Independent film is full of people from other professions in the creative industries taking a turn behind the camera. Stunt men, visual effects artists, action choreographers, cinematographers, and stand-up comedians have and continue to make the leaps necessary to direct. With her latest directorial project, The Runner, Michelle Danner is none of the above. She is a world-renowned acting coach, and thinking logically, the best way for a budding actor to learn how to act in a movie is to act in a movie. You’d expect more acting coaches to take this leap; they are two positions that complement one another perfectly, after all.
The Runner tells of Aiden (Edouard Philipponnat) – a troubled teenager who crashes a car with his best friend, Blake (Nadji Jeter), while in possession of drugs – in and on his person. Instead of going to prison, the police give him an out: risk his life, and go undercover to bring in the dangerous drug kingpin, ‘local legend’. Yes, that’s really what that character goes by. There are also flashbacks to Aiden’s relationship with a childhood sweetheart, Layla (Kerri Medders), and the usual Hollywood high school hi-jinx. Adding in the unpredictability of a non-linear narrative not only muddies matters but also creates character inconsistencies and plot holes.
Danner gets the most from her young cast, and that’s who this film is for – a showpiece for the less experienced actors on board.
As far as aspirations as a crime or drug dealer drama go, one fact undercuts the runner’s ambitions – everyone is much too pretty. In isolation, that does sound like a petty complaint, and it mostly is. However, when everyone looks as good as they do – the idea that the titular character is throwing his life away by taking all the drugs, appearance counts. Get it wrong, and it hinders the relatability of the story. Glamour is an enemy to such a story; consequently, it doesn’t quite hit as hard as a character arc when Philipponnat is a male model, and the worst he gets is a bit sweaty. To discuss it in a less inflammatory way, the beautiful, vast houses in the hills and the gorgeous cast take away any sense of danger, making it feel less like ‘the french connection‘ and more like a TV show by the CW.
This concern goes further than the superficiality of the surface too. Indie crime movies are ten a penny and to stand out is almost impossible, and unfortunately, Jason Chase Tyrrell’s script does little to make it feel much more than anonymous. A movie as idiosyncratic as Ryan Prows’s wonderful Lowlife (2017) struggled to elevate itself above the indie horde, so a script that tells a relatively straightforward story stands no chance. What with its descent of a rich white kid into drug addiction, undercover police service, mother issues, and a house party in the third act – the script has few surprises.
A script that fails to set the house on fire puts a lot of pressure on the director. Unfortunately, on the evidence of The Runner, Danner isn’t a talented visualist or nuanced storyteller – she is great with actors. As someone whose other job is to build up future generations of acting talent, Danner gets the most from her young cast, and that’s who this film is for – a showpiece for the less experienced actors on board. More established actors like Elisabeth Röhm (Aiden’s Mother) and Eric Balfour (Local legend) appear sporadically, allowing actors making their first steps in their film acting careers to take centre stage. And honestly, that’s wonderful. This renowned acting coach helming the runner to give inexperienced actors one of their early steps is beyond the pale – and for that, respect is due.
THE RUNNER IS NOW AVAILABLE ON DIGITAL PLATFORMS
THE RUNNER
