Running Man

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

Directed by former Starsky and Hutch TV star Paul Michael Glaser, this post-apocalyptic science fiction yarn satirized American entertainment, mocking pro wrestling, game shows, and law-and-order reality programming. Arnold Schwarzenegger stars as Ben Richards, a cop in the totalitarian America of 2019, framed for massacring rioting civilians during a famine. After escaping from jail, Richards tries to prove his innocence, but his efforts are thwarted at every turn by a regime in need of a scapegoat. Richards is captured along with an innocent civilian, Amber Mendez (Maria Conchita Alonso), and they are forced to participate in a violent game show called "The Running Man," hosted by the unctuous Damon Killian (Richard Dawson). The object of the game for Richards and Mendez: obtain freedom by staying alive against a gauntlet of skillful assassins like "Subzero" (Prof. Toru Tanaka) and "Captain Freedom" (Jesse Ventura), each armed with unique weapons like razor-sharp hockey sticks and chainsaws. With the help of some fellow "contestants," Richards is able to tap into government computers and prove his innocence. The Running Man was very loosely based on a short story by Stephen King, who wrote it under the name Richard Bachman. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: 1
• Number of Discs: 1
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 (Theatre Wide Screen)
• Audio: PCM Stereo
• Screen: Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
• Subtitle: English

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Director:

  Paul Michael Glaser

• Producer:

  George Linder, Tim Zinnemann

• Screenwriter:

  Steven E. de Souza, John Herzfeld

• Book Author:

  Stephen King

• Cinematographer:

  Thomas del Ruth, Reynaldo Villalobos

• Composer (Music Score):

  Harold Faltermeyer

• Editor:

  Mark Warner, Edward Warschilka, John Wright

• Production Designer:

  Jack T. Collis, John Stoll

• Executive Producer:

  Keith Barish, Rob Cohen

• Set Designer:

  Richard G. Berger, Jim Duffy, Nick Navarro, Nancy Patton

• Costume Designer:

  Robert Blackman

• Sound/Sound Designer:

  Richard Bryce Goodman

• Makeup:

  Jeff Dawn

• Special Effects:

  Chris Casady, Lawrence James Cavanaugh, R. Bruce Steinheimer

• Stunts:

  Bennie E. Dobbins

• Choreography:

  Paula Abdul

• Production Manager:

  Gary Daigler

• Casting:

  Jackie Burch

• Second Unit Director:

  Bennie E. Dobbins

• Stunts Coordinator:

  Bennie E. Dobbins

• Special Effects Supervisor:

  Gary Gutierrez, R. Bruce Steinheimer

• Makeup Special Effects:

  The Burman Studio

REVIEW:

• One of the better adaptations of novelist and short story writer Stephen King's fiction to the screen, this tongue-in-cheek science fiction-adventure ranks among the best of star Arnold Schwarzenegger's futuristic film efforts; its success likely influenced the tone of his later, quite similar Total Recall (1990). Screenwriters Steven E. de Souza and John Herzfeld take a jaundiced but delightfully jovial and cynically twisted view of the public's passion for professional wrestling, game shows, and bloody reality programming (all of which would become even more popular in the years after this film's release). The result is a vision of a dystopian future that will be familiar to fans of such 1970s fare as Logan's Run (1976) and Soylent Green (1973), but with a decidedly late '80s sense of humor. Schwarzenegger and his wrestling co-stars (including future governor Jesse Ventura) provide their usual qualities: hulking, muscle-bound menace. They do what they were hired to do, which is essentially smash the living heck out of each other, vehicles, walls, etc. The sole acting performance is a great one from former actor and game show host Richard Dawson, wickedly sending up his own image in a savagely funny fashion. The Running Man is definitely not the type of film to take home Oscars, but it's enormous fun for both those who "get" the film's sly lacerating of the modern zeitgeist and those who don't. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi