Best 5 Things About 'The Running Man'

1987's movie "The Running Man" may not be the greatest movie of all time, but it still has its share of entertainment value.  For one thing, it is the only Stephen King movie to star Arnold Schwarzenegger (who, before becoming a crappy Governor, was perhaps the king of "guilty pleasure" action movie stars).

The rudimentary plot goes like this:  In 2017, America has become a totalitarian police state (not much of a stretch there, right?).  Arnold's character Ben Richards was wrongfully convicted of a helicopter massacre of civilians during a food riot.  Richards escapes, takes a woman named Amber Mendez hostage, but gets caught again after Amber alerts airport security.  Long story short, Richards is offered a chance at clemency by reality show host Damon Killian (played by real life talk show host Richard Dawson), if he is willing to star on The Running Man -- a show wherein "runners" are offered pardons if they can successfully evade various "stalkers." As it turns out, Richards does not face this challenge alone.

The movie has many plot holes and errors, but is fun.  So, what specifically makes the movie fun?  Most of my list of 5 involves the stalkers and their deaths.  Let's get on with it, shall we?

5.  "Subzero," The First Stalker To Get Taken Out

Before Mortal Kombat, this guy was the original "Subzero."  His prowess on the ice was clearly no match for Ben, who choked him to death with some razor wire.  Killian and the audience greeted the scene with stunned silence, but we know it had to happen.  Had Subzero been successful, the movie would have ended way to early.   So the ice was stained red for you!  How does that make you feel?

 Ben Richards: "Hey, Killian!  Here is Subzero, now plain zero."  What exactly does that mean?  It's up to interpretation.

4.  Buzzsaw Loves His Saw, But Gets A Little Too Close

A poignant scene?  It's all in the eye of the beholder.  Right when Buzzsaw seemingly had Richards right under the blade, Ben suddenly finds more strength and turns the tables, much to the audience's horror.
A question some may ask:  Why didn't Buzzsaw turn off his saw when Ben Richards had it so close to his genitals?  It seems like he would have had that ability anyway.  Maybe he was just in awe of Ben Richard's power?

3.  Captain Freedom's Workout Scene

No pain, no gain!  Have truer words ever been spoken?

2.  The Steroids Line

When Killian orders retired stalker, Captain Freedom, to come out of retirement and face Richards, he asks:  "What's the matter, steroids make you deaf?"  It's just a nice little touch.

1.  How Many Cameras Were In That Helicopter Anyway?

A big plot point is how Ben Richards was framed for shooting up a crowd, and how The Running Man game show altered the footage of what happened.  However, one easily wonders just how many angles were available inside the helicopter.  We see all sorts of different action shots and how they were edited out, then later put together again to reveal the truth.  But isn't most surveillance footage shot with one camera?  Surely even in "the future" they couldn't (and wouldn't) afford to put cameras quite literally everywhere (note, for example, the resistance police given to placing surveillance cameras on themselves in the US today).  It's a nice little plot hole that, in my view, helps make the movie special.