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What's your favorite action movie?


Viet Bach Bui
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I just found out that a new Predator movie is being made. It's supposed to be a reboot of the franchise so I'm somewhat excited. The original is easily in my top 3 action movies ever and I still find it fun to rewatch every once in a while, as opposed the new crop of action movies from Marvel, DC and the likes which were fun to watch in the theater once but soon forgotten after. Is it just my nostalgia at play i.e. it was the movie I grew up with or is there really something special about classics like Predator, Terminator 2 or Die Hard that make them still enjoyable to these days?

Please also tell us what your favorite action movies are and, if possible, what you think make them stand out?

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Oldboy isn't exactly action but has one of the coolest fight scenes ever. Dead Snow is a campy action comedy horror masterpiece. +10 for Kill Bill. On the more tandard side, I like Mission Impossible 1 and 2 more than any Bond. Nostalgia can play a big part, but it's not bad to learn from and incorporate those classic, charming elements, since the rest of the world is also affected by them

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Ronin is a masterpiece that few appreciate because of it's length. Car chases and gun fights are great and shot wide.ronin.jpg

Die Hard is Die Hard, but I also love Die Hard with a Vengeance.

Mission Impossible 4 (Imax was incredible)

Still to this day LOVE The Matrix. Amazing action, great pacing.

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Léon A.K.A 'The Professional' is not only my favourite Action film, but probably my favourite film all round.

Young Luc Besson at his finest, drawing upon his real life admirations from an illegally young girl...add guns, Portman, Reno and a crazy ass Oldman performance all in glorious Anamorphic, you have a winner right there.

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Always hard to pick just one.

For me action (or any other) films don't work without sympathetic characters.  Ones that are flawed, vulnerable, and nuanced.  This is why for me The Road Warrior, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Die Hard work so well, and to me are a definitive trinity of 80's action.  Even the antagonists were interesting.

There have certainly been other memorable action films before and after.  La Femme Nikita, Hot Fuzz, Hardboiled, The Matrix, 13th Warrior, Big Trouble in Little China, Terminator 2, Aliens and Fury Road are a few others that really stand out in my book.  Cameron, McTiernan, and even Carpenter were unrivaled in their heyday.  Police Story gets an honorable mention for the relentless awesomeness of Jackie Chan's stunt work.  I think action loses a lot when it is overshadowed by CGI. While the current deluge of comic book heros provides entertainment for the eyes, most of these films lack any kind of compelling characters and are ultimately forgettable.

If I had to settle on just one to call my favorite, I can't decide.  Probably a tie between Raiders and Die Hard.

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Action comedy: Big Trouble in Little China and Hot Shots 1 and 2 - all of them hilarious. I got fond memories of Beverly Hills Cop too, although I haven't seen those films in decades.

Action: The Alien films, Predator ("If it bleeds, we can kill it"), Terminator 1 & 2, Tim Burton's Batman.

I also have a passion for the cheesy 80s B movies, like the films featuring Chuck Norris, various Ninja movies, films produced by Cannon Group etc. Something about the silly productions make them innocent and fun, bringing back memories from the 80s. Hence I really loved the retro mood of the new Swedish indie short film Kung Fury.

Probably a lot more great ones out there, but those are the ones that I immediately think of!

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3 hours ago, dahlfors said:

Action comedy: Big Trouble in Little China and Hot Shots 1 and 2 - all of them hilarious. I got fond memories of Beverly Hills Cop too, although I haven't seen those films in decades.

Action: The Alien films, Predator ("If it bleeds, we can kill it"), Terminator 1 & 2, Tim Burton's Batman.

I also have a passion for the cheesy 80s B movies, like the films featuring Chuck Norris, various Ninja movies, films produced by Cannon Group etc. Something about the silly productions make them innocent and fun, bringing back memories from the 80s. Hence I really loved the retro mood of the new Swedish indie short film Kung Fury.

Probably a lot more great ones out there, but those are the ones that I immediately think of!

Oh Cannon... Revenge of the Ninja... Gotta love Sho Kosugi.  Also loved Chuck Norris in The Octagon. 

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