Viewed in
2013
Formats
HDTV
Premise
Arnold Schwarzenegger stars as a wrongly convicted man forced to play in a deathmatch game, which happens to be on TV.
Loved
Jesse Ventura.
Liked
Arnold, post-apocalyptic themes.
Disliked
Lazy writing.
Thoughts
When I think "1980's Arnold flick" I expect lots of mindless violence. Here, I was pleasantly surprised.
While I couldn't help but think of The Hunger Games and other better post-apocalyptic movies, it was insightful about what America's future: with intriguing themes of television, violence, censorship, and fears of totalitarianism. In the end it didn't really dive into these themes, but I appreciated the world-building and effort.
It wasn't as graphically violent as I expected. Depending on who you are (or what mood you're in) this could be a plus or a minus.
Arnold delivered the goods (as usual) as the lead, his physique convinced me that he'd overcome the odds, and pairing him against gargantuan opponents still reenforced his underdog-ness. There were some odd casting choices, including Jim Brown, a Fleetwood, a Zappa, and Mr. Big from Live and Let Die. But the scene-stealer (and best part of the movie) was Jesse Ventura. Granted he was kind of playing his larger-than-life self, he just grabbed the scene by the balls and took the energy to a whole new level every time he was onscreen.
There were plenty of silly 1980's moments to give it an unintentionally funny dimension. The enemy outfits were ridiculous, including killer hockey sticks, armor covered in Lite-Brite, and what looked like a bad Transformers cosplay. I also laughed at the incredulous movie logic. Not that I've operated either machines, but I'd imagine riding a motorcycle with one hand while the other hand wielded a working chainsaw would require immense balance.
Other amusing things were the cheesy one-liners, including a SMH-inducing Terminator reference, and reusing the same tobogan-pipe shots not just once, but twice!
Aside from the lazy writing, I was also grew impatient that it took too long to get to the actual Running Man Game portion.
Overall, I enjoyed The Running Man. Of Arnold's vast works, I don't think I'll be re-watching this anytime soon, though it was worth watching for interesting premise, Arnold's charm, and Jesse Ventura's pure awesomeness.
