Rating: 6/10
Edgar Wright’s newest film, “The Running Man,” is an enjoyable action flick with very little beneath the surface. Adapted from the Stephen King novel of the same name, the film stays true to King’s dystopian setting with added elements of modern-day issues.
In the world of “The Running Man,” a mass media company called Network holds the average person in a chokehold with a constant slew of addictive, sadistic reality television slop. Competitions include niche trivia, running full speed in a hamster wheel, and other bizarre concepts. But, in the case of Ben Richards (Glen Powell), the challenge is to survive 30 days while being hunted by five professional assassins.
This is because surviving The Running Man also means winning a billion dollars, and recently-fired Richards has a dangerously sick daughter he needs to take care of. The film draws many parallels to the current condition of the United States — while affluent celebrities groan on TV about arbitrary situations, most people like Richards are left unable to reach a quality of life better than mere survival.
Get The Daily Illini in your inbox!
And that’s exactly what the character of Richards is meant to represent: the average underdog. He’s fired from his blue-collar job for advocating for basic workers’ rights and forced into making drastic choices because of a situation completely out of his own control.
Unfortunately, in the process of making a character that’s impossible to disagree with, Richards ends up shallower than ideal for the protagonist of a dystopian film. He doesn’t hold an arguable stance at any point, even as the world around him spirals.
When a character is surrounded by absurd injustice, it can become frustrating to watch him barely threaten the authority around him. His character’s slight radicalization by the end is a remedy to this, yet it would’ve been better to see it done more intensely and more often.
Instead, the film makes its arguments through side characters like anarchist Elton Perrakis (Michael Cera) and rebel influencer Bradley Throckmorton (Daniel Ezra). Despite being the most strongly opinionated and interesting characters, they only accompany Richards for segments throughout the film. This was likely to water down its messaging to make it more accessible for moderate audiences, but holding back punches also makes the film less interesting.
While “The Running Man” struggles with creating nuanced main characters, at least it delivers with its fight scenes. In typical Wright fashion, the various chase sequences maintain the film’s playful energy with a lively soundtrack and dynamic camerawork. The film keeps up an engaging pace and mostly makes good use of its runtime, rarely wasting a single moment as the plot unravels.
Powell is charming but typical in his performance as Richards. Given previous work like “Hit Man,” he’s familiar with the archetype of a lovable action lead, and his role in “The Running Man” feels like a continuation of those roles. Richards’ scenes also go through some occasional tonal shifts from comedic to serious, which end up feeling a bit jarring.
Network executive Dan Killian (Josh Brolin) and TV host Bobby Thompson (Colman Domingo) are both relatively simple characters made entertaining through high-powered performances.
Domingo especially stands out as an underutilized delight, but again, his comedic showmanship works against the film’s tone when it’s trying to be more grounded. If it were willing to go all out as an absurd dystopian comedy, maybe it’d find more consistent success.
Despite triumphs with its action, the film fails to deliver a secure punch with its writing and messaging, something crucial to Wright’s previously proven charm.
