I am always excited for any new Edgar Wright movie, and when I heard that he was remaking The Running Man, with a starring role for Glenn Powell, I was intrigued to see how he would approach the material. For as much as I enjoy the Arnold action flick, the source material (a novella by Stephen King, published under his Richard Bachman pseudonym) was a much darker and more cynical piece of work. Wright, for all of his good points, doesn't necessarily seem capable of dark and cynical.
And it turns out that he isn't. This IS a bleaker film than the original, and there are a number of moments here that show Wright trying to add an edge that has been absent from his past features, but he still can't help aiming for a message that is ultimately a positive one, taking the ending of the novella as a starting point for a slightly different direction that should actually please both fans of the story and fans of films that don't ruin your whole week.
Powell plays Ben Richards, a man with a strong moral code and a bit of a temper, which has made things a bit problematic when it comes to his relationship with exploitative employers. Desperate to get the medicine that his daughter needs, Ben heads along to a TV studio to sign up for one of the many shows that offer cash prizes. He's happy to try most of them, except The Running Man, which sees contestants being hunted, until almost inevitably trapped and killed. Unfortunately, his attitude and capabilities make him a perfect choice for The Running Man. It's time to start running.
Powell is great in the lead role, far removed from Arnold, of course,
but physically capable and suitably charismatic. He's grim and
determined, but able to start having fun when he starts to figure out
the best way to play the game. Colman Domingo is great value as the
flamboyant host, Bobby T, Josh Brolin is enjoyably slick and shark-like
in the role of Dan Killian, the head manipulator who creates the perfect
storylines for viewers to lap up, and Emilia Jones turns up in time to
play a pivotal role in the third act. There's also room for fun little
turns from Katy O'Brian, William H. Macy, Lee Pace, and an enjoyably
manic pairing of Michael Cera and Sandra Dickinson (featured in the most
memorable sequence in the film).
It's been interesting to watch Wright's career as he has stepped further away from the Cornetto trilogy that proved to be so enduringly popular. I think he's maintained a remarkable consistency throughout a varied selection of treats, although I know some people have stopped being impressed by his particular style. Another attempt to show he can do more than just gags and homages, The Running Man works well, for the most part, although it's jarring on the few occasions when you do notice the standard "Wright-isms" (e.g. a Y/why gag, the foreshadowing, soundtrack choices, etc.) in the mix.
Having also worked on the screenplay with Michael Bacall, there's great care taken here to present a vision of a horribly depressing future that doesn't feel too far removed from the here and now without leaving viewers depressed at the thought of it all looming up to ruin our lives.
For as bleak and as brutal as this can be, it's also a lot of fun. Some purists may balk at that idea, considering how things play out in the Bachman book, but it's a perfectly-blended end result that proves why Wright was a great choice to bring us another interpretation of the tale. It's just a shame that he didn't hire Harold Faltermeyer to deliver another fine electronic score, which would have been the best thing to carry over from the older film.
8/10
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