Amazon's The Runner Draws Negative Reviews for Gal Gadot's 5-Mile Thriller

3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Sep 2

Amazon Prime Video’s newly released The Runner is being panned as a formulaic action thriller, with critics faulting its recycled setup and Gal Gadot’s emotionally stiff lead turn.
The plot sends Gadot’s character on a five-mile run across London in under an hour after a criminal kidnaps her son and hacks his insulin dispenser, forcing her to target a witness.
Reviewers say the film leans on familiar real-time hostage mechanics and AI as a plot device, while Mark Gibson’s script and a twist ending fail to add suspense or novelty.
Kevin Macdonald’s frenetic London staging and location shooting are cited as the film’s main assets, but the action is described as cheap and the visual style dated.
The reception adds to doubts about Gadot’s post-Wonder Woman star power, with critics arguing even a streamlined streaming action vehicle cannot overcome the film’s weak material.