Run ★★★

1, 2… Paulson’s coming for you. 3, 4…. With tension at its core, Run excels as a neatly packaged story of suspense that any present day Hitchcock aficionado would get a kick out of. The mother/daughter relationship between Diane (Sarah Paulson) and Chloe (Kiera Allen) is a wonderful, convincing show of acting and is the pulsating beat which runs through the feature.

Now available on Hulu for any fans of good (scratch that) great thrillers, Run sees Chloe, a strong teen dealing with multiple physical handicaps hoping to receive good news from her desired college. She lives with her doting mother Diane, but upon a random and sneaky check of sugary snacks Chloe begins questioning the medicines Diane has put her on which leads her down a track of further questions about her life and physical condition. 

Two years ago director Aneesh Chaganty logged onto the cinematic landscape with his debut movie Searching, which just so happened to be one of my favourite films of 2018. Now, Chaganty is back and with expectations heightened I was interested in seeing how his sophomore outing would compare. Gladly, he has captured the lightning spark of tension-building once more and here’s hoping he keeps that electricity-filled bottle ready for his next film.  

What triumphs above the many dry and middling thrillers, is Chaganty’s handling of old-school suspense in a new way. Also, the assistance of writer Sev Ohanian sets this pair up as a knowledgeable duo who clearly know their movies and love what they’re doing, which helps us become immersed in the psychological spills and thrills of their story.  

Sarah Paulson is just exceptional in anything she touches and her talents shine through this movie as we grow to fear her growing aura of menace. The tragedy of her situation gives a faint emotional forgiveness to her actions but mostly she lives out some 1950’s nasty, wreaking pain and torment in the guise of love. Against the talents of American Horror Story star Paulson, you’d imagine there’s a nervous feeling boiling in your veins but newcomer Kiera Allen, who plays Chloe is a captivating, gutsy performer who pretty much steals the show and proves that her real-life wheelchair use is no hindrance. Allen provides Chloe with determination, grit, resolve and smarts equaling a female lead that is believable and bold.

The doggedly tough nature of Chloe is brilliant to watch unfold: you root for her and marvel at her brainy source of one-upping a calculating woman whose presence is akin to that of a mumsy Michael Myers. Chloe’s tooth-and-nail fight for survival only goes and makes the finale and final shot of the movie much more delicious to behold. Run is a dreamy two-hander of actors and writers meshing together to gift us the filmic embodiment of apprehension, so no wonder the thriller became the most watched original movie on Hulu in its opening weekend. Run, don’t stroll or meander to check out this thrilling tale of abuse, fear and twisted intentions.