This was with out a doubt the best cop buddy movie of the 80's. With Beverly Hills Cop a VERY close second. I watched this again a few days ago and it still is as funny as ever. The passing of Gregory Hines was a terrible thing.
shareThis movie is so freakin' funny!!!
I just watched it again today. I have an old movie rental copy of it on VHS.
I pop it in every year and it never fails to make me laugh my head off!
What a comic team those two were together.
One of my favorite parts is when they put Snake in that police lineup with 4 cops. Too funny!!!
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I agree..hands down my fave buddy cop movie ever..
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What about a certain franchise called LETHAL WEAPON???????/
Sorry, you guys are seeing things a little out of proportion here. Check out the LH series. Compared to it, Running Scared is nothing but a couped up Beverly Hills Cop 2!!!
in the immortal words of roger rabbit..
pppppppppppplllleaasssse!
RS had the BEST comedic partnership in Hines and Crystal.
while its true that it wasn't the straight action flick LW was it wasn't meant to be...
I agree, the BEST comedic partnership is Hines and Crystal hands down!!!
They were so great together because they really new how to make it look like they were best friends that new everything about each other. Like in that scene where they were on a stakeout and they were both talking about their personal problems or what was on their minds at the same time and they weren't even listening to each other and neither of them cared. Good friends do that all the time. That scene was so real and so very funny!
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Hands down one of most greatest car chases EVER!!! The only car chase I'v seen
taking place on chicago's cta EL lines. My uncle worked as a camera man on that movie and i know first hand on how hard it was shooting those senes.
No Way! Running Scared is by far a better movie than Lethal Weapon as far as comedic value. Mel Gibson's character was too dark to compete with this film. Though gritty, Running Scared is much funnier and satisfying. Lethal Weapon is a good film as well as the sequels but this one was classic in a way that LW can't touch. I watch this movie everyyear at least and I still laugh.
shareI agree. LW was an old dried up Danny Glover with a Mel Gibson doing everything but flying. Billy and Gregory were supposed to be the same age same time on the force and equal with the action and intensity. The last LW was the best to me because Mel and Danny was supposed to be the same 2 old bulls going out to pasture.
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I always felt like Hines and Crystal had a better chemistry than Gibson and Glover; I'm glad to see some other people feel the same way. They had more of a natural spark in their scenes together than Gibson and Glover did, but to be fair, they also didn't have to play out the crazy-young-guy/tired-old-guy dynamic of the "Lethal Weapon" movies. It's too bad Hines and Crystal didn't do another movie together, a la Newman and Redford in "The Sting."
Hey, do you think Michael McDonald's "Sweet Freedom" will show up in the new Paul Walker movie called "Running Scared"? Probably not. But it should. I know it, you know it, we all know it.
definitely the best, it doesn't matter about the plot since hines and crystal are always fun to watch. and takes itself much less seriously that leathal weapon.
shareA fantastic movie! I loved it the first time I saw it 21 years ago. Michael McDonald's song Sweet Freedom was the bomb. I feel sad today about Gregory Hines. He and Billy had that chemistry. Billy and (?) should make a remake. The title could be "Scarely Running." Billy will have a new partner, of course. Maybe Samuel L. Jackson. Can he do comedy? Probably. He's an actor.
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lethal weapon is a totally different type of movie, while hugely enjoyabel does not come close to the feel good aspect of this movie, which is how the two main character interact. The humour is over the top while delievered in a totally serious way. This movie really is the best buddy cop movie.
shareThe buddy aspect of this movie was so strong and so cool that several pairs of guys out of our college group of pals identified themselves as the Hines-Crystal pairing of the group. It also became one of the movies we endlessly quoted, along with the usuals of the era (Animal House, Caddyshack, Blues Brothers, 48 Hours, Trading Places, Beverly Hills Cop, etc.).
So many of the cop buddy movies strain crediblity because you don't get the idea the two actors or characters truly like each other. Nor do you get the feeling they trust each other the way real-life detective partners do. Hines and Crystal feel like they've shared that car for a decade and work off each other like Gretzky and Kurri.
Even the throwaway lines work well. I can't help howling when, during the brilliant El car chase, Hines says, "We're making good time."
The plot is secondary to the lead characters' relationship. I like Glover and Gibson and the first two LWs, but comparing their chemistry and comic acting with Hines and Crystal is akin to comparing Zorn-to-Largent with Manning-to-Harrison.
When I moved to South Florida, I almost opened an account at Southeast Bank just because of its appearance in this movie. I definitely did drive down beachfront streets playing "Sweet Freedom." And every summer, I pull out this movie at least once to watch it as I did that summer afternoon in 1986.
Sadly, recent revelations about -- or, rather confirmations of accusations about -- the interrogation tactics of Chicago cops during this era slashes at the humor in some of the cop-con scenes.
Gotta go, final Jeopardy's on!
HAHAHA..
I never get tired of watching this movie.
I flip through the channels of my tv set
and then I see it on. Then bang I am glued
to watching it again.. for the 1002nd time.
The only thing I dont like is Jimmie Smits
playing The Columbian. He doesnt come across
as a bad ass. Just this tired old sterotype
of slick hispanic dude who always run guns,
money, and drugs. The ones you always see in
Miami Vice. yawn..
Everything else is great
Ummm... this movie is cool but seriously, the best cop buddy movie?? Crystal and Hines had great chemistry but did you buy either one as a cop? Especially their scene while roller blading in their gay shorts. Beverly Hills Cop blows this movie away and so does Lethal Weapon. Come on people, Danny Glover and Jesus, err, I mean Mel Gibson?
George Bush doesn't care about black puppets.
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have to disagree with ya!This is a fantastic movie but Midnight run pushes it into (a very close) second place.
shareLOVE Midnight Run! it's the best....
shareMidnight Run hand's down. Even 48 hour's is better than this. I'm trying to figure out why another poster said Animal House was in this Buddy-Cop Genre? It isn't! But for my 2 cent's, Midnight Run is the best of any era and 48 hour's the best of the 80's. Lethal Weapon was crap and so was Beverly Hill's Cop. BH Cop2 was better than the first, but still not a 'Buddy' movie. I went and saw this when it came out, and was pissed because it doesn't appear to know what it want's to be, either a comedy or a drama, and it succeed's at neither.
The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get!
He didn't say that. He said this movie (Running Scared) is among his most quoted movies for movie lines along with Animal House, etc etc...
shareI believed these guys (Hines and Crystal) as cops more than Mel Gibson and Danny Glover. I mean that movie (Lethal Weapon, etc.) was too macho-over the top for the best cop buddy movie. I don't even place it second. Beverly Hills Cop (the first one) was a great cop buddy movie. Also, when it came out in the 1980's I loved Stakeout. That was better than Lethal Weapon but I haven't seen the movie in years so I can't really remember if it wears well. But at least it's a cop buddy movie.
48 Hours is a great movie. I loved it. It is a "buddy" movie but not a "cop buddy" movie. Yes. Midnight Run is great too, but again, not a "cop buddy" movie.
Running Scared is the best cop buddy movie of the 80's hands down.
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I loved this movie, too. However, it wouldn't be my top pick of the genre. Here's my top 5:
1) 48 Hrs.
2) Beverly Hills Cop
3) Midnight Run
4) Running Scared
5) Lethal Weapon
Just my opinion.
"If you're looking for sympathy, look between s*** and syphilis in the dictionary."
Midnight Run was a riot and Lethal weapon rocks, but I guess I liked Running Scared a bit more than you did.
Showtime's been playing it all month.
Still good after all these years.
The marriage was built to last.
But, their house was built TOO SMALL!
"This is NOT awesome!"
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This one was the first buddy cop movie which other films of the same genre ("Lethal Weapon", "Rush Hour", etc.) "emulated." You can't count "48 Hrs." because it was a con and a cop. MGM was a troubled studio around 1985-86 and this did pretty good at the box office. I don't know why they didn't do the sequel that was planned, it could've started a great franchise.
shareIt's definitely my favourite buddy cop flick, mainly because of the performances and the dialogue by Crystal and Hines.
shareTell me.. Why havent anyone mentioned Tango & Cash?
That, for me, is one of the funniest movies from the 80's :D
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In my opinion this was the best 80's cop/buddy movie. I have a friend who still does the part "Oh no!!! They don't pay me no more!!! Mutha! Mutha!" I just wish they had gotten their stuff together and done the sequel they were talking about. Go to youtube to see the video of Michael McDonald's Sweet Freedom. RIP Gregory.
sharei liked it back in the day, but upon re-watching it, I have a hard time believing these two nancy-boys as bad a$$ cops.
What the *beep* is a Chinese Downhill?!?
I think it's definitely the best cop-buddy movie from the 1980's. (Tango & Cash is the runner-up).
I could believe them as cops. A lot of toughness comes from your attitude and your mental toughness, which the two of them had. As well, both looked to be in decent shape. Yeah, they weren't huge muscle-men, but instead looked like wiry, well-conditioned types.