RUN (REVIEW)

Dir. Aneesh Chaganty

Reviewer. Martyn Wakefield

Starring Sarah Paulson (AMERICAN HORROR STORY, GLASS), RUN sees a mother who cares for her ill daughter. Unforeseen to Chloe (Kiera Allen), her doting mother may not be so selfless after all. OK, it's pretty obvious from the off where RUN is going and this is more a case of watching a cat-and-mouse tale of a mother/daughter fighting for survival.

Paulson is as mysterious as ever, taking on a much more sinister role than many will associate her with and Allen gives a great performance as the wheelchair bound victim who find whichever means necessary to uncover the truth while also being limited ot her upper body strength and numerous other debilitating conditions.

Considering the nature of the film, it pulls no punches in the lengths it's central character will go to keep her daughter in her arms and the condition, Munchausen Syndrome By Proxy, is perhaps overworked a little for cinematic effect but is no less terrifying for the mental state of all involved. The intention may not be in malice but is no less a terrible condition to be involved with. Rest assured the film tilts firmly into something more familiar to horror fans as the cat-and-mouse chase intensifies but in doing so becomes much more akin to MISERY than THE ACT. Fortunately there is more to this than it may lead you to believe and it's worth investing some time for the pay off.

While the unfolding events are inevitable, RUN is no less tense thanks to Torin Borrowdale's pulsing soundtrack. Being no stranger to horror (LOCKE & KEY, THE MIDNIGHT MAN and THE TOLL) it's testament to the power of good sound design and it's ability to raise an average film into something much more compelling.