Run Sweetheart Run (2020)
Time: 1h 44mins
Director: Shana Feste
Quick Summary: After what seems to be an innocent date, Cherie now faces a night of terror when her date hunts her down and tries to kill her. She now must run for her life throughout the city and escape his grasp.
The highlight of this was the huge red bold "RUN" flash up on the screen occasionally.
You know what I'll admit that this wasn't awful. I enjoyed it a bit. The set-up for this is really good, you're introduced to characters just enough so you know their personalities and not their entire backstory. They're not overcomplicated either, admittedly a bit shallow and one note, but this film doesn't need characters that are fully fleshed out.
Everything starts out really wonderful, Cherie (Our main lady) ends up on a date with a very charming man called Ethan. It goes well, the whole thing is quite cute to watch. Until it is time for them to part, and he invites her in to which she accepts. One thing that I actually did like in this, is this pretty cool fourth-wall-breaking moment where the camera is following them to the front door to enter, Ethan turns and holds out a hand to stop the camera with a smile before leaving the viewer outside. We then hear the struggles of Cherie as she's attacked before bursting out of the front door, starting the cat-and-mouse chase that this film is.
I was fully on board with this film while it was a simple fight for survival against a seemingly unstoppable maniac, even when it became apparent that Ethan was more than just an ordinary man. I was interested as it felt very original. Sadly, it forces a whole load of female power themes and mentions the main character's period every five minutes. Being a woman myself, I am the target audience for this, but it felt more in bad taste for some of these things. Don't get me wrong, some worked, as Ethan as a character made me uncomfortable as he tries to use his slimy charming nature to win Cherie back after attacking her. The scary part of going on first-time dates as a woman is that there is sadly a high chance you can get attacked is another one.
As a villain, Ethan works incredibly well. he goes from charming and handsome and knows how to treat a woman right all whilst having a cute awkwardness to him. To this intimidating, otherworld creature that can and will kill you if you slip up. It is a shame you never actually get to see his true form, even when he's showing Cherie.
Some of the cinematography is pretty to look at, and the soundtrack was fun at times having a more upbeat vibe. There were a few parts of this film that did feel fun, like the beginning, or the drive after the rave. But sadly this gets a bit mixed up in what kind of film this wants to be, favouring a more extreme feminine power message over anything. By the end it did become a bit too much, losing any form of substance to this message and just became cheesy. The last thirty minutes felt completely different to the rest admittedly. A tense thriller, to slasher, to girl power?
I'm glad Ella Balinska (Cherie) was fun to watch as she scrambled from place to place, trying to find help to eventually get the strength to fight back against her attacker. Strong performance, she played her part really well.
Don't get me wrong, this is watchable, and it is something different. It can be fun at times. It is full of plot holes if you think about anything logically for more than ten seconds. But if you just want to turn your brain off for a little while and watch a chase-themed film, then this is for you.
4/10
"How are you surviving now?"
"Hello, Sweetheart."
"You will die knowing you surrendered yourself to me."
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