Copyright The Boston Globe
While the 1987 film was no critical darling, and turned off some fans of the novel, at least it was entertaining. Schwarzenegger was joined by Jim Brown and Jesse Ventura as his nemeses, and Maria Conchita Alonso and Yaphet Kotto as fellow contestants. Chain saws, flamethrowers, and electricity gone rampant were just a few of the weapons the mercenaries attempted to use on their quarry. As befitted an “Ah-nuld” character, Richards had plenty of quips to go with the carnage. By comparison, director Edgar Wright’s version is a more serious affair that not only has a duller hero than its predecessor, it’s also a half-hour longer. Everyone around Powell is more colorful and compelling. Supporting characters include Katy O’Brian’s fellow competitor, Laughlin, and Elton, a survivalist played by Michael Cera. Only the director of “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” would cast Cera as a badass, trap-setting woodsman from Stephen King’s fictional town of Derry, Maine; to his credit, the actor makes it work. The Schwarzenegger film’s biggest casting coup was getting Richard Dawson, the smarmy host of “Family Feud,” to play Killian, the smarmy host of “The Running Man” game show. It was a role Dawson was born to play. A game Colman Domingo picks up Dawson’s mantle as Bobby Thompson, the master of ceremonies and spokesperson for the show’s sponsor, a drink appropriately called “Liquid Death.” As in King’s book, Killian (Josh Brolin) is the producer of the show here, not its host. His network logo is a gigantic N, an obvious swipe at Netflix. It’s Killian who pulls the strings behind the scenes, and his corrupt machinations are explained to us by Bradley, an underground activist played by Daniel Ezra. Along with Elton and Bobby, he’s the most entertaining character in “The Running Man.” In this totalitarian world, health care is not affordable for the underprivileged. Everything costs more “new dollars” than the average family earns. (In a nice in-joke, Schwarzenegger is on the paper currency.) Richards signs up for “The Running Man” game show because his young daughter desperately needs flu medication, and he keeps getting fired from jobs due to his justifiable anger at the business bureaucracies keeping him down. His wife, Sheila (Jayme Lawson), the sole breadwinner of the family, works at what sounds like a strip joint. To win, contestants must survive 30 days while being hunted. Viewers and regular people can rat out contestant locations for money, and every successful day of survival puts more cash in the runner’s account. The winner will receive an astronomical amount of dough, which is why the game is rigged as hell. Though he’s normally an actor with charisma to spare, Powell is muted here. He has a funny moment every now and then, and his violent rage is convincing. Plus, there’s some nice give and take with Emilia Jones, who joins the film too late as a misinformed driver Richards takes hostage. However, there are too many lags in the action for us to forget that Richards just isn’t interesting. The screenplay, by Wright and Michael Bacall, tries to craft a cautionary tale about how viewers can be manipulated into believing anything the media powers that be tell them, even if it goes against their own best interests. This warning is even more important today than it was in 1987, but we’re only given a surface-level examination. The satire never cuts deeply, even when Killian’s network repeatedly subjects us to a hilariously bad “Real Housewives”-style reality show parody called “The Americanos.” Even the action feels rote. There are only so many shots of machine gun fire shredding doors and windows that you can take before every scene looks the same. Not even the use of a cool, automated airplane during the film’s climactic battle can liven up the action. Neither can William H. Macy, cameoing here as an ally of Richards. As I watched, I couldn’t quite put my finger on exactly why “The Running Man” wasn’t working for me. But after the film, a confused-looking guy in the theater lobby echoed my post-viewing sentiments. “I was kind of entertained,” he told his companion, “but I don’t think I liked this movie.” ★★ THE RUNNING MAN Directed by Edgar Wright. Written by Michael Bacall and Wright. Starring Glen Powell, Josh Brolin, Colman Domingo, Michael Cera, Daniel Ezra, Katy O’Brian, Jayme Lawson. At AMC Boston Common, Landmark Kendall Square, Alamo Drafthouse Seaport, AMC Causeway, suburbs. 133 minutes. R (a lot of violence, some gore, and a bit of nudity) Odie Henderson is the Boston Globe's film critic.
