This is a decent sword & sorcery film centered around the comic book character. Red Sonja initially appeared in Roy Thomas’ Conan the Barbarian comic series in 1973, drawing inspiration from Robert E. Howard's Red Sonya of his short story “The Shadow of the Vulture,” which takes place in the Ottoman Empire during the 1500s. Thomas simply relocated her to Howard’s fictional Hyborian Age setting. The 1985 film starring Brigitte Nielsen strayed from the comics and was too gentle, especially concerning Prince Tarn, a spoiled Asian child, and his chubby assistant, Falkon. Fortunately, this 2025 version abandons the silliness for a more serious sword & sorcery adventure and a truer portrayal of the heroine. I don’t want to suggest Nielsen couldn't have handled the part, but her hairstyle was awful and her costume didn’t really match the comic book depiction. According to the comics, Red Sonja is supposedly 5’11”, while Nielsen stands at 6’1”, whereas Matilda Lutz in this film is 5’6½”. However, this is compensated for by improved costuming and a more accurate overall representation. Concerning that, her famous scale mail bikini is playfully addressed as Sonja eventually wears a slightly less revealing version of the outfit. Lutz might not be as curvy as some viewers would like, but she has her own appeal and certainly isn’t unattractive. Her slender build actually suits the character's athletic demands. Moreover, when you compare certain shots from the film with panels from the old comics by John Buscema, she resembles Red Sonja to me. The initial portion of the story closely mirrors the first half of the 1982 “Conan the Barbarian” movie, and its general feel is similar to the 2011 version starring Jason Momoa. The gladiatorial scenes are more impressive than in the 1982 film and resemble the movie "Gladiator." As it’s a sword & sorcery film, there are fantasy elements like a cyclops, but they aren't excessive. People who enjoy sword and sandal films generally should appreciate this one, including movies like “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.” The first half is quite good as it focuses on developing the characters and includes some original touches, but the second half tends to fall into predictable territory. The filmmakers ought to have studied the 1982 version of “Conan the Barbarian” to ensure they incorporated creative and memorable moments. It has a running time of 1 hour and 50 minutes and was filmed in August 2022 in Sofia, Bulgaria. GRADE: B-

Source on TMDB