Listonixio Fresh and Exciting

MoPoshy Absolutely brilliant

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Ginger Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

bkoganbing Twenty years after Judd Hirsch and Christine Lahti were involved in the bombing of a factory that produced napalm they are still on the run. It's a way of life to them now, they are paying big time now for their misdeeds that went way beyond protesting the war in Vietnam. They've raised two sons, one they had while fugitives. Now however their way of life is going to have an impact on their older son particularly if he continues with them.Running On Empty is a film that will be particularly poignant for those who came of age in the Sixties. Hirsch and Lahti took action that probably many were tempted, but fortunately did not succumb. There might very well be an interesting back story as to just how the characters that Hirsch and Lahti play came to do what they did. I'm surprised a prequel was never made.But here we're concerned with older son River Phoenix who is a mostly self taught musical prodigy and who gets a chance to get a scholarship to Julliard. But he's going to have problems from Judd Hirsch who does not want to see the family unit broken up. That's important to him because it's all he has because of the life he has to lead. Not to mention having to document Phoenix's educational background which has been spotty and under various aliases. Whenever he abruptly leaves and moves to another school the records are always conveniently lost in a convenient fire. Could never use that excuse now with data now all on computers.In addition to which River's found himself a girlfriend in Martha Plimpton the daughter of the music teacher at his latest high school. Some critical decisions will have to be made by him and by his fugitive family.Running On Empty got two Oscar nominations for Best Original Screenplay and for Best Supporting Actor for River Phoenix. This was a breakout film for him, it was the first really serious part he ever essayed in his short life. His roles were as juveniles in teen oriented films before were nice and showed his potential. This one was the first that took advantage of said potential.I always thought that River drew from a vagabond background of his own which made Running On Empty so special for him and for us. His parents were children of the Sixties themselves, the tune-in, turn-on, drop out kind of hippies with a Christian flavoring. They were commune dwellers living in various places off the grid. I'm sure that background also prepared for the radically different part he played in My Own Private Idaho.Still for all the acclaim River got my favorite scene in the film and its climax involves Christine Lahti and her father Steven Hill when they reunite surreptitiously in a restaurant where all the pent up feelings on both sides get to hang out. She's come to ask her father to take Phoenix in and pull some strings to get him into Julliard. We're told he has the juice to do it. Hill is also playing with a lot of conflicting emotions, he remembers how his rebellious teen daughter was holding him and his entire generation personally responsible for the Vietnam War.Director Sidney Lumet put together an impressive cast with an array of impressive performances, each player stamping an individual seal on them. Running On Empty is a real classic for the decade it came out and the decade it hearkened back to.

preppy-3 In 1971 anti-war activists Annie (Christine Lahti) and Arthur (Judd Hirsch) Pope blow up a factory making napalm seriously hurting a janitor who wasn't supposed to be there. 17 years later they're on the run with two sons--17 year old Danny (River Phoenix) and 10 year old Harry (Jones Abry). At the place they're living Danny meets and falls in love with a wonderful girl (Martha Plimpton) and finds out he has enough talent to be accepted to Juilliard--but his father won't let him go.A quiet yet very moving movie. It doesn't judge its characters--it lets the audience make their own decisions. On one hand I felt sorry for all four of them--on the other I felt the parents should just turn themselves in and let the kids have a normal life. It's slow and a little drawn out but I was never bored. The acting was all superb--except for one person. Hirsch was TERRIBLE as the father. Very wooden and completely unbelievable. Plimpton was good as Phoenix's love interest and Lahti was excellent as his mother. Best of all was Phoenix. He was Oscar-nominated for this role and he's superb in every scene he's in. When he's on screen you can't stop watching him. Superb, quiet and very moving. Have plenty of tissues on hand:) For some reason the song "Running on Empty" is never heard--I'm assuming they couldn't afford the rights.

susannetownsend I was genuinely surprised by how hollow this film was. I was familiar with most of the actors and expected great performances, yet, (apparently) unlike so many other reviewers here, I was never able to believe the characters long enough to immerse myself in the film. There seemed to be a lack of character development on-screen, which led to several points of disconnect that ripped me right out of the plot each time.There were some decent scenes, like the restaurant scene between father and daughter, and overall I can't complain about the performances of either Lahti or Hirsch. But there were way too many other scenes that had me wondering why the actors chose to portray the characters as lacking any genuine feeling. River Phoenix, who was otherwise an impressive young actor, really fell flat for me several times in this way. I was never convinced that he even remotely cared for Plimpton's character. Worse, Plimpton went from sulky and distracted to histrionic so quickly, it had me wondering if the scenes that were supposed to show the evolution of her romantic feelings had accidentally been left on the cutting room floor. I mean, I know teenagers are supposed to be sullen and flighty, but I'm pretty sure most of them warm up a bit before they declare their undying "need" for the other person (amid sobs) while they are being dumped. Character progression for both Phoenix and Plimpton was stilted, to say the least.I can't imagine what was going on here with these otherwise fine actors, so I can only assume the direction failed them. That, and a plot with gaps too big to ask the viewers' imaginations to fill. For example, what were we expected to believe about the thought process behind Hirsch's character's sudden decision to set his son free? The death of Gus (heard on the radio) seemed hardly relevant. If it was supposed to be relevant, it was less than profound.One more thing that was distracting was that, while the piano playing was decent for someone who played as a hobby, it was nowhere near the level required for entry into Julliard. The violinist who auditioned right before "Danny" was clearly in a different league, and it was hard to believe the adjudicators would not have been jarred by the difference. Authenticity should matter in a film, but this director was asleep at the wheel.I am usually a huge fan of slow-paced films, but I just wanted this one to be over. Has visual storytelling come so far in the last 27 years that even mediocre TV dramas outclass this performance? Very disappointing.

George Wright This is a powerful movie about the lives of people on the run for their anti-war activities during the 1960's and 70's. These acts of protest at times crossed the line of legitimate protest and resulted in death and tragedy. The director, Sidney Lumet, has directed some great American films dealing with important issues, including Twelve Angry Men, Fail-Safe, The Pawnbroker and Network, among many others; he was no doubt aware of the lives of fugitives whose criminality came to haunt them because of social alienation or contempt for waging war in the Vietnam. In the opening scene of this movie about one such family, we find the elder son, played by River Phoenix, coming home to a comfortable house only to find FBI agents driving around the property. This is the signal that his parents are once more being stalked by the federal government for a crime that they have been avoiding for many years. The parents have paid a heavy price that has exacted a toll on them and their children. The movie is somewhat slow for the first half as we get to know this family, which has managed to eke out a comfortable life despite having to pull up stakes as they migrate from one community to another. The parents, played by Judd Hirsch and Christine Lahti, have the know-how and social skills to make the best for their tight-knit family of four. I thought that Judd Hersch and Christine Lahti were excellent trying to protect themselves from arrest while being caring parents and active members of their communities. The crisis comes to a head when the older son is urged to pursue his talent as a gifted pianist. This could force the parents into the open or stop his progression to a career as a very talented pianist. The choice is agonizing but it cannot be avoided. The encounter between Annie, the mother (Christine Lahti) and her father, played by Steven Hill, is the most moving scene in this movie, bringing together regrets, heartbreak and lost opportunities. Another moment shows River Phoenix pretending to deliver pizza to his grandmother just to catch a glimpse of her.Together, these episodes capture the dilemma of the family. They have become a strong unit, but must now deal with the fact that their children's lives are entangled in the web of deception they have constructed. It is a moving film that comes face to face with the lingering reality of a traumatic time in history.