Run
lionsgateDirector, Aneesh Chaganty follows up his breakout feature debut, Searching with Run, a much slicker and, overall, better thriller. Run ditches the unique computer desktop-oriented style Chaganty toyed with previously (although there are a few shots that hearken back to this) and plays out in a more conventional cinematic manner.
It tells the story of a mother and daughter duo, Diane (Sarah Paulson) and Chloe (Kiera Allen). Seventeen-year-old Chloe is confined to a wheelchair due to the fact she has suffered from a multitude of ailments and diseases throughout her life, including asthma, diabetes and paralysis. Diane appears to be a caring mother; she home schools Chloe and talks very highly of her, especially to other parents in similar situations. A scene at the very beginning of the film sees Diane in a group therapy session being the only one not to cry. It’s a clever and subtle hint that, at first, seems like Diane is confident in Chloe’s ability as a person. It is only as the film progresses that you realise Diane is being selfish and sees motherhood as a competition, which she believes herself to be winning.
Chloe first suspects her mother of harbouring some secrets when she stumbles upon a bottle of pills prescribed in Diane’s name, pills that Diane is giving to Chloe instead. From this point on, Chloe does whatever investigating she can without arousing her mother’s suspicion so she can work out exactly why her mother is giving her drugs she doesn’t seem to need. Chaganty treats the audience with a lot of respect throughout. Whereas most thrillers would keep their cards close to their chest or hold out on the obvious reveal for as long as possible, Chaganty just keeps the ball rolling which results in a movie that barely lets up. Run only ever feels like it’s saying what it needs to say and, with a tight ninety-minute runtime, thankfully there’s no getting hung up on unnecessary scenes or filler. It’s one fresh element that keeps the film interesting throughout.
Another fresh element sees the elimination of stupid decisions. Horror and thrillers movies are typically littered with characters who make poor choices. Chaganty almost seems to include a scene in the film simply in order to comment and combat this overwrought stereotype. Chloe, having just escaped her locked bedroom, finds herself battered and bruised on the side of the road. Her local postman pulls over to help her and, when Diane arrives shortly after demanding to take Chloe home, the postman keeps Chloe’s side and is clearly out to protect her. With Diane explaining that Chloe is hallucinating and not knowing what she’s talking about, an unfortunate expectation would be the postman unwittingly letting Chloe back into the hands of her captor. Thankfully, Chaganty seems determined to avoid these frustrating scenes we have all seen before.
Run is smart and moves along at exactly the pace it needs to with Sarah Paulson delivering a terrific, and terrifying, lead performance that further cements herself as one of the most capable actresses of recent years.