them as a serious threat; each attack is answered with the execution of civilians in retaliation.[8](https://www.tributemovies.com/movie/red-dawn/31076/) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1234719/plotsummary/)
## Production and the change of villain
The film was produced by Contrafilm with producers [Beau Flynn](https://www.edgepedia.org/beau-flynn) and Tripp Vinson, photographed by Mitchell Amundsen, edited by Richard Pearson, and scored by [Ramin Djawadi](https://www.edgepedia.org/ramin-djawadi).[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/69135) It was filmed in Michigan in 2009 with the invaders written and shot as Chinese, since the collapse of the Soviet Union had removed the 1984 film's Soviet enemy.[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-china-red-dawn-20110316-story.html)
**The switch to North Korea.** Potential distributors feared that association with a film depicting a Chinese invasion would damage their business with the Chinese government and market. MGM therefore had the filmmakers digitally erase Chinese flags and military symbols, substitute dialogue, and re-edit the film so that much of the invading force appeared North Korean.[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-china-red-dawn-20110316-story.html) People close to the production said the changes cost less than $1 million and involved changing an opening sequence summarizing the story's backdrop, re-editing two scenes, and digitally transforming Chinese symbols to Korean; eliminating every reference to China was impossible, so North Korea was given a much larger role in the invading coalition.[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-china-red-dawn-20110316-story.html) Producer Tripp Vinson said in a 2012 interview that very little had to be changed besides visual effects work, and actor Josh Peck described the change as looping and digital work rather than reshoots.[9](https://www.shockya.com/news/2012/11/22/interview-tripp-vinson-talks-about-producing-red-dawn/) • [10](https://time.com/archive/7120595/josh-peck-on-the-red-dawn-remake-the-appeal-of-escapism-and-being-a-joke-guy-in-an-action-movie/) Despite the alteration, the film was never released in China.[11](https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/217051173.pdf)
## Release history
MGM was originally set to release the film in 2010, but the studio's bankruptcy delayed it; after MGM emerged from bankruptcy in late 2009 and decided not to release the film, no other major studio would take it for fear of offending China.[12](https://theses.gla.ac.uk/3014/1/2011bucklephd.pdf) • [13](https://www.latimes.com/archives/blogs/24-frames/story/2011-09-26/red-dawn-remake-to-come-out-next-year-from-filmdistrict) FilmDistrict, a small distributor with no business in China, purchased the film and released it in November 2012.[13](https://www.latimes.com/archives/blogs/24-frames/story/2011-09-26/red-dawn-remake-to-come-out-next-year-from-filmdistrict) The Numbers lists the domestic release as November 21, 2012 (wide) by Open Road, with a video release on March 5, 2013 by Fox Home Entertainment.[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Red-Dawn-%282012%29)
## Box office
Against a production budget of $65,000,000, the film earned $44,806,783 domestically, with an opening weekend of $14,276,668, about 31.9 percent of the domestic total, in 2,725 theaters.[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Red-Dawn-%282012%29) The two box-office trackers disagree on the totals: [Box Office Mojo](https://www.edgepedia.org/box-office-mojo) reports $6,143,513 international and $50,950,296 worldwide, while The Numbers reports $3,357,367 international and $48,164,150 worldwide.[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1234719/) • [4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Red-Dawn-%282012%29) Either way, worldwide gross fell short of the production budget, at roughly 0.7 times it by The Numbers' calculation.[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Red-Dawn-%282012%29) Domestic physical disc sales were estimated at $12,775,883 on DVD and $9,112,601 on Blu-ray.[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Red-Dawn-%282012%29)
## Reception
The film was poorly received by critics. Rotten Tomatoes recorded a 15 percent Tomatometer from 144 reviews and a 50 percent Popcornmeter from more than 50,000 audience ratings, with a critics consensus stating that the reboot "lacks the original's topicality, but at least pays tribute in delivering the same short shrift to character development and general logic."[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/red_dawn_2012) Metacritic assigned a Metascore of 31, categorized as generally unfavorable, with 1 of 33 reviews positive, 14 mixed, and 18 negative.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/red-dawn/critic-reviews/) Reviewers repeatedly compared it with the 1984 original: the [Chicago Tribune](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-tribune) found the remake repeated the original's booby-trap scenarios "without Milius' grandiosity and nihilism," and Variety credited director Dan Bradley, the second-unit director on the Bourne films, with delivering enough action sequences to sustain its commercial prospects despite a premise it called sillier than the original's.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/red-dawn/critic-reviews/)
## References
1. [Red Dawn (2012), AFI Catalog](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/69135)
2. [Red Dawn (2012) - Plot, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1234719/plotsummary/)
3. [Red Dawn (2012), Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1234719/)
4. [Red Dawn (2012) - Box Office and Financial Information, The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Red-Dawn-%282012%29)
5. [Reel China: Hollywood tries to stay on China's good side, Los Angeles Times (March 16, 2011)](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-china-red-dawn-20110316-story.html)
6. [Red Dawn (2012), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/red_dawn_2012)
7. [Red Dawn critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/red-dawn/critic-reviews/)
8. [Red Dawn (2012) - Movie Plot and Synopsis, Tribute Movies](https://www.tributemovies.com/movie/red-dawn/31076/)
9. [Interview: Tripp Vinson Talks About Producing Red Dawn, Shockya (November 22, 2012)](https://www.shockya.com/news/2012/11/22/interview-tripp-vinson-talks-about-producing-red-dawn/)
10. ['Red Dawn's Josh Peck Q&A, TIME (2012)](https://time.com/archive/7120595/josh-peck-on-the-red-dawn-remake-the-appeal-of-escapism-and-being-a-joke-guy-in-an-action-movie/)
11. [Academic paper on Red Dawn's villain change, CORE](https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/217051173.pdf)
12. [PhD thesis citing the delayed MGM release, University of Glasgow](https://theses.gla.ac.uk/3014/1/2011bucklephd.pdf)
13. ['Red Dawn' remake to come out next year from FilmDistrict, Los Angeles Times (September 26, 2011)](https://www.latimes.com/archives/blogs/24-frames/story/2011-09-26/red-dawn-remake-to-come-out-next-year-from-filmdistrict)
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