Why you can trust GamesRadar+
Richard Gere has done it again. Already persona non grata in China (for supporting Tibet after the Chinese invasion), he's pissed them off anew with his latest movie Red Corner: an earnest political thriller set in Beijing which, not surprisingly, has already been banned there.
It has a tasty scenario, but the problem lies in the execution. Jon Avnet's direction lacks punch, while the screenplay, although clearly striving for originality, either resorts to lame dialogue about US/China differences ("And how many innocent people have died in your country, Mr Moore?") or rehashes overly familiar situations from dozens of thrillers. Gere does an adequate job with his physically challenging role (will he ever match his work in Internal Affairs?), yet is outshone by talented newcomer Bai Ling, whose sparky performance has him stealing every scene.
Red Corner is at its most effective whenever the Chinese judicial system comes under the spotlight. And, if the film-makers' allegedly accurate representation is anything to go by, it's a pretty terrifying one. Although Gere's character is brutally beaten while in custody, it's the non-physical torture that gets to you. The court hearings where he's aurally hit by a confusing barrage of Chinese and English dialects, the pristine cells where he's forced to watch video recordings of past executions and, most shockingly, when he's told the bullet used in his execution will be billed to his family - all these are powerful, thought-provoking scenes which manage to both disturb and fascinate. The rest, sadly, only ever rises to the level of a mildly entertaining, late-night time-filler.
The Total Film team are made up of the finest minds in all of film journalism. They are: Editor Jane Crowther, Deputy Editor Matt Maytum, Reviews Ed Matthew Leyland, News Editor Jordan Farley, and Online Editor Emily Murray. Expect exclusive news, reviews, features, and more from the team behind the smarter movie magazine.
Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies says they don't talk about previous Doctors on set as "it's more exciting to look forward"
Oh, that's why the Stellar Blade devs were terrified by demo players: one fan's spent "about 60 hours" maxing Eve's skill tree before the action RPG is even out
A new Taylor Swift song mentions GTA, but some remember it mentioning Baldur's Gate 3, Final Fantasy 14, and more in hilarious Twitter trend