| The Running Man | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Credits | |
| Title: | The Running Man |
| Director: | Paul Michael Glaser |
| Writers: | Steven E. de Souza |
| Producers: | Keith Barish; Rob Cohen; George Linder; Tim Zinnemann |
| Composer: | Harold Faltermeyer |
| Cinematography: | Thomas Del Ruth |
| Editors: | Mark Roy Warner; Edward A. Warschilka; John Wright |
| Production | |
| Production company: | TAFT Entertainment Pictures Keith Barish Productions Home Box Office |
| Released: | November 13th, 1987 |
| Rating: | R |
| Running time: | 101 min. |
| Country: | USA |
| Language: | English |
| Navigation | |
| Previous: | — |
| Next: | — |
The Running Man is an American feature film of the science fiction and action genres. It is based on the 1982 novel of the same name by author Stephen King, who wrote under the pen name Richard Bachman. The film was directed by Paul Michael Glaser with a screenplay written by Steven E. de Souza. It was produced by TAFT Entertainment Pictures and Keith Barish Productions in association with Home Box Office. It was released theatrically in North America on November 13th, 1987. The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as the main protagonist Ben Richards, with Maria Conchita Alonso as the female lead, Amber Mendez, and original Family Feud host Richard Dawson as Damon Killian. The film also features Yaphet Kotto as Laughlin, Professor Toru Tanaka as Subzero, Jim Brown as Fireball, Erland Van Lidth as Dynamo and Jesse "The Body" Ventura as retired Stalker turned fitness guru Captain Freedom.
Plot[]
By the year 2017, the nation becomes a totalitarian police state controlled by the media conglomerates. A helicopter full of peacekeepers opens fire on a group of hungry protesters in Bakersfield, California, creating massive carnage and widespread death. Any of this sound familiar?
To cover up the incident, the government frames pilot Ben Richards, and the media dubs him the "Butcher of Bakersfield". After spending two years in prison, Richards and several other convicts stage an elaborate break-out. Media mogul Damon Killian - host and producer of the competition game show The Running Man arranges to have Richards captured, and he is brought in as the show's newest contestant. If he wins, he is promised a full pardon, but Richards quickly discovers that this is just a rose-colored lie. Aided by a woman named Amber Mendez, Richards and his allies must do their best to survive as they are hunted by costumed mercenaries dubbed "Stalkers", which includes Professor Subzero, Buzzsaw, Dynamo, Fireball and Captain Freedom.
Cast[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
Notes & Trivia[]
- The Running Man redirects to this page.
- Loosely based on the 1982 novel The Running Man, the book was authored by Stephen King under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. It was released in paperback format and eventually included in the 1985 omnibus known as The Bachman Books, which includes Rage, The Long Walk, and Roadwork. The tagline for the novel was paraphrased for the tagline to the film.
- The tagline to this film is "Welcome to America in 2019, when the best men don't run for president, they run for their lives."
- There are a total of fifty-nine credited cast members in this film.
- Principal filming on The Running Man began on September 29th, 1986. The movie was filmed in Los Angeles, California. Scenes of the Wilshire Detention Zone were shot at the Kaiser Steel Mill in Fontana, California. [1]
- The Running Man grossed $38,122,105 during its domestic run off a budget of approximately $27,000,000. It did not have an international release.
- At its widest release, The Running Man remained in theaters for a total fifty-nine weeks (415 days). It was screened in 1,694 theaters. [2]
- The Running Man was released on Blu-ray by Olive Films on February 19th, 2013. [3] Maple Studios released the movie on Blu-ray on January 1st, 2014. The 4K Ultra HD SteelBook 35th Anniversary Edition was released by Paramount Pictures on November 1st, 2022. [4] The 4K Blu-ray Ultra HD 35th Anniversary Edition was released by Paramount on May 23rd, 2023. [5]
- As of May, 2023, The Running Man has a user score of 6.7 out of 10 on the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) based on more than 159,000 votes.
- On the movie review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, The Running Man holds a Tomatometer rating of 66% based on forty-seven posted critic reviews. It has 31 positive reviews and 16 negative reviews averaging 5.60 out of 10. The film has an audience score of 60% based on more than 50,000 ratings, averaging 3.5 out of 5.
- On Letterboxd, The Running Man has a weighted average rating of 3.25 out of 5 based on 52,407 user ratings.
- Another science fiction film that was released in November, 1987 is Cherry 2000.
- The opening sequence from this film takes place in the year 2017. The main parts of the film take place in 2019. Another science fiction film that takes place in 2019 is the 1982 film Blade Runner. The Syfy series Van Helsing also takes place in 2019, which is considered the near future. The Running Man novel takes place in the year 2025.
- TAFT Entertainment Pictures and Keith Barish Productions are also known for producing The Monster Squad, also released in 1987.
- Actor Erland van Lidth, who plays Dynamo, is credited as Erland Van Lidth in this film. This is his final film work. Van Lidth died of heart failure on September 23rd, 1987 at the 34, just a month and two weeks prior to the release of this film.
- Actor Toru Tanaka, who plays the Stalker known as Subzero, is billed as Professor Toru Tanaka in this film. He is not actually a professor. Prior to acting however, Professor Toru Tanaka was a professional wrestler, as was Running Man co-star Jesse Ventura.
- Arnold Schwarzenegger and Professor Toru Tanaka will face off against one another again in the 1993 movie Last Action Hero.
- Actor Sven-Ole Thorsen who plays Sven the security guard is credited as Sven Thorsen in this film. Sven Thorsen is a former body builder as well as friend & contemporary of Arnold Schwarzenegger. Sven Thorsen has appeared in numerous Schwarzenegger films including Conan the Barbarian, Predator, Red Heat, Twins, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Total Recall, Batman & Robin, Red Sonja and End of Days.
Recommendations[]
External Links[]
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ IMDB; The Running Man (1987); Filming & Production.
- ↑ Box Office Mojo; The Running Man (1987); Title Summary. Original Release/Domestic.
- ↑ Blu-ray.com; The Running Man. Blu-ray. Olive Films.
- ↑ Blu-ray.com; The Running Man. 4K Blu-ray, SteelBook 35th Anniversary Edition.
- ↑ Blu-ray.com; The Running Man. 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, 35th Anniversary Edition.