The Running Man (1987 film)

The Running Man is a 1987 American science fiction action film loosely based on the 1982 novel The Running Man, written by Stephen King and published under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. Directed by Paul Michael Glaser, the film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mara Conchita Alonso, Jesse Ventura, Jim Brown, and Richard Dawson in his final film. Director Andrew Davis was fired one week into filming and replaced by Glaser. Schwarzenegger has stated this was a terrible decision as Glaser shot the movie like it was a television show, losing all the deeper themes. Schwarzenegger believes this hurt the movie. Paula Abdul is credited with the choreography of the Running Man dance troupe.

In 2017, after a worldwide economic collapse, American society has become a totalitarian police state, censoring all cultural activity. The government pacifies the populace by broadcasting game shows where convicted criminals fight for their lives, including the gladiatorstyle The Running Man, hosted by the ruthless Damon Killian, where runners attempt to evade stalkers, armed mercenaries, around a large arena, and nearcertain death for a chance to be pardoned by the state.Two years later, Ben Richards, a police helicopter pilot wrongly convicted of a massacre during a food riot in Bakersfield, California, escapes from a labor camp and seeks shelter at his brothers apartment. He finds it is now occupied by Amber Mendez, a composer for ICS, the network that broadcasts The Running Man. Richards asks Mendez about the whereabouts of his brother, and she says that he was taken for reeducation, possibly hinting at his fate. ........

Source: Wikipedia