This is an amiable film that will provoke some chuckles.
Run, Fat Boy, Run (2008)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:143
Fresh:69
Rotten:74
Average Rating:5.5/10
Consensus: Run, Fat Boy, Run features sporadic laughs, but is ultimately too formulaic and predictable.
Australian Theatrical Release:
Mar 6, 2008 Wide
US Box Office: $5,926,110
Synopsis: DENNIS (Simon Pegg) is an ordinary guy. He's a little overweight and he smokes, but he's nice, charming and unassuming. However, five years ago, Dennis did something that wasn't so nice. On his... DENNIS (Simon Pegg) is an ordinary guy. He's a little overweight and he smokes, but he's nice, charming and unassuming. However, five years ago, Dennis did something that wasn't so nice. On his wedding day to his pregnant fiancé LIBBY (Thandie Newton), Dennis did a runner. He just couldn't go through with it. He didn't think he was good enough for Libby, so instead of ruining her life, he ruined her big day. Now, five years later, Dennis realizes he made a big mistake. He's still in love with Libby. He still sees her all the time because of JAKE (Matthew Fenton), their five-year-old son, but all romantic ties have been severed. Libby's now seeing WHIT (Hank Azaria), a charming professional from the City, and Dennis takes an immediate dislike to him. Whit is casual, easy-going, successful and good with Jake; much to Dennis's annoyance. How can Dennis compete with him? In direct contrast to Whit's sleek lifestyle in the City, Dennis is a mere security guard for a ladies retail store. He doesn't earn much money and he's well behind on his rent, something which his landlord, MR GHOSHDASHTIDAR (Harish Patel), doesn't take lightly. Mr G's daughter MAYA (India de Beaufort) is particularly intent on evicting Dennis and replacing him with a much more reliable tenant. Compared to Whit's effortless abilities, everything Dennis attempts seems to end in disaster. Even when he wants to take Jake to see "Lord of the Rings: The Musical," he finds himself in trouble with the police for trying to buy from a ticket tout. There is no help forthcoming from Dennis' feckless best friend GORDON (Dylan Moran), whose life is just as much of a mismatch. Gordon's main sources of interest are the poker games held at the back of a piano store with a bunch of misfits: GROVER, CLAUDINE and MICKEY, overseen by the imperious VINCENT (Simon Day). Dennis feels demoralized and overwhelmed by Whit's long list of achievements. In a last-ditch effort to prove to Libby that he's changed his ways, Dennis impulsively announces at her birthday party that he will run in the same London Marathon that Whit has been training for. But does Dennis have the stuff to trade his cold feet for running shoes? RUN, FAT BOY, RUN is a romantic comedy that affirms that true love isn't a sprint, it's a marathon. --© Picturehouse [More]
Starring: Simon Pegg, Thandie Newton, Dylan Moran, Hank Azaria
Starring: Simon Pegg, Thandie Newton, Dylan Moran, Hank Azaria, Ameet Chana, Harish Patel, David Walliams, Stephen Merchant
Director: David Schwimmer
Director: David Schwimmer
Screenwriter: Michael Ian Black, Simon Pegg
Story: Michael Ian Black
Producer: Robert Jones, Sarah Curtis
Composer: Alex Wurman
Studio: Lions Gate Films
Reviews for Run, Fat Boy, Run
Although I did enjoy the incongruity of the characters, this well-intentioned low brow co-production does not quite make it to the finish line.
It looks like British writers Simon Pegg and Michael Ian Black have been studying the romantic comedies of Adam Sandler.
It has meaning and sentiment and a nice pay-off for its finale. But without more laughs, Run Fatboy Run is awfully winded by the time it crosses the finish line.
Pegg pitched Shaun of the Dead as "Richard Curtis shot through the head." Run, Fat Boy, Run comes on more like "Richard Curtis kicked in the nuts" - a refreshingly honest Britcom that never really threatens the ribs but which is amiable company throughout
Friends star David Schwimmer proves that nothing wins over a crowd like a barking underdog and bags of below-the-belt humour - his directing debut is a wheeze.
Pegg proves agreeable company in a lightweight Britcom whose biggest laughs emanate from its supporting cast.
It is an immensely likable, big-hearted romantic comedy that has a wide-ranging appeal as unpretentious feel-good escapism and a perfect date movie choice.
Run, Fatboy, Run winds up being as immature and exhausting as its protagonist.
This is not a film with blazingly original ideas or a groundbreaking script - I guessed the ending before the movie even started - but it has a sweet nature, an abundance of laughs and plenty of Pegg to spare.
Schwimmer's sliced cheese mediocrity gets him off the hook; not so for the usually inventive Pegg and Black and their arms race of bland jokes and cheap male nudity
Pegg is brilliant, pratfalling his way through heartbreak and indignity
It’s hard to dislike Simon Pegg, but in Run Fat Boy Run, he exhausts our sympathy in the prologue.
For all its faults however, this is a romantic comedy that works - if just barely.
It may be the kind of film that will make you smile more than laugh, but you'll smile a lot. And although it practically forces you to root for its hero, you won't mind a bit because the hero is played by Simon Pegg.
The material isn't any more inspired than the protagonist is inspiring. Run, Fat Boy, Run should have been whipped into better shape before the starting gun sounded.
It would have been funnier if, instead of Pegg, his frequent collaborator, Nick Frost had taken the role. Then we would have a film worthy of its name. And maybe even a few more genuine guffaws.
Schwimmer is wise to keep his camera trained on Pegg at all times, as the actor can make any sequence worthwhile with his unexpected, jittery retorts and reactions.
A near-miss, a film with some funny scenes that will probably work significantly better on DVD, but, ultimately, it quite simply doesn't have enough laughs to elevate it to greatness.
Latest News for Run, Fat Boy, Run
September 24, 2008:
The film, like its flabby aspiring marathon runner protagonist, feels shapeless and exhausted from the sheer effort of trying to please audiences. ![]()
More...
August 15, 2008:
CinWorld: The film, like its flabby aspiring marathon runner protagonist, feels shapeless and exhausted from the sheer effort of trying to please audiences. ![]()
More...
March 30, 2008:
New Feature Alert! The RT Review Revue, A Weekly Video Round-up
Live from the RT offices...it's the RT Review Revue! Check out the latest word on this week's new releases in the first installment of our new editorial video column. More...
March 27, 2008:
Box Office Guru Preview: Four New Players Join The Game
Four new releases take a gamble debuting in theaters across North America hoping to hit the jackpot with audiences. The blackjack drama 21 and the spoof comedy Superhero Movie... More...
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