A low-ranking thug is entrusted by his crime boss to dispose of a gun that killed corrupt cops, but things get out of control when the gun ends up in wrong hands.
Three young people on a road trip from Colorado to New Jersey talk to a trucker on their CB radio, then must escape when he turns out to be a psychotic killer.
A DEA agent provides former Marine Tim Kearney with a way out of his prison sentence: impersonate Bobby Z, a recently deceased drug dealer, in a hostage switch with a crime lord.
Director:
John Herzfeld
Stars:
Paul Walker,
Laurence Fishburne,
Olivia Wilde
After a drug-op gone bad, Joey Gazelle is put in charge of disposing the gun that shot a dirty cop. But things go wrong for Joey after a neighbor kid stole the gun and used it to shoot his abusive father. Now Joey has to find that kid and the gun before the police and the mob do.Written by
Kevin Yang (Canada, Surrey)
Paul Walker's brother also appears in the film. In an early scene the path of a bullet is re-traced going from one house to another - the Paul Walker character appears in each house. The Paul Walker character sitting at the dinner table in one house is actually Paul Walker's brother. See more »
Goofs
In the opening scene, the first Jamaican drug dealer is killed during a slow motion shotgun blast. In the shot, the shell is being ejected immediately as the shotgun is fired, which should not be the case as the hijackers were carrying pump action shotguns whereby the shell is ejected upon pumping, not firing. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
Joey Gazelle:
[while frantically driving]
Come on! Come on, kid! The fuck? Look at me. Fuck! Come on Oleg, stay with me. Come on. Come on! Come on, kid. We're gonna make it.
Oleg Yugorsky:
We're gonna crash!
See more »
Crazy Credits
The director wishes to dedicate the film to Sam Peckinpah, Brian De Palma and Walter Hill See more »
Stoned
Music by D. Smirnov
Lyrics by D. Smirnov and V. Vasilyev
Performed by Kirpichi
Courtesy of S.B.A. Production, Inc.
Used by permission of EMI April Music Inc.
Published by EMI Virgin Music o/b/o S.B.A. Music Publishing See more »
Those who dismiss this classic film, and it really is destined to be a cult classic are perhaps properly outraged by the characters that Wayne Kramer populates this film with. Drug addicts, hookers, mobsters, wife beaters, pedophiles, crooked cops and pimps cross the path of Oleg and Joey as they run through the city looking to stay alive. Tarantino comparisons will abound as with any clever and violent film these days, but Wayne Kramer imprints Running Scared with his own wonderful style. I watched Richard Roeper give this a thumbs down by saying that Kramer throws in everything but the kitchen sink, I wholeheartedly agree but consider that a compliment. The climactic finale that takes place in a hockey rink starts off reminding me of one of my favorite scenes from another cult classic Philip Kaufman's "The Wanderers" which was derived from "The Hustler", but it only starts off there, and then it becomes perhaps the best all out violent mess that has ever been filmed.
I can't say enough about this film. I even thought Paul Walker was terrific. He shows promise that he has never shown before by eschewing the pretty boy shtick.
I just watched the film a second time upon it's DVD release which is something I seldom do, and I realized that Kramer views the film as a fairy tale. The evil characters are so over the top. They are the creatures of the night that populate our nightmares as opposed to the evil actually populating the streets. The film is about legends and myth. If the bad guys are the ones portrayed in the film, the good guys are John Wayne. If this sounds a little strange just watch the ending credits carefully.
People will discover this film. It is pure testosterone. But it sure kicks ass. I liked Wayne Kramer's the Cooler a lot as a simple character piece. I also enjoyed Mindhunters more than most, but now I anxiously await his next film. I think Wayne Kramer is going to create a great body of work over the next few years.
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Those who dismiss this classic film, and it really is destined to be a cult classic are perhaps properly outraged by the characters that Wayne Kramer populates this film with. Drug addicts, hookers, mobsters, wife beaters, pedophiles, crooked cops and pimps cross the path of Oleg and Joey as they run through the city looking to stay alive. Tarantino comparisons will abound as with any clever and violent film these days, but Wayne Kramer imprints Running Scared with his own wonderful style. I watched Richard Roeper give this a thumbs down by saying that Kramer throws in everything but the kitchen sink, I wholeheartedly agree but consider that a compliment. The climactic finale that takes place in a hockey rink starts off reminding me of one of my favorite scenes from another cult classic Philip Kaufman's "The Wanderers" which was derived from "The Hustler", but it only starts off there, and then it becomes perhaps the best all out violent mess that has ever been filmed.
I can't say enough about this film. I even thought Paul Walker was terrific. He shows promise that he has never shown before by eschewing the pretty boy shtick.
I just watched the film a second time upon it's DVD release which is something I seldom do, and I realized that Kramer views the film as a fairy tale. The evil characters are so over the top. They are the creatures of the night that populate our nightmares as opposed to the evil actually populating the streets. The film is about legends and myth. If the bad guys are the ones portrayed in the film, the good guys are John Wayne. If this sounds a little strange just watch the ending credits carefully.
People will discover this film. It is pure testosterone. But it sure kicks ass. I liked Wayne Kramer's the Cooler a lot as a simple character piece. I also enjoyed Mindhunters more than most, but now I anxiously await his next film. I think Wayne Kramer is going to create a great body of work over the next few years.