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IT would seem we are in Stephen King season.
audiences since September, while TV series IT: Welcome to Derry is running on HBO.
Now, King’s 1982 book The Running Man has been given another go on the big screen, following its 1987 adaptation with Arnold Schwarzenegger.
This 2025 version, directed by Edgar Wright (Shaun Of The Dead) and written by Wright and Michael Bacall, is the story of Ben Richards (Glen Powell) who, out of financial desperation, signs up to a horrifying reality show where lower classes are violently hunted and killed for entertainment.
Dystopian world
Unless, of course, they’re able to hide for 30 days and win a mountain of money.
We meet Ben clutching his sickly daughter while begging his boss for more shifts so he can pay for her medicine.
It’s a dystopian world where the poor are an underclass living without windows.
The TV screens blast out cruel game shows all day where people are humiliated or even killed for entertainment and crime is everywhere.
With very little background on why he would do something as insane as signing up to a programme that we are told has a 100- per-cent chance of death, Ben goes in for training and is quickly given the role by the TV network’s chief madman (Josh Brolin).
He is introduced to the baying crown by camp and showy host Bobby T (Colman Domingo) and is then given the task to run and hide before he is destroyed on live TV.
There is plenty to keep you entertained here, with lots of stunts and all-action near-misses to get the adrenaline pumping.
Powell, however, feels a little lost in this role. Being a leading man who appears in pretty much every scene for over two hours can be very exposing for an actor.
And while he looks great and is doing his very best Tom Cruise impression, it seems Powell is lacking the layers to pull off the depth this character needs to be vulnerable.
He is not a believable family man, nor is his relentless rage understandable.
There’s no real signs of Edgar Wright’s trademark humour, either, which gives the feeling it may be on the cutting-room floor.
But with plenty of energy and excitement, it’s a fun watch to let run over you.
Film news
IN Toy Story 5, Woody and gang face their biggest nemesis ever: a kid-friendly iPad.
TIMOTHEE Chalamet plays a ping pong prodigy in Marty Supreme.
DC Studios will do a Superman spin-off with fan favourite Jimmy Olsen.
IN this historical drama, Russell Crowe plays a grandstanding ego maniac.
You might think that’s not much of a stretch for the Aussie, but he makes things harder for himself by trying a German accent.
To be fair, his portrayal of portly Nazi Hermann Goering is one of his best performances for years.
Goering finds himself on trial in Nuremberg in 1945 for crimes against humanity.
With what we now know about the Holocaust you’d assume this is a slam-dunk case, but Michael Shannon’s American lawyer makes hard work of it.
The central question asked by the movie is important: Were the Nazi leaders mad or bad?
Rami Malek’s psychiatrist Douglas Kelley finds himself charmed by Goering, and Crowe’s humanising of this mass murderer can be uncomfortable viewing.
But he should be commended for showing all sides of the despicable man.
A speech from Leo Woodall, playing an interpreter, leaves the audience in no doubt about Nazi guilt and injects some much-needed emotion.
Nuremberg attempts to entertain while making you think, but it doesn’t quite succeed.
WITH well over 100 versions of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol having been made, it’s tempting to say “Bah, humbug!” to another one.
Fortunately, Bend It Like Beckham director Gurinder Chadha shows there are still new ways to approach this tale of redemption.
The Big Bang Theory’s Kunal Nayyar is Eshaan Sood, a modern-day miserly businessman who sacks his staff during the festive season because they turned the heating up in the office.
Ghosts of Christmas Past (Eva Longoria), Present (Billy Porter) and Future (Boy George) try to show him the error of his ways.
What makes Gurinder’s movie so different and likeable is that it’s an uplifting musical, with catchy songs and great dance routines.
The title track, part sung by Pixie Lott who plays Mary Cratchit, is a real earworm.
Take That’s Gary Barlow, All Saints’ Shaznay Lewis and Boy George also contribute to the impressive soundtrack.
Plus, Danny Dyer plays a jolly singing cab driver. Sadly, the storytelling has about as much depth as a seasonal supermarket ad. But if you are looking for a fun and festive musical Christmas, Karma is a gift.
