mswinarski1 I saw this when I was 14 and I almost walked out of theater it was so bad. It was about as exciting as watching an actual marathon, which unless it's close there's not a lot to hold your attention. The main character (Michael Douglas) was just sad, he really didn't have anything to make you root for him. I have trouble watching other Michael Douglas offerings because of this film. The script was transparent, I was 14 and I was calling events, especially the ending which you can see coming from a mile away. If I could've given it negative stars, I would have.

paulinewainwright I loved this film, having seen it in 2006 for the first time 27 years after its first release! It really showed Michael Douglas' early potential to become the Oscar winning star he became in the 80's, everything was there - nice guy, caring, all the mannerisms, facial expressions and voice intonations that he later did so well, but I think this was the absolute best of his early roles. OK so he was the messed up guy that he portrayed so often, but in this film he had an ambition that took over his life, almost to the exclusion of everything else. I really felt for his kids - embarrassed by him at first, but then so thrilled for him. And the finale - well, he could have won the gold medal, but that would have been unreal and wrong in the context of the film, instead we saw him battling it out to the very end - and I had tears running down my face when he finally entered the stadium. I rate this one of the best Douglas movies!

hikers99 This was not a great movie but I enjoyed it. There are lots of running scenes. It is about a guy who has been a failure at everything all his life, including running, and who decides to do what he really wants to do, despite what everyone thinks. So he devotes himself to making the marathon team for the USA in the Olympics. It is uplifting. I found the ending kind of hoaky but all in all it was enjoyable. I taped it

peachandrudy I went to this movie because I am a runner. I think I was the only one in the whole theater."As Mike Douglas so aptly put it "No one came" as in "some came running...get it...well...The movie was a big disappointment. First of all, the lead men in the Boston Marathon scene could never have built like football players. to be honest, Michael was the only one who looked like a legitimate runner. It started off with him getting up in the wee hours, guzzling down orange juice, and running fully clothed for his job to work. I believe he would have had a good case of heartburn by the time he got there!And the end when he is heroically crawling to the finish line after everyone else has gone...too much . The only realistic aspect was his relationship with his wife, who couldn't handle this business of her husband running, not working and taking care of the family. It seems he couldn't do both.