I really don't get the hype.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

The movie is surprisingly subdued in its pacing, its characterizations, and its go-for-broke sensibilities.

I STILL may think Nicholas Cage's career is over based on many recent movies... But I dare say- this was possibly I think - he's best performance ever.I didn't even know it was Cage.The story is terrific.The line his father gives is HILARIOUS - 'Ya know what I say- F em - F the press - F the admin - and hell- F the people'...I spent EASILY 25 minutes in my kitchen mastering that line.This movie has meritThe acting ? I really really REALLY enjoy - it's EASY to find Cage's wife cold - made me think of House of Cards- CAREER brokered marriage and then - the phony guilt.Cage's wife in this movie helps me realize- THROW GENDER OUT THE WINDOW - people SIMPLY CHASE POWER - HUMAN BEINGS CHASE POWER - doesn't matter - male- female - POLARITY - ANYTHINGHUMAN BEINGS CHASE POWERThat said I have to finish watching this one... Only 1/3 of the way through.FINALLY- REDEMPTION to witness Cage DOING SOMETHING MEANINGFUL and BEYOND himself - I still think his career is over- BUT JUST MAYBE - he'll find a rare opportunity to really shine as an actor as in this movie.NO IDEA WHY or HOW it's below 5 on ratings.I give it a 10.MatchStick Men ? CLOSE for CageI don't - nor ever will know Nicholas Cage- we're all JUST people end of day- but - I REALLY like his work here - and in a FEW productions he's had opportunity to connect with in the past.I forget WHO it was - actor - that said- the ONLY GOAL is - to TELL THAT STORY.Cage does that here.Guy who plays his father is TOPS.

I think this film has been underrated. Everyday we make compromises just to get through the day. Nicolas Cage shows us a man who has ideals and is striving to live up to those ideals, helping the fishing industry of Louisiana. He refuses to compromise with the oil industry. He resigns because his position has been compromised because of marriage infidelity. He finds happiness with his political consultant as he and his wife begin to divorce, but his consultant decides to work on her own marriage and he has to compromise again and go back to his wife who has become his second choice. We see him struggling and hurting showing the emotions of grief, loss and struggling to keep his dream alive.In the end he makes the big compromise and runs for the Senate with the oil company backing him and he struggles to give the speech in which he says life is about compromise.I really liked it. If you want a movie about heroes watch Avengers or Iron Man. If you want a reminder of how good people strive to be heroic for others and do the best they can in a broken world watch The Runner.

I don't know what's wrong with film critics these days, but it's another good movie a lot of them decided to kill... It may be a low budget one, but Nic Cage shines (as basically always... because he is an outstanding actor, whether someone likes it or not) and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. The plot is decent, all actors did a good job and you can immediately relate to the main characters. Also, it's a pretty precise sketch of not only how how the politics work, but also how a lot of relationships work... in case somebody didn't know. Definitely time well spent and a must watch if you're tired of the Hunger Games and the kind...

Fully engulfing itself to mimic real situations, a congressmen attempting to save the fishermen of Louisiana who just suffered a crisis from an oil spill attempts to use this to run for senate, but a scandal ruins his chances, but he still has a cause to finish while fighting his personal demons.It's a great political drama, but I feel it suffers by exploiting real life events trying to pull on our heart strings for sentimental value. If the fishermen where army troops, it would be an exploitation film rather than a political drama. It also suffers form a lot of down time where nothing is really happening and moving too slowly for nothing to be going on.The movie is a tangled weave about how good deeds by positive people can be over shadowed by a media scandal that exploit their negative vices.It's an interesting look on how politics work and the necessaries of certain evils and how that works.The Runner is a different point of view on a familiar story. It's a bit grim when you soak it all in, but once again the slow pace and the stretching out of a story that could have been told in less than 90mins made it dull and incoherent at times weakening all the good qualities.It's too bad, cause Cage could have used a good movie were he's putting to use the acting chops that won him an Oscar.Cage plays a man struggling with personal demons, some his own vices. Some vices pass down from his father, played by Peter Fonda who becomes the center of attention the moment he comes on screen.Overall, it's not a bad picture, but it could have been better.