The Runner (I) (2022) User Reviews

Interesting

[BandSAboutMovies · 6/10 · 16 January 2022]

I've never heard of the band Boy Harsher - the darkwave/new industrial duo of vocalist/lyricist Jae Matthews and producer Augustus Muller - but their music is the inspiration for this 40-minute film, which goes along with their new concept album, The Runner.

Written, directed and produced by the band, it has performances by King Woman's Kris Esfandiari, FlucT's Sigrid Lauren, and Lucy's Cooper Handy. It's the story of a woman (Esfandiari) traveling to a secluded town where her violent compulsions are slowly revealed. At the same time, Boy Harsher performs on a public access channel and their music provides a sinister undertone to the woman's descent deeper into darkness.

This short film definitely has style to spare and a look that recalls 80s direct to video erotic thrillers mixed with no small amount of blood. It also has somewhat of a making-of mixed in, which is pretty intriguing. It definitely did its job, making me research the band and take notice of them.

A nice 80s inspired short which is good in everything except the plot

[divuar · 6/10 · 27 January 2022]

I discovered the movie via the band Boy Harsher, which I've been following for a couple of years. I was intrigued by the soundtrack album they release the same day the released the movie I guess. Musically, it's their pinnacle for me, it's so good in all aspects.

The movie serves more as visual arabesques to the music, and, on my opinion, isn't really a standalone thing.

I enjoyed the first part, but then the movie ended without any kind of resolving. In all other aspects except this, the film is nice. It captures Cronnenberg-ish atmosphere and is great at creating a proper 80s horror B-Movie. If you are a fan of a band like I am you can watch it, otherwise, I'd better recommend to rewatch some classics which obviously inspired this film (like, say, Videodrome).

Experimental short film.

[forthemovies · 5/10 · 21 January 2022]

A woman ( Kris Esfandiari) wanders into a small town killing whoever she meets.

The Runner is an interesting film that had an artistic tone/mood throughout the scenes. The film did not have a dialogue between characters, their performances were told through facial expressions and body motions (miming). The visual aesthetics for the film was vintage with a classic slasher 80s vibe but more artistic driven.

The lead singer of the band Boy Harsher (Jae Matthews) describes the main character of the short story as a character she relates to. A fictional persona that represents the lead singer's character in real life.

Overall an average indie horror film that was a visual and audio work of art.

music videos

[softpunk · 6/10 · 17 July 2022]

This would've been really really good if it was just the music videos/tv broadcast. That was actually pretty awesome. Everything else is unfortunately produced like a low tier student film & really goes nowhere. Also shudder is lame...

Not a movie. Not horror.

[trustyourforce · 1/10 · 12 July 2022]

Apparently Shudder has gotten looser with its definition of horror movie.

It's basically a long music video that cuts to documentary/behind the scenes with some band no one has ever heard of.

The last 5 minutes are some awkward white kid singing and dancing in front of the camera.

Unintelligible music video

[gregtheproduct-58321 · 3/10 · 1 February 2022]

Nobody cares about your band or your awful haircuts. Please. Don't make any more movies. What is wrong with shudder will they allow anything? It's a paying sub.

I'd say just listen to the album

[clacosse-00105 · 5/10 · 21 March 2022]

I've been a fan of Boy Harsher for a while now; don't know how many times I've listened to the Lesser Man album but it's alot. So I was pretty intrigued about this movie and I listened to the soundtrack before watching this and loved it so I had somewhat higher expectations for this. At first I was expecting something more of a visual album and thought that'd be cool but, nah. It's a lil incoherent, which isn't really the problem here. It's not very visually striking also which makes me sad. The meta bits of it being a movie within a movie interviewing the band really ruins it. The cast looks great and fitting, except for the teenager. Luckily Autonomy was my favorite song so I give ol' Handy a pass. I'd say only worth a watch if you're a fan but even then you could skip it. Definitely checkout the album though and their other albums. They're an amazing band, just not great filmmakers.

A creative look into evil

[ambersmithmua · 10/10 · 17 January 2022]

For some, this will be seen as a visually and musically pleasing short horror film. For Boy Harsher fans, I think it takes a deeper dive into the minds of Gus and Jae, who are known to pour a lot of emotion and personal experience into their art. I hope this is the first in a series of Boy Harsher films.

Love Boy Harsher, but the movie was not a horror movie, or even a movie.

[devinmperry-74472 · 2/10 · 26 October 2023]

Found out about this movie through Boy Harsher, thought I was getting myself into a horror movie since it was on shudder. (Even a cheesy horror movie would have been fine, which is what's usually on shudder, and I love them). It wasn't though, it was just a shameless plug the entire time for BOAN and Boy Harsher...

The plot, and their idea of "scary" was the most vanilla idea, and as others have said here, the execution was absolutely abysmal. To say this was produced by freshmen college theater students would be an insult to those freshman students.

Bottom line - if you like the music, listen to the album, and BOAN's albums. If you don't mind quite a bit of cringe, then watch the movie.

2/10 since I like the music, and have liked that genre of music for years, but if the music wasn't in there, the movie would get a solid 1/10.

Unique and immersive!

[becky-92346 · 8/10 · 18 October 2023]

The Runner (2022) follows a strange, bloodied woman when she travels to a secluded, rural town. This short film is a hidden gem! It showcases some brilliant music, alongside experimental cinematography and unique acting. I've never seen anything like it!

The film has a very grainy look to it reminiscent of older 70s/80s horror films, with some very impressive cinematography. The camerawork is chaotic with ominous colour palettes and an effective use of lighting. The scenery is also rather beautiful, especially in the final act of the film.

One of the most impressive elements of this short film is the music and sound design. The sound is unnerving and atmospheric, and the soundtrack is absolutely flawless. I adore how the music is implemented into this film; it sets an extremely surreal vibe that I found incredibly immersive.

The acting is very unusual, which I loved, and all the actors gave original and distinct performances. The lead actress is outstanding in her role and I found her to be captivating to watch, I was left wanting to know more about her! Also, the lack of dialogue really adds to the eerie atmosphere.

Lastly, the film's opening is gripping, and it only continues to get even more immersive as the movie progresses. It's extremely unique and unlike any other film I've seen. The pacing is steady, and it uses its runtime very well.

Well done music video/horror film mashup.

[digitalparadise-2 · 8/10 · 10 July 2022]

Been a fan of Boy Harsher for a while and didn't know anything about this film when I hit play. I wish more bands were this artistic and experimental in cinematic ways.

Devour

[danko-o · 9/10 · 9 August 2022]

As an initial disclaimer, I am a Boy Harsher fan, eagerly awaiting their next concert, so that may have influenced my experience of the movie. That being said, the music has the power to make or break a movie. In this case, music creates it.

Is this movie an interview accompanied by a video? Or is it a story that takes you behind the scene. In my interpretation it's both, with Boy Harsher's music manifesting itself as a monster, being let loose and observed what it does next. Besides the music, the visuals struck another cord with me. Who knew that a trailer in a corn field vista, enjoying a soft neon glow could look so good?

As for acting, there was a minor moment that took me out, but besides that, characters exchanged a lot, without saying a word. A whole story unfolds when the screen fills with long stares, full of sexual tension, making you wonder: would I rather consume, or be consumed?

Very cool!

[pjpotamus11 · 10/10 · 30 January 2022]

The look and feel of this short story film was Amazing! Very well done! And the music, obviously, was great. It is just nice to see creative minds switching it up and trying something new and different. And this completely worked IMO- Loved it.