The Runnin' Kind

Year releasted: 1989

by Nathan Rabin
December 11th, 2002

As The Runnin' Kind opens, its staid, WASPy hero (David Packer) is copping to the validity of stories involving himself and "girl punkers, wild sex, weekend binges, and run-ins with the law." Like all tales of debauchery, the film begins in Akron, Ohio, as Packer and his frat-boy compatriots search for female companionship. Spying a pair of punk hitchhikers, Packer's less culturally sensitive associates yell "Freak!" and "Nice haircut!" But their curiosity is whetted. Opting for a change of pace, the gang adjourns to a punk-rock club, where Packer attempts to pick up pretty drummer Brie Howard. Oblivious to the mating habits of countercultural types, Packer offers "What's your sign?" as an opening line, only to be hit with a chilly "Do not disturb." "Do you always go around dressed like that?" proves equally fruitless as a conversational gambit, but Packer and Howard nevertheless quickly bond over their shared love of alcoholic beverages. Later that night, the club is raided by the police, but the seeds of rebellion have been planted in Packer, who begins to shun family viewings of The Tonight Show in favor of covert toking sessions in his room. Packer's punk-hating dad wants his son to join him at his law firm, but Packer instead heads out to L.A. to find Howard, who has since discovered the seamy, sexist underbelly of the city's rock scene. Arriving at an audition, she's confronted by a boorish big-hair enthusiast who demands, "You looking for someone, or did you just come down to listen to some ass-kicking riffs?" Howard leaves in a huff without hearing a single ass-kicking riff, while Packer meanwhile reunites with freeloading uncle James Cromwell. Packer helps Howard land a gig as the drummer for an all-girl punk band, and is soon sneaking out at night to party with the group. His parents, perhaps concerned that their son's sudden iconoclasm will rub off on surly little sister Juliette Lewis, dispatch a detective to spy on him. To throw the gumshoe off his trail, Packer gets a mohawk, whereupon he learns firsthand the pain of being harassed for his looks. The wild life inevitably begins to take its toll on him, and after a madcap night filled with fisticuffs, sexual hijinks, and time-filling musical numbers, he decides to return to the sedate world of Akron. But he finds that life as a white-collar drone no longer holds much appeal, and he climactically decides to head back to L.A. to manage Howard's band, trading in security for freedom, excitement, and a nightly dose of ass-kicking riffs.