For years, one of the World's most well-known action stars in Hollywood was Arnold Schwarzenegger (Terminator Franchise). Then he went into politics and became the Governor of California, leaving a noticeable absence in the leading man category within the world of action/adventure films. In , Schwarzenegger figuratively "passed the torch on" when he told Beck (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson; Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle) to "have fun" while passing him in a nightclub in the movie The Rundown. With those two simple words, Schwarzenegger welcomed Johnson to the role of action hero, and Johnson has run with the title ever since. This was Johnson's third time being physical in a film, but The Rundown really stands out as his initiation into the action hero status. Now, for the first time, the film is being released in 4K.
Beck aspires to be a chef and open his own restaurant one day. However, for now, he works as a debt collector for a loan shark named Walker (William Lucking; The Limey). After beating up a bunch of professional football players because one of them owes Walker money, Beck thinks his debt is paid, but Walker has other ideas. He sends Beck to the Brazilian Jungle to retrieve his son, Travis (Seann William Scott; the American Pie Franchise). Travis, however, is less than pleased to go back to California with Beck, especially considering he believes he has found the location of El Gato (the cat) - a gold statue that the locals believe has magical powers. To complicate matters, Travis and Beck are also trying to evade the local warlord, Hatcher (Christopher Walken; The Deer Hunter).
One of the things going for The Rundown is the cast. Johnson isn't bad, even though he was only just beginning his acting career, and in fact, he may have been even better than some of his most recent roles. Walken is a master at playing the bad guy, and as always, he is so loathsome you can't help but hate Hatcher. Williams plays the same character he always does, but Rosario Dawson (Rent) as Mariana is a breath of fresh air.
Director Peter Berg (Friday Night Lights) does an excellent job, as he always does, of balancing the action and the drama. His pacing is even and consistent, and he knows how to edit to keep an audience engaged and entertained. Unfortunately, the script, written by R.J. Stewart (Xena: Warrior Princess) and James Vanderbilt (The Amazing Spider-Man), leaves much to be desired. The lack of character development doesn't necessarily make the viewer root for anyone.
This 4K transfer from the original 35 millimeter negative is excellent and a definite upgrade from the 2009 Blu-ray release. Colors are more deeply saturated, details are sharper, and lines are cleaner. The HD-DTS Master Audio 5.1 is strong as well, with ambient noises, most prevalent in the jungle scenes, surrounding the viewer from all sides. The audio mix, however, is a little off, and I found myself constantly needing to raise and lower the volume between the dialogue and action sequences.
Most of the extras are ported over from the previous Blu-ray release with the exception of one new commentary. All three commentaries can be found on both the 4K and Blu-ray Discs, while the rest of the extras are only housed on the Blu-ray Disc. They include: Audio Commentary by Director Peter Berg and Star Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, Audio Commentary by Producers Kevin Misher and Marc Abraham, NEW! Audio Commentary by Action Film Historian Mike Leeder and Filmmaker Matt Routledge, Rumble in the Jungle, The Amazon, Hawaii Style, Appetite for Destruction, The Rundown Uncensored - A Rock-umentary, Running Down the Town, Walken's World, Deleted Scenes, and the Theatrical Trailer.
As an action film, The Rundown is a pretty good movie with a fight sequence in the jungle that looks like it includes some capoeira, making it pretty badass. As a drama, the movie is just ok, but with no real deep rooted plot development to grab the audience's attention. As Johnson's first film as an action hero, it is a solid effort. Fans of the movie will love this digital upgrade, but for the rest of us, it is merely a run-of-the-mill film with some good tech specs.
Grade: C+
