Line #299 Film/TheRunningMan


1	[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/running_man_ver31_7588.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:300: ''He's playing for a prize. The prize is his life.'']]
3
4	->'''Richards''': Killian -- I'll be back.\
5	'''Killian''': Only in a rerun.
6
7	''The Running Man'' is a 1987 {{Dystopian}} sci-fi action film directed by Creator/PaulMichaelGlaser. It is a ''very'' loose adaptation of the [[Literature/TheRunningMan novel of the same name]] by Richard Bachman (aka Creator/StephenKing). It stars Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger, Creator/MariaConchitaAlonso, Richard Dawson, Creator/YaphetKotto, [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague NFL Hall of Famer]] [[UsefulNotes/NFLOffensivePlayers Jim Brown]], Dweezil Zappa, Wrestling/JesseVentura, [[Music/FleetwoodMac Mick Fleetwood]] and Creator/RodgerBumpass in a cameo role as Phil Hilton.
8
9	[[TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture In dystopian 2010s America]], police officer Ben Richards (Schwarzenegger) is framed for firing at innocent civilians and sent to a labor camp. He escapes, but is captured again, and ends up as a contestant in the nation's number one television show: ''The Running Man'', a DeadlyGame hosted by the gleefully sadistic [[BigBad Damon Killian]]. In the show, Ben and his fellow "contestants" must fight their way through the Stalkers, killers set to stop their advance, to win their freedom.
10
11	Not to be confused with the 1963 British crime drama directed by Carol Reed, the similarly-titled but vastly different (apart from the dystopian setting) 1976 film ''Film/LogansRun'', or the [[Series/RunningMan South Korean variety show]]—although [[Series/SquidGame another popular Korean series]] has now come out with a similar DeadlyGame premise.
12
13	In 2021, a remake was [[https://deadline.com/2021/02/edgar-wright-direct-the-running-man-stephen-king-paramount-pictures-simon-kinbergs-genre-films-1234697279/ announced,]] to be directed by Creator/EdgarWright.
14	----
15	!!''The Running Man'' provides examples of:
16
17	* EightiesHair: ''The Running Man''[='=]s "It's Showtime!" dancers' big hair.
18	* AbsurdlySharpBlade: Buzzsaw's [[ChainsawGood chainsaw]] is described by the announcer as being able to cut through flesh, bone, and solid steel. Buzzsaw proceeds to demonstrate this by chopping a girder in half.
19	* ActorAllusion
20	** Just before he's launched into the Zone, Richards promises that [[Film/TheTerminator "I'll be back."]] To say nothing of Richard Dawson's role as a [[Series/FamilyFeud game show host]].
21	** Sub Zero is introduced as "Professor Sub Zero", a nod to the ring name of his actor, former pro wrestler [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professor_Tanaka "Professor" Toru Tanaka.]]
22	** Killian refers to Fireball as the "number one rusher"; Jim Brown, who played Fireball, was the running back for the Cleveland Browns, and once held the record for the most career rushing yards. Fireball also yells "[[WinOneForTheGipper Win one for the Zero]]", a play on the famous Knute Rockne quote, "Win one for [[UsefulNotes/RonaldReagan the Gipper]]."
23	** In the final confrontation, Richards wields a [=HK94=] carbine with a distinctive foregrip and barrel shroud, just like the one Arnold previously used in ''Film/RawDeal1986''.
24	** When Richards first meets Mic, he points out that Ben is a cop and that, "...people like you burned my music." Mic is played by musician [[Music/FleetwoodMac Mick Fleetwood]].
25	** Maria Conchita Alonso - who plays Amber Mendez - had a singing career as Ámbar. Additionally, Amber Mendez is also a musician for the network.
26	* AdamWesting: Damon Killian's persona while in front of the camera in-universe as host of ''The Running Man'' is an obvious {{Expy}} of his actor, Richard Dawson, as the host of ''Series/FamilyFeud''.
27	* AdaptationalCurves: Ben Richards in the book is "scrawny" and "pre-tubercular", since he and his family were almost starving. Schwarzenegger... isn't. Creator/StephenKing even jokes about this, saying Ben is "about as far as you can get" from Schwarzenegger. Although, in the film he's also a disgraced police commander formerly employed by the regime, not just some random plebeian, so presumably he would have access to better resources to justify such a physique.
28	* AdaptationalHeroism: Ben Richards; in the film, he refuses to kill the defenseless Dynamo, while in the book, he [[spoiler: murders three unarmed pilots who were essentially just doing their jobs and flies an airplane into the Games Network building, killing the BigBad and a lot of people who ''[[AssholeVictim definitely]]'' [[AssholeVictim deserved it]], as well as many people who probably didn't.]]
29	* AdaptationalNameChange: Damon Killian is ''Dan'' Killian in the book.
30	* AdaptationalPersonalityChange: While Killian's crimes are more or less consistent between the book and the film, being the one in charge of the Network and the ''Running Man'' show, the original Killian was just a CorruptCorporateExecutive who doesn't seek out the limelight, and generally gives the impression of a restrained, calculated villain who at least makes a sincere attempt at being AffablyEvil. This version of Killian is a SmarmyHost who is far more interested in gratifying his ego than lining his pockets, is more FauxAffablyEvil, and at the end of the day is really just a SmugSnake.
31	* AffablyEvil: Captain Freedom, the noblest of the Stalkers. Also, Sven, despite his burly appearance, doesn't seem too malicious guy.
32	* AllOrNothing: First prize is a full pardon. Second prize is a gruesome death.
33	* AmbiguouslyJewish: The bespectacled computer nerd, Harold Weiss, is played by the non-Jewish actor Marvin J. [=McIntyre=]. Weiss could also double as JewishAndNerdy, though he never says or does anything remotely Jewish in the film.
34	* AndThereWasMuchRejoicing: Celebration and chants of "Richards, Richards" ensue after he kills Killian, kisses Amber and leaves the ICS studio with her.
35	* AntiClimax: It sure looked like Sven and Richards were going to deliver one hell of a FinalBattle. [[spoiler:Sven walks away from him after deciding he's taken enough of Killian's crap.]]
36	* AntiHero: Ben Richards is a pretty rough guy, to say the least: he stabs his ''agent'' with a pen and is willing to kidnap a woman to evade the authorites. But he's undeniably a noble soul who only became an outlaw because he refused to massacre hungry rioters.
37	* ArtisticLicenseLaw: The ''court-appointed theatrical agent'' that Killian gets just says a lot of complete nonsense. That said, it seems just about right in a universe where the right to a trial is something you win in a game show, and it is ultimately explained In-Universe that the government has become so corrupt, law may as well be considered irrelevant.
38	* AscendedExtra: Weiss and Laughlin are little more than spear carriers in the book, while they become major supporting characters in the movie.
39	* AsHimself: Resistance leader (the guy who defuses the heroes {{Explosive Leash}}es) Mic is all but stated to be counterculture icon [[Music/FleetwoodMac Mick Fleetwood]].
40	-->'''Mic''': You're one of the cops who locked up all my friends. Burned my songs. People like you took this country and turned it into a jail.
41	* AssShove: Amber Mendez and the tape of the Bakersfield Massacre. Or possibly [[TrouserSpace another nearby location]].
42	** She may have been allowed to keep her undergarments, for decency's sake, providing [[VictoriasSecretCompartment another hiding place]].
43	* AttemptedRape: Dynamo attempts to force himself on Amber when he runs into her in the studio. It's also implied he intended something similar in the field given how he was pining her down before Richards intervened and one of his electrical shocks can temporarily incapacitate.
44	-->'''Dynamo''': [[IWillShowYouX I'll show you 'dickless'.]]
45	* AwesomeButImpractical: Most of the stalkers carry weapons that purely rely on RuleOfCool. [[HoistByHisOwnPetard Guess what happens to them.]]
46	** Captain Freedom lampshades this to a certain extent, although he’s more disgusted by not just using the code of the gladiators
47	* BadassTeacher: Laughlin is probably the most physically-capable good guy after Richards, and it's mentioned several times he was a teacher before he fell in with LaResistance given how he mentions his worries about how the schools have been shut down and kids struggle for it, Richard tells him to "stop teaching the Constitution to street punks" and Killian mentions one of the two (Laughlin and Weiss) to be a schoolteacher.
48	* BadBoss: Killian isn't a particularly nice man to his employees, his bodyguard Sven in particular. [[TheDogBitesBack This comes back to bite him.]]
49	* BetrayalByInaction: Earlier in the movie, Killian insults his bodyguard Sven by asking him "Steroids make you deaf?" At the end when Richards confronts Killian, Killian expects Sven to protect him. Sven says, "I got to score some steroids." and walks away, leaving Killian to his justly deserved fate.
50	* BigBad: Killian.
51	** NonActionBigBad: Killian is a TV show host but not a fighter.
52	* BigNo: [[spoiler:Killian screams this when he is about to crash into a billboard within the game zone. His fear and rage in this instance is rather telling.]]
53	* BitchInSheepsClothing: Killian. He acts in a friendly and charismatic way towards his audience, but he is actually a greedy, sadistic liar and a BadBoss to his employees.
54	* BloodKnight: Captain Freedom and Buzzsaw. Freedom believes in the "code of the gladiator", killing only in fair hand-to-hand combat, to the point that when Killian orders him to stalk Richards with a dumb PoweredArmor gimmick, he walks out in disgust. Buzzsaw, meanwhile, seems to take an almost erotic glee in slaughtering victims with his chainsaw.
55	* BloodSport: ''The Running Man'' TV show is this. Runners are sent out and [[HuntingTheMostDangerousGame hunted down]] on live TV by what are essentially pro wrestlers cranked up to eleven, many of whom were actually professional athletes before becoming Stalkers.
56	* BondOneLiner: Some of the best in film history.
57	** [''After cutting [[spoiler:Buzzsaw]] in half''] "Uh. He had to split."
58	** [''Strangles [[spoiler:Sub-Zero]] with barbed wire''] [[spoiler:"Here is Sub-Zero, now plain zero!"]] ''and'' "He was a pain in the neck."
59	** [''Hurls road-flare at [[spoiler:Fireball]]''] "What a hothead."
60	** [''Stabs a man in the back after signing a contract he was resting on the man's back''] "Don't forget to send me a copy."
61	** [''Sends [[spoiler: Killian]] flying on a sled into a soda billboard''] "Well, that hit the spot."
62	* BreadAndCircuses: The audience is oblivious to its CrapsackWorld life thanks to shows like Killian's. Killian lampshades it when government officials try to tell him what to do, and the opening text crawl outright states it. Of course, when the gameshows aren't enough, they're perfectly willing to resort to open violence (before covering it up).
63	* BreadEggsBreadedEggs, [[BreadEggsMilkSquick Squick]]: A coworker with Amber when she sees Ben being perp-walked down to the show tells her, "You're lucky, he could have raped you... or killed you... or raped you and killed you... or [[ILoveTheDead killed you and raped you]]." Her tone and facial expression suggests [[AllGirlsWantBadBoys she's getting a perverse thrill]] out of these speculations.
64	* BreakoutCharacter: InUniverse, Ben Richards. So much so that Killian has to bend his own show rules to allow the audience to predict Richards' victory. Bookies on the street also start taking unexpected bets on Richards to win.
65	* BrickJoke: Killian's bodyguard Sven and steroids.
66	* TheButcher: Ben Richards, "the Butcher of Bakersfield". Played with, in that Richards himself is innocent of the crime, framed by his corrupt superiors when he objected to massacring hordes of innocent people.
67	* TheCakeIsALie: There's no way to legitimately win the offered full parole, as the corpses of last season's "winners" demonstrate.
68	* CarnivalOfKillers: ''[[ShowWithinAShow The Running Man]]'' is a televised version of this.
69	* TheCastShowOff: Dynamo sings opera during his IntimidationDemonstration and while he's chasing Richards. Dynamo's actor, Erland Van Lidth, was an opera singer in real life.
70	* ChainsawGood: Buzzsaw's trademark weapons is a chainsaw.
71	* CharacterDevelopment: Richards starts the movie unwilling to fire on a crowd of innocent and starving people, only to be beaten, arrested, and framed for the ensuing massacre his compatriots commit. This naturally makes him bitter, leading him to only look out for himself and his own survival for most of the film. His experiences on ''The Running Man'' and his increasing bond with Amber and the other resistance members he's stuck with gradually reawakens his idealism and sense of justice, until by the very end he's practically leading the resistance.
72	* CharlesAtlasSuperpower: A given with Arnie: Richards is able to perform such feats of strength as ripping Amber's weights bench out of the floor and carrying a girder unaided. He's also able to physically outmuscle Buzzsaw, particularly impressive since Buzzsaw had a scene where he lifted a whole dirt bike over his head unaided earlier on.
73	* CheatersNeverProsper: Killian. When it becomes likely that Richards and Amber may actually survive, [[spoiler:he airs fake footage to make the viewers believe they've been killed so they won't be viewed as heroes. Naturally, he does ''not'' prosper.]]
74	* ChekhovsGunman: Whitman, Price, and Haddad, described by Killian as "last year's winners". Amber later discovers their charred bodies while running from Fireball. Gets upgraded to a ChekhovsBoomerang variant when footage of the three charred corpses are used to discredit Killian himself.
75	* ChewingTheScenery: Buzzsaw (one of the stalkers) and Captain Freedom (''Wrestling/JesseVentura''). Damon Killian ([[Series/FamilyFeud Richard Dawson]]) wolfs down the scenery and goes back for seconds (and thirds).
76	* CompositeCharacter: The film combines the book roles of Killian (who was the BigBad and the show's producer) and Tommy Thompson (who was the show's host).
77	* CondemnedContestant: Richards, Laughlin and Weiss.
78	* CoolOldLady: Mrs. [=McArdle=]. Combined rather brilliantly with LadySwearsalot.
79	-->'''Mrs. [=McArdle=]''': I choose... Ben Richards. That boy is one mean motherfucker.
80	* CorruptedCharacterCopy: Killian is effectively Richard Dawson's ''Series/FamilyFeud'' persona, but hosting a DeadlyGame and having a sadistic personality with the worst characteristics of a celebrity thrown in.
81	* CoversAlwaysLie; Despite the official poster, Richards never dons a costume with spiked shoulder pads. Also the chopper-riding, chainsaw-wielding Buzzsaw is replaced by a random masked {{Mook}}.
82	* CrapsackWorld: We are shown an impoverished, quasi-fascist society that resorts to extremely violent entertainment on television to escape reality and is encouraged to do so to prevent the people from knowing any better.
83	* CreditsGag: When Killian is addressing his subordinates in the control booth, credits scroll by on a monitor. Some of the highlights:
84	** Thanks to: You, Me, Us, and Them
85	** "What next? I don't know."
86	** Titles: "Type M Wrong"
87	** Makeup: Paint Your Face
88	** "Locations by To Long Here"
89	** Art Director: Red G Bleu and Primary Colors
90	** Music: Do Ray Me
91	* CruelAndUnusualDeath: How the stalkers attack their victims, only for Richards to give them ATasteOfTheirOwnMedicine at every turn.
92	* DeadlyGame: The titular game show. Also ''"Climbing for Dollars"'', possibly a combination of ''"Swimming with Crocodiles"'' and ''"Treadmill for Dollars"'' from the book; it involves a contestant running down a hall being chased by attack dogs and climbing a rope, grabbing as many notes as he can, while the dogs try to pull him down and maul him. And there are possibly dozens of other such games on TV...
93	* DeadpanSnarker: This movie probably has the most one-liners per minute of any Schwarzenegger flick. At least half of his dialogue is some sort of pun or wisecrack.
94	* DeathByIrony: [[spoiler:Damon Killian is killed en route to the game zone.]]
95	* DigitalHeadSwap: In-universe.
96	* DivingSave: When Ben Richards and [[spoiler:Laughlin]] are attacked by Buzzsaw, [[spoiler:Laughlin]] pushes Richards out of the way of Buzzsaw's attack and is mortally wounded by Buzzsaw's [[ChainsawGood chainsaw attack]].
97	* DoNotAdjustYourSet: "KILLIAN IS LYING TO YOU!"
98	* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: Fireball [[Film/TheTerminator wading through flames]].
99	* TheDragon: ''Seriously'' Played With
100	** Captain Freedom is built up as Killian's ace in the hole [[spoiler: but quits because of Killian's lack of respect for the code of the gladiator.]]
101	** Sven walks in on Killian and Richards' final confrontation [[spoiler: only for Sven to leave due to Killian's verbal abuse.]]
102	** Fireball is the closest thing Killian has to one since he's the last Stalker sent into the field [[spoiler: and is the one in charge of killing people who win the game]]
103	* EarnYourHappyEnding: Ben Richards was framed for massacring a group of protesters when he refused to be the one to pull the trigger. Imprisoned and with his name sullied, he went on the run but was eventually caught. He became a contestant for The Running Man gameshow, where he fought for his own life [[spoiler:before getting rescued by the rebels. Joining up with them, he stormed the gameshow to hunt down Killian, the BigBad. With Amber's help, the public finally knew Richards was framed by the state media, and gave their final, biggest cheer of approval when Richards executed Killian and walked off victoriously with Amber by his side]].
104	* EstablishingCharacterMoment:
105	** Damon Killian walks into his office building, when an elderly janitor accidentally bumps into him and frantically apologizes. Damon kindly asks his name, tells him not to worry, and mentions what a good job he's doing. Then the second he's in the elevator, he coldly tells his assistant if the man is still employed by tomorrow, she'll be mopping floors for a week, perfectly reflecting the kind persona Killian portrays to the public and the petty sociopath he truly is underneath it.
106	** Ben Richards is introduced by refusing to kill defenseless human beings.
107	* EvenEvilHasStandards:
108	** Captain Freedom as a Stalker genuinely believes in the Gladiator Code [[spoiler:and chooses to walk off the show when Killian has him suit up in power armor to take on Ben Richards.]]
109	** Mrs. [=McArdle=] is an unrepentant fan of the Running Man, but [[spoiler: she snaps when she sees how much of a backstabbing liar Killian really is]].
110	* EveryCarIsAPinto: The rocket sled used to propel Runners into the zone explodes when Richards uses it to send [[spoiler: Killian]] crashing into a billboard after disabling the safety net.
111	* ExactWords: As one of the more legal-minded executives at the studio points out when one of his colleagues tells Damon he can't have Richards on the show because their contract doesn't permit them to host military prisoners, "Who's a ''prisoner''? He's still at large." Later, Damon mentions that he "pulled a few strings" to get Richards brought to him instead of back to prison; evidently he exploited this loophole to the fullest.
112	* ExplosiveLeash: Richards and his fellow prisoners wear them in the military prison.
113	* ExtyYearsFromPublication: This 1987 movie depicts a great societal collapse to have taken place in 30 years after its release date.
114	* FallenStatesOfAmerica: America has gone from a first-world democracy to an impoverished dictatorship that uses violent entertainment to distract the population.
115	* {{Fanservice}}: Amber Mendez (Creator/MariaConchitaAlonso) exercising in lingerie. Also the many MaleGaze close-ups of the dancers' T&A and shapely legs.
116	* FascistButInefficient: The totalitarian society's enforcers are distracted by their own BreadAndCircuses. We hear the guards making small talk about how they never miss an episode of the Running Man, Amber Mendez excuses her purchases of black market clothing (when Richards discovers it) by saying "C'mon, everyone does it!" and the unedited footage may well have been retained through sheer laziness, i.e. the TV station's bureaucrats never throw anything away.
117	* FashionDissonance: ''The Running Man''[='=]s "It's Showtime!" dancers, who are a riot of spandex and big hair, firmly placing them in the '80s fashion era.
118	* FatBastard: Dynamo has rapist manners towards Amber, in addition to being overweight.
119	* FauxAffablyEvil: Killian is all smiles to the public. Even when he's rubbing in Ben Richard's face how screwed he is, he rarely loses his shit-eating grin. However, beneath it, he's cold as a shark and twice as mean. Fireball has his football-player actor's LovableJock charm, but is a ScaryBlackMan through and through.
120	* FireBreathingWeapon: Fireball's flamethrower/jet pack combo.
121	* FlamethrowerBackfire: One of the Stalkers, appropriately named Fireball, dual-wields flame throwers. [[spoiler:They end up being used to kill him.]]
122	* FlatCharacter: The majority of the antagonists. Killian acquits himself a little bit better when he explains that the reason why he has framed innocent people and gotten them killed in grisly ways on television is that all that matters in his occupation is keeping people entertained to keep his ratings up. "Let's face it: America loves television!"
123	* ForeignLanguageTirade: Amber speaks in Spanish whenever she gets angry or frightened.
124	* FourIsDeath:
125	** There are four Stalkers that are deployed into the game zone to dispose of Richards and the others.
126	** Also, four is the last word from [[spoiler: Weiss before Dynamo electrocutes him]].
127	* FunnyBackgroundEvent: A poster in Killian's office shows a cruise ship on fire and the title ''[[Series/TheLoveBoat The Hate Boat]]''.
128	** Listening to the studio announcer telling people in the audience what they can win during the sequence in which Amber goes rifling through the network's files for the raw footage of Ben's last mission raises some... intriguing questions about what kind of society this is. (See the Headscratchers section for details on that.)
129	** While Killian is talking to the control room staff[[spoiler: after faking Ben and Amber's deaths]], the credits for the Running Man can be seen nearby, resulting in a truly spectacular [[CreditsGag Credits Gag]].
130	* FutureImperfect: A TV equivalent; it's implied that a lot of TV shows have been forgotten thanks to the totalitarian government's control of the entertainment networks, and on two occasions an older character makes a reference to an old TV show (''Series/GilligansIsland'' and ''Series/{{Star Trek\|The Original Series}}'') that falls flat.
131	* FuturisticJetInjector: While being prepped to appear in the title game show, Ben Richards has an unknown drug [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWwRpq8m0ng#t=40s infused into him]] by a gun-like jet injector.
132	* GaiasLament: Earth's resources are severely drained in this world.
133	* GameShowHost: Killian, played by [[Series/FamilyFeud Richard Dawson]], who has been characterized at times as a bit of an egotist behind the scenes.
134	* GasMaskMooks: All the guards in the detention zone at the start wear gas masks and protective goggles. They do have a good reason however, considering all the unhealthy stuff in the air from the old industrial complex. The prisoners are less fortunate.
135	* TheGimmick: The Stalkers are basically pro wrestlers cranked up to eleven, each with a weapon to suit their onscreen persona. Many of them were played by real pro wrestlers.
136	* GloryDays: Captain Freedom tries to reminisce about his prime years on camera, but Killian cuts him off.
137	* GoodSmokingEvilSmoking: To drive his badassery home, Richards lights up a cigar while preparing to storm the network.
138	* GratuitousLatin: The gratuitous use of Latin in Richards' contract. All of it is real legal Latin, but [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorem_ipsum wildly out of place]].
139	* GreaterScopeVillain: The fascist American government, for whom Killian produces ''The Running Man''.
140	* GreatEscape: Ben Richards and his fellow prisoners engineer a mass prison break by using a PrisonRiot to distract the guards while stealing one of their computer terminals to shut down the "sonic deadline" that [[YourHeadAsplode activates]] the ExplosiveLeash any prisoner who tries to cross it.
141	* GroinAttack
142	** Richards grabs a guard in the smelting prison by the groin to incapacitate him. The man's body shoots up, he groans and you can see Richards' hand still gripping his crotch area as he hoists the poor bastard over his head and throws him over the railing.
143	** Amber punches Richards in the groin before escaping from him in the airport.
144	** Richards kicks Buzzsaw in the crotch during their fight, but [[MadeOfIron to little effect]].
145	** The most notorious and iconic example would be how Richards disposes of Buzzsaw with his own chainsaw. Buzzsaw even goes soprano with his death scream.
146	--->"[[BondOneLiner He had to split]]"
147	** When Richards throws the flare at Fireball before he explodes, the flare is pointed directly at the spread legged Fireball's crotch.
148	** Amber punches Dynamo in the dick during his AttemptedRape of her in the network building.
149	--->"Why aren't you laughing?"\
150	"[[PreAssKickingOneLiner Because there's nothing funny about a dickless moron with a battery up his ass!]]"
151	* GunsDoNotWorkThatWay: A minor example and difficult to spot for most people, but when Richards cocks a Steyr AUG before the final battle, he assists the cocking handle forward. Doing so is a good way to cause a misfeed unless you use the silent cocking button, which Richards doesn't.
152	* HamToHamCombat: The fight between Ben Richards (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and [[TheDragon Captain Freedom]] (Jesse Ventura) in the last quarter of the film. ([[spoiler: It's a "computer generated" scene, broadcast by Killian to pacify the audience and end the episode after Richards escapes, and Freedom refuses to fight in a hokey, aluminum power armor suit.]])
153	** Also, any fight between Arnold and the other stalkers.
154	* HeadsIWinTailsYouLose: [=ICS=] ''live'' by this trope, with the biggest prizes on their shows unlikely to get paid out since the contestants don't survive to collect. The Running Man especially offers a no-strings-attached parole, except what they don't tell the contestants, innocent or otherwise, is that [=ICS=] make them just strong enough, in theory, to last long enough to make good television, and have never paid out the prize.
155	* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:Captain Freedom genuinely believes in the Warrior's Code, hates how gimmicky and unmanly the Running Man show has become, and when he sees the psychopathic Killian ignore all the rules once again, he inevitably flounces off. Sven, Killian's bodyguard, also abandons him, although in Sven's case it's unlikely he cares anything about Richards or the revolution -- he's just [[BodyguardBetrayal tired of putting up with Killian's crap]].]]
156	* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: Weiss dying to get the uplink code]]
157	** [[spoiler:Laughlin]] [[DivingSave shoves Richards out of the way of]] and is mortally wounded by Buzzsaw's attack.
158	** Also, Richards agrees to be a contestant because Killian threatens to use [[spoiler:his friends as contestants instead... which, of course, Killian does anyway.]]
159	* HeroWithBadPublicity: Having been [[FallGuy accused and imprisoned for massacring people in cold blood]], Richards in seen by the public as an evil psychopath.
160	* HoistByHisOwnPetard: TheMovie. Let us count the ways...
161	** The JerkAss tendencies of Killian and [=ICS=] unnecessarily send Laughlin, Weiss, and Amber into the Zone with him; all prove instrumental in ensuring the downfall of Killian and [=ICS=].
162	** Each Stalker is killed with his own weapon;
163	*** Sub Zero severs the barbed wire fence with his bladed hockey stick, and then ice-skates directly into the [[ImprovisedWeapon barbed wire garotte]] laid out by Richards.
164	*** Buzzsaw is cleft in twain by his own chainsaw.
165	*** Dynamo first crashes his own buggy chasing down Ben and Amber...
166	*** ...and later on his own suit ends up electrocuting him.
167	*** Fireball's flamethrower fuel supply explodes (with a little help from Richards), killing him.
168	** The [=ICS=] network scupper themselves by;
169	*** Convincing Amber that they're lying when they mention the non-existent bloodbath at the airport, because Amber was a surviving witness.
170	*** Not deleting or properly securing the footage of Ben Richards trying to ''save'' the victims of the Bakersfield Massacre, because of the fact it proves his entire criminal record is in doubt.
171	*** Faking Richards' and Amber's deaths on live [=TV=], so that when they emerge onstage very much alive minutes later, the entire audience is convinced that ICS are lying to them.
172	** Killian himself is doomed by being deserted by his mistreated bodyguard and then [[spoiler:being launched into the Zone]], as he had done to so many before.
173	** In a more minor example, Richards stabs his {{Jerkass}} "court-appointed theatrical agent" with his own pen.
174	* HollywoodLaw: When Richards is being led down the hall by his "court appointed agent", the agent is reading the terms of Ben's contract. It's mostly just a bunch of loosely-interconnected legal jargon that doesn't form a coherent thought at any point. This might be justified because America has become a dictatorship with no rule of law, and the agent and his contract only exist to create a pretense of legality.
175	* HomeGame: The board game version of the show given to members of the ''Running Man'' studio audience.
176	* TheHunterBecomesTheHunted: The Stalkers find themselves on the receiving end of their own medicine once Ben Richards joins the game. The first death with Sub-Zero was a clear shock to not just the audience, but the government itself given that they called up Killian to explain things.
177	* HuntingTheMostDangerousGame: The Running Man is basically this elevated to a game show. Although it wasn't really that dangerous for the Stalkers until Ben Richards turned up, and...
178	* IHaveYouNowMyPretty: Discussed when Richards briefly crosses paths with Amber and a female work colleague while being escorted to the ''Running Man'' studio. The colleague notes to Amber that she's lucky that Richards didn't kill her, rape her, or rape and kill her (in either order)... in a tone of voice that heavily suggests she finds the idea of submitting sexually to Richards quite the turn-on.
179	* ImYourBiggestFan: Mrs. Agnes [=McArdle=], who is Killian's biggest fan.
180	* IdiotBall:
181	** Even though Richards was already thoroughly discredited as "The Butcher of Bakersfield", the government still insists on making up murders at the airport where he was captured. This is what convinces Amber (who was his hostage at the airport and ''knows'' he didn't kill anyone there) that he was framed and ultimately causes her to discover the truth.
182	** Keeping the unedited footage around was pretty dumb, too, allowing Ben Richards to be effectively acquitted on live television, and whatever legalese is in his contract likely meant everyone he killed prior to leaving the studio can't be prosecuted.
183	** Had Killian been even slightly less of a jerkass BadBoss, [[spoiler:Sven might have blocked Richards instead of leaving Killian to his mercy]].
184	* IKnowMaddenKombat: The hockey-themed hunter "Sub-Zero".
185	* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Richards' faked death at the hands of the equally fake Captain Freedom.
186	* ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy:
187	** A helicopter gunship employing both miniguns and unguided rockets firing into a packed group of over a thousand rioters somehow manages to kill only 60 of them. Even [[Film/ANewHope stormtroopers]] could do better. Unless you assume the government undersold the figures.
188	** The guards at the tv studio are even worse, as they fail to hit a single one of the rebels. Of particular note is the first guard to open fire, as he starts shooting when all the rebels are clustered together in a narrow area in front of the entrance, yet somehow manages to miss every shot. Anyone remotely competent with an automatic rifle could have mowed them all down.
189	* ImprobableAimingSkills: During the studio shootout, Richards manages to hit everything he aims at, even when he's literally shooting from the hip.
190	* ImprobableWeaponUser: Most of the Stalkers use exotic but otherwise standard weapons; Buzzsaw has a chainsaw, Fireball a flamethrower, Dynamo an electric suit, and Freedom his own fists. But then there's Sub-Zero, who uses a sharpened metal hockey stick, and exploding hockey pucks.
191	* InNameOnly: The only elements the novel and movie have in common are some of the characters' names (Ben Richards is the same, the game show host is named Dan Killian in the novel), and a very basic version of the premise (that they're on the run from stalkers as part of a show). All the other details, including the main character's personality and motivations, and the nature of the show itself, are completely different. It's reported that Creator/StephenKing enjoyed the film, but it's NOTHING like the novel.
192	* InstantSoprano: Ben Richards shoves the blade of [[spoiler: Buzzsaw's titular weapon]] into his groin area, causing him to emit a scream that quickly goes from manly to high-pitched.
193	* IntimidationDemonstration: Each of the Stalkers shows off the use of his weapon when he's introduced to the studio audience.
194	* IronicEcho: Multiple examples involving Killian.
195	** Particularly this one:
196	--->'''Killian''': [''To Richards after he's been recaptured''] Hello, cutie pie. One of us is in deep trouble.\
197	'''Richards''': [''To Killian back on the game show set in the climax''] Hello, cutie pie. One of us is in deep trouble.
198	** The advertisement of Cadre Cola starring Killian that we see earlier in the film has Killian saying "that hit the spot!" as a CatchPhrase. Guess what Richards says as a BondOneLiner after killing Killian by tossing him through a Cadre Cola billboard with an out-of-control rocket sled?
199	* JetPack: Used by the stalker Fireball.
200	* KarmaHoudini
201	** The government responsible for killing thousands of innocents and framing Richards for it (and the helicopter crew who carried out the massacre, after framing and incapacitating Richards). [[KarmaHoudiniWarranty However, in light of the footage the resistance posted, there is hint of an uprising.]]
202	** Captain Freedom apparently suffers nothing worse than job loss, despite having killed numerous Running Men throughout his career (although it is possible that unlike Richards, at least some of them were genuine mass murderers).
203	* KarmicDeath: All the Stalkers [[spoiler:except Captain Freedom.]]
204	** [[spoiler:Killian]], too. Only he never quite makes it to the game zone: The rocket sled he rides in crashes into a billboard outside the studios and explodes on impact; trapped inside, [[spoiler:Killian (presumably) burns to death if the impact and/or explosion doesn't splatter him first]].
205	* KickTheDog: Killian forcing the other two convicts to fight in the game zone even though he [[YouSaidYouWouldLetThemGo said he would let them go if Benjamin would agree to fight]]. When Sub-Zero dies, his shock is more at the fact it actually happened than any sorrow about the death itself and he justifies it to the government calling him about it that it makes for better entertainment for the masses that keeps them on the television and not out protesting. As if that weren't bad enough, he forces the completely innocent Amber into the game as well when he catches her looking through the footage.
206	* KillThePoor: What makes the whole mess start for Richards is him being given direct orders to open fire on a crowd of unarmed civilians that are doing a peaceful protest because they don't have access to food (considering a single can of soda costs ten dollars, it's easy to guess that even basic vittles have become flat-out unaffordable for some people) and he absolutely refuses to (even trying to fight the other officers in the helicopter when they are given orders to arrest Richards for insubordination ''and'' open fire). To make things worse, it's even stated it's a "standard procedure".
207	* KnightInSourArmor: Richards spends most of the movie as this, not eager to fight for a good cause after his last attempt didn't exactly go well but nevertheless forced into going along with it by circumstance. He gradually loses the "sour" part over the course of the film until eventually he's practically leading the resistance.
208	* LargeHam: The Stalkers in general are, by the very nature of their work, over-the-top performers akin to professional wrestlers.
209	** Dynamo is worth a special mention. A fat man with blinking lights all over him, driving after you in a go-kart, whilst singing opera.
210	** Killian as well.
211	* LargeHamAnnouncer: ''The Running Man'' has an announcer who hams up his entire script to further dramatise the vignettes and introductions for the purposes of entertainment. He even [[CreditsGag has an announcement over the film's ends credits]].
212	* LeaveNoWitnesses: [[spoiler:After Richards reveals himself to the studio audience, alive and well, the studio's [[{{Mooks}} security guards]] immediately try to kill Richards, the resistance members accompanying him AND the entire audience in one last desperate attempt to regain control of the situation and maintain the cover-up. They didn't know that the entire incident was ''still'' being broadcast live on television and witnessed by ''everyone'' watching the show, thanks to resistance members who have taken over the studio's control room. Ultimately, the guards only [[FromBadToWorse exacerbated the situation]], fueling further doubts about the cover-up in the minds of the American public.]]
213	* LightningGun: Dynamo's "Electrical Launcher".
214	* MadeOfExplodium: Maybe the rocket-propelled sled had some fuel, sure, but the Cadre Cola billboard inside of the "Running Man" playing field goes off like ''it'' had been full of dynamite when the sled goes through it.
215	* MagicalSecurityCam: When the resistance plays the real footage of the so-called Bakersfield Massacre, it's clearly just a replaying of the scene from the movie -- including the bit of Richards being knocked out, which was from Richards' POV.
216	* ManipulativeEditing: The camera footage of Richards refusing to shoot unarmed civilians is altered to make it look like he fired on them against orders.
217	** Pretty much ''everything'' Killian doesn't want the public to see is edited when it's not live.
218	** Fabricated footage through digital recreation (a few years before RealLife CGI allowed this) is commonplace, like Richards killing people at the airport, last season's winners enjoying life in Hawaii or Richards' and Amber's "death" against Captain Freedom.
219	* MeaningfulName[=/=]NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: No one -- ''no one'' -- with a name like 'Damon Killian' is ever going to grow up to be anything but a villain.
220	* MenOfSherwood:
221	** Most of the convicts who aid Richards in shooting his way out of the government labor camp at the beginning escape and are never shown being killed or recaptured. The unnamed, uncredited ones actually have a higher survival rate than the MauveShirt characters.
222	** In the final scenes, Mic and his armed rebels flawlessly [[spoiler:take over the broadcast booth and expose the government's lies with almost no trouble]].
223	* MiscarriageOfJustice: The plot kicks off when Richards gets wrongly accused of having committed a massacre among innocent civilians and as punishment for the crime is selected as a combatant for the titular BloodSport TV show. However, Richards tried to ''prevent'' the massacre and part of the plot is finding the evidence of this to give the real story to the public as well as bringing the corrupt officials behind it to justice.
224	* MortalWoundReveal: [[spoiler:Laughlin]] saves Richards from Buzzsaw's attack and is out of it for the rest of said fight and when Richards goes off to save Amber from Dynamo, but when they get back to him and try to carry him he tells them that "Buzzsaw took care of my traveling arrangements" while revealing his injury and pleads with them to go on [[spoiler:and get the uplink code to Mic and the resistance who are hiding out.]]
225	* MrFanservice: Richards InUniverse, which gets pointed out quite a few times.
226	-->'''Killian:''' I can get ten points for his biceps alone.
227	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Amber has this look when Richards is led past her in chains on his way to the game zone; rather than angry he just looks resigned and stoic. Already suspicious because she knows he was framed for murder, Amber immediately goes to the network archives to find footage of the Bakersfield massacre.
228	* NamedAfterSomebodyFamous: Dweezil Zappa's character, Stevie, is named after Music/StevieNicks.
229	* NeckLift: Captain Freedom does this to Amber during the fake fight scene. [[spoiler:It isn't the real Amber. It's falsified footage Killian created.]]
230	* NeckSnap
231	** During the escape from prison at the beginning of the movie, Richard's friend Laughlin breaks the neck of a guard who was about to shoot Richards.
232	** During the faked scene where Captain Freedom fights Amber, he performs a NeckLift on her before breaking her neck.
233	* NiceToTheWaiter: Averted at every possible opportunity by Killian who is utterly horrible to anyone he sees as beneath him... which is everyone. It proves to be his undoing.
234	* NobleDemon:
235	** It's made clear Captain Freedom actually has some sense of honor and believes in the Gladiators Code. He shows increasing signs of frustration with Killian's more underhanded tactics. He still wants to take on and kill Richards, but face-to-face like warriors should. [[spoiler:The final straw proves to be be the gimmicky outfit Killian wants him to use in his fight and it ends with him walking away in disgust.]]
236	** Killian is a nasty human being, but if you survive the Running Man, he'll let you live out your life in luxury. [[spoiler: Subverted when it turns out even the winners of the Running Man were killed off anyways]].
237	* NonActionGuy: Weiss is not at all built for or meant to engage in physical combat. During the prison break it's his job to get the code for the security and shut it off while Richards and Laughlin fight, and in the game itself he's knocked into a trap by Sub-Zero [[spoiler:and unceremoniously killed by Dynamo's electricity]].
238	* NonLethalWarfare: A net-firing gun is used to capture Richards at the airport, though when he tries to struggle out of it the police flat-out state if he moves he's dead with a rifle right up next to him.
239	* NotInThisForYourRevolution: Richards makes it clear near the beginning he's not into politics or revolution, just survival. He's willing to help Laughlin and Weiss because they're his friends and he owes them, but he's not really interested in the cause itself and would rather "look for the door." [[spoiler:And while he does join up with the resistance in the end, it's more to get revenge on Killian and justice for their deaths over making a statement, something he admits to the revolutionaries when they ask why he's willing to help them when he could just escape]].
240	* NotWorthKilling: "No, [[PetTheDog I won't kill a helpless human being]]… not even sadistic scum like you."
241	* NothingPersonal: [[spoiler:When he is finally at the mercy of Richards, Killian tries to excuse his crimes by claiming that he did it all for the sake of TV show ratings and for the entertainment of [[TheScapegoat American viewers everywhere]]. It doesn't work and Richards gives Killian the death he deserved.]]
242	* OhCrap:
243	** Killian when [[spoiler:he realizes that Richards has survived and has now cornered him in the studio. Again, when the studio guard, who had stood loyally at his side for all this time, abandons him to his fate. And a final time when Richards grabs him and throws him in the rocket sled, sending him into the game zone (and ultimately, to his death).]]
244	** Earlier, Killian also looks rather unsettled when, having offered Richards a contract as a network Stalker, Richards informs him in no uncertain detail precisely what he intends to make Killian do with said contract. And what he then intends to do to Killian's stomach and spine.
245	** ''The entire audience'' has a collective one when Richards kills Sub-Zero. It's apparently been a ''very'' long time since any contestant managed to actually kill one of the stalkers. If ever, as it's never stated how the previous winners won.
246	* OpeningScroll: White text scrolling up against a red screen quickly exposits the backstory of the movie's setting.
247	* OppressiveStatesOfAmerica: The [=USA=] is in the grip of a severe economic and environmental decline, but is propped up by a lethally efficient fascist dictatorship keeping the public under sway with mindless violence on television.
248	* OurGraphicsWillSuckInTheFuture: Apparently, wireframe computer graphics are state of the art in 2019. [[spoiler:Except when it comes to producing fake footage of "dead" or "alive" contestants.]]
249	* OutOfTheInferno: After Ben ignites a barrel of flammable material, Fireball just strolls through the flame.
250	* PeekABooCorpse: [[spoiler:The previous season winners. Fireball secretly murdered them with his flamethrower while Killian falsified footage of their prize holiday.]]
251	* ThePenIsMightier: When Richards has to sign his contract, the AmoralAttorney callously says "Use my back, victim." Richards, offended, signs the contract and then stabs the pen into the man's back.
252	* PleaseSelectNewCityName: At the airport, in the background you can hear an announcement about a flight to "Mandelaburg" – presumably the future name of [[UsefulNotes/SouthAfrica Johannesburg]]. It was even more ironic given [[TheEighties the time the film was released]], since it was still UsefulNotes/TheApartheidEra and UsefulNotes/NelsonMandela was still in prison. The likelihood of the end of the Apartheid happening was seen as nil.
253	* PlotHole: After Richards defeats Subzero, Laughlin is shown carrying Subzero's hockey stick, which seems like it would be ''damn'' useful against the other Stalkers. However, the stick vanishes between shots with no explanation.
254	* PopCulturalOsmosisFailure: References to ''Series/GilligansIsland'' and ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' fall flat due to them having been banned.
255	* PostMortemOneLiner: After watching [[spoiler: Killian]] blow up after crashing into a wall:
256	-->'''Richards:''' Well, ''that'' hit the spot.
257	* PreMortemOneLiner:
258	** Ben to a guard he picks up during the PrisonRiot:
259	--->"Give you a lift?"
260	** Before he sets [[spoiler:Fireball]] on fire.
261	--->"How 'bout a light?"
262	** [[spoiler:Buzzsaw]] delivers an unsuccessful one to Richards, to which Richards gives out a much more successful one.
263	--->'''[[spoiler:Buzzsaw]]''': I love this saw... it's a part of me... and I'm about to make it a part of ''you''!\
264	'''Richards''': That's all right, ''keep it''!
265	** When he's about to launch [[spoiler:Killian]] to his doom.
266	--->[[spoiler:'''Killian''']]: You bastard! ''Drop dead!''\
267	'''Richards''': I don't do requests.
268	* PrivateProfitPrison: Played with a bit; more like a "Private Profit Parole Board" (''if'' you win the game).
269	* PropagandaHero: The Stalkers who chase down the criminals have their own wrestler-style personas. It's {{inverted}} with Ben Richards, who is falsely accused of murder and slandered.
270	* PublicExecution: Criminals are executed by being hunted to their deaths on TV, with a [[spoiler:[[BlatantLies completely false]]]] promise of freedom if they survive.
271	* PunchClockVillain: Captain Freedom, he is the most decent of the Stalkers for his sense of honor. Also, Sven the security chief.
272	* PunnyName: Dynamo is an opera-singing hunter who shoots electricity. A "dynamo" is an electrical generator, and the term is also used to describe energetic or impressive performers, such as opera singers.
273	* QuirkyMiniBossSquad: The Stalkers certainly qualify. They aren't developed beyond their special attacks and gimmicks and have very hammy moments, but presumably have been competent enough to never have died until Ben Richards shows up.
274	* RaceLift: Killian is black in the book.
275	* RageQuit: "Forget it, Killian! I won't do it!"
276	* RedShirt: The two guys who tag along with Richards wear leotards that have a red pattern rather than yellow. [[spoiler:This hints that they won't make it through the game.]]
277	** During the prison escape, there are lots of prisoners fighting alongside Richard, Weiss and Laughlin, but only Chico (who dies in the escape) gets any prominence and none of the others are named, or mentioned again (making it unclear if they managed to avoid being recaptured).
278	* ReleasedToElsewhere: Whitman, Price, and Haddad. Last season's winners. [[TheCakeIsALie "No, last season's]] ''[[TheCakeIsALie losers]]''[[TheCakeIsALie ."]]
279	* LaResistance: There's a resistance movement against the government, which gets wrapped up in the game.
280	* RetiredMonster: Captain Freedom, who initially traded his profession as a Stalker for more benign job as a television exercise trainer. When called back into action, he outright refuses to defeat Richards through disgraceful methods.
281	* RiddleForTheAges: Where ''did'' Amber hide the Bakersfield Massacre footage?
282	* RidiculousFutureInflation: A can of soda costs $6, and the vending machines [[TechnologyMarchesOn don't accept bills]].
283	* RunForTheBorder: Ben tries to do this with Amber, but she blows his cover.
284	** [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] when Richards tries to flee to Hawaii, instead of trying to escape the country entirely. It's implied he intends to go farther afield once he's reached his destination. However since Richards is captured we never actually learn why he wanted to go there specifically, largely because he was smart enough not to to tell Amber his next move.
285	** It may be also ShoutOut to Creator/RobertAHeinlein's ''Literature/IfThisGoesOn'', wherein someone ''pretends'' to be trying to escape to Hawaii, which is a separate country, as part of a plan to make his pursuers think he's dead. Hawaii being a separate country within the setting means the movie could well be playing this trope straight.
286	* RunOrDie: The basic premise of ''Running Man''.
287	* SadisticGameShow: And how! Seems the only kind of entertainment the government can think of involves bloody murder, if "The Running Man", the snippet of "Climbing for Dollars" and the poster for "The '''Hate''' Boat" we see behind Killian in the scene when he talks on the phone to a government representative ("you're not gonna get what you want with reruns of ''Gilligan's Island''... yes, the one with the ''boat''!") are to take at face value.
288	* TheScapegoat: Richards is blamed for the government-ordered massacre he tried to prevent.
289	* ScreamsLikeALittleGirl: Buzzsaw when Richards bisects him from the crotch up. He actually sounds like a soprano singer.
290	* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: Killian's response to being reminded of his government contract telling him his show can't host military prisoners ([[LoopholeAbuse though technically Richards is "at large" rather than a "prisoner" at the moment]]) is to grab a phone and mutter how they'll get Richards for him if they want the ratings, and initially starts to call the Justice Department before he changes his mind and calls up ''The President's agent''.
291	* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight: Richards, when he refuses to fire on the unarmed crowd.
292	* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Sven, the studio's head of security and Killian's bodyguard, realizes that he's been lied to and insulted one too many times and -- when he is ordered to take out Richards, leaves the studio.
293	* SeeYouInHell: One of the officers in the helicopter told Richards "And I'll see you in hell" before knocking him out with his shotgun.
294	* ShackleSeatTrap: The reclining sled used to launch Runners into the kill zone has automatic ankle and wrist restraints.
295	* ShoutOut: "[[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries Mr. Spock]], you have the com."
296	* ShowWithinAShow: The TV show.
297	* ShutUpKirk: Killian is the only villain to give a snappy comeback to Arnold's CatchPhrase "I'll be back".
298	-->'''Killian:''' Only in a rerun.
299	* SilentSnarker: Sven doesn't talk at all until near the end [[spoiler:when he leaves Killian to Richard by saying he needs to score some steroids (mocking Killian's earlier insult about steroids making him deaf)]]. But several of his scenes before that hint at him having a dry wit, such as raising an eyebrow with a bemused expression when Richards stabs the attorney in the back with his pen (while uttering yet another quip), and then [[spoiler:upon being ordered to show Captain Freedom out after the latter refuses to fight Richards]], he gives the man a look before raising his hand in an "after you" gesture.
300	* SissyVillain: Killian. He's the movie's NonActionBigBad, and upon seeing the footage of Richards escaping from prison, he ''really'' admires his appearance in a manner that borders on EatingTheEyeCandy, commenting "Hello, gorgeous!" and asking "Look at that mother move, huh? Is he beautiful?", on top of addressing to him as "Cutie Pie" when they meet in person.
301	* SlutShaming: The network doesn't have any real dirt on Amber, in spite of the fact that a quick search of her apartment would reveal black market clothing and banned music tapes (though that might not be considered very "exciting" for the masses), so among the crimes they claim that she's guilty of include sleeping with as many as two or three different men in a year before she met her "lover" Mad Dog Ben Richards.
302	* SmarmyHost: Damon Killian.
303	* SmashToBlack: The scene goes black after a co-pilot knocks Richards out in the opening scene.
304	* SnuffFilm: The whole gameshow is basically this, as numerous "contestants" have been KilledOffForReal. Even worse, most of the populace [[ConditionedToAcceptHorror seems fine with this.]]
305	* SparedByTheAdaptation: [[spoiler:Ben Richards]], in the biggest of the film's many, ''many'' changes from the novel.
306	* StandardSnippet: Dynamo chases Richards with his buggy with a synthesizer version of ''Music/RideOfTheValkyries'' playing, plus Dynamo's actor (Erland Van Lidth De Jeude) himself singing a bit.
307	* TheStinger: The show's announcer does a voice-over at the end of the credits, listing the game's sponsors and inviting people to participate by sending in their name and address, "then go out and do something really despicable!"
308	* StockFootage: The doctored footage of the Bakersfield Massacre uses gunship footage from ''Film/KingKong1976''.
309	* StupidEvil: If Killian hadn't been such an asshole to Sven, [[spoiler: he might have at least tried to protect Killian from Richards, instead of [[MistreatmentInducedBetrayal just leaving him to his fate.]]]]
310	* SwissCheeseSecurity: Richards and his friends manage to escape from the labor camp mainly thanks to Weiss spying the codes of the [[ExplosiveLeash explosive leashes]]' perimeter from the laptop of a guard doing his job in the open where prisoners work. Also applies to Amber easily sneaking into the secret ICS room where she gets the unedited footage of the Bakersfield Massacre before being caught.
311	* {{Technobabble}}: If you pay attention to it going in the background during unrelated scene, the contract the attorney is reading to Richards is full of utterly nonsensical jargon, barely law-related.
312	* ThrowABarrelAtIt: Ben Richards does it to Fireball. It doesn't do much aside from slow him down.
313	* TokenGoodTeammate: Captain Freedom is one for the Stalkers.
314	* TooDumbToLive: Downplayed for humor with the "Court-Appointed Theatrical Agent." While escorting Richards - who, for all he knows, is a mass-murdering psychopath with nothing to lose at this point - the Agent requires Richards to sign a contract (and rights waiver). As Richards fumbles to sign the contract in mid-air, the agent tells Richards to use his back as a desk and calls him "victim". Richards signs, and promptly pins the contract to the guy's back with the pen. Handing a murderous lunatic a sharp object, turning your back on him, and outright telling him to point it at the back of your ribcage while insulting him is definitely a faulty survival instinct, and it's only Richards' decidedly ''non-''psychopathic nature that saves the agent from playing this trope straight.
315	* TrashcanBonfire: During the outdoor scenes in the area where the poor citizens live, oil cans with flames inside appear in the scenes when the protagonists first arrive and when the crowds are betting on the game.
316	* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture: Made in 1987, but starts in 2017[[note]]The societal collapse happened in 2017, while Richards' escape presumably takes place in 2019 after 18 months from the Bakersfield massacre[[/note]]. Of course, since 2017 has come and gone, that makes it AlternateHistory now.
317	* UnwinnableByDesign: While searching an abandoned area, Amber finds a trio of corpses bearing the name tags of the men who had been shown on video celebrating winning the previous year's game. It hits her that ''no one'' has ever truly "won" Running Man but the victories faked to give the masses false hope and content.
318	-->'''Amber''': These...these are last year's winners.\
319	'''Fireball''': No. Last year's ''losers''.
320	* VictoriasSecretCompartment: Another possible hiding place for that footage. (See AssShove.) In Amber's words, when asked about it:
321	-->'''Amber''': [''Smirks''] That's none of your business.
322	* VillainBall: Killian backstabs Richards and puts his fellow escapees on the show even after promising Richards that he would not. [[spoiler:This is ultimately his undoing. Without the two rebels, Richards never would have found the hideout and escaped the arena. Without Richards, the stalkers would have massacred the rebels immediately.]]
323	* VillainRespect: Captain Freedom has one for Ben Richards, believing he's a WorthyOpponent who should be taken on with his bare hands rather than underhanded tricks.
324	* VillainousFriendship: Fireball seems to be on good terms with the other Stalkers. [[spoiler:As Fireball watches the screen, he urges Buzzsaw to kill Richards "for Subzero" and seems subdued when Richards turns the tables on Buzzsaw]].
325	* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Killian and the Stalkers, initially. In reality, the Stalkers are (almost all) despicable psychopaths, while Killian is an abusive and corrupt BadBoss. Both carefully keep their dark sides off camera, and the viewers love them.
326	* WeaponBasedCharacterization: Each of the Stalkers has a unique weapon based on their particular gimmick.
327	** Sub Zero uses a [[IKnowMaddenKombat sharpened hockey stick]] and [[StuffBlowingUp explosive pucks]], while skating around a hockey rink.
328	** Buzzsaw has a preference for [[ChainsawGood chainsaws]]. He's seen carrying three around at a time, but only tends to use one.
329	** Dynamo uses a LightningGun to deliver ShockAndAwe to his opponents. As seen with Amber, he also has [[TheParalyzer a non lethal option]].
330	** Fireball uses a combination of {{Jetpack}} and [[FireBreathingWeapon flamethrower]].
331	** While we don't get to see Captain Freedom in action, except during faked footage, he was well known for preferring to fight unarmed. He's insulted when Killian tries to get him to go after Richards wearing PoweredArmor and [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere storms off]].
332	* WeCanRuleTogether: Not quite, but same idea. When Killian realizes that Richards is tougher than his Stalkers, he offers him a job as a Stalker. Richards, having just watched one of his friends die and learning the other has also died, refuses. (Well, more like tells him where he can stick it, but it's still a refusal.)[[note]]"I live to see you eat that contract! But I hope you leave enough room for my fist because I'm going to jam it into your stomach, and break your god damn spine!"[[/note]]
333	* WeWillMeetAgain: "Only in a rerun."
334	* WeWillNotUsePhotoshopInTheFuture: The government uses edited footage to frame Richards. Later, the producers [[spoiler:edit footage of Richards being killed in an attempt to salvage his victory over the Stalkers. This winds up backfiring in the latter because they make Richards and Amber look weak compared to their actual selves in the game. When the rebellion manage to play the true tape of the massacre and Killian denies it being true. The crowd, particularly Mrs. Agnes [=McArdle=], an old lady who rooted for Richards, turn against him because they've seen Richards in action and know what he's like by now.]]
335	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse:
336	** [[spoiler:Captain Freedom]]. He [[RageQuit walks out]] partway through the film because [[EvenEvilHasStandards he becomes bitter about what the game has become]]. Granted, it's very anticlimactic, but serves as possible {{foreshadowing}} for [[spoiler:Sven]] doing the same thing later at a key moment.
337	** Dozens of prisoners escape from the labor camp during the second scene, but only Ben, Weiss, and Laughlin are ever seen or mentioned again.
338	* WhosLaughingNow: Awesomely thrown back in Dynamo's face by Amber, of all people.
339	-->'''Dynamo''': Thought it was pretty funny out in the zone, didn't you? What's the matter, bitch? Why aren't you laughing?\
340	'''Amber''': Because there's nothing funny about a dickless moron with a battery up his ass.
341	* WickedCultured: Dynamo the bruiser, the killer, the rapist, the opera singer…
342	* WinOneForTheGipper: Fireball's line after Buzzsaw and Dynamo were sent to the game zone was, "Let's win one for the Zero!"
343	* WinYourFreedom: Other possible prizes include a trial by jury or a suspended sentence!
344	* WouldNotShootACivilian: Ben Richards. This actually gets him in a heap of trouble when he refuses to follow orders to mow down hungry protesters.
345	* YourHeadASplode: [[ATragedyOfImpulsiveness If Chico had just waited twenty more seconds]] at the beginning of the movie…
346	* YouSaidYouWouldLetThemGo: Richards' is convinced to participate in The Running Man to prevent his friends Laughlin and Weiss being sent in in his stead, where they wouldn't last five minutes. Of course, Killian doesn't keep his word.
347	* {{Zeerust}}: All over the place, particularly in the hairstyles and fashions (mullets and shoulder pads, for example, will apparently never go out of style). Lesser examples exist, such as the [[OurGraphicsWillSuckInTheFuture horribly dated graphics]] seen on all the in-universe computer screens and the pseudo-computeresque font used in the "KILLIAN IS LYING TO YOU" clip.
348	----

Context Film / TheRunningMan