IMDb plot summary: The eldest son of a fugitive family comes of age and wants to live a life of his own.
Directed by Sidney Lumet. Starring Christine Lahti, River Phoenix, Judd Hirsch, and Martha Plimpton.
Running On Empty focuses on a family who have been on the run for 15 years after the parents blew up a napalm manufacturing facility as part of a political effort to stop the Vietnam War. They then spend the next decade and a half, constantly moving and changing their names whenever they worry authorities might be getting too close. The story picks up when their oldest child, now 17 and played by River Phoenix, finds himself struggling with the idea that if he wants to pursue his own life as an adult, he'll most likely never see his family again. Director Sidney Lumet does such a great job of showing how close-knit this family has necessarily become, and even when they are angry with each other they're also determined to fiercely protect each other. Their oldest pokes around at possible college options but genuinely worries that him leaving would destroy his parents, and he doesn't want to be responsible for that. Phoenix does a great job of portraying that dilemma -- in fact, he's pretty great in this whole story overall. I'm not entirely convinced that the film earns its ending, but it is a satisfying one, and it's a new and unique take on both fugitive stories and coming-of-age dramas. Well worth a watch.
How it entered my Flickchart:
Running on Empty > To Be or Not to Be
Running on Empty > Hoop Dreams
Running on Empty < Leap of Faith
Running on Empty > The Martian
Running on Empty < Safety Last!
Running on Empty < Queen of Katwe
Running on Empty < Sorry to Bother You
Running on Empty < Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
Running on Empty > Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie
Running on Empty > Coherence
Running on Empty > Lolita (1962)
Running on Empty < Diabolique
Final spot: #609 out of 3310, or 82%.
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