Review of The Runner (2015) by Quincytheodore — 05 Nov 2015

While not all of the political angles pan out, there's strong performance by the cast, including Nicolas Cage who delivers one of his better works in recent years.

The Runner is not the typical mystery thriller or clumsy action movie Nicolas Cage has been known for these past few years. This is a much deeper take on political drama as well as private ups and downs of a man's life. The cumulative acting prowess succeeds in presenting an appealing drama, but its varying interweaving subplots might be too cumbersome to fully develop.

Story revolves around the incident of oil spill, then proceeds towards its aftermath as Senator Pryce (Nicolas Cage) is plagued by series of scandals. It’s a compelling subject as a backdrop against the private life of the Senator, as it displays the man in front of public eyes along with his more honest thoughts and apprehensions.

Nicolas Cage has his finer performance in years, this is far more in-depth and intimate dive on a character than practically his half dozen previous roles of cheap action hero or investigator. It's the way he puts on the flaws that make the politician character more identifiable. The supporting characters perform excellently as well, providing different aspects of relationship that Pryce must compensate or struggle with.

The actors, despite having different screen time, present interesting subplots. However, this also hampers the pace as not every tangled story angle wrap up nicely. It's almost like a politician who promises too many things, some of them might be delivered, the rest could just be awkwardly shoehorned in. It's commendable to showcase multiple aspect of the drama, even displaying the man's vices, yet the transition between these subplots is sometimes jarring.

It may have several flaws, but The Runner is a decent absorbing drama and also a step up on Nicolas Cage's slumping resume.