It's rare that one's expectations for a movie are met exactly. Either you have low expectations and a movie is a pleasant surprise, or you have high expectations and it's a crushing disappointment. Not Red.

No, with Red I was expecting a hilarious action-comedy with a fantastic cast, snappy writing, and a good plot. And that's exactly what I got.

Bruce Willis plays Retired, Extremely Dangerous (RED) CIA agent Frank Moses. One night, a team of assassins come to kill him. He flees to Kansas City where he abducts a woman he's been corresponding with by phone, Sarah Ross (Mary-Louise Parker), with the goal of protecting her. It turns out Moses is on a hit-list, and almost everyone else on the list is dead. To get to the bottom of it, he meets up with other RED agents, played by Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich and Helen Mirren.

If you thought that was inspired casting, try this for size: Brian Cox, Karl Urban, Julian McMahon, Richard Dreyfuss. It's brilliant!

The plot is just the perfect mix of conspiracy thriller, action and comedy. Exactly what I was expecting. Perhaps there was one unexpected surprise, though: Mary-Louise Parker. She holds her own (and then some), even in a cast of heavyweights. She is hilarious and sweet and entirely believable.

Now, are you just going to keep reading me wax lyrical about this movie? Please don't. Please buy a ticket to Red. It is THAT good.

It was exactly what I'd expected.