Maaaaan, I hope this is kickass in that CRISSCROSS, BORN TO KILL, CROSSFIRE, MURDER MY SWEET sorta way... Keep your fingers crossed guys and gals... Let's pray for THE BRUCE!!!!
Picture this, a feature length, black and white, crime drama shot in real time, staring America's favorite bad ass, Bruce Campbell. For those who aren't in the know, this isn't a fan boy's wet dream, it's a celluloid reality. The film is called Running Time, and it was forewalled (This is when the filmmaker buys daily showings himself), at the Santa Monica Lemle about a year and a half ago. All I have to say is, the fact that this film hasen't found a distributer is truly a crime. There hasen't been a decent real time feature since Hitchcock's The Rope, and ever since, we've been getting pretentous crap like Nick of Time. Running Time has the pontetial to break new grounds if given a chance, that's why the world must know how great this film is.
Good ol Bruce plays Carl, a thief who upon getting released from prision embarks on the heist of a life time with his best friend, and three other accomplises. The group runs afoul of many problems and obsticles on the way to their destination. I don't want to give too much away because there are tons of twists and turns that absolutely can't be spoiled. Whats so great about this film is that the camera follows Bruce from beginning to climax, as if it were a documentery with no cuts, (There are only11 cuts in the entire film, all of which are hidden) and the entire cast goes through the motions like consumate pros. Director Josh (Lunatics: A Love Story) Becker should be lauded for this effort, (which was not accepted into Sundance.....Bastards!) because it truly is a technical marvel that tells a brilliant story.
For those of you who think that Bruce's talents are limited to comedy and Horror, think again. This film showcases his maturity as an actor, just as a A Simple Plan proved that Sam Raimi matured as a director. I may go as far to say that this is the best performance of Bruce's entire career. Trust me, It's that good. At this point the only way you can see this film is to by a copy off of Josh Becker's web sight, (beckerfilms.com) hopfully this will change.
There is only one distributer that has the balls to aquire a film like this; I'm of course talking about Artisan Entertainment. After aquireing offbeat films such as Pi and The Blair Witch Project, Running Time , I garuntee, is a step in the right direction. To Artisan aquisitions execs, I chllenge you to make yet another bold move and pick up Running Time, because audiences around the world deserve to see it.
Fat Ebert
