Bullet Points: Running Scared (1980)

It was never my intention to review as many Ken Wahl action movies as I have over the years. After my review of 1986’s The Gladiator, I believed I had covered all the Ken Wahl action movies that existed… but then Matt Spector gave me the heads up on 1980’s Running Scared…

• Panama: The year is 1961, Chas McClain (Ken Wahl, The Taking of Beverly Hills) and Leroy Beecher (Judge Reinhold, Beverly Hills Cop) have finished up their two-year stint in Panama for the U.S. Army and are heading home to Florida. The two hitch a ride on a C-47 after “bribing” the pilot with Elvis’ complete discography. On the flight back, Leroy opens up his footlocker and it is filled with everything he could grab from the base from firearms to a camera used for military reconnaissance.. .and it is that camera that is about to cause the two men a whole lot of trouble.
• The Cold War: When the C-47 that transported Chas and Leroy back to Florida, is cleaned out. A negative is found (Leroy was screwing around with the camera and took a picture of a sleeping Chas and carelessly discarded the negative). The negative is brought to the attention of Arthur Jaeger (Bradford Dillman, Escape from the Planet of the Apes) of the CIA. After the negative is developed, Jaeger jumps to the conclusion that Chas was a spy working for the Russians. Jaeger calls in Captain Munoz (John Saxon, Enter the Dragon), to assemble a team of his fellow anti-Castro Cubans to track down the “traitors”!

• The Sunshine State: It is one wild ride after another for Chas and Leroy once they hit the road in Florida, first from a lead footed high schooler, then a couple of young ladies that the guys meet at a BBQ joint and eventually a couple of guys in a moving truck… that turn out to be part of Captain Munoz’s team, something Chas and Leroy figure out when they are locked in the back of the truck. After escaping the truck, the guys are in the middle of nowhere in the dark of night and soon realize they have stumbled upon a U.S. Naval Firing Range. With explosions all around them, Chas and Leroy are separated and when the light of day comes, Chas finds himself with a new running “buddy”…

• Long Tall Sally: Chas ends up hitching a ride with Sally Mae Giddens… a strong willed woman, who probably realized she was right in not wanting anything to do with Chas upon first sight, after she finds herself thrown into the fire. The two are pursued by Munoz and his men, who try to run them off the road and shoot up Sally’s car. They manage to evade their pursuers and reunite with Leroy at his family’s home. And it is the Beecher home that becomes the site of huge shoot out between our running scared soldiers and Munoz and his small army. The bullets are flying, Pa Beecher’s moonshine still blows up and Chas, Leroy and Sally Mae end up escaping via airboat! Munoz and his guys get some airboats and we get some high speed Everglades action! Leroy ends up caught and interrogated by the CIA, while Chas and Sally Mae end up at her family’s palatial estate.
• Dynamite Finale: After getting the crap beat out of him, Leroy manages to escape Jaeger’s clutches and he heads back to his parents’ place where he steals his dad’s car and a bunch of dynamite that was in the garage… But the CIA strike back, when Jaeger’s right hand man, Williams, snatches up Sally Mae at her parents place and take her away via boat… All roads lead to Jaeger’s base of operations, with Chas looking to save Sally Mae and Leroy (and his dynamite) looking for revenge!

I wonder if it was Ken Wahl’s intention of being in as many under the radar action movies as possible. If so mission accomplished. Running Scared felt even more obscure than the likes of Omega Syndrome, The Soldier and Treasure of the Yankee Zephyr. But like those films, Running Scared managed to feature some quality action and Wahl showing off his action hero skills. Having the plot of the movie being tied into the real life events of the 1960s and The Cold War was a nice touch and I wonder if people discovering it on Tubi are Googling “Was Running Scared based on a true story?” as a result.

No need to Google “Will there be Bonus Bullet Points?”…

• Bastard Count: There were a total of three “bastards” said during the course of the movie. Thanks Bradford Dillman.
• AKA: 1980’s Running Scared is also known as Back in the U.S.A. and Desperate Men.
• If You Ever: …wanted to see Judge Reinhold learn how to do The Twist, then 1980’s Running Scared is the movie for you.
• Familiar Face: Pat Hingle (The Gauntlet and Maximum Overdrive) played Chas McClain’s disapproving father.
• The Name Game: Not to be confused with 1972’s Running Scared starring Robert Powell and Gayle Hunnicutt, 1986’s Running Scared starring Gregory Hines and Billy Crystal or 2006’s Running Scared starring Paul Walker.