I think it's an action movie that has horror elements. If that makes any sense...

...Or, given what I've read (and not just makeshift's little bit), that's what it sounds like to me.

The impression I get is a cross between the Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels/Snatch style and GTA Vice City.

I would call it an Action Thriller.

and what did you feel about the ending.............

- seems kindof impossible that he would get out of that dinner with the gun pointing at him > figured that there was no way to show how it happened.

and the death driving scene seemed to have only been staged to fool us as they wouldn't have needed to have gone that far to stage the death to the mob.

It's not really an action film. There are only one or two scenes of actual action.

It's a crime/neo noir with horrific elements. That's how I would best describe it.

The screenplay is good. It's overshadowed by the visuals, though.

The ending was the weakest aspect of the film. I thought that the scene in the diner was fantastic and one of the standout scenes in a film loaded with them, but the whole fake death thing was a little much. I felt it should have ended with the diner scene.

Well, plans changed and we didn't end up going.

We're doing something else in a little while.

Oh, well.

Booooourns

Brilliant film. The writing is snappy, the style is to die for, and the brutality and willingness to go where few films go is shocking. The performances are also great with Walker giving easily his best performance yet.

Grade - A

I may be streching the terms but I felt

Action > besides the straight action scenes all of the scenes had more motion / movement than you usually see in most movies.

Thriller > this movie had so many scenes that had you on the front of the seat, for me at least, > as you were caught up in how the scene would play out.

WTF was that ending??????????????????????????????????

Up until the ending, I loved it. This is the second time, makeshift, you've said "watch this critically-reviled movie, you'll love it" and I end up loving it (first was, yeah, about a year ago with Constantine).

Paul Walker can, kinda, like, act.

A-

(more later - I'm tired)

K, well here's the thing...

I can kinda agree, to an extent.

Yes, the film is extremely heavy, and kinda difficult to get through at times. It's intense, chest-tightening stuff, much of the time. And yeah, it's the most ambitious Hollywood project I've seen in some time...I really couldn't believe it got made. It's got a Man On Fire-lite style, and that really works well. It's a very, very different film, very fluid and non-stop (even when it does stop), never predictable, it has all the makings of a terrific, unique film.

But...

It's just too much. It has a solid story, and had they downplayed the exoticism some, kept the style and feel, it really could have been something.

I'm just not sure I can accept it...it had too many subplots, too many twists and turns, too much outrageousness, too much unbelievability. It felt like Four Brothers meets Transporter 2 on acid.

Meh. I would recommend it to any and everyone just because it really is an unforgettable experience, but I'm not sure I'd call it "good."

(My "shock" was just the fact that I really didn't think it would be a popular, well regarded film. I didn't think for a second anyone here would like it, much less love it. I've got all the respect in the world for your taste and opinions, but I just didn't expect many fans.)

Hehe. I knew you'd like it. What did you think about the entire kiddie porn/snuff film scene. To me, it was the most intense, engaing, and brilliant twenty minutes of film i've seen in a long, long time. I literally don't remember breathing.

What did you think of all the subtexts, too? The theme of violence between parents and children breeds more violence and the whole fairy tale aspect? Did you notice the city they lived in was named Grimley? And all of subtle (and not so subtle) visual cues? Like the child molesters turning into demon like figures when Oleg is in the bathroom.

God, this film is just so brilliant.

I'm having an incredibly hard time writing a full review for this film, and I think that's mainly due to two reasons. First of all, this is the kind of film that you just experience. It's a very emotional ride, and it has several moments that leave you gasping for air and just wondering if you just saw what you think you did. It's very "in the moment", and i've always had a hard time writing about films like that. Also, a big aspect of what makes this film so great is the subtle little touches that are so hard to explain without witnessing it first hand. For example, if I told you that one of the characters has a John Wayne obsession, it wouldn't strike you as anything interesting. But the way it's executed and implemented into the film is just brilliant. And then, the visuals. There are visuals in this film that are so staggering in their brilliance and the way they work themselves into the threads of the story (it's not just style for style's sake), but that's so hard to get across with words.

Just trust me when I say that this is a film that everyone needs to experience at least once in their life. It will go down as a cult classic, and it's one that you'll still be watching on DVD and talking about ten years from now. It's important and ambitious and gutsy and classic. I love it.

There is so much that I want to say and talk about. I want to talk about the pimp character and how brilliant he is. I want to talk about the single most frightening and intense twenty minutes of film I feel like I may have ever seen (the kidnappers). I want to talk about the fairy tale allusions. I want to talk about the brilliant way it deals with immigrants. I want to talk about everything this film has to offer, but there is just too much of it. I feel like I could never do it justice.

I'm tired so I can't write much. I agree with many of the things makeshift said, but also agree with a couple things in the coming soon review. However, I'd regard this as being much closer to brilliant then terrible. My problems with the movie included the score, although it was very effective at certain times. I think 15 minutes should have been cut. The "following Oleg (and the gun) around the hood" aspect of the plot was a drag. That might not have been so bad, in fact it could have been great, if only the plot were juicier. That's not to say it lacked juice; many parts, especially the one makeshift keeps mentioning, were terrific; but it was dry in others, which prevented it from building momentum it really could have used. If only that were different, it might have been a classic in my book. The final action scene, after John Wayne gets shot, and the ending were weak. The movie didn't make logical sense in a number of ways, but that didn't bother me much given the tone; it doesn't quite take place in our world, so I was able to easily suspend my disbelief relating to certain things. If the movie had done something that was inconsistent with itself, it would have bothered me, but that never happened.

That all said, there were many things that I loved. The style was great, but mainly it was a movie with many fantastic moments. While I thought the plot had its weaknesses, I found it to have some strong points. That's too much for me to get into now. I guess I'll post more later.

It's difficult to grade, but I'll give it 7.6/10. A-

One thing I'll promise you: you'll never forget it.

haven' seen this mentioned yet

- did it make sense for the kid's mother to kill herself > guess she did it cause she figured that it was the only way out for her from her "slavery"

but I don't think it worked > as the mother lovd the kid too much and wouldn't have left the kid to the stepfather. It seems alittle just like the ending, we want the kid to be "adopted" into the family so lets kill off the parents.

***************************

Also, yes that was great with the couple's figures through the bathroom window > I forgot about it figuring that it was a costume.

and how stone cold was that woman?

Just by reading some of the descriptions of this movie, I almost get the feeling I would have a similiar reaction to it that I did with The Butterfly Effect, which I actually found very disturbing.

Like, that flashback with Eric Stoltz filming his own kids along with the main character in a kiddie porn sounds a lot like the one part of this movie.

just fyi - this one is more chilling and worse.

It's much more intense and creepy in Running Scared. At my showing, a young couple actually walked out during this scene. It's pretty much fifteen minutes of non-stop, chest tightening intensity. And it's more disturbing than anything i've ever seen in a major release. It's not overt and in your face. The scene is filled with subtle little touches that just add up to an incomprehensible nightmare. For example, the floor in the giant playroom is covered in plastic, and the couple keeps DVDs of the molesting/murdering and each one has a star rating on it. It's chilling stuff.

It seems like I was the only one who loved the diner scene towards the end. I thought it was a brilliant little capper. That pimp character was ingenious, and the exchange between him and Paul Walker was classic.

The similar scene in Butterfly was more overt with its use of the kids (It actually shows them) but the scene in Running Scared lasts far longer. That's ultimately what makes it more disturbing. If it was as short as the scene in BF it wouldn't have been intense or disturbing, to say the least.

Nooooo.

I liked the dinner scene with the pimp , I just thought they blew everything...
once they go back to the opening dinner scene

(I hope you know what I'm talking about)

It got pretty convoluted (as if it wasn't already?!) at that point.

And, yeah, this is much more intense (and much BETTER) than The Butterfly Effect. I thought The Butterfly Effect was terrible, actually (mostly because it took itself seriously - Running Scared takes itself seriously, too, but to a lesser extent).

Yeah, I know what you're talking about. And I agree. The pimp character was brill, though.

I agree about The Butterfly Effect, too. Terrible film. It's nothing like Runnng Scared, too.

Very nice, stylish, well told tale that uses a bit 'o the old ultraviolence to get it's point across. Most enjoyable.

4 out of 5.

You were right, makeshift. I loved it.

Shockingly excellent flick. Loved the style of the film, and good lord, was it intense. And, yeah, Paul Walker did an excellent job as well. Some of the scenes were just... wow. I wanna see it again in theaters, to be honest.

A-