Reds

PG

Released Dec 4, 1981

3h 15m

Drama

List

90%

Tomatometer

49 Reviews

82%

Audience Score

5,000+ Ratings

American journalist John Reed (Warren Beatty) journeys to Russia to document the Boleshevik Revolution and returns a revolutionary. His fervor for left-wing politics leads him to Louise Bryant (Diane Keaton), then married, who will become a feminist icon and activist. Politics at home become more complicated as the rift grows between reality and Reed's ideals. Bryant takes up with a cynical playwright (Jack Nicholson), and Reed returns to Russia, where his health declines.

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Critics Consensus

Brawny in both intellect and scope, Reds is an intimate epic that captures the tumult of revolutionary change and the passion of those navigating through it.

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Bob Thomas

Associated Press

Beatty gives the performance of his lifetime as the erratic, possessed Reed, and his grasp of the direction of an epic film is truly astonishing.

Oct 22, 2018

Full Review

Stanley Kauffmann

The New Republic

If no one will learn much about politics from this film, Beatty has nonetheless put the fire of two burning lives in it. There is plenty in it about the risks that commitment entails, but it is about commitment.

Jan 8, 2018

Full Review

Judith Martin

Washington Post

It is occasionally rambling and repetitious, but nearly always intelligent and engrossing.

May 9, 2017

Full Review

Zita Short

InSession Film

I would never recommend this to somebody based on the romance that is supposedly at its center. I’d rave about Nicholson, the extraordinary color palette, and some of the thorny ideas that it tangles with.

Feb 7, 2023

Full Review

Kyle Smith

National Review

One of the five best films of the 1980s,

Mar 9, 2022

Full Review

James Kendrick

Q Network Film Desk

all the richer and more meaningful because it is not static history, but rather a grenade of genuine political passion lobbed into an era of increasing conservatism and military build-up-an elegy for an ideal

Rated: 3/4

Jan 6, 2022

Full Review

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Tim O

This movie is so overrated because of leftist nostalgia that wants anything to paint Communism in a good light. It bombed at the theater for a reason. It was awful. The premise was interesting put the script was very subpar and predictable and Beatty was so hammy that it made it dreadful. Then you add Diane Keaton who has never put in a good performance since The Godfather. Nicholson looked out of place. The only people voting this movie high are Marxists. The average person has never seen this film.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

07/04/24

Full Review

Cuenta P

After 42 years since it was filmed, I recommended watching it and seeing how well it has aged. Like good wines, this complex choral film ages perfectly.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

12/09/23

Full Review

Willka N

Excellent film. The story of John Reed, author of "The Ten Days that Shoovk the World" that -basically- explains the whos, whats whens and wheres of the October Revolution in Russia (latter Soviet Union). Must watch.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/30/23

Full Review

AB L

The scope of the film is impressive and it fittingly has no illusions about the ways a revolutionary ideology slowly becomes compromised by individual agendas and political machinations. Weaving in interviews with people who actually knew Reed and others in the American Communist Party into the narrative was a stroke of genius.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/31/23

Full Review

Leaburn O

A film spliced with interviews with people who knew the main protagonists which helped provide excellent context to what we were watching. It was a story I was unaware of and Warren Beatty was superb. The drawback was that it was overlong and the plot was plodding. A good film but not the essential made out by making the top ten AFI drama films. I bought this one on DVD as struggled to find on TV or streaming services.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

08/15/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Reds is good in the sense that it helps show socialism and all that nonsense for what it is. It's not so good in the sense that it's WAY too long and Beatty's acting is meh.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/12/23

Full Review

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Warren Beatty

Director

Warren Beatty

John Reed

Diane Keaton

Louise Bryant

Jack Nicholson

Eugene O'Neill

Maureen Stapleton

Emma Goldman

Edward Herrmann

Max Eastman

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Reds: Official Clip - As What?

1:48

Reds: Official Clip - Joining the Revolution

2:00

Reds: Official Clip - The Train Attack

1:44

Reds: Official Clip - You Wanna Get Married?

2:13

Reds: Official Clip - Louisa & Eugene

2:13

Reds: Official Clip - Please Don't Leave Me

2:13

Reds: Official Clip - Without Your Pants

1:27

Reds: Official Clip - Unfaithful

2:12

Reds: Official Clip - Going for Water

2:06

Reds: Official Clip - Train Ride to Russia

2:13

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Synopsis

American journalist John Reed (Warren Beatty) journeys to Russia to document the Boleshevik Revolution and returns a revolutionary. His fervor for left-wing politics leads him to Louise Bryant (Diane Keaton), then married, who will become a feminist icon and activist. Politics at home become more complicated as the rift grows between reality and Reed's ideals. Bryant takes up with a cynical playwright (Jack Nicholson), and Reed returns to Russia, where his health declines.

Director: Warren Beatty
Producer: Warren Beatty
Screenwriter: Warren Beatty, Peter S. Feibleman, Trevor Griffiths, Elaine May, Jeremy Pikser
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount Pictures
Rating: PG
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 4, 1981, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 21, 2010
Runtime: 3h 15m
Sound Mix: Stereo

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