The Reel Review
Run is a rom-com thriller about two former college sweethearts who ditch their respective lives nearly two decades later to embark on a previously agreed upon escape plan, when one texts “RUN” to the other and the other responds in kind.
Co-created by Killing Eve masterminds Vicky Jones and Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag), the premise has lots of promise, channeling all the fear, excitement and uncertainty associated with embarking on a major life change. And its stars, two-time Emmy award winner Merritt Wever (Nurse Jackie, Godless) and Domhnall Gleeson (Ex Machina, Goodbye Christopher Robyn), have genuine onscreen chemistry, which is absolutely essential to making such a far-fetched story work.
But let’s talk about that far-fetched story. Despite a few fun moments and some clever writing that flips the script on rom-com tropes, a lot of the time Run’s seven 30 minute episodes are just so ridiculous or trying so hard to be cute that they can’t be taken seriously – especially when the series takes a darker, more ominous turn. And ultimately that results in a show that just feels hollow and for most, not very interesting.
REEL FACTS
• Each episode in Season 1 has a single word title – Run, Kiss, Fuck, Chase, Jump, Tell and Trick.
• Vicky Jones directed Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s stage production Fleabag, which was later adapted as a television series for BBC and Amazon Prime Video. Waller-Bridge also appears in Run.
• New York City-born Merritt Wever, who won Emmys for her Supporting Actress roles in 2018 in the Netflix series Godless and in 2013 for Nurse Jackie, has also appeared in such films as 2019’s Marriage Story, 2018’s Welcome to Marwen and 2014’s Best Picture Oscar winner, Birdman.
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