Run

In Boston, the law student and lucky poker player Charlie Farrow (Patrick Dempsey) works in a garage and is hired by his boss to deliver a Porsche in Atlantic City. The car has an injection problem on the highway, and while waiting the repair, Charlie asks the cab driver to take him to a restaurant. The guy sees the fancy car and the destination, Atlantic City, and wrongly decides to take Charlie to a local casino, believing he is a millionaire. Charlie wins all the gambles and the loser Denny Halloran (Alan C. Peterson) tries to hit Charlie, but accidentally stumbles, hits his head on a counter and dies. His father, the powerful mobster Matt Halloran (Ken Pogue), puts a reward on Charlie, and the gangsters and dirty cops chase him along the night. Charlie runs to save his life, with the support of Karen Landers (Kelly Preston).

"Run" is one of the most entertainment chase movies I have ever seen. The story is flawed, I know, but is also very charming and funny. The lead actor Patrick Dempsey is perfect for the role, and his character looks like a cat with seven lives, lucky to win the game, survive the chasing and seduce the adorable Kelly Preston. Her astonishing beauty is another plus in this underrated, amusing and highly recommended action movie. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Fugindo Para Viver" ("Escaping to Live")

OK, it isn't Lawrence of Arabia, but this film is a fun chase movie that pits a college kid against the combined might of a small community crime figure and many of his paid-off local cops. The ways Patrick Dempsey, the hero, succeeds is a far cry from the super-competent methods of previous and more formulaic eras. There is just the right mixture of humor and suspense that makes one enjoy this film in spite of knowing that it isn't exactly high-brow entertainment.

I would consider Run in comparison to an Anthony Michael Hall movie called Out of Bounds and make the recommendation for the former if this is the kind of movie that you're in the mood for.

Out of Bounds, which I think came out in 1986, stars Hall as an Iowan kid who goes to visit his brother in Los Angeles. Through a case of mistaken identity, he suddenly finds himself in a world of trouble, running from drug lords and cops, because (insert forced gasp here) he picks up the same gym as another person who was smuggling dope. Well, not to give away to much of the story, he finds this quirky girl to help him out.

Out of Bounds is very similar to Run in that, through mistaken assumptions, a kid is on the run from both the mob and crooked cops. A girl helps this kid out in his desperate struggle to escape a whole slew of maniacs. Run and Out of Time are both basically films about kids spending a whole movie trying to figure out how they're going to avoid their doom.

Run, however, makes for a much better movie than Out of Time, despite people's inclination for early Anthony Michael Hall movies. In Out of Time, he hardly acted like he wanted to be in the movie. Other than the girl that helps him out, it is a whole lot of nothing and rather predictable "coincidences."

Though only a B movie, it Run is much more exciting with efforts in acting as well as action scenes (such as the police car falling off of the mall parking garage and the man dangling over the edge from his pants leg). If you like Patrick Dempsey and Kelly Preston, you're probably certain to enjoy this film. It's actually a good lazy day kind of film.

In response to another person's valid comment about this movie, I would like to say that they are wrong to say this movie is Hitchcockian, the so called master director couldn't ever hope to make anything this good.

Run, is as fast paced as its title suggests. A brilliant masterwork about a young, naiive man who finds himself on the run from about everyone within a community when he is wrongfully accused of killing a mobster's son.

There is great support from all the cast, and it's without a doubt there hasn't been a better cat and mouse thriller since its release. Underrated actor Patrick Dempsey's second best movie since Can't Buy Me Love, which by the way is better than the more than adequately enjoyable, She's All That.

Read a couple of user reviews about this movie, and they say it was forgettable pap. I disagree. Granted, it will not win any awards, but it's an enjoyable movie.

Patrick Dempsey puts in a credible performance as a kid on the run. Some complain that it's just one big chase scene. News flash! The name of the movie is "Run"! You get what you expect to see.

Besides, if it's so forgettable, why are we talking about it 12 years later?



-Dave