Common Sense Media Review
By JK Sooja
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Dark domestic thriller has violence, mature themes.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 13+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
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Run (2020)
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 4 parent reviews
Based on 33 kid reviews
Kids say the movie is a mixed bag, with some viewers praising its suspenseful plot and strong performances, especially from the lead actress. However, others criticize its themes of violence and abuse, suggesting it is only suitable for older teens and may not be as frightening as expected.
- suspenseful plot
- strong performances
- themes of violence
- suitable for older teens
- not scary
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
What's the Story?
In RUN, 17-year-old Chloe (Kiera Allen) lives a solitary life except for her mother Diane (Sarah Paulson), who tends to her daughter's every medical need and has done so for her entire life. Chloe supposedly suffers from arrhythmia, hemochromatosis, asthma, diabetes, and paralysis of her legs, the latter of which has required her to be in a wheelchair for as long as she can remember. The only problem is that Chloe starts to realize some oddities about the care her mother provides. Chloe's extremely limited freedoms are odd, the way her mother always gets to the mail before Chloe is odd, the way the Wi-Fi doesn't work when her mother isn't home is odd. Some of the medicine her mother gives her isn't what it seems. If Chloe had to escape her mother, how exactly could she manage that? What lengths would her mother go to stop her?
Is It Any Good?
Not a deep look into the behavioral and mental health complexities and nuances of Factitious Disorder Imposed on Another, this thriller only wants to thrill, and it just about does. In terms of quality, pace, writing, acting, and thrills, Run is on par with and sometimes exceeds director Aneesh Chaganty's first feature, the chillingly disturbing Searching. For Run, Chaganty structures his focus on child abuse and parental derangement in three acts: family horror, hostage drama, escape thriller. By the time the pace ramps up entering the finale, lead character Chloe has more than earned her freedom. Run is a platform for two great performances, one a terribly menacing desperate mother from Sarah Paulson and the other a courageous first-time lead achievement for Kiera Allen, who is also a wheelchair user in real life.
In some other ways, by the time the epilogue rolls, some viewers may find some logical gaps and inconsistencies, even if parsing them out would have only likely bogged things down. There's a distinct lack of any scenes of Chloe's childhood or growing up alone with no friends, television, public life outside visiting the pharmacy, or grander curiosity about the outside world. Somehow, Chloe made it all the way to 17 before really questioning or seeing the horrible things her mother was doing. Lastly, the film's ending may leave some viewers disappointed.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how Run portrays Factitious Disorder Imposed on Another (Munchausen syndrome by proxy). How is it different from other films or tv shows that also feature this form of child and sometimes elder abuse?
Sadly, many people lose a child, but what was different about Diane's loss that made her turn to kidnapping, abuse, and murder?
Was the portrayal of Chloe a strong one? If you were in her situation, would you have done anything differently? If so, what?
Do you think Chloe's last act at the end was necessary? How would the film have looked if she had done something else?
Why do you think people are interested in tragic stories based on real life? Does Run glamorize any part of the abusive caregiver? Does it glamorize any part of the person under their care? Explain.
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : November 20, 2020
- Cast : Sarah Paulson , Kiera Allen , Pat Healy , Sara Sohn
- Director : Aneesh Chaganty
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Hulu
- Genre : Thriller
- Character Strengths : Courage , Perseverance
- Run time : 90 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : Disturbing thematic content, some violence/terror, and language.
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
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