Entertainment

Schwarzenegger’s ‘Running Man’ Offered More Cheese Than ’80s Era’


Paul Michael Glaser’s “The Running Man” (1987) felt like a top Arnold Schwarzenegger carriage upon release.

It was based on a novel by Richard Bachman, who we later came to know as Stephen King. It follows well-produced, authoritative mediums like “Commando” (obviously, Schwarzenegger was lucky to pick the movie over Chuck Norris), and it comes right after a big test run with “Predator” earlier five.

Because the premise not only hints at an allegory of the backward future but also the classic “The Most Dangerous Game,” it seems likely that Schwarzenegger will eventually be known for more than just saying the three words above. screen.

Schwarzenegger plays Ben Richards, a helicopter pilot framed for a heinous crime he didn’t commit. He was sent to prison, then forced to participate in a vile and hugely popular TV game show called Running Man.

The host is also a powerful player in the social fabric of this corrupt world (at least like Caesar Flickerman in “The Hunger Games”).

Steven de Souza has adapted Richard Bachman’s novel and the dialogue is amusingly amusing. From the very beginning, Schwarzenegger protested, “Damn you. I will not open fire on helpless people! “I don’t believe even Meryl Streep could make that line work.

This game is like “The Hunger Games” for adults. However, a movie geared towards this political goal that should be closer to the boundless, shocking, and brilliant movie “The Hunger Games” has been ripped off, that is. “Battle Royale” (2000).

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Instead, this has the crowd-pleasing safety net of the former and none of the barbaric and barbaric satire of the latter. Still, it’s truly an ’80s action movie, as it turns us into a studio audience and makes us more of a root for carnage than anything else.

On top of racist stereotypes and widespread caricatures on display, Schwarzenegger is playing an American here. That’s right, his character’s name is Ben Richards and, like in some of his other starring mediums, we don’t mean to question why the very Austrian Schwarzenegger plays an American.

We do know the character type, though, as Richards is on full Kill n’ Quip and a suitable Schwarzenegger role.

Richard Dawson is ranked first as host of “The People’s Network”. Playing a cross between Vince McMahon and Simon Cowell, Dawson steals the film and even has a great escape.

After a strong introduction, Maria Conchita Alonso’s character becomes a basic girl in distress. Alonso, an energetic actress, was really put to better use in “Predator 2” (1990).

There’s also the usual Kurt Fuller and New Line Cinema and “Insidious” MVP Lin Shaye. Mick Fleetwood (like Nicol Williamson) and Dweezil Zappa showed up early and were happy to see the cast with Schwarzenegger.

Jesse “The Body” Ventura showed up performing the Hulk Hogan jump and, in case the talent list wasn’t wild enough, Paula Abdul did the choreography.

“Running Man” definitely wants to be “RoboCop, ” is the comprehensive ICS channel that broadcasts the Running Man game show that tells the world OCP is “RobooCop” (in fact, both were released in the same summer). Despite how silly this is, what’s surprising is that it has a lot of things right about Reality TV.

It’s also hot, very ’80s, and really bloody for an R rating of 1987.

While too stupid and silly to succeed in a satirical role, it relates to and captures the narrative appeal of a company’s ability to attract and maintain a grip on the masses. they.

Another takeaway that I appreciate: De Souza is right that 2017 TV execs won’t know what “Gilligan Island” or Mr. Spock is.

The fanatical cult of Reality TV described here reminds me of the time John Carpenter (no, not a filmmaker) won the “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” and “American Gladiator” awards, ” Survivor”, “The Amazing Race” is about Reality TV going bad, very fast.

After “The Truman Show” (1998), it’s not hard to imagine “Running Man” airing on primetime television, though perhaps with a lower body count… now.

Det. The director of Starsky, directed by Glaser, is ready for the TV show, which includes scenes that end with cutscenes, like a TV show after a commercial pause. Glaser’s only directorial credit for the latter, of all things, is the Shaquille O’Neal genie comedy, “Kazaam!” (1996).

In Schwarzenegger’s 2012 autobiography, “Completely Recall: The Unbelievable True Story of My Life” (spoiler: title doesn’t lie), he complains about Glaser’s handling of sensational material and expresses his displeasure at the original director, Andrew Davis (who later directed Schwarzenegger in the film “Truth”. collateral damage” in 2002) has been replaced.

Schwarzenegger’s dismissive assessment of the film is not entirely fair. While not a classic and on the level of “Terminator” (1984) or “Predator”, “Running Man” is essentially “The Most Dangerous Game” combined with “Rollerball” plus a dash of “Escape from New York. “

It works.

While it’s easy to cast Schwarzenegger as the very American Ben Richards and the star’s struggles with English have come up at this point, it’s neither a bad medium nor a wrong move. career mistakes.

“Running Man” doesn’t get the same respect as James Cameron’s “Terminator” (1984) but it was a success and another title that pushed the star into its orbit with “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” (1991).

Most wouldn’t consider Schwarzenegger an actor, but he would prove everyone wrong. He has an unexpected flair for comedy (“Twins,” “Kindergarten Cop,” the weird but watchable “Junior” and especially “True Lies”) and drama (though little seen). , but Schwarzenegger’s performance in “Maggie” remains as underrated and remarkable as the film itself).

Former Mr. Universe is such a compelling on-screen presence that, even in films like this, he gets to work on casting. Very few movie stars can do that.

Harold Faltermeyer’s John Carpenter-esque score is a big plus. The third act is cunning and silly, as the heavyweights are all dressed up as the villains in “Mad Max”. It’s all very WWF, especially the Iron Sheik and Junkyard Dog eras.

If only the fight scenes weren’t so troublesome.

Considering that this came in the age of Morton Downey Jr., the chair thrown at Geraldo Rivera, but before the chaotic decades of Jerry Springer and Maury Povich, depicting that the most bloodthirsty gladiators the audience died , then and now.

The film’s greatest achievement is that it makes the live studio audience feel the real savagery. If “Network” (1976) is prophetic, wisdom assumes this premise, and “The Truman Show” (1998) is a gentle allegory of how TV shapes the lives of its viewers and its products. , then “Running Man” could be a few years before becoming a real thing.

I hope that’s not true, but it certainly looks like ICS-like scan week chaos is imminent…if it hasn’t already.





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