Reviews
John Chard

John Chard

March 27, 2019
7.0
Show me another career they let you shoot people. Running Scared is directed by Peter Hyams (also on cinematography duties) and written by Gary DeVore, Gary DeVore and Jimmy Huston. It stars Billy Crystal, Gregory Hines, Steven Bauer, Darlanne Fluegel, Joe Pantoliano, Dan Hedaya, Jon Gries, Tracy Reed and Jimmy Smits. Music is by Rod Temperton. The buddy buddy action/comedy cop formula has proved to be a most viable filmic commodity over the years. It gathered apace in the 1980s and right at the forefront is this often forgotten fun little treasure. Plot has Hines and Crystal as Chicago cops, tough and full of wise cracks, they are tasked with trying to bring down high profile drug dealer Julio Gonzales (Smits). The timing is unfortunate because after a holiday in Key West the boys decide they have had enough of police work and want to retire there. Can they bring down Julio Gonzales? Can they stay alive in the process? Questions to be answered in an entertaining hour and forty five minutes. The chemistry between Hines and Crystal is set in stone, they are a great pairing and very quickly you warm to them. As per genre requirements some of their character's methods are unconventional. the gags are thick and fast, and crucially very funny - while the support slots are nicely filled (Pantoliano a joy). In the mix as the two cops ponder retirement is the looming presence of two younger cops ready to step into their shoes, which of course makes for sparky rivalry. There's the emotional beat of "the ex-wife" as a critical plot development, though amazingly Fluegel is under written and hardly in the piece! And Smits never fully convinces as the chief villain, but he also is weirdly under written. Basically if you have a kink for this type of genre piece, especially ones produced in the 80s - and to have an understanding of that decades style of film making - then there's a good time to be had here. 7/10

Recommendation Movies

7
Crime
View
7
The Last of Sheila
The Last of Sheila1973
5.5
Horror
View
5.5
Strip Nude for Your Killer
Strip Nude for Your Killer1975
7.5
Drama
View
7.5
Courier
Courier1986
5.6
Drama
View
5.6
The Survivors
The Survivors1983
5.5
Comedy
View
5.5
Yellowbeard
Yellowbeard1983
5.5
Action
View
5.5
Rustlers' Rhapsody
Rustlers' Rhapsody1985
4.2
Music
View
4.2
The Black Eyed Peas: Live from Sydney to Vegas
The Black Eyed Peas: Live from Sydney to Vegas2006
5.8
Thriller
View
5.8
Trick
Trick2019
6.5
Thriller
View
6.5
Kalifornia
Kalifornia1993
6.9
Comedy
View
6.9
The Jerk
The Jerk1979
5.8
Horror
View
5.8
The Blackcoat's Daughter
The Blackcoat's Daughter2017
6.2
Science Fiction
View
6.2
Flash Gordon
Flash Gordon1980
5.9
Comedy
View
5.9
Rubber
Rubber2010
6.4
Thriller
View
6.4
Fear
Fear1996
6.5
Mystery
View
6.5
Joy Ride
Joy Ride2001
6.1
Comedy
View
6.1
Billy Madison
Billy Madison1995
7.2
Science Fiction
View
7.2
The Wandering Earth II
The Wandering Earth II2023
5.8
Action
View
5.8
Ava
Ava2020
7.5
Horror
View
7.5
The Birds
The Birds1963
8
History
View
8
Amadeus
Amadeus1984
© 2024 MoovieTime. All rights reserved.Made with Nuxt