Home Entertainment Midweek Mouth-off: End of the action hero?

Midweek Mouth-off: End of the action hero?

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Here’s your question for today: Do you think that we have passed the era of the action hero? Are we now living after a time when people would flock to a movie simply because it starred a genre icon like Sly or Arnie (whose recent collaboration, Escape Plan, seriously underperformed at the box office)? Who, apart from Jason Statham – who sticks to ass-kicking fare – can really claim the title of Action Hero for the 21st Century?

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Critical Hit as an organisation.

Last Updated: November 13, 2013

11 Comments

  1. Alien Emperor Trevor

    November 13, 2013 at 11:00

    The Rock!

    But yes, I think basic skop, skiet & donner is usually just B-movie stuff now. Movies like Expendables are fun, but I’m not going to see it because of who’s acting in it, I’m going to see it because of what they’re doing. It could have totally random people, but if it looks fun I’ll watch it.

    Maybe it has something to do with how we get so much more info on movies so readily these days as opposed to the 80s & 90s. They had more of a mystique then.

    Reply

    • James Francis

      November 13, 2013 at 13:21

      I also think action might be a lot harder to do. If you look at the editing cuts and sloppy fight choreography they could get away with even fifteen years ago, it’s clear we’ve grown to have much higher expectations.

      Reply

      • Skyblue

        November 13, 2013 at 13:57

        Agreed, like The Raid.

        Reply

        • James Francis

          November 13, 2013 at 14:41

          I’m a bit careful involving Asian films in a debate like this. They have always been more stylised. Also, while Asian action films like wides and few cuts, Western action is leaning more and more towards close-up handheld shots and quick edits. If you compare Bourne to Ong Bak, the one is full of handheld and the other uses steadycam and locked shots more often.

          Reply

  2. RinceandRepeat

    November 13, 2013 at 11:17

    I think we have moved in a good direction. The block stereotype has gone and we now get more personality driven muscles. Stratham is one of the last, until we have a revival in a few years of course.

    Reply

    • James Francis

      November 13, 2013 at 13:17

      But do we really? The difference between Jason Borne and Rambo is that Jason fights with his hands and says even less than Rambo. I didn’t see anything but modern action movie cliches in the characters of Olympus Has Fallen or White House Down. The only action character I can readily recall that actually had a personality was Liam Neeson’s spy in Taken.

      Reply

  3. Louis

    November 13, 2013 at 12:45

    As for action movies, Blonde Squad scheduled for 2014 looks pretty action packed. Lots of gun fights and martial arts.

    Reply

  4. James Francis

    November 13, 2013 at 13:19

    This is not isolated to the action stars of the mid to late Eighties and Nineties. We also do not have the equivalent of a Steve McQueen, John Wayne or Charles Bronson.

    Reply

    • RinceandRepeat

      November 13, 2013 at 13:29

      What I meant is that there are fewer successful ‘action hardarse’ movies compared to the past. People seem to expect more these days. Well, I do.

      Reply

      • Alien Emperor Trevor

        November 13, 2013 at 13:30

        That’s what she said!

        Reply

        • RinceandRepeat

          November 13, 2013 at 13:33

          gah!

          Reply

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