"Running Scared" is the sorta movie you don't bring the kids with you to see. It's very stylized, extremely violent, and even has full frontal nudity. It moves at a breakneck pace, never stopping to take a breath, and every other word in the movie is the f-word. Definitely my kinda movie.
Although I really enjoyed "Running Scared," it's far from a perfect movie. There are a lotta flaws, but I gotta tellya, most of the flaws I'm fine with. In fact, some of the flaws are entertaining! There's one scene that's absolutely unnecessary to the film involving a really creepy couple. The scene is completely unnecessary and totally unbelievable, but it works. It's a great scene, the kind that literally got the audience cheering at the end of it, but if the entire scene was cut out of the film, the movie would play fine. That being said, I'm glad the scene was left in, 'cause it really is an exciting part of the film.
Paul Walker stars in the film, and a lotta people give him a hard time, but I have nothing against him. He may not be Denzel Washington, but there are worse actors out there. I've noticed that he has a tendency to be in movies that are a lot better than I expected them to be, such as "The Fast and the Furious," "2 Fast 2 Furious," "Into the Blue," and my personal favorite, "Pleasantville." With "Running Scared," however, I expected a good movie, and that's what I got. As for Paul Walker's acting in the film, he was fine. He was believable in the role, and he did a good job with the New Jersey accent. I think people should leave him alone. Also in the movie is Vera Farmiga, who plays his wife, and DAMN she's hot! I've seen her a couple of times before, mostly on TV, like with the short-lived USA Network TV series, "Touching Evil," and the HBO TV-Movie, "Iron Jawed Angels." I also remember her from the movie "Dummy," which I liked a lot. Vera Farmiga plays a tough chickie in "Running Scared," she's no mousy housewife. She's not afraid to get in her husband's face and tell him to go to hell. Actually, that doesn't come close to letting you know how tough she is. You should see her in that unnecessary scene I mentioned earlier. She's the one who got the audience cheering.
Also in the movie is Chazz Palminteri, an actor I haven't seen in a while. He seems to like playing either cops or criminals, like in "A Bronx Tale," "Analyze This," and "The Usual Suspects," but in this movie, he's both. Don't worry, that's not a spoiler. There's a kid in the movie, and he's played by Cameron Bright (he was in the controversial Nicole Kidman film, "Birth," but most recently, he was in the disappointing "UltraViolet"). He's very good, and although you might expect to be annoyed by a kid in this kinda movie, he isn't annoying at all.
"Running Scared" was written and directed by Wayne Kramer, who is quickly becoming one of my favorite filmmakers. Before this movie, he wrote and directed "The Cooler," a great movie starring William H. Macy, Maria Bello (yum), and Alec Baldwin (in his best performance in years). I definitely look forward to more work from Wayne Kramer.
As I mentioned earlier, "Running Scared" has a lotta flaws. In addition to what I already wrote, the story isn't entirely plausible, there are too many coincidences, and the movie is a little longer than it should be. That being said, I enjoyed every minute of it, and I walked out feeling like I got my money's worth. I'll be giving it some more of my money soon, 'cause I'm definitely gonna buy the DVD.
Scale of 1-10: 9