The Running Man (1987)

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Maria Conchita Alonso, & Richard Dawson

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

In this futuristic world, it's 2017 and The United States government has collapsed. Along with the government, gone are personal freedoms, including freedom of speech. The smallest infraction can get a person thrown into a prison work camp for life, with their only refuge being the worlds most popular TV game show, The Running Man. Ben Richards (Schwarzenegger) is a member of the new military police force. When he's ordered to fire on a group of unarmed civilians and refuses, he's locked away. Following a brief escape, Richards is recaptured and chosen for The Running Man game show, where he can compete for a chance at freedom. In the 1980s, adding Arnold Schwarzenegger's name to an action film meant big bucks for the studio, but not all those movies were worth watching. The Running Man, however, was one of his better films, as Arnold plays a role that was seemingly perfect for him. The film, based on a book by Stephen King, is of course very well written, and features a lot more than simply the game and the man trying to win it. Even Schwarzengger himself was quoted as saying the film was good, but didn't do the book justice. Having not read the book, I can't say either way, but regardless, I did enjoy the story I saw. It was extremely unique and a whole lot of fun. As I said Arnold was perfect for the part of Richards. His Co-star, Maria Conchita Alonso, was the complete opposite, as clearly she was picked for her looks and popularity at the time. Besides hardly being able to understand her, she doesn't seem like a woman who is in this huge fight of her life, she's making jokes and trying to be sexy in situations that certainly don't call for it. I really wasn't impressed by her at all, but it doesn't hurt the film all that much. Doing an adaptation of a Stephen King novel is a Herculean task, given the fact that even his short novels are routinely 500 pages or more. Of course there were plenty of things that had to be excluded, but even so, I thought they did an excellent job of both screen writing and casting. The Running Man may not be that shocking or unique in 2017, but in 1987 it pushed the limits and thrilled audiences. While the shock may have been lost over time, the thrill and excitement are still there and easily makes the film a must see classic!

SIDE NOTE:

Behind a unique film is usually a interesting story, and the history of The Running Man certainly qualifies. Believe it or not, this is actually one of Stephen King's first film adaptations, but he's not listed as the author. As The Running Man was one of King's first non-horror novels, he wrote it under a pseudonym. When the book was finally turned into a film, the original Director, Andrew Davis, was fired within three days and replaced by Paul Michael Glaser, AKA Starsky of Starsky & Hutch fame. Glaser changed much of the story to be more film friendly, which angered it's star, Arnold Schwarzenegger, who then insisted it be changed back to be more like the book. Eventually, a compromised was reached and the film was released, becoming a Science Fiction classic, listed near the top of most critics top 100 Science Fiction films of all-time.