Disciplined after blowing the cover on an undercover operation, two Chicago cops consider retiring and opening a bar until an opportunity arises to capture the drug lord who they had been after for years in this action comedy starring Bill Crystal and Gregory Hines. The pacing of the movie is all over the place with a montage of the pair vacationing coming off as a particular distraction from the crime thriller central subplot, but the film survives on account of the great chemistry between Crystal and Hines. The pair's constant bickering and bantering over who fired which shots works very well and there are several memorable moments, ranging from the pair stripping down to their long underwear at gunpoint to the pair coaxing a henchman (a young Joe Pantoliano) into letting them arrest him. While there are highlights for sure, the climax is unfortunately not one of them, and everything seems so ludicrous and overblown at the end, with a key supporting character conveniently being kidnapped no less, that it is difficult to become immersed in the action. The rivalry between the pair and another duo of more athletic police officers also only works around half the time since the other two severely lack charisma. Overall, 'Running Scared' may be a bit of a mixed bag, but it is at least curiously different to the original script, conceptualised as a vehicle for Gene Hackman and Paul Newman (!). The film is often credited as sparking the buddy-buddy cop action comedy trend of the 1980s, though 'Freebie and the Bean' might deserve that honour instead.

The plot is simple: two veteran Chicago cops, Billy Crystal and Gregory Hines, are set to retire but before doing so wish to take down drug dealer, Jimmy Smits (and he's a force to be reckoned with, too). Peter Hyams always had a directorial flair, and the gritty streets of cold Chicago are his playground; better still, he has a duo with an undeniable chemistry, so comfortable with each other their work on screen doesn't feel forced but quite natural, as if the two have been actual partners for quite some time. This is the cop buddy comedy with lots of guns firing, bloody, bullet-ridden bodies, and wise cracks. In other words, this is the kind of movie right up my alley. Hines and Crystal are the kind of team that constantly, lovingly ridicule one another, while causing their boss (played by Dan Hedaya, enjoyable to watch as always) more than his share of migraines. I loved how they're forced to "apprentice" young cops, Steven Bauer and Jon Gries, and do so with quite a bit of reservation. Darlanne Fluegel (To Live and Die in LA) is Crystal's hot love interest, with the likes of Joe Pantoliano (Bound), Don Calfa (Return of the Living Dead), and Larry Hankin (Armes and Dangerous) turning up in a fantastic cast. This is the kind of cop actioner with lots of familiar faces in its cast offering colorful bit parts that just makes investing in the hunt for Smits all the more worthwhile. But Crystal and Hines together is the obvious reason to watch this little movie…they're too much fun. There's just nothing like seeing Crystal and Hines stuck in a yellow taxi cab (equipped with bullet-proof glass even), lifted off the street by a garbage truck, telling Smits (looking up at them from a comfortable position as they seem precariously trapped and ready to be crushed inside) that he's in trouble! Of course they escape within an inch of their lives. There's this big scene in a mall that has plenty of gunfire and bloody wounds. I like this one particular scene where Hines and Crystal find themselves absent pants (in their long johns!) rescuing an innocent from certain harm when captured by an intense Smits (with a machine gun); forced to return to headquarters without their pants, their fellow cops get a good laugh at their expense. I don't think it is necessary to establish that the script is loaded with profanity--as the audience for this sort of film and the actors in it should know what they're getting into--and the comedy is rather "salty", with plenty of street talk (this does take place in the city and is populated by urban characters). One of the funniest scenes to me has a priest and nun, familiar with Smits for his contributions to their ministry (!) under constant smack by Hines and Crystal who think they're imposters posing as members of the Church! Hyams understood the audience for this kind of movie and gives us what we want, and he doesn't interfere in what Crystal and Hines do best.

This movie is from when real good, watchable movies were being made. One of my all-time favorites, but you really do have to be from that age group to appreciate. My younger friends just don't get it... A great, action/comedy, from 2 really good comedians of the time. Billy Crystal & Gregory Hines make a very good duo, and the story line, while a bit predictable, provides for some very good action. Contains some exceptional one-liners from both main characters. Enough humor to keep you laughing, and enough action to make it interesting to watch. Someone called it an old-school version of "The Other Guys". It's WAY better than that, but it's not a terrible comparison. The guy that plays their Captain (Carla's ex-husband on Cheers) could have been much better, but he did an adequate job, as did the rest of the cast, backing up Crystal/Hines. Highly recommend!

I had the opportunity to revisit this fun film last week and enjoyed it just as much as when I saw it first-run 20 years ago. For me, there are two things that make it such a winner: the match-up of Crystal and Hines, which was unfortunately not repeated, and the Chicago scenery. Adding in Darlanne Fluegel was just icing on the cake. And speaking of icing, any Chicagoan will laugh frequently during this film at the pitiful imitation snow, which looks more like frosting than precipitation (especially when you see it laying on top of very green tree leaves).Crystal was hot at the time after his year on SNL, and he manages to work in some of his character shtick here without sidetracking the plot. Hines had recently done White Nights and Cotton Club, so he was also on a roll. The two of them work naturally together in the funny AND serious moments of the film, and the dialog is crisp and clever. There are loads of buddy-cop clichés here, but for some reason they work well. Peter Hyams deserves credit for his snappy direction and good camera work, and for making good use of the locations.Speaking of the locations, let me add my own comments about the Chicago scenery. Gregory Hines' apartment is a building at the SW corner of Franklin St. and Institute Place. Lots of HILL STREET location work was also done on Franklin St because of the L tracks above the pavement. That building is also one block from the Chicago Avenue L station, which is a favorite of filmmakers because of the S curve of the tracks (you can see this station in DOZENS of films and TV shows). I used to work a block from there and everything was very familiar! There are some disconnects in the car chase scene. They leave O'Hare and turn off at River Road, and next thing you know, they're on a surface level CTA track, which I'm guessing is somewhere on the Ravenswood line (but nowhere near the airport). Next thing you know, they're entering the subway, which is quite far from where they started. And in the subway scene you can tell (thanks to DVR) that the tracks are merely painted reflective lines on concrete. (I never spotted that in the theater!) They pass through the Chicago avenue station, and what appears to be the curve by the Merchandise Mart station, and the crash takes place at the LaSalle/Van Buren station, which is at the south end of the Loop. (I'm 99% sure I could read the sign during that scene, as well as a billboard for the Channel 5 news team.) During the chase on the train tracks, you'll notice how cleverly Hyams intercuts low POV shots (not showing cars) with the shots of the cars themselves. Also, in the final ride to the State of Illinois building: they head south on Franklin (follow along on Google maps!) then turn left (east) on Grand at the big Zimmerman liquor store. Next time you see them, they're crossing the river on Michigan avenue coming south by the Wrigley building, a shot obviously inserted for scenic value only. Why? Because any Chicagoan with half a brain would have turned down LaSalle Street and gone straight to the goal, rather than driving all the way to Michigan just to cruise the shops on the Magnificent Mile! But, who cares? I love Chicago! And I love this flick!