The Running Man (1987) - full transcript

Yankee-nine-niner,
what are your coordinates?

Zero-two-zero, flight level one-five.

We're above release point Echo-Bravo-one.

Move in and check it out.

Roger. Moving in.

Food riot in progress.
Approximately 1,500 civilians.

No weapons evident.

Proceed with Plan Alpha.
Eliminate anything moving.

I said the crowd is unarmed.

There are lots of women
and children down there.

All they want is food, for God's sake!



As you were, Richards.
Proceed with Plan Alpha.

All rioters must be eliminated.

The hell with you.
I will not fire on helpless people.

Abort mission. We return back to base.

-Lieutenant Saunders, do you copy?
-Affirmative.

Take command.
Detain Richards and proceed as ordered.

Richards, what the fuck are you doing?

Shit. Let's get him!

-God damn it!
-Shit, we're pitching over!

I got it! I got control!

They said detain him. Don't drop him.

Richards, you're gonna fry for this.

And I'll see you in hell.

Come on, keep digging.



-What's the holdup?
-This one's had it.

Watch the detonator.

Get that garbage out of here. Move!

Hey, Charley,
did you see The Running Man last night?

I never miss it. I even won 500 bucks.

You lucky bastard.

Work crew coming through.
Prisoner transfer to post.

Okay. Hang on.

Lenny, this is the East Perimeter.
Fresh meat just got here.

Shut down the deadline.

Affirmative. Shutting down now.
Stand clear.

Access code pending.

Verified. Perimeter deactivated.

Sonic deadline is down.

-Sonic deadline is down.
-Okay, assholes, move it. Move it.

Let's go. Let's go!

Get out the lead or lose your head.
Come on!

East Perimeter here.
New prisoners are all in compound.

We're clear.

Affirmative. Activating deadline.

What are you looking at? Get out of here.

Sonic deadline is up. Sonic deadline is up.

Prisoner restraint collars armed.
Prisoner restraint collars armed.

Give you a lift?

No, no!

-Get it open.
-I got it. I got it.

-Repeat the code.
-I did. 653...

Shit! It's not working.

-You're a hell of an actor, Laughlin.
-Who was acting?

Well, you're still alive, aren't you?

-Repeat that code.
-Okay.

Weiss, what's the holdup? Come on!

The linking computer's denying the code.

It must be the walls in here
blocking the signal.

-It's not happening.
-Then we try it outside. Move!

Hurry up! Let's go! Come on!

Get out of the way. Move!

Open the gates! Open the gates!

Go ahead! Do it!

Shut off the deadline
or we all lose our heads!

The system's locked.
Must be an encryption lockout.

Damn!

Perimeter deactivated.
Perimeter deactivated.

-All right! All right!
-Sonic deadline is down.

-Prisoner restraint collars disarmed.
-Chico! Amigo!

Chico! Come back! The deadline's still up.

He's not going to make it.
That collar's going to blow.

Sonic deadline is up.

Chico!

Prisoner restraint collars armed.

No, Chico!

Sonic deadline is up. Sonic deadline is up.

Prisoner restraint collars armed.
Prisoner restraint collars armed.

Sonic deadline is up. Sonic deadline is up.

Prisoner restraint collars armed.
Prisoner restraint collars armed.

Perimeter deactivated.

Perimeter deactivated.
Perimeter deactivated.

Perimeter deactivated.

Please observe and obey.

Zone passes are required at all times.

Display passes properly.

All inter-zone workers with day passes are
reminded that curfew begins at midnight.

Anyone without a valid zone card after
midnight will be permanently detained.

Cadre kids, don't forget,
October is bonus recruitment month.

Earn a double bonus
for reporting a family member.

ICS, your entertainment
and information network,

reminds you seeing is believing.

What's the number one television show
in the whole wide world?

-The Running Man!
-Yes!

Yes, it's The Running Man.

Four hundred square blocks of danger,
destruction, demolition, and...

You guys want to buy a hot stereo?

-Stevie.
-Laughlin. Glad you guys made it.

...unstoppable network stalkers
give criminals,

traitors and enemies of the state
exactly what they deserve.

Sundays, 8:00 to 1 1 :00,
on ICS Channel One. Be there!

Produced in cooperation
with the Zone Four Department of Justice.

All rights reserved.

The Running Man,
America's favorite game show.

A child, your child, happy, loving, caring...

Can you believe this shit?
Twenty-four hours a day.

-Seven days a week.
-Don't listen to it.

I worry about the kids.
The network shuts down the schools.

The kids are either in hiding
or getting basic training,

brainwashed by the TV.

We can jam the network
once we find the uplink to the satellite.

Then we'll broadcast the truth.

Truth? Hasn't been very popular lately.

Can't find the code or the uplink.

Don't know where the network
hid something that big, but they managed.

Stevie, would you mind?

Goodbye, my lovely.

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.

-We don't want his death on our hands.
-He's a cop.

-He's the Butcher of Bakersfield.
-Come on, Mic.

You can see through that crap.
It's network propaganda.

We don't know that.

We know we wouldn't be here
if he hadn't helped us.

We also know he's not one of us.

Perhaps now he's seen too much.

I've seen too much?

All I've seen is a bunch of low foreheads

who think they can change the world
with dreams and talk.

It's too late for that.

lf you're not ready to act,
give me a break and shut up.

Nothing worth losing
your head over, though, huh?

You got it.

Hey, get out of here.

Well, there's your ride. It's all set.

Nothing like first class.

Señorita, señorita. You want to come in?

Yeah. Hey, you, too?

I guess this is it.

Now you, Weiss,
stay out of the National Database, okay?

And you, Laughlin, stop trying to teach
the constitution to the street punks.

-See you guys at the 10-year prison reunion.
-You can still join us if you want to.

No, thank you.
My brother's going to get me out of the city.

Plus, I'm not into politics. I'm into survival.

Nowadays, Fritz, it's the same thing.

Laughlin, save it for the written test.
Good luck.

Yeah, for all of us.

We need you, Damon!

Brenda, do you have this week's ratings,
or do I have to guess?

They're the same as last week,
and those were the same all last month.

I guess we've just peaked.
But it's not like we've dropped.

Not likely. You're beautiful, sweetheart.

-Sorry, Mr. Killian!
-Hey, that's all right.

-What's your name?
-Dan.

Dan, you're doing good work.
Looks beautiful. Don't worry.

-Thank you.
-Okay?

Thank you.

Brenda, if that asshole
is mopping the floor tomorrow,

you'll be mopping it
for the rest of the week. Let's go!

Security code accepted.

Edward?

Damon, were you down in wardrobe yet?
They've got your new jackets.

-They're fantastic!
-Who chose the colors?

-Hey, how are my people today?
-Fine, sir. Thank you.

You're looking good. Love that...
Tony! Tony!

-What have you got for me?
-Damon, thank God.

The Justice Department's been calling
every 10 minutes.

Just give them an evasive answer.
Tell them to go fuck themselves.

You got my coffee?

-I want to know what we got, all right?
-All right. Let's see.

Lights.

Oh, God. Kitchen, toast and coffee.

ICS Channel One.

Are you ready for pain?
Are you ready for suffering?

lf the answer is yes,

then you're ready
for Captain Freedom's Workout.

Yes, it's America's own Captain Freedom,

10-time national champion,
the greatest stalker to ever play the game.

All right, now, all you runners,
ready, get set, go!

We interrupt Captain Freedom's Workout
to bring you this urgent news bulletin.

The city police are engaged
in a door-to-door search

for Benjamin A. Richards,
known as the Butcher of Bakersfield.

Richards, a former police officer,
was the helicopter pilot

who went berserk 18 months ago,

firing without warning
on a crowd of innocent civilians.

lf you see this man, do not approach him.
Contact your local block warden.

He is considered armed and dangerous.

Don't make a sound, you understand?

Who are you? A friend of my brother's?

-What are you talking about?
-This is his apartment.

I moved in last month.

They told me the last tenant
was taken away for...

-Yes?
-For re-education.

Help!

El Asesino is in my house!

El Butcher of Bakersfield's in my bathroom!

That's the ticket. No pain, no gain.

Let go of me! Let me go! Let go!

Now, listen to me,
because I'm only going to say this once.

This is all a lie. I was framed.
I'm completely innocent.

-Yeah, sure.
-Now, be quiet and stay still.

I'm out of here in five minutes.

Hi, this is Amber. I'm not home right now.

I'm out somewhere having a wonderful time
with glamorous people in a fabulous place.

So, when you hear the tone, control
your jealousy and leave your message.

"Baby Face" March.

Are you kidding me? Next.

How's this one? Case 114. Schoolteacher.

Killed his wife and his mother-in-law
at a faculty dinner party with a steak knife.

Yeah. See I like that quality.

He's the sort that the neighbors say,
"Such a quiet man,

"but never too busy to say hello."
But look at him.

He weighs 120 pounds.
He wouldn't last 30 seconds.

Who else?

What about those bank robbers?
The ones who made that suicide pact.

-Did they commit suicide?
-Obviously not, Damon.

Then they're unreliable.

I got a friend at a talent agency.

Maybe they've got an ax-murderer
or something.

-Hello, gorgeous.
-Somebody with stamina.

Tony. Tony.

Pipe that feed in here now!
Take a look at this.

This is yesterday's prison break. Hey. Look!

Look at that mother move, huh?
ls he beautiful? Who is he?

Are you kidding? That's Ben Richards.

The cop from the massacre? Sensational.

-Perfect contestant. I want him!
-You can't have him.

Why not?

Damon, you know our contract.
We never get military prisoners.

Who's a military prisoner?
He's still at large.

Yeah? Well, they'll get him for me.

Cadres can't have it both ways.

They want ratings.
I can get 10 points for his biceps alone.

Hello. Yeah, this is Killian.

Get me the Justice Department,
Entertainment Division.

No, hold that.
Operator, get me the President's agent.

What is this?

That's my synthesizer setup. I'm a musician.

Well, I'm really a singer.
I write music for the network.

Have you heard of their theme song,
We Bring You Joy, We Bring You Strife?

Well, I wrote that.

You must be very proud of yourself.

-It's really nothing.
-Look at this.

They're all on the censored list.
And look what we have here.

This looks like black-market clothing.

And you wrote the network jingle.

Come on. Everybody does it.

Money.

That's what I need, money.

That money's
not going to do you any good.

You know,
you won't be able to leave this quad.

-You don't have a travel pass.
-You do.

Now I do.

Let's see.

Now where should we go?
Maybe someplace warm.

I need to work on my tan anyway.

You see, you get so pale in prison.

There you are. Good.

Now, I'm going to untie you,
and then you're going to get dressed,

-and then you're going to come with me.
-Yeah? Well, why should I?

Because I'm going to say please.

Well, why didn't you say so?

All flights to Pretoria, Tutuville
and Mandelaburg are on schedule.

Flights to Anaconda, Chile,
are delayed several hours.

All Mideast flights
are canceled until further notice.

You'll never pull this off, you know.
You are unarmed, outnumbered.

Face it. You're screwed.

So, why don't you just forget
about all this and turn yourself in?

You know, you have a very negative attitude.

Now remember,
I can break your neck like a chicken's.

Travel pass.

What a beautiful day today.

I can practically taste
those piña coladas already.

-Right, sweetheart?
-Miss.

You didn't put it in your purse again,
did you?

Last vacation, she put my credit cards in
there and we couldn't find them for a week.

Here, could you hold on to this please?

You want to move it, up there?
We got a plane to catch.

Go on. Go on.

You can't live with them
and you can't live without them.

I'm warning you, I get sick.
Air sick, car sick.

I'm going to throw up all over you.

Go ahead. It won't show on this shirt.

Help! He's Ben Richards!

He's trying to kidnap me! Help!

Out of my way! Get the hell out of my way!

Positive ID. Benjamin A. Richards.

Priority one fugitive. Repeat.

All units, terminal seven.

All right. We're on him.
Close it in. Close it in.

Go, go, go. Move!

You move and you're dead!

Hi, cutie pie.
You know, one of us is in deep trouble.

-Do you know who I am?
-I've seen you before.

You're the asshole on TV.

That's funny. I was going to say
the same thing about you.

I saw the video of your prison break.
Sensational.

Ben, I think we might be able
to help each other out.

I've got the brains, and you've got talent.

No, you've got more. You've got talent,
you've got charisma and you've got balls.

That's why I pulled a few strings
to get you here.

And that's why I'd like you to volunteer

to appear on tomorrow's broadcast

-of The Running Man.
-Fuck you.

You're a brilliant conversationalist, Ben.
A trifle limited, but brilliant.

Take a look.

How long are they going to keep us here?

Isn't that your old schoolteacher
buddy there, huh?

And there's your other buddy, the one
who helped you in the prison infirmary.

Weiss, Laughlin.

-What are you going to do with them?
-Well, that's really up to you, Ben.

You see, I created The Running Man,
but I don't make the rules.

I've got a contract with the government.

They send me the convicts,
I put them on the show.

Well, you've seen it, right?

And you know at least you've got a chance,
but your buddies, Ben, they're the B-list.

So, if you don't do
The Running Man tomorrow,

Weiss and Laughlin
are going to go on in your place.

What do you say?

We'll see how far this clown runs
when we're done with him.

Starting barium IV.

-That's a go.
-Reading all systems down the line.

Your bird is singing loud and clear.

All systems check out.

Mandibular restraint.

lnterphalangic injection.

Deltoid IM injection.

-Procedure completed.
-Takes care of him.

Sons of bitches.

He's wrapped. Knock him out till show time.

These guys, they never stop competing.

I get thirsty just watching them.

But in my line of work,
I can't afford that filled-up feeling.

That's why I drink Cadre Cola.
It hits the spot.

The capture of renegade police officer
and mass murderer Ben Richards

was filmed yesterday
by runway security cameras.

Richards' hostage, Amber Mendez,
was unharmed.

Some airport personnel were not so lucky,

like the ticket agent and security guard
Richards shot

at point blank range
when he arrived at the airport.

But that's not true.

They were taken to Cadre Memorial Hospital
where they remain in guarded condition.

And now back to Climbing for Dollars.

Mr. Richards.

I'm your court-appointed theatrical agent.

It's time.

And digital effects number one.

Roll process mod.

Okay, you guys. Hey, here we are. Come on.

Move, move. Come on.

Hey, over here. Here!

Big crowd tonight.

Better there than in the streets.

Buzzsaw, touch me! Buzzsaw!

-Who's the number one stalker?
-Buzzsaw.

Slice those runners for me, man.

He touched me! Did you guys see that?
Buzzsaw touched me!

Look at my power.

Don't touch the hair!

Look, do you have any more change?
I ran out.

-Yeah.
-Six dollars. Jesus, this place...

You're lucky to be alive.

I mean that guy just killed, what,
60, 80, 100 people?

-Not according to him, he hasn't.
-Well, that's what they all say.

"...and whereas the victim contests this,

"whereas network and victim
have in past been combatants,

"ad hoc de facto,
the parties herein have agreed to disagree.

"This is now mutually consented
to be de jure,

"and therefore parties have certain
obligations to each other.

"Respective rights and obligations..."

Boy, you're lucky he didn't kill you, too.
Or rape you and kill you.

Or kill you, then rape you.

"Conflicts between your estate
and the network..."

I mean, a guy like that,
what would stop him?

Yeah, what would?

Look, Amy, I have to pass on that drink.

I just remembered
that I have some paperwork to do.

-So, I'll catch you tomorrow, okay?
-And now, here's the producer

of The Running Man,
and everyone's favorite showman,

Damon Killian.

Yeah! Thank you. You're beautiful.

I love you. Yes!

You're beautiful. Thank you.

It's show time!

Yeah, yeah!

All right. Now, tell me,
what's the number one television show

in the whole wide world?

-The Running Man!
-The Running Man!

-And who loves you and who do you love?
-Damon!

-One more time!
-Damon!

Yes!

Phil, my announcer.

I heard the warm-up today,
and I've got to tell you,

honestly, Phil,
I don't think I've ever heard you funnier.

I'm just kidding, guys.
You're great at your job.

Too bad it isn't music!

"Res ipsa loquitur ad infinitum
for cassettes, videotapes, bubble-chips,

"and all other methods of recordings
known or unknown."

Sign here.

Hey.

Here, here, here. Use my back, victim.

Don't forget to send me a copy.

...the love of my life, my number one fan,

-Mrs. McArdle. How are you doing?
-Just fine.

I want a kiss, now, a big kiss.
But remember, no tongues.

-Bless you.
-Sit down, little darling.

We have one hell of a show for you tonight.

Phil, please, if you will,

introduce tonight's guest runner.

And watch that screen.

Our star runner tonight
needs no introduction.

He's Ben Richards,

the brutal slayer of 60 men, women
and children in the Bakersfield massacre.

Food riot in progress.
Approximately 1 ,500 civilians. Moving in.

Yankee-nine-niner, the crowd in unarmed.
Repeat, unarmed.

Abort attack.
Acknowledge, Yankee-nine-niner.

-The hell with you!
-Lieutenant Saunders, take command.

Detain Richards and return to base.

Acknowledge, Yankee-nine-niner.
Acknowledge. Return to base.

Those are innocent, unarmed people
down there! Cease fire! Cease fire!

No.

Well, we all know the aftermath.

Grieving parents, orphaned children,

a nation shocked to its very core.

Here he is,

ready to pay the price
for our home audience,

in person, the Butcher of Bakersfield!

-Look at him!
-Get him!

Get him!

Now, Ben Richards could have gone
to prison to pay his penalty,

but instead, he volunteered
for The Running Man,

-risking everything for a chance...
-Excuse me.

...at our fabulous prizes
like a trial by jury, suspended sentence,

maybe even a full pardon,

like our previous winners,
Whitman, Price and Haddad.

You remember them.
Whitman, Price and Haddad.

There they are and at this very moment,
they're basking under the Maui sun,

their debt to society paid in full.

Speaking of prizes,

you don't have to be a menace
to society to be a winner,

'cause you folks in the audience,
you'll get a chance, too.

Phil, tell our friends
what they can win today.

Damon, how about a year's supply
of Orthopure procreation pills,

both adult and kiddy sizes,

and the latest edition
of The Running Man home game?

Ben, I know you're just dying
to get into that game zone

and show us that same determination
you showed up in Bakersfield.

Well, first I've got a little surprise for you.

We all know you're a big, tough guy, Ben,

but that doesn't mean that you're a loner,

and it takes a big man
to admit that he needs his friends.

We didn't want to break up
a winning team, Ben,

so here they are,
ready to go for broke right by your side.

Ladies and gentlemen, Ben's buddies,

Harold Weiss and William Laughlin!

Son of a bitch.

You know how this works.

The game zone is divided
into 400 square blocks,

left over from the big quake of '97,

and I don't think any of us
will ever forget that.

Once inside the zone,
the runners have three hours.

They've got to go
through all four game quads.

Three hours or less,
and they're going to need every second,

'cause you know who's on their tail?

The stalkers!

-Who?
-The stalkers!

-And you know what happens then.
-Anything goes!

-What?
-Anything goes!

Right! Without further ado,
it's time to start running!

On your marks, get set...

Killian, I'll be back.

Only in a rerun.

Go!

-Go!
-You son of a bitch!

Go! Yes!

-...team in position.
-Lock down terminus impact net.

-All systems go.
-Vacuum sleds passing checkpoint one.

Come on, get up!

Edith Wiggins, come on down!

Yeah!

Edith, you look like you might have done
a little stalking yourself.

All right. Now, we need you
to give me the name of the stalker

that we send out to hunt down
those three desperate criminals.

-Okay.
-Give me 10 seconds please.

Place your bets. Place your bets.

Time's up.

No more bets.

Come on. Back off, back off. Come on.

-I don't know, they're all so good.
-Quickly.

Well, my husband and my little boy,
they have their favorites,

-but I like my men big and cuddly.
-Yeah?

-Who is it?
-Subzero!

All right. Okay.

We're looking for Subzero!

And now, our first stalker of the evening,

a Cadre trophy champion
with over 30 lifetime kills.

Let's welcome the incredible ice-man

who slices his enemies limb from limb
into quivering, bloody sushi,

Professor Subzero!

Move. Move it.

Come on. Let's go!

Damon, here in the locker room
there's a lot of excitement, here,

a lot of adrenaline.

The stalkers know there's 400
square blocks of game zone out there

and anything can happen
in the next three hours.

I remember once when I was in the...

Sorry, Cap, I've just been informed,
the runners have entered the first quad.

Let's go there now, live!

-What are we doing?
-Faster, Laughlin. Faster.

Keep going.

Come on, come on, bring your money.

Come on. Give it to me. Come on.

Fresh blood, first dibs. You pay
your money, you make your choice.

Come on. How about you?

It's cold.

What is this?

Guess they want us to stay.

Subzero does it again. A triple hit!

Let's get out of here. Come on!
Weiss, come on! Go.

Banzai!

Look at this, an ICS home video. Yeah!

And The Running Man
home version, right here.

Come on, get me out of here, you guys!

Hang on, Weiss. I'm coming.

-Come on, big boy!
-Yeah!

Richards?

Will, get me out of here, you guys!

Will, look out!

Kill that son of a bitch!

Come on! Yeah, Yeah!

Hey, Killian!

Here is Subzero,

now, plain zero.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is just horrible.

Words can't express
what we're all feeling at this very moment.

A great champion has fallen.

We'll be back
right after these important messages.

Pull!

-Are you all right?
-Yeah.

-What the hell is that?
-It's gas.

-Let's get out of here. Come on.
-Come on.

-I'm sure glad we took care of Subzero.
-Yeah, he was a real pain in the neck.

I know... I know a stalker died.

Well, it had to happen sooner or later.

Yeah, well it is a contact sport, right?

Yeah, see, but you guys at Justice,
you cannot have it both ways.

You want ratings, you want people in front
of the TV sets instead of picket lines.

Well, you ain't going to get that
with reruns of Gilligan's Island.

Gilligan's Island.

Yeah, yeah, the one with the boat!

Fireball! Fireball!

Yeah, Buzzsaw!

Leon?

I don't know. I think maybe Dynamo,
but Buzzsaw was last year's champion.

I can't decide!

Then don't decide, Leon.

Hard decisions call for hard solutions.

And here are two hard-asses
ready to step in and take charge.

You asked for them, Leon. You got them.

Here they are, Buzzsaw and Dynamo!

Phil, tell us all about
this champion tag team.

Let's give a down-home welcome

to Buzzsaw Eddie Vatowski,
last season's leading stalker.

Buzzsaw's Hammond and Gage chainsaws
are made of Trylon-coated Dura-steel,

and can cut muscle, sinew, bone
or even solid steel!

-Well?
-Ratings just jumped eight points

right across the board.

-Eight?
-Make that nine points.

-I love Ben Richards.
-You want another surprise?

-What?
-Remember the girl

who was with Richards at the airport?

-The one with the cute ass?
-This is cuter.

They just caught her downstairs.
She was pulling the Bakersfield video.

Would you please welcome...

-Sensational.
-...our third stalker of the evening,

Dynamo!

Thank you. You're beautiful.

Well, it's been an exciting show
so far, right?

We've had shocks, we've had surprises,

and we thought,
"Why not one more surprise?"

Will you please help me welcome
our mystery contestant,

Ms. Amber Mendez.

Stop that!

-Let me go!
-Amber.

Amber. Now, I understand
that you're single, Amber,

and that you live on the West Side.

And not surprisingly,

she has flaunted the law
and traditional morality all of her life.

Go ahead, tell some lies about me now.

We don't lie. Phil, tell us all about her.

It's clear. Come on.

Weiss, what is it?

The camera relay,
it's pointing into the zone, not up.

-Who gives a damn?
-Come on.

Hey, where are you going?

Later, she cheated on college exams,

had sexual relationships with two,
sometimes three different men in a year,

and then she met Mad Dog Ben Richards.

Her confederate.

Her lover.

That was a lie.

Dear, dear, dear.
Let's reunite these little lovebirds.

Go!

It's got to be here somewhere.

You want to tell me
what the hell is going on?

All the relays are the same.

They point into the middle
of the game zone.

Now, sooner or later,
they're gonna connect,

which means the uplink
to the network satellite is in there.

No wonder Mic's people couldn't find it.
No one ever comes out here.

lf we can find that uplink,
we can crack the code.

We get it to Mic,
and the underground will jam the network.

-Jam the network?
-That's right.

Jam it up your ass.
Forget this crazy uplink business!

You're gonna get us all killed.
We've got to move on.

-Let's go, move! Move!
-Weiss! Sorry, Ben.

Christ.

Stalkers, we've got a bead,

20 degrees north, mark seven,
12 degrees east, mark two.

-Yes!
-Come on, brothers.

Let's win one for the Zero!

"Uplinks. Underground.
Uplinks. Underground."

lf you guys don't shut up,
I'm going to uplink your ass

and you'll be underground.
Watch out, the lights!

-Let's get out of here.
-Someone's coming.

Hey! Hey! Richards, wait! It's Amber!

What the hell are you doing here?

Well, you don't have
to beat the crap out of me!

-You think I'm glad to be here?
-Who the hell is this?

She's the one that turned me in
at the airport. Guess this is her reward.

Yeah, go ahead. Make jokes.

It's your fault I'm here.

The police think I'm helping you out.
They even think I'm your girlfriend.

Well, I can straighten that out.

See this camera up there?
I can strangle you for the home audience.

-Another relay.
-Where?

-They're out here.
-Weiss!

-What's he talking about?
-Come on.

Let's go.

Weiss! Over here! Over here!

Richards, cuidado!

You son of a bitch!

Richards, help! Where are we going?

Laughlin!

-In here?
-Yeah, let's go.

Give me your money. Okay.

Hey, man, what are you doing? Hey!

The resistance has been trying
to jam the network for five years,

and this could be our chance.

-Let's go.
-No.

This is more important.

-It's the uplink to the network satellite.
-But he's going to find us.

Weiss, come on. Weiss.

Over there.

Who loves you and who do you love?

Let me hear it.

You've got it.

Who loves you and who do you love?

Let me hear it.

One more time.

Laughlin!

Hang on, I've got you.

Run. Get out of there. Get out of there!

Laughlin, get up.

Go, go, go.

-Here you go, Leon.
-Wow, yeah.

The Running Man home game.

It's okay. It's okay, man.

-Don't worry, don't worry.
-Don't worry.

-You make more money.
-You make more money.

Let's get out of here, Weiss.
He's gonna find us.

-Jackpot.
-What are you doing? Weiss?

What are you doing?

-What's this, Weiss?
-It's the uplink interface. Look out.

Great, hexagonal decode system.

Not impossible,
it's just gonna take a little time.

-Your name is Amber, right?
-Yeah.

Okay, Amber, I'm going to need you
to remember these numbers.

We've got to get them to Mic,
and the resistance.

All right, all right, I will. But then, let's go.

Richards! I love this saw.

This saw's part of me.

And I'm gonna make it part of you!

That's all right.

Keep it.

God.

1 8-24.

Come on.

-18-24.
-61-B.

Say them.

-Say them.
-18-24-61-B.

-Can we go now?
-Not yet.

-Not yet? What do you mean, not yet?
-17-17.

-4.
-17-7-4.

-17-17-4.
-Why...

-Come to me, my love.
-Oh, my God.

No!

Let me go! Richards!

Hey, light-head!

-Hey, Christmas tree!
-Richards.

Shit!

All right, all right.

Follow me, light bulb.

Got you!

Come on!

All right, all right.

Oh, God. I'm stuck.

Somebody help me!

God. Cut, go to commercial. Jesus Christ!

I have no power! Cut! Go to commercial!

Kill him!

No. I won't kill a helpless human being,

not even sadistic scum like you.

Oh, my God.

Come on.

Do it.

-What happened to Buzzsaw?
-He had to split.

Hey, what an incredible battle!

Buzzsaw gone, Dynamo down,

but the stalk isn't over till the fat lady sings,

and the very last criminal...

Fireball, report to wardrobe at once.
Fireball, you are wanted in wardrobe.

...and our halftime show.

Laughlin, break's over.

Come on, let's get going. Come on.

I'm going somewhere, but not with you.

Buzzsaw took care
of my traveling arrangements.

Oh, my God.

-Weiss?
-He's dead.

But he gave me the code,
the satellite uplink code.

The underground has a broadcast center
in quadrant four.

Take her. Take her and the code to Mic.

Don't let us die for nothing.

Listen, we're counting on you.
Don't let us down.

I don't want to be the only asshole
in heaven, Ben.

He saved my life.

It should be me down there.

We got them? Hey, Ben.

Ben, I got to hand it to you, pal.

You got the whole network here
in an uproar.

Why, they're shipping bicarb
to the Justice Department in crates.

So that's why this little call
is just between you and I.

It's not going out on the air.

Listen very carefully, Ben.

How would you like
a three-year contract, guaranteed,

a Cadre credit line,
and a beachfront condo?

Sound impossible?

Ben, that's the standard deal
for a network stalker.

And I know real talent when I see it, Ben.

And I'd just hate to see you
get canceled tonight

when you could go the distance.

Say the word, Ben, and you could be
the one doing the stalking.

What do you think?

You cold-blooded bastard!
I'll tell you what I think of it!

I'll live to see you eat that contract.

But I hope you leave enough room
for my fist,

because I'm going to ram it
into your stomach

and break your goddamn spine!

Damon, it's for you.

-Who?
-It's the Attorney General.

Get out. Everybody out. Come on. Move.

Yes?

Fireball! Fireball! Fireball! Fireball!

Fireball!

Come on, Fireball!

Let's go!

Yeah! He's my hero. He's my hero.

And there he goes. Fireball's on his way.
And Dynamo's down, but not out.

-Back to you, Damon.
-Hey! All right, Agnes.

Listen now, big chance for you.
Win a whole lot of prizes.

You know we've still got
two crack stalkers out there, right?

Dynamo and Fireball.
Who do you think will make the next kill?

Oh, boy, that's a tough one.

Come on, give it a try. You can do it.

-Who do you think?
-Okay.

I think the next kill will be made by

Ben Richards.

-You can't do that.
-Hold it, hold it.

Agnes, Richards is a runner.
You've got to pick a stalker.

I can pick anyone I choose,

and I choose

-Ben Richards.
-Richards?

That boy's one mean motherfucker.

$200 on Richards.
Come on, 200 on Richards.

$200 on Richards. Come on, you got it.

-Let's do it?
-Yeah, just do it, just do it.

Okay, okay.

-Okay, man, you want it, you got it.
-Yeah, yeah.

All right, Richards!

Place your bets. Place your bets.
Two-five, two-five.

Secret broadcast center, my ass.

I don't know
what Laughlin was talking about.

There's nothing out here.

Me and my big mouth.
We should have taken the trip to Hawaii.

I had the shirt for it, but you fucked it up.

-Jesus Christ.
-Guess again.

-Come on, keep up.
-I'm running too fast. My feet can't keep up.

There we go. The number one rusher.

He smells blood,
and nothing on Earth is gonna stop him.

This way.

Why here? No, I want to go that way.

-I think that... Let go.
-Let's go.

You're gonna get us killed.

Stop it!

Richards! Let me go!

Burn them. Good.

Amber, get out of here.

Go!

Move!

Amber?

Richards?

Whitman.

Price.

Haddad.

They're Running Men.

Last season's winners.

No, last season's losers.

My gas line! My gas line!

How about a light?

What a hothead.

-Yeah, Richards!
-Get him, Richards.

Captain Freedom to wardrobe.

Captain Freedom to wardrobe,
on the double.

Forget it, Killian! I won't do it.

It's not a request, moron. It's an order.

I don't need this crap!

This stuff is garbage!

I was killing guys like this 10 years ago
with my bare hands!

I'm not going for any of these tricks!
This is a sport of death and honor!

Code of the gladiators!

Cap, will you spare me
the combat Zen speech?

What the hell's the matter with you?
Can't you see what's going on out there?

This isn't a game!
They're betting on Richards up there!

-Bullshit!
-Get out of here.

Get him out of here!

What's the matter, steroids make you deaf?

Get him out of here, now!

Now what?

Now let's find Mic's secret broadcast center,

if it even exists.

Shit!

Let's try that way.

We're trapped.

Subzero, Fireball

and Buzzsaw.

Say their names with reverent pride.

They punished crime and served the law.

As patriots, they died.

This is what I hate. Third-act problems.

Roll stock.

Freeze in digital memory.

-And...
-Activate traveling matte.

Tony, this better work, pal,
or you'll be a digital memory.

Take it easy, Damon.

We're loading Richards' image
onto the database,

and when he's mapped
onto the stunt double,

you'll never know the difference.

All right, boys. Let's see you dance.

Sensational. I love it!

Mr. Richards, I'm surprised
you were so easily caught.

Welcome to the people's network.
We've been waiting for you.

This is nice, Mic.

But it would have been nicer
if you would have gotten off your asses

-and helped us out there.
-We couldn't.

We'd have been seen, and the government
would have found this place.

Laughlin, Weiss,
would have died for nothing.

They didn't.

I have the uplink code.

Ladies and gentleman,

I've just got an update
on tonight's incredible action.

The runners have entered the final quad.

And Captain Freedom
has hung up his announcer's mike

and come out of retirement.

He's suited up
and ready for the final conflict.

Let's go now, live to the game zone.

Yes, it's all over! What a colossal fight!
This is an incredible moment in sports.

Captain Freedom out of retirement
and still undefeated champion.

Proving once again that right and might
are one and the same.

Damn that Killian!

What's wrong? You should be happy.
We're officially dead.

-We can go anywhere, do anything.
-No, don't you understand it?

He'll never let us out of here alive.
They can't afford it.

They'll get the police, the army,
and hunt us down like dogs,

off-camera, of course.

Okay. Dismantle all the overlays.

Put the digital matte
in the pixel memory storage.

You know, the damn thing
worked like a charm.

It should. Editel charged us
an arm and a leg for the software.

Damon, you didn't have to kill him.

It's all a part of life's rich pattern, Brenda,
and you better fucking get used to it.

That's the one for the awards show, huh?
Thank you. You're doing nice work.

I thank you.

Tony, you're finally getting it.

Guns. You don't need guns
to jam a satellite.

I do, to keep it.

The minute I steal the signal,

the network will try to shunt
the next one in orbit.

Stevie's group is going inside
to stop them now.

These kids?

That's a bad move, Mic.

They need a leader.
They need someone with experience.

I thought you were looking for the door.

I told Killian I'd be back.

I wouldn't want to be a liar.

Listen up, everybody.

I want you to all to consider yourselves
picked up for the rest of the season, okay?

What are you, my people or an oil painting?
We're up nine points!

Come on, now. Let's go, champ.

We're going to send the uplink code
in 20 minutes.

Ten seconds later, I'll go on the air.

-We'll be ready.
-lf you want to make an impression,

forget the speech. Try this instead.

What is it?

It's the original video
from the Bakersfield massacre,

before they edited for broadcasting.

Where did you hide that?

It's none of your business.

Hey, what the hell?

-Six minutes.
-Begin satellite coding sequence.

Load uplink code into transponder grid.

Shunt power to main circuits.
Mr. Spock, you have the com.

Who's Mr. Spock?

Come on, let me hear it now.

Yeah.

Welcome to the post-game wrap-up show.

Ladies, I love you.

Thank you, young man.

-Hello. You're on the air.
-Hi, Damon. My name is Wendy.

Listen, I have a question about Dynamo.
ls he seriously hurt or what?

He's gonna be fine, love. Fortunately, see...

-Good luck.
-...Dynamo is still under factory warranty.

You, too.

You're on the air.

Damon, I feel so bad
about the dead stalkers.

ls there any way I can make a donation
to help out their families?

What a darling you are. Yes, my doll.

All you do, you send your checks
to the patriots fund, care of this station.

Three, two, one, that's it.

We got it! We got that baby!

Those contributions are tax deductible.

And who loves you and who do you love?

Damon!

Yes. Yes. Yes.

Hey, what's going on?

We don't lie.

...like our previous winners,
Whitman, Price and Haddad.

You remember them.
There they are and at this very moment

basking under the Maui sun,

their debt to society paid in full.

Watch that screen.

Yankee-nine-niner,
what's the status of the crowd?

Food riot in progress.
Approximately 1,500 civilians.

No weapons are evident.

Proceed with Plan Alpha.
Eliminate anything moving.

I said the crowd is unarmed.

There are lots of women
and children down there.

All they want is some food, for God's sake!

As you were, Richards.
Proceed with Plan Alpha.

-All rioters must be eliminated.
-The hell with you.

-I will not fire at helpless human beings.
-You have your orders...

-Where's it coming from?
-The network satellite.

Abort mission. Return to base.

Don't touch that dial.

Detain Richards and proceed as ordered.

Richards, what the fuck are you doing?

Ladies and gentlemen!

Ladies and gentlemen,
if you'll please bear with us,

-we're experiencing technical difficulties.
-Bullshit!

It's show time.

Get the people out.
Come on, get the people out.

Thought it was pretty funny
out there in the zone?

What's the matter now, bitch?
Why aren't you laughing?

Because there's nothing funny

about a dickless moron
with a battery up his ass.

Out, out.

I'll show you dickless.

-Get out of my way!
-Get down! Down!

Let's go!

Hello, cutie pie.

One of us is in deep trouble.

Sven, do you wanna talk to Mr. Richards?

Well?

I got to score some steroids.

You look pissed, Ben.

Believe me, you got every right to be.

But, hey, will you just let me explain?

This is television, that's all it is.

It's nothing to do with people.
It's to do with the ratings.

For 50 years, we've told them what to eat,
what to drink, what to wear.

For Christ's sake,
Ben, don't you understand?

Americans love television.
They wean their kids on it.

Listen, they love game shows,
they love wrestling,

they love sports and violence.

So what do we do?

We give them what they want.

We're number one, Ben.
That's all that counts.

Believe me,
I've been in the business 30 years.

Well, I haven't been in show business
as long as you have, Killian,

but I'm a quick learner.

So, I'm going to give the audience
what I think they want.

Wait.

You bastard. Drop dead!

I don't do requests.

No!

Well, that hit the spot.

Yeah! All right, yeah!

Take him out!

Richards! Richards! Richards!
Richards! Richards! Richards!

The Running Man
has been brought to you by

Breakaway paramilitary uniforms,
Orthopure procreation pills

and Cadre Cola. It hits the spot!

Promotional considerations
paid for by Kelton flamethrowers,

Wainwright electrical launchers,
and Hammond and Gage chainsaws.

Damon Killian's wardrobe by Chez Antoine,

19th-century craftsmanship
for the 21st-century man.

Cadre trooper and studio guard sidearms

provided by Colchester,
the pistol of patriots.

Remember, tickets for the ICS studio tour
are always available

for Class A citizens in good standing.

lf you'd like to be a contestant
on The Running Man,

send a self-addressed, stamped envelope
to "ICS Talent Hunt,"

care of your local affiliate,

and then go out
and do something really despicable.

I'm Phil Hilton. Good night, and take care.