‘Red Sonja’ (2025) Review – A Less-Than-Epic Reimagining That Plods Along Its Path

Now is the time to declare what should be abundantly clear by now: not every movie from the 1980s needs a remake. Red Sonja is another callback to a ‘swords and sorcery epic’ from 1985 that starred Brigitte Nielsen and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Forty years later, we have an updated version, but with hardly better effects and or even a sense of purpose. Sleepwalking through the valley, the film slogs and drags, leaving us begging to be put out of misery. It reminds us why some films, even arguably terrible ones from the past, do not need a modern update. It did not work the first time; there is no reason to think it will work a second time.

Red Sonja is far from the worst film ever made; there are many more candidates worthy of that title. However, this movie does amount to a pointless escapade. In a post-Game of Thrones world, any fantasy epic seems reductive at best and tiresome at worst. Swords clash, there is a fiesty huntress on a quest for revenge, and then the wait. A long, drawn-out affair that peters out any interest by the time we reach the final act. 

As for the story itself, a young Sonja (Matilda Lutz) watches her home ransacked and ravaged. Jump forward years later, she finds herself captured and desperate for survival. While the evil Emperor Draygan (Robert Sheehan) rules the land with a proverbial iron fist, Sonja rallies an army of outcasts to reclaim her freedom and take down Draygan and his ruthless bride Annisia (Wallis Day). Red Sonja is a barbarian huntress with a fierce thirst for vengeance and is ready to strike down anyone who stands in her way of freedom.  

Red Sonja is a remake of the original, which is in turn based on a comic book character. Her iconic costume is a chainmail bikini, complete with a sword. In the year 2025, this characterization may feel dated. While the 1985 film and the comic take cues from the male gaze, the new version attempts to tell a slightly different story. To the film’s credit, it strives to be a female empowerment story. However, it lacks any real substance, making it feel more like a stunt than a compelling narrative exercise. 

To its credit, the problems with the film are not with the lead. Lutz is relishing her scenes. She gives a robust performance, despite the limitations of the script—the original faced criticism for its casting and story problems. Outside of Lutz, who imbues a sense of charm, the ensemble is missing someone like Schwarzenegger to at least punch up where the film falls dastardly short. 

Ultimately, the script takes cues from a hodgepodge of grand-scale epics. There is a desire to play on the familiarity and cash in with wannabe crowd-cheering moments. As a result, nothing feels earned in the movie; even by the conclusion, we are left as if this journey has happened, rather than something we experienced. Too much telling rather than showing, and climactic showdowns that arrive too late for us to care.   

There are moments in the film that just happen. A gladiator match is dull and gives us the vibe of watching a rehearsal for a back-alley community theater production, complete with shoddy props and effects. Therein lies another problem with Red Sonja. Coming off such sweeping epics as Dune, Gladiator II, or even small-scale fantasy on TV, this film feels small and green-screenified. There is no depth in any of the shots. Moments look like a screensaver on loop. Any imagination is like calling a toothbrush a battleaxe. The few location shots that exist are immediately noticeable when the movie reverts to its round robin scenery. 

Red Sonja is not enough to make me see red, but it is another reminder of why remakes, even of shoddy films, are inferior projects. This film attempts to move beyond its mythology, but never creates anything new or exciting to become something other than a flimsy shadow. 

Red Sonja will debut exclusively in theaters on August 15, 2025, courtesy of Samuel Goldwyn Films. The film will debut on digital platforms on August 29th.