Running Scared (1986)

Very best movie i ever watch

Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .

best movie i've ever seen.

Best movie ever!

Disciplined after blowing the cover on an undercover operation, two Chicago cops consider retiring and opening a bar until an opportunity arises to capture the drug lord who they had been after for years in this action comedy starring Bill Crystal and Gregory Hines. The pacing of the movie is all over the place with a montage of the pair vacationing coming off as a particular distraction from the crime thriller central subplot, but the film survives on account of the great chemistry between Crystal and Hines. The pair's constant bickering and bantering over who fired which shots works very well and there are several memorable moments, ranging from the pair stripping down to their long underwear at gunpoint to the pair coaxing a henchman (a young Joe Pantoliano) into letting them arrest him. While there are highlights for sure, the climax is unfortunately not one of them, and everything seems so ludicrous and overblown at the end, with a key supporting character conveniently being kidnapped no less, that it is difficult to become immersed in the action. The rivalry between the pair and another duo of more athletic police officers also only works around half the time since the other two severely lack charisma. Overall, 'Running Scared' may be a bit of a mixed bag, but it is at least curiously different to the original script, conceptualised as a vehicle for Gene Hackman and Paul Newman (!). The film is often credited as sparking the buddy-buddy cop action comedy trend of the 1980s, though 'Freebie and the Bean' might deserve that honour instead.

It's a funny thing with "Running Scared": even though this is thoroughly a Chicago movie (with that cold winter atmosphere), it's the Key West scenes that spring to mind when this movie is mentioned. I can't explain it. This is a pretty by-the-numbers cop movie, with two wild man detectives bending the rules in the name of recklessness. It does have a pretty decent car chase (even taking a detour on the L), the shootout in the State building was surprisingly tense, and there's always the smokin' Darlanne Fleugel. But the real magic is the chemistry between the two leads. Billy Crystal and Gregory Hines make for unlikely pairing, but it totally works here (and the movie hinges on their camaraderie, at that). And seeing these guys work together is absolutely worth the price of admission. 7/10

A sharp star duo, solid supporting cast, and some well done sequences help to make this fairly standard buddy-cop action comedy satisfying if nothing exactly special. It's Billy Crystal, as detective Danny Costanzo, and Gregory Hines, as detective Ray Hughes, that really make the difference. They truly work nicely together as a pair of veteran but still somewhat immature guys on the Chicago force who are hellbent on righteously busting drug kingpin Julio Gonzales (Jimmy Smits). When they almost get themselves killed working the case, their boss Captain Logan (Dan Hedaya) tires of them and orders them on a vacation. They decide to check out Key West, Florida, and enjoy it so much that they think that maybe it's time to retire. (Another factor in that decision is the fact that Danny has come into a $40 K inheritance.) But when they get back from the vacation, and hear that Gonzales is still on the streets, they become more determined than ever to take care of their nemesis.Competently staged by director Peter Hyams (who serves as his own cinematographer), those aforementioned entertaining scenes include early ones with Danny and Ray making life miserable for the aptly named lowlife "Snake" (Joe Pantoliano), their intense pursuit of Gonzales that eventually leads to the Chicago El tracks (this is far and away the highlight of the movie), a sequence with a garbage truck, and the finale in Chicago's State Building. Danny and Ray aren't the most capable detectives you'll see in this sort of thing, and adding to the merriment is their constant humiliation of a pair of obnoxious rookies, played by Steven Bauer and Jon Gries. Bauer and Gries do a good job of being the butt of some jokes. Beautiful ladies Darlanne Fluegel and Tracy Reed are quite appealing as Danny's ex-wife Anna and Maryann, an object of Ray's affections. Other cast members include the always amusing Larry Hankin as talented mechanic Ace, and actors John DiSanti, Don Calfa, and Robert Lesser, all of whom have been regulars in Hyams' movies.The steady parade of pop songs are all very '80s sounding, but as is often the case, this only adds to the entertainment factor. Overall, this is a reasonably fun flick - a tad overlong, maybe, but still easy enough to watch while it lasts.Seven out of 10.

This movie brings back a lot of memories for me. I was living in Chicago at the time this movie was being shot and it was on the news once or twice. I only saw it recently as I really did not want to see a movie with Billy Crystal and Gregory Hines as a couple of tough cops. Neither one looked like they can take down a girl scout let alone Chicago's toughest criminals. Neither one even know how to hold a gun properly. Plus at the time male cop buddy movies were a dime a dozen. The movie is about a couple (Crystal and Hines) of Chicago cops who suddenly find themselves on the trail of a big time drug dealer(Jimmy Smits). When the guy gets out on bail the boys are so mad that their captain tells them to cool off and they go to Florida. I'm not sure what their respite in the Sunshine state had to do with the movie but it was enjoyable to see Florida during the Miami Vice era again, complete with women in tiny bikinis. Anyways the boys get the idea of retiring and running a bar, but first they have to finish the case.Getting back to Chicago means it's time to get back to the case, which means there are going to be shootouts and car chases, typical of the buddy films of that era. The action sequences in the film are very good. They were fast paced and very well done. Not amateurish at all. There are several gunfight scenes, one in particular that really sticks out was shot in the then newly opened State of Illinois building. The car chase taking place on the 'L' or elevated train alone is worth putting this film on your Netflix list. It's easily one of the best car chases from that era. Casting Mr. Hines and Mr. Crystal as cops was a curious choice. As I said neither of them looked like they could take down a Girl Scout, but they sure do know how to deliver funny lines. Billy Crystal in particular certainly knows how to make things funny. When he was in shadows pretending to be an old lady and when he was pretending to be his boss on the phone. His comedic range is pretty good. Others in the cast played their role basically straight and really without much originality. They're all just straight men to the two leads."Running Scared" is a good action comedy that has no pretension of being anything else. It's a funny and entertaining. I have to say I'm a little biased because I lived in Chicago a long time and seeing the city again brings back so much memory. I mean I remember having been in some of the locales. Also I have to say seeing this movie is a reminder how lovely Darlanne Fluegel was. She played Billy Crystal's ex-wife. She's as lovely as Sharon Stone was during this era and a much better actress.