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"Now time for a
movie that really is
fast and furious." |
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Directed by Wayne Kramer
- Written by Wayne
Kramer
Starring Paul Walker,
Cameron Bright, Vera
Farmiga, Chazz
Palminteri
Distributed by New Line -
2006 - 122 mins - Rated
R |
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If you've seen the trailer, forget it and go see this movie. You'll
thank me. |
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Despite
its trailer, “Running Scared” manages to be the first genuinely good
film of 2006 and based on it’s content and plot, a cult classic in the
making.
Trying to explain to you the plot of this film is completely
impossible. There is so much going on, so many characters, so many
twists, so many acts of brutal violence and conflict and so much
twisted imagery and so many eccentric performances that anything I
tell you will only water down the final product. All you need to know
is that it involves a missing gun, the mafia, corrupt cops and a whole
lot of bloodshed.
Our protagonist is Joey Gazelle, played by Paul Walker in a
performance that is NOT bad. Yes, you read that correctly, Paul Walker
is NOT bad here. As a matter of fact, he displays a genuine charisma
and gritty toughness that almost makes me forget that he was in “The
Fast and the Furious.” Although he is the one who does all of the
shooting and beating (and believe me, there is a lot of that in
“Running Scared”), he is not the most interesting character.
That would be Oleg, played by the talented young Cameron Bright. Nine
times out of ten, I find myself frustrated by child actors. They are
trained to smile and help sell paper towels in 30 second segments on
TV, not help carry films. It doesn’t help that the vast majority of
screenwriters cannot write young characters worth a damn. They attempt
to mask this by making the kid unnaturally smart so they can write him
as just another adult character. I’m not going to tell you how Oleg
figures into the plot, but I will tell you that Bright is simply
wonderful and makes everything that happens to him seem plausible…and
he also acts his age.
The rest of the cast does their job and does it well…there were a few
cringe-worthy moments, especially in the last ten minutes, but nothing
to get upset about.
Overall, though, the cast is not the main attraction here. The story
is.
And what a story! I recall Roger Ebert calling saying that “Sin City”
looks like a criminal’s nightmare…as correct as that assumption is,
“Running Scared” may fit that description even better. During the
course of the two hour running time, Joey is involved in just about
every horrific event that can occur to such a character. As things
progress, the story grows even more over-the-top and exaggerated and
by the climax, there is not a shred of reality left, only a bloody
mass of surreal, nightmarish sequences. I’m going to receive a bunch
of e-mails for saying this, but here goes: “Running Scared” is a crime
film that feels like a Franz Kafka story.
I’ve been avoiding plot details, but I feel it necessary to divulge a
few here for the sake of a warning: this is one of the most violent
and explicit films I have ever seen. It’s also one of the most
excessive and indulgent. “Running Scared” throws everything at us from
brutal gun battles, child rapists, pimps, hookers, the Italian mafia,
the Russian mafia, John Wayne, broken limbs, graphic wounds,
stabbings, more profanity than a Tarantino film, sex on top of a
washing machine, hyper but surprisingly controlled cinematography,
changing color palettes, several double crosses and an unsettling
sequence is tortured by having a hockey puck being hit repeatedly into
his face.
I do mention these as detractors. I mention these because many people
will find all of this excessive and irritating. I found it
overwhelming, but in a positive sense. The story is seriously
fractured and disturbing and the characters quirky…despite it’s
mainstream release, I can seriously see this evolving into a popular
cult film. How exactly it was made by a studio is beyond my
comprehension.
Kudos to writer/director Wayne Kramer for this distinction. It’s rare
to find a future cult film that does not set out to be a cult film
from the start.
Note: Stay for the end credits. They are fantastic and will give you a
different way of looking a the film. |
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© Written by Jacob Hall -
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TC Candler's Comment
Considering
how much I loath Paul Walker and his diminutive
acting ability, I was shocked to find out how
much I actually enjoyed this hyperactive movie.
I can honestly say that it is impossible to be
bored by this narrative. Bam. Bam. Bam.
Bam. Bam. Bam. The plot twists and
shocking turns and crazy scenes just kept on
coming. You will need a rest after seeing
this film.
Richard Propes' Comment
n/a
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