Action movie

Action movies usually involve a fairly straightforward story of good guys versus bad guys, where most disputes are resolved by using physical force. Action movies are usually "high concept" films where the whole movie can be easily summarized in a simple sentence (eg. "a scientist brings dinosaurs back to life only to find them trying to dominate earth, again" for Jurassic Park). Who exactly the good guys are differs from film to film, but in Hollywood films they usually are patriotic and rather conservative Americans, whereas the bad guys are usually either criminals or agents of foreign powers. In the 1980s and before, they were very often communists, which brings some action films fairly close to propaganda films. With the fall of Communism, communists were no longer the villains, and the focus turned to drug lords or Middle Eastern terrorists. Action movies also tend to have a single heroic protagonist and often portray institutions such as the military or police as incompetent and limited by rules and regulations which the protagonist has no regard for. This creates the stereotypical conflict between an action hero and his immediate superior.

Action films tend to be expensive requiring big budget special effects and stunt work. Action films are mainly an American genre, although there have been a significant number of action films from Hong Kong which are primarily modern variations of the martial arts film. Because of these roots, Hong Kong action films typically center on acrobatics by the protoganist while American action films typically feature big explosions and cool gadgets.

Action films also constitute very good examples for feminist film theory, because in them, the separation between the physical male who controls the scene and the look and the female, who is almost always the object of the look is very clear. Although female characters in most action films are nothing more than objects, a prize for the winner, hostages, loving wives and the like, there has been a move towards stronger female characters. These are maybe best exemplified in works by James Cameron and Kathryn Bigelow.

Current trends in action film include a development toward more elaborate fight scenes, perhaps because of the success of Asian martial arts films in Western film. Actors in action movies are now much more skilled in the art and aesthetic of fighting than they have been in the past, apart from a few acknowledged fighters like Steven Seagal. Now, a distinction can be made between films that lean toward physical agile fighting, such as The Transporter[?], and those that lean toward other common action film conventions, like explosions and plenty of gunfire, such as Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever[?], although most action movies employ elements of both.

Famous films:

• Heat
• The Rock
• Con Air[?]
• The Matrix
• True Lies
• Die Hard
• Terminator
• Rambo[?]
• Missing in Action[?]
• Under Siege (military vs. nuclear terrorists)
• Lethal Weapon
• Cobra
• Léon

Famous actors:

• Michael Dudikoff[?]
• Chuck Norris
• Arnold Schwarzenegger
• Steven Seagal
• Sylvester Stallone
• Jean-Claude van Damme[?]
• Bruce Willis
• Clint Eastwood
• Charles Bronson
• Mel Gibson

Less famous films, but fun:

• Above the Law (Cop vs. the CIA)
• Marked for Death (Cop finds hometown taken-over)
• Hard to Kill (Cop vs. Cospiracy)
• On Deadly Ground (Cowboy vs. Oil Co)
• Executive Decision (Can they defuse the bomb?)
• Under Siege 2: Dark Territory (Military vs. Mad Scientist)
• Glimmer Man (Detective vs. Serial Killer)
• Fire Down Below (EPA man vs. mine owner)
• The Patriot (6 films have this name!)
• Ticker (Steven Seagal vs. a mad bomber!)
• Exit Wounds (Cop has to get secret from gangster)
• Half Past Dead (Bad guy breaks into prison, Fed stops him)