1988 · drama · family · fugitive
Running on Empty
Directed by Sidney Lumet1h 56m1988
The Popes are a family who haven't been able to use their real identity for years. In the late sixties, the parents set a weapons lab afire in an effort to hinder the government's Vietnam war campaign. Ever since then, the Popes have been on the run with the authorities never far behind. Their survival is threatened when their eldest son falls in love with a girl, and announces his wish to live his life on his own terms.
Our read: Running on Empty (1988) reads as a sombre, kinetic, grounded drama · family · fugitive entry — measured in intensity, mid-stakes in scope, measured in temperature, ambivalent in outlook.
Sombre, kinetic, measured drama / family, grounded in texture. Ambivalent, mid-stakes, measured.
- sombre
- brisk
- intense
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Availability in the UK · via JustWatch
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How Running on Empty feels to watch.
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“You want a Sidney Lumet family drama about identity versus loyalty.”
Skip it tonight — You need propulsive plot instead of quiet moral ache and piano scenes.
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