Director Edgar Wright is a bit of a darling of true cinema lovers. From his breakout Cornetto trilogy to Scott Pilgrim vs the World and 2017’s Baby Driver, Wright has solidified his place in the hearts of movie goers with electrifying story telling with distinct production style and innovative cinematography. So when it came to this remake of 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger cult classic, I was expecting Wright to bring his specific flair to proceedings. While The Running Man has action-stacked moments and charisma to burn in bona fide movie star Glen Powell, there are times where it appears to only be going through the motions. 

 

In the near future, The Running Man is the top-rated show on television, a deadly competition where contestants must survive 30 days while being hunted by professional assassins. Desperate for money to save his sick daughter, Ben Richards is convinced by the show's ruthless producer to enter the game as a last resort. Ratings soon skyrocket as Ben's defiance, instincts and grit turn him into an unexpected fan favorite, as well as a threat to the entire system.

 

The premise of The Running Man is pretty simple: survive 30 days, win your life back. What follows is Richards' realization that the system that got him here was never going to really let him win. So he’s gotta use the system itself to bring it all crashing down. 

 

The first couple of acts of The Running Man are fun with a heck of a lot of this down to the star Glen Powell himself. He’s got the X factor - extremely likeable with charisma to burn, he can elevate any film, no matter its flaws, to be an enjoyable ride. 

 

Where The Running Man stumbles is in the final act itself. There is a character injected into the middle of it all upon which a lot of the themes and messages fall. It just isn’t the sucker punch of an ending that the setup calls for and as well as feeling thematically messy Wright also doesn’t quite narratively land it. Which is truly a shame because we can see from the strong moments of action and character development that there’s a great film in there somewhere instead of just the good one that we get. 

 

While The Running Man has action-stacked moments and charisma to burn in bona fide movie star Glen Powell, there are times where it appears to only be going through the motions.