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I was hopeful when it came to Edgar Wright’s The Running Man. I like Glen Powell as an actor, and the trailer looked solid. Of course, I didn’t expect a remarkable movie, because it is a sci-fi action film based on a Stephen King novel. Also, Wright’s last movie was so-so. In the end, we got what is probably the 2025 equivalent of what The Running Man starring Arnold Schwarzenegger was in 1987.
Both adaptations are fine. The Powell-led Running Man is perfectly solid, and if it pops up on a streaming service near you give it a watch. Even with its theoretical spectacle, I don’t think it merits theatrical viewing unless you love going to the movies. It’s too late to make it a box-office success, anyway. The 1987 Running Man is also perfectly solid. The difference is how a 1987 action movie got to solid compared to a 2025 action movie.
Schwarzenegger’s film is very ‘80s. It’s also very silly. The movie is goofy as all get out, bombastic, and over the top. Apparently the simple premise of a game show where people run for their literal lives wasn’t enough for the film, which adds in a bunch of other nonsense. At times it is quite delightful. It has epic moments and fun bits. At other times, it’s profoundly dumb. Not always fun dumb, either. I definitely roll my eyes occasionally at the 1987 version of The Running Man. The good and the bad average out to fine.
I referred to the 2025 film as “perfectly solid,” and “solid” really is instructive as a word choice. The movie is unremarkable. It doesn’t really have highs or lows. I never rolled my eyes, but I never had much enthusiasm either. There were few, if any, laughs, and not even a crazy amount of spectacle. Although, I will grant the viewing experience was hindered by how much of the quality stuff made the trailer. That, of course, doesn’t speak well to the other 115 minutes of the movie or whatever.
Nobody gives a standout performance, and nobody pops off the screen. It’s fine. It’s watchable. It’s weirdly unambitious. In 1987, you ended up with a fine action movie because you took big swings and some of them hit and some of them missed. In 2025, that kind of movie is just a steady hum of fine. It never gets out of first gear, but the ride is smooth.
