Rating: ⅗
Synopsis:
If Stephen King’s book sales don’t skyrocket in the near future I will be very surprised. “The Running Man” is another King novel brought to the big screen. We enter a world where the class divide is larger than ever. Ben Richards, a hotheaded blue collar worker who has been blacklisted, struggles to come up with funds to support his daughter’s medical needs. He sees an opportunity to enter The Running Man, a brutal reality show that offers contestants a chance to win a billion dollars. The catch? They must survive for thirty days before being hunted down by hunters and citizens alike. Accepting the challenge, Richards must weave his way between the corrupt political system to win the money and potentially shift public perspective along the way.
Positives:
Upon viewing trailers for “The Running Man”, I wasn’t very intrigued. It looked like it was trying too hard to mishmash tones and make it a broad appeal film by inserting too much humor. While this is true, “The Running Man” isn’t the trainwreck it could have been. It still manages to explore some interesting material while keeping audiences entertained. The film does a nice job at setting up the state of the world by showing how citizens are willing to put themselves on deadly reality shows in order to earn quick money. It also effectively shows how openly propaganda penetrates the construction of this dystopian world the characters live in. I found it fascinating to see how media manipulation, technological advances, and social unrest play into the story. No matter what side of the aisle someone is on, these themes may hit close to home due to our current political climate.
The film provides some neat action sequences as well. Once Ben is discovered at one of his hideouts, a fast paced chase sequence often ensues. This is where director Edgar Wright’s signature style shines the most, offering stylish, over the top action set pieces. Glen Powell and Josh Brolin bring a lot of charisma to the film. Brolin especially stands out, flexing his villainous muscles as the showrunner of The Running Man. Colman Domingo and Michael Cera also offer enjoyable supporting performances. While messy, I did enjoy how Ben was able to flip the script in the third act, offering a change of pace from his escapist mentality of the first two acts of the story. This added a thoughtful mentality of rising above the forces that aim to keep him down while providing a bombastic, exciting finale.
Negatives:
“The Running Man” is certainly watchable. It has plenty of charismatic performers, fun action scenes, and timely subject matter. That being said, it didn’t offer anything unexpected. This is a predictable, serviceable action film that tries to juggle too much. It gives audiences everything they’d want with an Edgar Wright driven story, yet it feels disconnected from any of the themes it tries to explore. My main issue with the film is the forced humorous tone. It doesn’t match the grim reality that these characters are forced to deal with. My guess is that the studio wanted to make the film more appealing to the masses so they tweaked certain aspects of King’s novel (which is very grim in tone). The mood will then shift to serious very quickly, which gives the story an unpleasant sense of tonal whiplash.
It pains me to say this, but Glen Powell’s portrayal of Ben Richards might be his worst performance to date. But I mostly blame it on the material he’s given. He is constantly asked to overact, yelling at characters with little provocation. His anger also makes him less likeable as a protagonist, where he frequently loses his cool and makes decisions that put him (and his family) in a worse position. He’s the definition of a character with all heart and no logic. But Powell is good when the script serves him well. The third act (while entertaining) does go off the rails at times, stretching believability on a number of occasions. The amount of technology that is at the ready to force conversations between Ben and the game show host almost seems comedic. There are also plenty of logic gaps that mirror a slice of swiss cheese. It tastes fine but is full of holes.
Conclusion:
Edgar Wright’s adaptation of King’s novel is more or less what I expected. It’s a perfectly fine film, offering a star studded cast and an intriguing premise. Most of the story beats work, where an examination of class divide and government manipulation all resonate effectively. I believe this will work for people of all political ideologies (a nice change of pace for Hollywood). But the shortcomings I expected are unfortunately true. The back and forth tonal shifts are the biggest drawback. This is an example of knowing a particular story might be destined for limited appeal. Not every story can be a blockbuster. So forfeiting the four quadrant blockbuster attempt would have allowed the film to embrace a darker tone. If this were the case, the story would have been far more effective. I also hope Glen Powell is more selective when choosing his roles because this one didn’t do him any favors. “The Running Man” is fine enough. It’s a good rainy day watch at home on Paramount+ but isn’t worth rushing out to the theater to see it.