Recently, a new version of The Running Man was released on Steelbook edition. And while that film was a faithful adaptation of the Richard Bachman (Stephen King) Novel. The 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger film The Running Man, is still so much more fun. This classic is approaching its 40th birthday. So Paramount Home Entertainment has released this film on Blu-ray! And I couldn't be more excited.
Synopsis: The year is 2019. Television is now ruling people's lives. The most popular "audience participation" game show is "The Running Man" -- where convicts can win pardons instead of "parting gifts" by defeating murderous henchmen known as "stalkers." The stalkers haven't had much of a challenge lately...until Ben Richards (Schwarzenegger) comes along. Wrongly convicted of slaughtering 1500 innocent people, Richards is the next contestant to fight for his life...and his freedom. When "Running Man" host Damon Killian (Dawson) says "Come on down!", be prepared to pay with your life! But Ben Richards isn't going down without a fight. Off Richards goes into the burned-out sections of Los Angelesto face four of Killian's ace stalkers: Subzero, wielding his razor-sharp hockey sticks; Buzzsaw, the mechanical motor-cycle-riding slasher; Dynamo, practicing his deadly electric shock treatment; and Fireball with his mighty flame-throw-ing arsenal. Now, the entire country is glued to the tube in a heart-pounding "sudden death" battle!
As a kid, I remember watching this film on TV reruns. Every time it was on, I watched it. It seemed like I couldn't get enough of this campy sci-fi thriller. Yes, it's campy, but that is what made it so much fun to watch. Plus it was awesome seeing Richard Dawson the host of Family Feud, as the evil game show host. For 1987, the special effects were great and still look pretty good to me all these years later. It's still a joy to watch all these years later.
Paramount has transferred The Running Man to Blu-ray in 1080p and is presented in 1.78:1 aspect ratio. There are two audio tracks to choose from. There is an English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and a French Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono. There is also subtitles in English, English SDH, French, Japanese and Spanish.
Watching The Running Man in high definition is an extreme pleasure. The HD transfer brings the beautiful 80s colors to life. The picture is crisp and the audio is clear. The Running Man on Blu-ray is a great upgrade from my DVD version.
Now, the disappointing thing in this release is that the only bonus feature is a digital copy of the film. My DVD release has so many cool bonus features. They could have, and should have, ported them over to this Blu-ray. That would have made this release so much better.
Even with the lack of bonus features The Running Man on Blu-ray is a nice addition to anyone's home video library. If you would like to add this Schwarzenegger classic to your physical media collection, head over to Amazon and order your copy today.
Out of 4 film reels (4 being the best) the Blu-ray of The Running Man receives.....
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