''Running'' is a 1979 Canadian

sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

film written and directed by

Steven Hilliard Stern Steven Hilliard Stern (November 1, 1937 – June 27, 2018) was a Canadian television and documentary director, producer and writer. Biography Stern attended Ryerson Institute of Technology and served in the Canadian Infantry before inauguratin ...

and starring

Michael Douglas Michael Kirk Douglas (born September 25, 1944) is an American actor and film producer. He has received numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards, five Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and the ...

and

Susan Anspach Susan Florence Anspach (; November 23, 1942 – April 2, 2018) was an American stage, film and television actress who had roles in films during the 1970s and 1980s such as ''Five Easy Pieces'' (1970), ''Play It Again, Sam (film), Play It Aga ...

. It is about the fictional

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

marathon runner The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road running, road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk str ...

and

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

hopeful Michael Andropolis and his struggle to compete in the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

Plot

Michael Andropolis is a US hopeful for the 1976 (Montreal) Summer Olympics as a marathon runner. However, his life is fraught with trouble. His marriage, which produced two children, has fallen apart and his wife wants a divorce. He struggles with unemployment and at one point in the movie is seen snapping due to frustration with the unemployment office bureaucracy. Additionally, his coach is reluctant to endorse him for the games. Andropolis always starts races strong, but because of his over-competitive strive, he pulls ahead of the pack too soon, sapping strength he'll need for the final minutes of the race. So he tends to not come in first, having used his stamina too early. His coach feels he is a quitter. However, he providentially makes it through to Montreal by finishing fourth in the qualifiers, but getting the ticket due to an injury in one of the top three finishers. Andropolis surprises everyone, by pacing himself early in the race, only pulling ahead halfway through the race. Well on his way to the finish line ahead of the main pack, Andropolis slips on wet leaves rounding a turn. The fall leaves him with shoulder and leg injuries as other runners pass him by. As darkness falls, paramedics tend to him where he fell. Andropolis is overcome by the need to "finish" the task of the race. He gets up, limping by and winding his way through traffic on roads that have been re-opened, as the marathon rules mark, and since the presumed final competitor had crossed the finish line hours earlier. Exhausted by the grueling ordeal of finishing the race with numerous injuries, Andropolis is greeted with cheers and support from the entire Olympic Stadium. He is met at the finish line by his wife, who has come to Montreal to watch him and promises that he will come home with her whatever happens. His coach witnesses his finish with a proud smile, while his daughters watch him on TV.

Cast

as Michael Andropolis *

as Janet Andropolis * Chuck Shamata as Howard Grant *

Eugene Levy Eugene Levy (born December 17, 1946) is a Canadian actor and comedian. Known for portraying flustered and unconventional figures, Levy has won multiple accolades throughout his career including four Primetime Emmy Awards, a Grammy Award, and ...

as Richard Rosenberg *

Philip Akin Philip Akin (born April 18, 1950) is a Canadian actor. Akin has been acting and directing for over 40 years. He has had roles in major American films such as ''The Sum of All Fears'', '' S.W.A.T.'', and '' Get Rich or Die Tryin. He has also d ...

as Chuck *

Gordon Clapp Gordon Clapp (born September 24, 1948) is an American actor best known for playing Det. Greg Medavoy for all 12 seasons of the television series ''NYPD Blue'', winning an Emmy Award in 1998. Early life and education Clapp was born in North Con ...

as Kenny *

Lawrence Dane Lawrence Joseph Zahab (April 3, 1937 – March 21, 2022), known professionally as Lawrence Dane, was a Canadian actor and film producer, best known for his role as Lt. Preston in ''Bride of Chucky''. Life and career Born in Masson, Quebec, Dane ...

as Coach Walker *

Lesleh Donaldson Lesleh Donaldson (born April 7, 1964) is a Canadian actress who has worked in stage and film. After making her film debut in the drama ''Running'' (1979), she would appear in several horror films in the early 1980s, which earned her the title of ...

as Andrea Andropolis *

Robin Duke Robin Duke (born March 13, 1954) is a Canadian actress, comedian, and voice actress. Duke may be best known for her work on the television comedy series '' SCTV'' and, later, ''Saturday Night Live''. She co-founded ''Women Fully Clothed'', a ske ...

as Olympic Office Receptionist * David Eisner as Man In Unemployment Office *

Giancarlo Esposito Giancarlo Giuseppe Alessandro Esposito (; born April 26, 1958) is an American actor and director. He rose to prominence by portraying Gus Fring in the AMC (TV channel), AMC crime drama series ''Breaking Bad'' (2009–2011), a role he reprised in ...

as Teenager * Marvin Goldhar as Maloney * Robert Hannah as Stuntman * Shawn Lawrence as Kenny's Trainer *

Jim McKay James Kenneth McManus (September 24, 1921 – June 7, 2008), better known professionally as Jim McKay, was an American television sports journalist. McKay was best known for hosting ABC's '' Wide World of Sports'' (1961–1998). His intro ...

as Himself * Jennifer McKinney as Susan Andropolis * Monica Parker as Fat Lady *

Tony Rosato Antonio Rosato (26 December 1954 – 10 January 2017) was a Canadian actor and comedian, who appeared in television and films. He was best known as a cast member on both '' SCTV'' and ''Saturday Night Live'', and for voicing Luigi in '' The Adven ...

as Italian Athlete *

Murray Westgate Murray Westgate (April 16, 1918 – August 27, 2018) was a Canadian actor. He is best known for his longtime role as a television pitchman in Canadian commercials for Esso on ''Hockey Night in Canada'' in the 1950s and 1960s, and also for his roles ...

as Mr. Finlay * Trudy Young as Pregnant Woman

Production

Many of the scenes including the start of the marathon as well as scenic shots were filmed in

Georgetown, Ontario Georgetown is a large unincorporated community in the town of Halton Hills, Ontario, Canada, in the Regional Municipality of Halton. The town includes several small villages or settlements such as Norval, Ontario, Norval, Limehouse, Ontario, Lime ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. Additional scenes were filmed at Lakeshore Studio in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

;

Montreal, Quebec Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

; and

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. The film was made for $4 million and sold to TV for $5 million even before it was released.

Reception

Vincent Canby Vincent Canby (July 27, 1924 – October 15, 2000) was an American film and theatre critic who was the chief film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1969 until the early 1990s, then its chief theatre critic from 1994 until his death in 2000. ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' described the film as "earnest but not particularly affecting." ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote: "Scriptwriter Steven Stern, who directed, never really capitalizes on the sport of running which has become so popular, but Douglas overcomes to deliver a polished performance." Gene Siskel of the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'' gave the film one star out of four and called it "easily one of the year's worst movies ... This picture was made by a TV writer-director, and it shows."

Charles Champlin Charles Davenport Champlin (March 23, 1926 – November 16, 2014) was an American film critic and writer. Life and career Champlin was born in Hammondsport, New York. He attended high school in Camden, New York, working as a columnist for the ...

of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' wrote that the film was "enlivened by some outstanding performances," but also stated that "I didn't get any real sense of the pain or the glory, the mystique or the physicality or the mechanics of running ... and it presents difficulties in a film called 'Running.'" Gary Arnold of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' described the film as "insufferable ... this sporting tearjerker is the dopiest imitation yet of '

Rocky ''Rocky'' is a 1976 American independent film, independent sports drama film directed by John G. Avildsen and written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. It is the first installment in the Rocky (film series), ''Rocky'' franchise and also star ...

,' already imitated into absurdity." James K. Loutzenhiser of ''

BoxOffice ''Boxoffice Pro'' is a film industry magazine dedicated to the movie theatre business published by BoxOffice Media LP. History It started in 1920 as ''The Reel Journal'', taking the name ''Boxoffice'' in 1931 and still publishes today, with a ...

'' gave the film a rating of "Good" and called it "an entertaining film" with Douglas "likable and convincing in the leading role." Lawrence O'Toole of ''

Maclean's ''Maclean's'' is a Canadian magazine founded in 1905 which reports on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, trends and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian ...

'' wrote, "A formula movie, nicely shot by Laszlo George and acted with real vigor by Douglas, ''Running'' is Television City, its script easily accessible to any prime-time child."O'Toole, Lawrence (October 29, 1979). "Running on empty". ''

''. 58.

References

External links