The Running Man Movie Review 2025
A fast-paced action flick, The Running Man, about a man who enters a near-fatal television competition to earn money to take care of his family, has lots of chases, but little depth.
I remember when The Running Man movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger came out in 1987. I watched it with my brother in the movie theater, and although I haven’t seen it since I was an adolescent, I do remember him battling wrestler-like guys and sliding out of the studio down a tiny carnival chute. I have been curious if the remake that was just released would have the same type of vibe, and the answer is, not really.
The Running Man 2025 is about Ben Richards, a man who has been blacklisted for work and is trying to take care of his wife and sick daughter. In a dystopian future where people enter game shows that end with their deaths to try to earn some money, Ben enters The Running Man, where he will be hunted by both the public and the game Hunters for 30 days. His goal is to evade capture while sending in a 10 minute video each day, and, if he succeeds, he will win 1 billion dollars.
While this film is set in the future, I would say that it’s only semi-dystopian. Most people live in slums and the most wealthy control the narrative. The ability to use deep fakes to spread disinformation is common and the poor cannot get the message to the rich population that what they are seeing is fabricated. This isn’t the world we currently live in, but it is uncomfortably close, so it hits home there.
There are a number of differences between this reboot and the original film (which was based on the 1982 novel by Stephen King), the largest being that Arnold’s task was to survive for 3 hours, while this one is 30 days. It does make for the ability to add more significant characters and a more spread-out structure, so that is a plus.
Glen Powell plays Ben, and he is unbelievably angry. Like, angry angry. Within the first minute of the film, he is slamming his fist on a desk while holding his sick daughter, and he flies off the handle constantly. This characteristic is necessary for the character in this particular version, as it’s most of why he is cast in The Running Man gameshow, but it plays as manufactured when you first see him explode, and it feels inauthentic when it happens time and time again. The man could learn to have a conversation, but apparently that isn’t in him.
There are lots of action sequences in the film, most of which are entertaining and filled with energy. There is the stock “caught in a towel with nothing on” scene where he has to escape empty handed, and while it’s kind of funny, all I could think of was, “That towel has to have a lot of pins in it or serious velcro. No one else can run around in a towel around their hips and not have it slip right off.”
While you don’t really care about any of the characters, there are a few that light up the screen more than others. Daniel Ezra and Michael Cera both play undercover revolutionaries (of sorts), and the time you spend with each of them is the best until the last 10 minutes of the film, where things finally become more textured.
The Running Man is a totally fine film, but nothing to write home about. With a narrative around the spreading of misinformation and the power of the rich vs. the poor, I just wish I walked out of the theater feeling anything. It isn’t bad, and the last 10 minutes bumped it up .5 stars for me, but it’s not a movie that I’ll revisit. It’s flashy and a great option for action lovers, but otherwise, I’d pass.
Runtime: 132 minutes
Motion Picture Rating: R
Languages Spoken In The Film: English
Should You Watch It? Yes, particularly if you like action films
Did I Cry? Nope
My Rating: 3/5 Stars
Available: Currently in theaters
