Red Joan

R

Released Apr 19, 2019

1h 50m

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

Crime

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List

30%

150 Reviews

Tomatometer

56%

250+ Ratings

Audience Score

Joan Stanley is a widow living out a quiet retirement in the suburbs when, shockingly, the British Secret Service places her under arrest. The charge: providing classified scientific information - including details on the building of the atomic bomb - to the Soviet government for decades. As the interrogation gets underway, Joan relives the dramatic events that shaped her life and her beliefs.

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Critics Consensus

A fascinating real-life story dramatized in perplexingly dull fashion, Red Joan wastes its tale's incredible intrigue -- as well as the formidable talents of Judi Dench.

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Julia G

Boring movie about a fascinating story. You know every plotpoint in advance and nothing ist really interesting or suprising in this flick.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/05/24

Full Review

Andrea M

This isn't movie that puts you in a happy mood, but that doesn't make it bad. This movie was quite pleasent to see. It may not be 100% historicly accurate, but it doesn't have to be sence the true story was only an inspiration. It has a good dynamic, there wasn't a part of the movie where I was bored and in my opinion the story isn't going too slow.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/13/24

Full Review

Peter S

First off, there are no really likable characters here, and Joan is probably the least likable of all. Even Dench couldn't make you like the contemptible subject of the story. In that regard, Cookson and Dench did incredible work because young Joan is not nice and doesn't improve in likability with age. The more Joan's story is revealed, the more you dislike her. Oh, they try to write her as semi-human and relatable. Still, she had an ego as big as a tree, destroyed some people's professional lives, betrayed others, and had a huge Messiah Complex - "I was trying to save the world, and I think I did!". Ugh. Pass the puke bucket. It's more like the bored girl was seeking thrills through espionage and betrayal, which all tickled her very healthy ego every time she got away with it and had praise heaped on her by her cohorts. The story is loosely based on Melita Norwood, who never had to pay for her betrayals. I wonder if she had a savior complex too. It sounds like it, based on what little I read of her. I'm not sure I want to get to know her better. Anyway, the writing is cloying and hokey, with such classics as "My wife will never give me a divorce" and "Think with your heart" (which is what people request of you when they don't want you to notice how despicably they behaved). Joan's son represents her in the legal proceedings (is that really a good idea?), and he has mixed feelings about his mother's activities. He gets very angry with her because of her treasonous activities, but somewhere along the line, he inexplicably has a change of heart. He shows up at the end, telling the press that his mother was not a villain but a hero. Good job, sonny boy, feed your mother's already-grandiose ego. All the people she injured and compromised are probably dead by now. She was no hero. While she was betraying her country, it was being bombed relentlessly by the Germans. The sovereignty of the UK was hanging by a thread until the US became an ally and got into the fight. Almost everything was underdeveloped and choppy - the writing, the characters, and the story in general. The acting was good to great, but the story and its pace did a disservice to the actors. It's tolerable but frustrating. I came because of Judy Dench and stories about spies. I left dissatisfied with the story, hating almost every character and wondering why I didn't find a better movie to watch. I'm sorry Melita Norwood's crimes weren't uncovered sooner when Great Britain still had capital punishment.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

04/06/23

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Jessica L

An interesting interpretation and well worth the watch. Hard hitting in a way I think most would shy away from.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/25/23

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isla s

This is a warm hearted, charming, sometimes sad and sometimes amusing family friendly watch. I was intrigued by the story given its based on a true story and I enjoyed the various characters. I like how the dog brought the local community together and the theme of the somewhat underdogs sticking up for themselves against others in the perhaps outskirts of town. This is a nice watch and I would recommend it.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

A slow burner, and to be honest the story struggles to fill the length of the film. The bottom line is that Joan was a traitor and I don't think anything here convinces the audience otherwise. I guess its slightly interesting but nothing more. Maybe the book this is based on does a better job of explaining the story and reasoning.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

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Trevor Nunn

Director

Judi Dench

Joan

Sophie Cookson

Young Joan

Tom Hughes

Leo

Tereza Srbova

Sonya

Ciaran Owens

Detective Hughes

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Ben Sachs

Chicago Reader

Every plot point and every character insight gets delivered with the same manufactured smoothness; the movie is naggingly bland in the way one associates with "respectable" British cinema.

Mar 10, 2020

Full Review

Paul Byrnes

Sydney Morning Herald

In technical terms, it's a proficiently made film by the evergreen Trevor Nunn -- or it would be if it were not so determined to embrace all the cliches of the moment, both about British spies and films for women.

Rated: 3/5

Jun 6, 2019

Full Review

Adam Graham

Detroit News

This period drama is stuffy and slow, told in a clumsy way to justify Dench's casting and presence, and is still a waste of her time.

Rated: C-

May 3, 2019

Full Review

Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

For all the faults of editing and storytelling, Cookson still gives a striking performance.

Rated: 6/10

Dec 7, 2020

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Charles Koplinski

Reel Talk with Chuck and Pam

Though the film tells an intriguing story, director Trevor Nunn's approach is bland while the movie's pace flirts with tedium throughout.

Rated: 2.5/4.0

Nov 20, 2020

Full Review

Tom Beasley

VultureHound

The result is a movie that might not ever be all that thrilling, but it is never anything other than watchable.

Rated: 3/5

Aug 15, 2020

Full Review

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Synopsis

Joan Stanley is a widow living out a quiet retirement in the suburbs when, shockingly, the British Secret Service places her under arrest. The charge: providing classified scientific information - including details on the building of the atomic bomb - to the Soviet government for decades. As the interrogation gets underway, Joan relives the dramatic events that shaped her life and her beliefs.

Director: Trevor Nunn
Producer: Ivan Mactaggart, Tim Haslam, Jan Pace, Karl Sydow
Screenwriter: Lindsay Shapero
Distributor: IFC Films
Production Co: Trademark Films
Rating: R (Brief Sexuality/Nudity)
Genre: Drama, Mystery & Thriller, Crime
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 19, 2019, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 13, 2019
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.6M
Runtime: 1h 50m

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