Run Lola Run/Analysis

Roulette is the dominant visual metaphor in the film.

In the beginning, just after Lola hangs up the phone she is confused about where to find help. An animated croupier reaches in from off screen and literally spins her through the options. as the spin slows, the croupier calls out "no more bets," Lola settles on Papa and runs down the stairwell. She is shown in animated form spiraling down counterclockwise while the stairwell counterrotates (the roulette ball and wheel spin on opposite directions with the ball spiraling downwards). As she runs down the stairwell she alternately is scared by, or trips over, or avoids a dog with a diamond-spiked collar (a roulette wheel has diamond-shaped spikes set into it to trip the ball; they are actually called "dogs"). As we return to live action, Lola is clad in a silver top (the ball), and runs through a world dominated by red, black, and yellow colors (the colors of the slots and wooden surface of a roulette wheel) Every outcome seems to trace back to what she did on encountering the dog. The universe here operates by the same rules as the roulette wheel; and if you can influence your outcome in the world, we learn in the last act, so can you influence the outcome in a game of chance.