The Running Man

Set in the distant future of 6 years ago, 1987's The Running Man starred Arnold Schwarzenegger as Ben Richards, an escaped convict and disgraced former police officer who was arrested for refusing to open fire on an unarmed mob in a totalitarian police state run by lies, propaganda, and brutal force that looks more and more prescient every day. Framed for the murders he refused to commit, Richard is tapped by Damon Killian (Richard Dawson), the host of the world's most popular reality-TV game show, and forced into competing on The Running Man.

Making quite a few changes to the Stephen King novel which inspired it, The Running Man is a perfect vehicle for Schwarzenegger throwing him in the game show's arenas to compete against various stalkers hunting Richards and his friends as the show's fans cheer on. As Killian mugs for the camera and fans bet and win prizes on both the broadcast and in the streets, to win the game Richards just needs to survive. Although, not surprisingly, the game is rigged to make sure no one ever beats the system.

For our stalkers we're given a variety of over-the-top characters with Jim Brown as Fireball, Jesse Ventura as Captain Freedom, Erland Van Lidth as Dynamo, and Professor Toru Tanaka as Subzero. Each is memorable in their own way, as is the method in which they are dispatched by our heroes. Killing and quipping his way through the show, Richards (occasionally with help from his friends) takes down the stalkers one by one before discovering a way to rebel against the show and broadcast the truth to the world.

Richards' co-contestants are two men he escaped prison with (Yaphet Kotto and Marvin J. McIntyre) and the woman (Maria Conchita Alonso) he took hostage after his escape attempting to flee the country. It's Alonso's most memorable performance as Amber given her own character arc from victim to rebel over the course of the film. Although she helps turn him in, she also can't shake Richards' version of the truth and her snooping eventually gets her a ticket into the game zone.

The Running Man is built on an incredibly bleak foundation of a world where the totalitarian government constantly lies to, while slowly starving, its citizens (sound familiar?). The movie also predicts the rise of both corporate control and the popularity of reality-TV with people willing to debase or put themselves in danger for their 30 coins of silver and 15 minutes of fame. That said, it's also an incredibly fun and goofy action flick that is easily one of Schwarzenegger's most watchable films. The mix of dark social commentary, wry humor, and over-the-top action hits just as hard today as it did 38 years ago.

While not a flop, The Running Man was far from the runaway hit the studio was hoping for ranking #30 at the box office behind movies such as Summer School, Blind Date, and Mannequin. It also received mixed and lukewarm reviews from critics. The film, however, did find an audience on cable and home video where it has been released on VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K over the years. With a new version, closer to the original novel, about to hit theaters, the film is currently available on a wide variety of streaming platforms as well.

• Title: The Running Man (1987)
• IMDb: link