merklekranz
"Night of the Running Man" opens with a real "grabber" of an opening, as likable cab driver (Andrew McCarthy) unintentionally gets involved with a fare who has a bag of money stolen from the mob. When the bag guy is killed, McCarthy decides to run with the bag. Enter Scott Glenn as an arrogant "fixer', who is sent by the head boss (Wayne Newton) to retrieve the million dollars and eliminate the cab driver. Glenn is excellent as the somewhat paranoid, darkly sadistic, methodical hunter. Along the way, John Glover becomes a colorful accomplice of Glenn's. This film has excellent character development, a compelling story, a sympathetic hero, and is unpredictable. Highly recommended. - MERK
FourPawsJake
I don't really understand some of the review comments stated in some of the other postings. There are three comments that I would dispute. First, one posting stated that Andrew McCarthy didn't limp or seem to be in any pain at many points in the movie...He must be confused and wasn't watching the same movie that I was watching. Andrew McCarthy wonderfully acted his part and used the proper props and movements of a person who had been severely injured. Even when he finally wore boots, they had to be cut up the side so his swollen feet could fit into them. Secondly a snide remark was made saying that McCarthy and Gunn had a romantic encounter in front of a fireplace in LA in the summer. I don't know how this viewer knew it was summer; everyone in the film (except for the nurses uniforms) wore long sleeves and carried or wore a jacket just as McCarthy did. I didn't know that people in LA wore sweaters over their shirts, jackets, and long sleeves in LA in the summer - this doesn't sound practical so it is reasonable for me to assume that that comment should also be discounted. And finally, one viewer called "Andrew McCarthy the king of bad movies"...I happen to be a big Andrew McCarthy fan...I think he is a great actor and enjoy his movies. He can't help the fact that some viewers are too unintelligent to know what is going on in the movie as has been discussed above and then refer to it as a "bad movie".If you haven't seen the movie, it is good, entertaining, contains solid acting, and McCarthy's specialty - making love to a woman that most of you need to view as a "how to" video - if you have the attention span to keep your eyes on the movie for that length of time.
Kent Rasmussen
After catching this film on cable last night, I looked forward to going on IMDb so I could gleefully tear it apart; however, I see from other viewers' comments that it's going to be tough to say something original. (Check out the other comments; some of them are quite amusing.)I call this a "good bad movie" because it's a truly bad movie that is bad in ways that make it entertaining. It has what might be called an idiot plot--one that works only because every major character behaves like an idiot. Once you accept that premise, however, you can enjoy the film on its own terms.As is explained in greater detail in some of the other posted comments, the film concerns a Las Vegas cab driver (Idiot No. 1) named Jerry Logan (Andrew McCarthy), who inherits a suitcase containing a million dollars after one of his fares is killed while trying to abscond with the money from the casino at which he worked. When the casino owner (Wayne Newton) learns that a cabbie probably has his money, he arranges for a contract killer (Idiot No. 2) named Eckhart (Scott Glenn, playing against type), to get the money back.A key element of the plot is that Eckhart is told to eliminate the cabbie. That and the fact that Eckhart is a sadistic bastard make it clear that Logan won't be able to talk his way out of the mess that he's in. Indeed, the one logical thing about his behavior is the realization that if Eckhart catches him, he's dead meat, whether he gives up the money or not. His only hope therefore is to escape, and if he does that, he might as well hang onto the money. Otherwise, however, Logan behaves like an idiot throughout the film.What follows is loaded with SPOILERS (as are most of the comments on this film), so don't read on if you don't want to know what happens in the film.Soon after Logan discovers the money, Eckhart comes after him and gives him good reason to believe that he's in deadly peril. What does he do after he makes his first narrow escape from Eckhart? He goes to the train station, buys a ticket in own name, and then gets coffee in the station cafe, where he tells the waitress where he plans to get off the train.Needless, to say, Eckhart easily catches up with Logan, only to have the guy slip away from him in a crowded airport. This sort of thing happens repeatedly: Eckhart catches Logan and has the million dollars within his grasp, only to let the dope slip out of his hands. Despite his sadistic professionalism, Eckhart is too stupid to get the job done when he has the chance. Logan, on the other hand, is just clever enough to get away but not clever enough to avoid leaving clues for Eckhart to find him quickly.After Logan lands at Los Angeles Airport, he hops into the first cab that comes along. It turns out that this cab is being driven by Idiot No. 3, Derek Mills (John Glover), another hit man whom Eckhart has tipped off about Logan's arrival. Possibly even more sadistic than Eckhart, Mills takes Logan to his own house, where he boils Logan's feet to keep him from running away. Figuring that Logan is in such great pain that he can't run away, he unties the poor schnook and leaves him writhing on the floor in agony.Why Mills keeps Logan alive while awaiting Eckhart's arrival is unclear, but he does nothing to secure Logan's bag full of money and proceeds to fall asleep in a chair. Logan then musters the strength to crawl across the room, knock out Mills with a conveniently placed hand weight, and then make it out of the house with the money. As later events demonstrate, he should have had the brains to bash Mills on the head a few more times. Had he done that, he probably would have escaped safely. However, Mills recovers, sets Eckhart on Logan's trail again, and later comes back to cause Logan even more trouble.Meanwhile, Logan awakens in a hospital room, where he is being tended by Idiot no. 4, the kindly nurse Chris Altman (Janet Gunn). Despite being drop-dead gorgeous, Altman is single and apparently unattached, as she immediately falls for the scruffy Logan. (And this dope considers himself unlucky?) Unfortunately, Logan's new friend Mills is also in the hospital, getting his head wound treated, and he overhears two nurses talking about the new patient with boiled feet. Soon, Eckhart comes calling yet again.After Nurse Altman tells Logan that a man is looking for him, they both escape (Logan's boiled feet slow him down considerably, but they seem to heel rapidly through the last 30 or so minutes of the film. Altman must be a damned good nurse.) Where does Nurse Altman take Logan? Why, back to her own house. It apparently doesn't occur to them that Eckhart will have no trouble figuring out where she lives and find them. He does, but not until the next morning, permitting them to spend the night in vigorous love-making--which must be part of Nurse Altman's cure, as Logan is in terrific condition the next day.Well, I think I've made my point. If you want more plot details, read the other comments. The script of the film is obviously inane. Nevertheless, the film can be fun to watch (apart from several scenes of sadistic violence), if you enjoy guessing what stupid move each character will make next. I've revealed some of their moves here, but the film has plenty more that I haven't described.Oh ... one final spoiler. The film ends with Logan and Altman blowing up the latter's car with the dead bodies of the two hit men in it. Another commentator on this page suggests that they burn the car so that the "mob" will think that they (i.e., Logan and Altman) are dead and stop looking for them. I don't buy that interpretation. So far as I could tell, before Eckhart gets killed, he goes back to Las Vegas and kills most of the people who might know who Logan is. Moreover, wouldn't Eckhart's own disappearance raise questions about who was in the burned-out car? In any case, I don't think anyone in the mob knows about Nurse Altman, except Eckhart and Mills--who are dead--so there would be no reason to connect Logan with the car anyway. But it doesn't much matter. This film ain't really worth this much analysis.
aristides-1
Rarely, almost never, does a botched costume tell you everything you have to know about a movie but in this self-described "low budget" film, one of the lead's costumes in fact is a warning signal. The so-called "professional ", "best there is" hit man (played by Scott Glen) is saddled, pun intended, with an ill-fitting suit that he wears throughout most of the movie. I've worked on low budget films in my career but when a director or producer saves money, not by serving pizza for meals instead of catering thefilm, but stints on the leading man's suit, then you know you are in trouble. The suit looks like it came out of the bargain floor, discounted, one-size-fits-all, section of some low price emporium. It fits him like a glove; an oversized glove on a small person, let's say. Once a thing like this starts a movie then something as simple as the Scott Glen character acting "hired gun cool" becomes an item that causes smiles, if not laughter. (I must also mention the need for thescreenwriter to try and imitate the atrocious dialogue Tarantino has inflicted on movies and have the hit man, about to practice his trade, "talk" about it to the victim. Isn't it possible that these folks, in real life, just ........do it......and move on to their home life?
