The Running Man is an adaptation of Stephen King’s dystopian thriller with a more modern take of this world. The short answer to whether or not you should see The Running Man depends on what you expect from this film. If you go into this movie expecting high quality on all fronts similar to Edgar Wright’s other films, you may end up severely disappointed like me. Edgar Wright does a great job balancing comedy, action, and emotional beats in his other films such as Shaun of the Dead or Baby Driver. However, he misses the mark this time around, creating what I would consider a 6/10.

The world of The Running Man is run by a corrupt government operating a dangerous game show to keep the public in check. As the protagonist, Ben Richards (played by rising star Glen Powell) is struggling to afford treatment for his sick daughter, he reluctantly joins The Running Man to make money. His task is to survive for 30 days as the entire world makes efforts to hunt and kill him.

The story itself is compelling but lacks certain elements to truly make this film what it could have been. Glen Powell plays Ben Richards as a rude man with a sort of outward hatred towards everything and everyone stemming from how the government treats him. However, as the movie progresses, he changes to a still frustrated but more so quippy and sympathetic person without any real explanation for this change. Throughout the film, the audience is expected to just accept this change without time spent delving into why a very sudden change of heart. This leads to another critique, which is the film’s tendency to undercut its emotional weight. During emotional scenes there will be a random joke sprinkled in that ruins the emotional build up and takes me out of the scene completely. It’s something very frustrating to see and may ruin the ending of this film for some people, myself included.

While Ben Richards’ emotional stance is hard to believe at times, he is still very well played by Glen Powell. There were no particularly bad actors, but there was a standout in Colman Domingo who is just electric in every scene that he’s in and was a perfect fit to play the gameshow host. His charisma but also intimidation at times brings the character to life and invites a growing sense of hatred towards him as the film progresses. Josh Brolin plays the central villain as Dan Killian the producer of The Running Man. His character is easy to hate as he taunts and manipulates Ben Richards throughout the film. However, Josh Brolin’s performance feels limited by the script. His version of Dan Killian rarely shifts emotionally, and I found myself wanting to see him push the character further.

There are action sequences throughout the film, and they are probably the most important factor when determining this film’s success. While I would say they weren’t perfect, it’s impossible to deny that the epic score and cinematography invites the audience to stress over Ben Richards’ safety, curious as to how he will get out of the situation he’s in. There’s also a sequence towards the middle of the film and featured in the trailer that hones in on slapstick comedy that is short-lived but very fun to watch.

All in all, I would say your viewing experience heavily relies on your expectations when going into this film. Don’t go in expecting a cinematic masterpiece, but instead a fun action blockbuster and you will most likely walk away enjoying this film. If you want to enjoy this movie even more, you can watch and compare it to the original The Running Man starring Arnold Schwarzenegger which is significantly worse.