action movie freak
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action movie freak
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May 6
Action Movie Fans
can watch
"The Hovitos are near,
just admit it
now,
Action Movie Fans
can stomach
You're an
*from
CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK
|
Everything you love about ACTION MOVIES
•
The
Essentials that make a great
Action Movie WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE!
All women squad:
Dirty
Angels 12/13 (limited release*) The Director of Casino Royale, Martin Campbell is paired up again with "every penny of 'the money' " Eva Green, as she plays an American soldier who leads her unit of female commanders on an undercover mission to rescue a group of school girls taken hostage in Afghanistan. IMDb describes it as centering on a group of female soldiers who disguise themselves as medics to rescue a group of teenagers caught between ISIS and the forces of the Taliban. Still another synopsis: "When a group of schoolgirls is taken hostage in Afghanistan, an American soldier named Jake joins an all-women commando unit to liberate them. The plan: Gain the trust of the terrorists by posing as members of a relief organization. But double-crosses, tragedies, and the ghosts of Jake’s past complicate the rescue in this do-or-die mission." According to MovieWeb.com "This time around [Director Martin Campbell] is also focusing on abandoning stylized violence in favor of emphasizing realistic combat scenes and the emotional toll that military missions put upon personnel carrying them out. [This] approach to gritty, grounded, and immersive action sequences as opposed to over-the-top action that dominates many action movies will certainly make Dirty Angels stand out from the crowd." Filmed in Morocco and Greece, the movie also stars Ruby Rose.
*Apparently it will also be available on the same date on digital on-demand platforms.
What a Cast! The Killer's Game 9/13 Directed by J.J. Perry, this movies stars Dave Bautista, Sofia Boutella, Scott Adkins, Terry Crews, Daniel Bernhardt, Marko Zaror, Pom Klementieff This movie can't miss! All I need is some trash talking because everything else is already tip top. Synopsis reads "A veteran assassin is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness and authorizes a kill on himself. After ordering the kill, an army of former colleagues pounce, and a new piece of information comes to light. Insanity ensues."
Mourning the loss of Corey Yuen Kwai 元奎 (1951-2022) Apparently, it was only just revealed that Corey Yuen passed away at age 71 due to COVID-19 back in 2022. According to rappler.com: "His death [was] confirmed by the Federation of Hong Kong Filmmakers [on Monday, August 12, 2024] after action star Jackie Chan named Yuen in a tribute post for industry figures who have passed away." The article goes on to explain that "American entertainment website Variety reported that his family initially chose to keep the news of his death private."
Starting as a child performer in 1965, Yuen had 62 Stunt credits and 114 Acting credits to his name. He made his Directorial debut in 1980 (IMDB shows "co-director (uncredited)" for 1980s Game of Death II (along with See-Yuen Ng and Sammo Kam-Bo Hung). I don't have to tell Action Movie Freaks how great his work was. There are just too many great movies to name, but if you're looking for a great must-watch list, look no further. I was introduced to Eastern Condors (1987) at ActionFest 2012. I'm also a huge Transporter fan and LOVED his work for those movies (1 and 3). He was a contemporary of Bruce Lee (1940-1973), Cynthia Rothrock (b. 1957), Jet Li (b.1963), Michelle Yeoh (b. 1962), Stephen Chow (b. 1962), and too many others to name, every great action name. He's right up there at the top with John Woo for me. What a legacy, what a body of work. Thank you so much. I only hope he knew how great he was! He was someone who, if his name was anywhere, I was in. What a loss. Here's a nice tribute by JJ Perry on just how good Yuen was:
All hail The Gnarly
Kills! NEW
Kraven
the Hunter Trailer Any Action Movie Freak is a fan of The Gnarly Kill, and this trailer is loaded with them.
Stunt Woman Jeannie Epper
Passes at 83 (1941-2024) Jeannie Epper is best known as Wonder Woman Lynda Carter's stunt double (the pictures below are so iconic), but her career encompassed so much more. In her heyday she was, as The New York Times called her "ubiquitous." Describing her career in a visual way that brings home the risk and range of her physicality:
The list of her credits is impressive (161 on IMDb). Her last credit was in 2021 for the Video Game Ground Zero Texas: Nuclear Edition. She was in The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006), the remake of The Poseidon Adventure Poseidon (also 2006), Kiill Bill: Vol 2 (2004), and from 2003: Bad Boys II, 2 Fast 2 Furious, and The Italian Job. She was also in Rush Hour 2 (2001), Soldier, Blade, and Armageddon (1998), Con Air (1997), Money Train, Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995), Demolition Man (1993), Total Recall (1990), Robocop (1987), Blade Runner (1982), Foxy Brown (1974) and those are just some of my favorites and the tip of the iceberg. Imagine living through all those incredible movies and being able to not just be on set but be a part of the filmmaking process! Logan's Run, Silver Streak, Black Sunday, The Bionic Woman, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Blues Brothers, The Jerk . . . SERIOUSLY . . . the list goes on and on. These photos below were stamped in my brain and probably the reason why if I really love someone, I pick them up. How bad ass to double Wonder Woman and do the 'heavy lifting' but to also do it in real life?! Below the photos is an excerpt of an interview with Mike Wallace. So much couching that she's a wife and mother. How much harder was it to go against the tide of finishing school, when not only society, but even your family had other expectations? She really stepped up and elevated all women.
Meet
The Fall Guy Stunt Double Team for
Ryan Gosling Loving the big social media campaign (great website) for The Fall Guy (in theatres May 3), especially this video introducing Ryan Gosling's four (4!) stunt doubles (in the order they were mentioned in the video above):
Bad Boys: Ride or Die So excited to see this trailer on the heels of the local videos of them filming. It looks like they are sticking to the 'formula' and giving us more of what we want. The other good news is they still look good. Not as scary as some of our other much-loved action figures, like yikes on the Beverly Hills Cop cast—I know that's mean but I don't want to pay to see that. Like Schwarzenegger looking like your grandpa in Terminator: Genisys. Where's the fresh meat? Give us more muscle trash talking. Are Action Movies really dead? IDK but I've switched to watching Korean Action Movies. They are heavy on the Crime Thrillers, not that there's anything wrong with that. So mark your calendar for June 7 for Mike and Marcus. And always excited to see how beautiful MIAMI looks in the movies!
Teaser Trailer for Alien:
Romulus Can't you just smell the canned air, panic oozing out your pores . . . No matter how good or bad this movie is, it's really going to take you back to the fear of the first movie. The sense of being trapped and hunted, scared of what's around any corner, what could be hiding in any container, no place to run. Alien: Romulus looks like straight horror, well, sci-fi horror, light on the action. After seeing this teaser, I was thinking I wouldn't miss it for the world! It's a video game come to life. Sure to be a step up in effects to be sure, even from Prometheus. The only question is how sick and disturbing it will get. I am sure this movie will make the actors in it unforgettable. But after watching Don't Breathe (I pass on Evil Dead, I'm really not a horror fan anymore), I think I might truly hate it. So, do I watch because it's Alien, or do I make what seems the wiser choice and let Mr. Alvarez have his fun without me. He skated right up to the edge with this movie.
Director: Fede Alvarez, Written by: Fede Alvarez & Rodo Sayagues Crawling around, hiding for your life, trying not to make a sound, sounds a lot like Alien in a house with a demented vet. There's not a lot of dialogue in this movie. They give away the ending at the start. Still, like Alien, you keep hoping someone will come out alive. "There's nothing a man cannot do, once he accepts the fact there is no God." Several times I thought: "Burn that f*ing house to the ground!" And don't you just hate when the ending is left open. There's no way I'm watching that and there's no way I'm watching Evil Dead. Pass. But you go ahead LOL
8/16/24 | Mark your calendar for Alien: Romulus Bloody Disgusting reports that the new Alien movie, set in time between the first and the second movie, is due to be released on August 16 of this year! That's great news. I have mixed feelings but will SO see anything "Alien" related. My gut tells me it's going to be horror garbage, but I'll still watch it. I just wonder sometimes, between never getting a COLONIAL MARINES Alien movie and never getting a Terminator movie about "THE WAR", do movie makers even know what we want?! The synopsis is indicative of a who-dies-next movie (not that there's anything wrong with that). The victims, I mean actors are: Spike Fearn, David Jonsson, Isabela Merced, Archie Renaux, Cailee Spaeny, and Aileen Wu. They are all over 20, so you can't really call it a dead teenage movie, but, I mean . . . you have eyes.
Rest in Peace Carl Weathers "Gonna fly now . . ."
Heard the sad news on February 2, that Carl Weathers had passed away February 1 at age 76. 76 seems young for someone who was so fit all their lives. He was born January 14, 1948, Arnold was born July 30, 1947, and Stallone was born July 6, 1946. I knew they were getting older (aren't we all) but I guess I hoped they'd all live into their 90s. Still sad over Sonny Landham and Bill Paxton. Two of my favorites. This hurts more. I knew Carl Weathers was an. L.A. Raider. How cool is that?! I LOVED him in Action Jackson and was so glad I got to see it in a theater in 1988. That movie is underrated. He just was so strong and handsome and had so much charisma, he didn't seem real. I only hope he was half as impressed with his career as we all were. There's no higher level of cool. He'll be missed and it's going to be so bittersweet when I watch his movies. He gave me so much joy in his counterpart to Arnold in Predator (my favorite movie). Loved his character arc. What a presence. What a very great loss. He embodied all we love in an Action Figure and then some. I mean, he was the mighty Apollo Creed! Weren't you sure he would pulverize Rocky? He set the standard. Just look at him here in his prime. This much-loved montage made all our spirits fly. Who else could have mid-air arm wrestled Mr. Universe!? Here is Sylvester Stallone's moving tribute:
Lights Out
Stars Scott Adkins and Frank Grillo
| Opens 2/16 Writer Chad Law is promoting his latest Action Movie Lights Out. The trailer description reads "A drifting ex-soldier turns underground fighter with the help of a just released ex-con, pitting them both against corrupt cops and hired killers gunning for them and all those they care about. The cast includes Frank Grillo, Mekhi Phifer, Jaime King (Hart of Dixie), Dermot Mulroney, and Scott Adkins." FirstShowing.net gives a longer description: "A homeless veteran, Michael 'Duffy' Duffield (Grillo), meets a talkative Ex-Con, Max Bomer (Phifer) who notices Duffy's skills after he gets into a bar fight and offers him a well-paying 'job' in underground fight clubs. The pair form an unlikely partnership after their first fight and decide to travel to LA so Duffy can atone for his past and Max can pay back a crime boss, Sage Parker (Mulroney). Duffy enters Sage's fight club and eventually wins, but it also gets him tied up in the crime world and offered jobs he can't refuse, including one with Sage's partner and Police officer, Ellen Ridgway (King). The deeper Duffy goes in this world, the more deadly it gets." It's rated "R"! Yay. And yay that Grillo is the star. He always brings gritty reality to his roles since he 'looks the part', walks the walk. It naturally reminds me of Every Which Way But Loose, but also Blood and Bone. I just hope it's showing somewhere near me. Miami rarely gets the limited release action movies. In any case, it will also be out on VOD.
Rebel Moon:
Part One -
A Child of Fire [War] . . . BLAZES! SOMEBODY must be a big The Chronicles of Riddick fan (other than me—I was/am still obsessed with that movie)! This movie's inspiration had to be part Riddick, with lots of Star Wars thrown in. There were variations of other bits and pieces I felt like I had seen before* but, overall, it was super entertaining all the way through. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Luckily, I dragged no expectations into it and was happy to let it play out. I'm really looking forward to further installments (Rebel Moon: Part Two - The Scargiver will be out April 19, 2024). Despite my comparisons to other movies, it seemed 'new'. I felt that sense of wonder and adventure I haven't felt since I was a kid. [After watching it, I was wondering why it wasn't as she says ''a child of war''.
But what I want to know is . . . WHY didn't we get to watch this on the big screen? MAYBE Netflix needs to make its own theatre where you can go and watch streaming movies. This was so a big screen movie—not to take anything away from it because it was on Netflix. Netflix seems to be 'killing' more and more with great offerings, and is saving me tons of money not going to the theatre, but I miss the experience. If only movie theatre companies understood they need to price the food cheaply so it's a draw not a deterrent. They would make more money because they would sell more food and more tickets. (Remember the QVC price point lesson on every season of The Apprentice? They never learned that.) Lust for Destruction Hats off to Ed Skrein. I didn't even recognize him. It's leagues above his Transporter effort. This twisted role suits him much better (in my opinion—or maybe that's just a testament to his range). Nothing is more satisfying than when they make the villain someone you love to hate so when they dispatch him at the end, it's ultra gratifying. The biggest thing this movie had going for it was engaging characters. That says a lot for the acting in general, but mainly for the script (and hats off to the Casting Director) as well. It made me care early on, something too many movies lack these days. It teased just enough of the back story to make me want to know more.
Rebels, assemble! Just when you thought they had all the members of a new 'team' like every superhero super freak group (Avengers, Suicide Squad, Guardians of the Galaxy, etc.), they surprise you. So do the VERY deep themes, from the beginning when Kora explains that ''the very idea of love, of family, was beaten out of [her].'' That she ''was taught that love is weakness.'' It's left me wondering, can a small screen movie 'series' build a following? Is the impact of the big screen lost, was screen size that important? Tom Cruise thinks so. ___ *Soldier, Lord of the Rings, The Matrix . . .
FURIOSA!
This looks amazing. I'm all in. Coming to theaters May 24, 2024. There's a lot of buzz online about "too much CGI". That SO does not bother me. At least they are going in the direction of who the main character really was in the last story.
Kraven the Hunter:
Tarzan and Trash Talking? "There's six of you now." Is that the only trash talking we'll get, I wonder? I hope not. This epic trailer looks like they took Tarzan and used his savagery to kick ass. I'm for that, but "[Spiders]! Why did it have to be [spiders]?" Gonna have to close my eyes LOL #arachnaphobia. We'll have to wait until August 30, 2024 (expected date/might change). It's labeled Action Adventure SciFi. Gotta love that! LOL Aaron Taylor-Johnson's voice and apparent IRL goofiness undoes all the savagery of the trailer, but you get some insight into his agility.
Mark Wahlberg
is "that guy" in The Family Plan 12/15 Mark Wahlberg is always "that guy". Mark Wahlberg was born to be "that guy"! This Action Comedy looks like fun.
Silent Night Merry Merry Merry Merry Christmas 12/1 Joel Kinnaman is one of today's best actors IMO. Pair that with John Woo? YES PLEASE. Tagline: "Nothing Speaks Louder Than Revenge." Except ACTION MOVIES. This movie has no dialogue. Woo says (from movieweb.com):
That's intriguing (emphasis added), probably not easy to do, and certainly commendable that someone who is already so brilliant keeps evolving (at age 70). Movie Web also says "Woo's decision to direct Silent Night was inspired not just by Woo's obvious attraction to the film's script but also by the chance for Woo to try to recapture the simplicity and style of [his] older films." The trailer looks action-packed as one would expect. Something about it reminds me of Hobo With A Shotgun. It's a little A Clockwork Orange (violence set to unexpected music), a little Die Hard (it is a Christmas movie), and . . . ever since Bond fought against the jellyfish projected background in Skyfall (video below), I think action movies have gotten more and more visually artistic. Something the John Wick series is proof of. This screenshot from the Silent Night trailer reminds me of a beautiful shot action movie—the title escapes me now—but I remember thinking NOBODY expected this movie to be this visually stunning. For the same to be true of a John Woo movie really says something. This trailer has me super excited, not just for the uber violence I love but for the stylistic and thematic delivery of it by someone in a league of his own and at the top of his game.
Jason Statham is The
BEEKEEPER
1/12/2024
It's giving The Transporter kicking-the-door-down vibes! "Ding, dong—It's your ass." The Beekeeper Director David Ayer's got an impressive Filmography (via Wikipedia), and an equally impressive life. Gave me a what-have-I-been-doing-with-mine kind of moment. He got kicked out of his house (wonder what he did), lived in South Central with a cousin, dropped out of high school, enlisted in the Navy, and served as a submarine sonar technician. He's also a writer (of course he is!). He wrote the screenplay for Dark Blue. I wonder if he was as impressed with Kurt Russell's acting as I was. Kurt really should have won an Oscar for that performance. And that's not even his most 'prominent' screenplay. He wrote Training Day, The Fast and The Furious, End of Watch (criminally underrated), Sabotage, Suicide Squad. Just look at this list! I loved the script for Suicide Squad. It gave a portrait of the Squad the way Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil painted a portrait of Savannah. I think those who negatively criticized it lacked an appreciation for the bigger picture. It gave just enough of each of them to get a sense of the Squad. That's not easy to do. It's like each part had to be 'complete' and contribute to the whole. It was masterful! How's this for a holy shit moment: "He was also contracted by Universal Pictures to direct a remake of Scarface starring Diego Luna, but was let go because his script was too violent." I didn't think that was possible for a movie set in Miami #justsaying! I would LOVE to see that. WTH?!
Anyhow, the trailer speaks for itself. Love me some
Explosions. There's just no way this doesn't satisfy my
Action Movie
Essentials.
John Cena brings the ACTION in Freelance
10/27 "D'you know that feeling when you're doing exactly what you were put on the Earth to do? The one where it's like everything inside you is moving together in harmony with the Universe . . ." Ah ,yes! That's what it looks like to me. John Cena doing action movies. Yes, please. Gimme more. Cena stars as a "one man security team" and it's giving Commando vibes. At the very least, it looks like fun and I'm hoping it doesn't disappoint like The Meg did (pouting). It's got all the Action Movie Essentials: BIG, beefy, good looking HERO (check), Explosions and Chases (check), Boy Toys, a Close Quarters Fight, High Killcount, Gnarly Kills, Trash Talking (I see you!), Cheesy One-Lines (hello, it's John Cena), Camaraderie and Dominance, a Whiner, and its gives you The RUSH!
Wu Jing aka Jacky
Wu joins Jason Statham
in The first movie, The Meg, was so much fun, I remember thinking "I wish it wasn't over" when it ended. It was the perfect summer movie back in August of 2018. I only just watched this trailer today, and to my surprise up popped Wu Jing aka "Jacky Wu"! Here are a couple of screencaps of him in action:
I was psyched before, but now, I'm super psyched. The part where the crew is down in the trench looks like a house of horrors. Should be fun. I love the comedy mixed with the action and the horror. The trailer gives a lot away but I see it's also in 3D so I'm sure it will be super cring-y and it'll feel like you're about to be eaten I couple times. Can't wait!
Jackie Chan
teams up with John Cena
in Hidden Strike I bet your first thought was "Is this really the first Jackie Chan and John Cena movie?" The residue of hearing about it a while back lingers but it is the first time because this is the movie SNAFU that was never released. According to Empire, the film was announced back in 2017 as Ex-Baghdad with Chan and Sylvester Stallone but Stallone was out (Creed 2 conflicts was the reason according to IMDb Trivia) then Cena came in, and they changed the title to Project X-Traction before it became SNAFU. So it's a Buddy Movie. Gotta love Action Comedy. Nobody's better at it than Jackie Chan. It will be released some time in 2023 (Collider confirms its coming to the big screen) but there's no official data as yet on IMDb. In this Interview on YouTube, John Cena says he asked to be a part of the movie. I think they make a great team! John Cena's doing really well with learning the language. Smart move on his part. This article by sportsmanor.com says Cena starting learning Mandarin back in 2012. His now fluent. I remember (and the article mentions) that the WWE supported his efforts so that wrestling could expand into China.
I'm sure Wrestling Fans remember and were impressed with this 2016 press conference in China, when John spoke fluently.
The
Expend4bles
Trailer:
The Trash Talking You've Been Missing Finally, a movie that FEELS LIKE an ACTION MOVIE and not just another movie with action! Leave it to the best of the best to make this trailer that leaves you with that Pumped-Up feeling any true Action Movie should leave you with. It meets ALL the Action Movie Essentials: MANY big, beefy, good looking HERO types, Explosions and Chases, Boy Toys (Gadgets, Weapons, Vehicles), Close-Quarters Fight(s), a High Killcount, Gnarly Kills, and Trash Talking—the requisite, mandatory, indispensable, and oh-so-satisfying cheesy one-liners. "Now that's what I'm talking about!" So, who's in it?
Johnny Strong's
Directorial Debut: Warhorse One 6/30 From YouTube: In Select Theaters June 30 | On Digital July 4, 2023 "After a SEAL team helicopter is downed during a rescue mission in Afghanistan, the lone surviving operator must evade hostile insurgents and navigate rough terrain to guide the one living civilian—a traumatized child—to safety." This is Johnny Strong's (co-)directorial debut with William Kaufman. William Kaufman's directorial debut was Sinners and Saints starring Johnny Strong. WHAT A MOVIE! I was lucky enough to see it at the last year of ActionFest in 2012, when Johnny Strong, William Kaufman, and Tom Berenger all appeared to talk about the film. (Read about it here.) Johnny also did the soundtrack for Sinners and Saints and made the knives used in the film. He also does the music for this movie. IMDb doesn't list any Second Unit Director or Stunt credits at all for Warhorse One BUT it's Johnny Strong and William Kaufman. Think Scott Adkins and Isaac Florentine, it's a given it's going to be great.
When asked "What work are you most proud of?" Strong answered Fury like this: " I think I'm proud of everything I do at the time. That's one of the reasons I have a pretty small resume because I don't like to regret things later. I just choose projects that interest me and I try to be as honest and open as I can in my performance. Even though I played small roles, when I look at films like The Glimmer Man or Get Carter, I'm proud of certain scenes because I feel the delivery is real.' YES! And he is a great actor so I am certain Warhorse One will deliver. The article on him is fascinating because he's such an interesting person. It says a year after he started making knives he got the cover of Blade Magazine (on his website, he lists a second cover, impressive). If you haven't seen Sinners and Saints, I could say watch it just for the knife fight, but the whole movie's amazing. SERIOUSLY. The knives used in the movie are super cool, and the knife fight is just at the top! It makes you wish there was a knife fight this great in every Action Movie. On directing, Strong said he had "an idea in mind for something and [he had] a specific style and idea of the shape it would take." I can't wait to see what he does as a Director! He lives and breathes Action Movies, and he's just a super cool person. So much talent! He was great in Daylight's End as well (also his musical score). In this fascinating "Bulletproof Workshop" Podcast episode, Johnny talks about his early influences and tells how he got the role in Black Hawk Down and what he did with it.
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Kandahar stars Gerard Butler
and Travis Fimmel 5/26 "A CIA operative and his translator flee from special forces in Afghanistan after exposing a covert mission." This is the backbone of it but it seems like there is so much more meat: From a September 21, 2022 article by deadline.com: The "screenplay comes from Mitchell LaFortune, based on his own experiences as a military intelligence officer during the Snowden leaks." And . . . " 'Kandahar is an adrenaline ride made for the big screen. Gerry, Ric, the G-BASE team and Thunder Road have outdone themselves with this pulse-pounding action [movie] that our team is looking forward to bringing to audiences everywhere,' said Open Road Films' Tom Ortenberg. Commented Director Ric Roman Waugh: 'What made Mitch LaFortune's visceral script so compelling and unique for me is its authenticity and how he humanizes not just our heroes, but all the characters portrayed in a region that's been locked in a perpetual cycle of violence.' " It was called Mission Kandahar but since Mission: Impossible kind of owns the name, I would have removed it too. I always like to see if I can come up with a better title after I see the movie. Seems like it should be easy, but unless it 'hits' you know it's not right. Too often when they change a movie's title near release, it tanks. John Carter of Mars comes to mind—That was a great title, they should have left it alone. Also, titles too often seem like a working title but they never found anything better.
Mission: Impossible - Dade Reckoning Part One 7/12 This trailer is one I am not watching for sure! I didn't watch the 11 minute teaser either. I want to truly enjoy every second of it for the first time on the BIG SCREEN. Previews do ruin movies. LATELY it seems they are killing off all our heroes. First Bond, then Wick, now Hunt. This is from IMDb Trivia "During an interview with Savannah Guthrie on Today Show {Tom Cruise said] that Dead Reckoning Part 1 and 2 will be his final portrayal as Ethan Hunt as well as both final main installment for good." So I guess we can expect a spectacular save-the-world death for Hunt in Part Two. I mean, Cruise is 61 and although he looks great, it can't be easy much longer with wear and tear. As Indiana Jones said, "It's not the years, it's the mileage." In my opinion, although there are far fewer films, the Mission: Impossible series surpassed James Bond quite a while ago. Every movie is excellent and I re-watch them often. So many—especially III—seemed ahead of their time. Seriously, the Action Movie playing field is getting smaller and smaller. I used to hold out hope it wasn't a thing of its time, but so few Action Movies (like none) are made anymore, they're just movies with Action. They don't satisfy the Action Movie Essentials. I really miss the Big Beefy Hero trash talking.
The Extraction 2 Trailer is out
The London ACTION
Festival—Year 2: June 21-25
So I missed the 2022 PREDATOR 35th Anniversary screening with John McTiernan! (copious tears—it's my favorite movie). Sign up for their newsletter so you won't miss anything in 2023, visit their website: londonactionfestival.com.
The only negative is the word "Actioner," which originates over the pond. I don't know why but I hate that word. It seems trite and dismissive. I am sure it's probably used affectionately, like a nickname, but it comes off like "chick" for a woman. Is it just me? It's always just me. And Action MOVIE (not film). Films are a whole other thing. And don't hate on me as if I'm American, I'm half English. My Dad was a Yorkshireman.
PLANE: Starting out 2023 with a BANG!
No, I don't care about Avatar 2. THIS is the kind of movie I have been waiting to see. Anything Gerard [Jerrid] Butler I'm down for, but I am also a fan of Mike Colter who was INCREDIBLE in Black and Blue. If you didn't watch it, see it just for his performance. I really should have added him to the Action Figures (for his physique alone but . . .) after he was Luke Cage, but I've fixed that now. According to Wikipedia, the movie was filmed in Puerto Rico so the scenery should be beautiful and I am sure the storm-torn U.S. territory could use the revenue. Collider has all there is to know about the movie, but all I need to know (besides GB) is it's rated "R". Always a good sign for violence. The article mentions (French) Director Jean-François Richet, who directed Blood Father (Mel Gibson) and won an award for his 1995 debut film. The story comes from an "upcoming" novel The Plane, and was an original pitch by the (co) Writer Charles Cumming. Philip Sledge from Cinemablend.com begins with "Plane Has Fallen." LOL Someone had to say it. In Deadline's Hero Nation podcast appearance by Mike Colter he says (@21:22) the movie "is at its core an action film, but what's really going to make the film work is the relationship between Gerard's character and my character and how that develops and what happens during the film." That's a good sign. As action-packed as it is, we still want character development and you need to make us care. So maybe, it's a Buddy movie.
Watch Now: Excellent Action
Short
Speed Dating This movie is a hilarious 'shorthand' of speed dating and is, entertainingly, long on action. I really enjoyed watching it, more so the second time to further appreciate the direction, the sound, the acting (compliments to the cast), how it plays out, and how the ending is a commentary on the whole speed-dating process (kudos to the writing), bringing it neatly around full circle. The gun play is good, there's close-quarters fighting, and a knife fight. The title includes "Part 1" so we can look forward to more to come! Writer/Director Jean-Paul Ly (from his IMDb bio) aka "JP" or "JPL" is an award-winning action actor based in London, from Chinese and Cambodian descent. He's also a critically acclaimed action designer, notably on Jailbreak (Best Action Feature winner at 2017 Fantasia Film Fest) and on British action comedy feature Nightshooters (nominated at 2018 Raindance for Best UK Feature). He directed his first 23 min. film, The Division - PoC in 2018. Check out his Action Reel and his Acting Reel. In this movie, he does quadruple duty as a co-Action Director (and he is also an Executive Producer). Speed Dating has excellent production value, as you can tell by the extensive credits from YouTube, below. The star, Eloise Lovell Anderson can 'handle herself' and exudes a natural intensity. From her IMDb bio: "Eloise is a keen and strong martial artist. She trains Muay Kickboxing, Escrima (Philippine Martial Art) and handles a number of weapons and she does her own stunts." We are drawn in to the character's life and left wanting to see more. Across the board, the cast is very entertaining, doing a great deal with snippets of on-camera time. Cast :
Eloise Lovell Anderson, Michael Kodi Farrow, Rob Locke, Mia Foo, Daniel Larkai, Phoebe Rodrigues, Laurent Plancel, Michael Lagin, Ben Mars, Alex Childs, Hunter Christensen, Joe Warner, Axel Nu, Leonardo Bertolini, Rena, Asher Green, Ailis Smith, Sim Cardita, Natasha Pring
WATCH NOW on YouTube at BAD GUYS FILMS and like and subscribe.
Section 8 out today
in Limited Release and on
AMC+ What a cast! Scott Adkins, Ryan Kwanten, Dolph Lundgren, Dermot Mulroney, and Mickey Rourke. Writer Chad Law's (and Josh Ridgway's) latest Action movie Section 8 is directed by Christian Sesma and opens today as a limited release in AMC theaters in Chicago, New York, Glendale, and Rogers MN, and Royal Oak MI. It's also available on AMC+. The trailer kicks ass! AMC+ has a 7-day free trail, so whadda you waiting for? Mr. Lundgren, Mr. Law, and Mr. Adkins are Executive Producers, so lend your support and they can keep making more Action Movies. Here's the trailer, and please keep reading below . . . From the opening credits—they sounded and looked like they were inspired by the computer terminal buzzing and beeping in Alien—I really enjoyed it. The violence is so satisfying. The dialogue is great, with lots of funny moments. Ryan Kwanten is very convincing in this; something about him that I can't put my finger on reminds me of Tommy Lee Jones. He's very every man, but at the same time, believable, as the Super Soldier the gang bangers wished they never messed with. He's equal parts sorrow and anger, but a lean, mean, killing machine. The film is heavy on nudity like a throwback to 80s action, so there's an obligatory strip club scene, plus lots of boobs and buttcheeks if that floats your boat. What floats mine is that a fight with Scott Adkins almost certainly involves air time. He can throw a punch, but he can also launch a knee, or raise his foot to your throat. As much hand-to-hand fighting as went on in this film, and much of it intense, it pales to a throwdown with Mr. Adkins. Just look how airborne is. Reminds me of the "aerobatic insanity" comment about Ethan Hunt in MI:2 (@1:06:50).
Sequel + Spin-Off Announced for The Gray Man
LinkedIn News appeared in my feed that "Netflix's $200 million 'The Gray Man,' its most expensive movie to date, has quickly ascended the streamer's global Top 10 list as subscribers watched more than 88 million hours in its debut weekend. While that's far behind opening numbers for 2021's 'Red Notice' (149 million hours) and 'Don't Look Up' (111 million hours), it's still good enough that a sequel and spinoff already are in the works for the Ryan Gosling action [movie]. The news is a welcome counterpoint to the nearly 1 million subscribers Netflix lost in its second quarter." Tech Crunch quoted the Russo Brothers saying "always intended for 'The Gray Man' to be part of an expanded universe."
The Gray Man: Jack Gill Delivers Relentless Action
What's all the negative fuss about The Gray Man?! I just don't get why people are hating on it. Sometimes I think some people wait for what 'important' critics think and just hop on. If you can't see for your self that this has everything you're looking for in an Action Movie, get a grip. It's . . . edge-of-your-seat highest-bullet-count-ever more-explosions most-property-destroyed insane-chases big-guns-you've-never-seen-before bet-Tom-Cruise-AND-Michael-Bay-loved-it . . . F-ING AWESOME! I would call it a major achievement in stuntwork and visual effects. I thought it was non-stop excitement. In one word, the action is "relentless" Everyone in it is great. I loved the writing. Seriously, it was super exciting and so satisfying. Don't listen to naysayers, it just might blow your mind. Read how it satisfies ALL my Action Movie Essentials.
The WOMAN King trailer . . . goosebumps . . .! Coming to theaters September 16, 2022! SYNOPSIS: "The Woman King is the remarkable story of the Agojie, the all-female unit of warriors who protected the African Kingdom of Dahomey in the 1800s with skills and a fierceness unlike anything the world has ever seen. Inspired by true events, The Woman King follows the emotionally epic journey of "General Nanisca" (Oscar-winner Viola Davis) as she inspires the King to take on the enemies determined to violate their honor and destroy their way of life. Some things are worth fighting for . . .." The movie is directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, writer and director of the widely acclaimed feature "Love & Basketball" that premiered at Sundance in 2000. Gina is a UCLA Film School graduate. She also was a member of UCLA's track and field team, qualifying for the Pac-10 Championships in the triple jump. From her IMDb bio—She is the first Black woman to direct a superhero film, "The Old Guard," based on the celebrated graphic novel by Greg Rucka for Skydance and Netflix. It premiered on July 10, 2020 to record ratings, and was the 6th most popular Netflix film of all-time. Gina also directed the pilot for the ABC limited event series "Women of the Movement," about Mamie and Emmett Till. , releasing theatrically September of 2022. She is proud to fund a scholarship for African American students in UCLA's film program. (SOURCE: IMDb) | Follow @womankingmovie on instagram. The movie stars:
PREY Movie Poster: Genius Graphic Design! This is an incredible poster. A seemingly simple design, and yet . . . overall, the clashing color palette (red, blue-purple, lime-green/chartreuse) is so vibrant it reminds us of the first movie's thermal images. The halo of the blue-purple light source behind him could be the moon (danger is more intense in the dark) or it might be light from a spaceship—like there is danger ahead and behind him. The wispy tendrils of his hair in the light suggests the wind or motion suddenly halted. Obviously, he's being targeted by the Predator's shoulder cannon, aka the plasmacaster, by the three red dots on his forehead. Two of the dots have triangles of red light 'pointing' to them. The third brings your attention to what might be human blood (red) and a spot of the green alien blood. The red concentric circles of the target framing his face also bring your focus to his red eyes where the silhouette of a Predator replaces the pupils (genius), and the red target rings obscure his true eye color. Also, we can see the pinpoint of red from the Predator's weapon in place of where the pupil highlight would normally be (more genius). Next, the diagonal black streak across his forehead seems like he has been torn open to reveal the night sky and stars, echoed in the war paint across the bridge of his nose (talk about genius!). The red target circles also bring our focus down to his lips. The fact that the yellow-green of the Predator's blood has splattered on his neck and chin, and is reflected in his hair and under his nose frame the mouth. More 'stars' pour from his lips and down his chin, as warpaint, to the green line that leads you to the movie title. The fact that they wrote the word "Prey" in blood seems to suggest not necessarily that the Predator marked him as Prey, but by using green blood hints of a turnaround or reckoning from the universe. He picked the wrong rec room . . . The liquidity of his eyes conveys so much emotion, it screams "DANGER" like a deer in the headlights, as well as his lips being slightly open (can't you hear his gasp?). The whole thing seems like it captures an instant. It can be fear, sadness, acceptance, and yet, it could also be defiance, strength (of one man and of the universe), bravery (what seems to be the rachis or shaft of a feather marks him as a "Brave"). This poster alone tells a story. Kudos to the artist, Chris Barnes (@BRUTALPosters)! He has taken this cool idea/original version WAY beyond . . . They should adopt the new one. Release date on Hulu, August 5, 2022.
Day Shift: JJ Perry
Stakes a New Kind of Vampire Movie There's nothing more exciting than practical stunts. This new
Netflix Action Movie Directed by JJ Perry (his
directorial debut and the 2nd Unit Director directorial debut of
Justin Yu, at center above) stars Jamie Foxx,
Scott Adkins, Snopp Dogg,
and Steve Howey—you know him, the douchey-yet-hilarious
"Marcus" from Something Borrowed, a movie worth watching
even just for John Krasinski who steals the show . . . Well Marcus, got a serious upgrade . . . (that's Steve Howey to the right of Scott Adkins, Dave Franco, and Jamie Foxx).
You know anything JJ Perry does will be legit action-packed. The movie's trailer was shared by Larnell Stovall on Facebook, that's an amazing endorsement and so is having Chad Stahelski praise your work. JJ was honored at the last ActionFest (in 2012) as Fight Coordinator of the Year and he was on hand to accept. Chuck Norris said "nobody deserves it more." Can't beat that! This Action Movie will be coming to Netflix on August 12, 2022, and . . . is "Rated R for strong violence and gore, and language"! #bringtheaction The IMDb Plot reads: A hard-working, blue-collar dad just wants to provide a good life for his quick-witted 8-year-old daughter. His mundane San Fernando Valley pool cleaning job is a front for his real source of income: hunting and killing vampires." About JJ Perry | Filmography
From the first LIFE OF ACTION volume by Mike Fury, JJ says: "Martial Arts has always been my life and I wouldn't be anything like I am today without it. [M]e and my friends were always huge film fans so we'd play fight all the time and put together little fight scenes. In competition you train to hit as hard as you can and in practicing what is essentially choreography, you train to not hit someone, so it kind of fell right into place. " From kungfumovieguide.com: "His titles made him eligible for a programme in the US Army, and in 1985, he signed up as part of the 82nd Airborne Corps. Stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. JJ continued to compete in taekwondo while in the Army, becoming a two-time All-Army Champion and later becoming part of the US 1990 Olympic Taekwondo team. He travelled to Korea and trained before eventually leaving the army in 1989 and moving to California." Besides weapons and martial arts, JJ is also skilled at riding bikes, rodeo, and he does weight lifting. He was the co-founder of Taekwondo West martial arts schools with locations in Inglewood and Venice, California. JJ speaks English, Hebrew, Korean, and Spanish. On fight choreography, JJ shares (again,
from LIFE OF ACTION, which I highly recommend and which now has
volume 2):
Love this shot of Scott Adkins and Jamie Foxx. In case you missed it, check out Scott's "The Art of Action" episode 8 with JJ Perry (video below). What an incredible career! Truly, he was a part of way too many cool movies to list. He tells lots of stories, including some from The Rundown. Also, Scott praises the "violence and viciousness" of JJ's (and Larnell Stovall's) fight choreography.
Black Adam Trailer Opens a Can of Whop Ass This has been a long time coming. It was first announced way back in September 2014, but The Rock was interested since November 2007, according to Wikipedia). The Rock has done SO MUCH since then, and yet, it still seems like a natural progression. He was meant for a role like this, and we've all been waiting for him to done a Superhero costume.
Prey New Predator
Movie Comes to Disney+ 8/5 Super interested in the fact that the central character is a woman. I'd watch if I had Disney+ but I'm not paying for it. The only way this works is if they make us care about the central character so we root for her. In response to the question "Why do want to hunt?" She replies "Because you all think that I can't." She also says that she is "ready". So bring it on, lets see what skills she has. Really loved the "Boy Scout shit" from the original movie, so maybe—considering the timeline is in the past—that will feature prominently and it should be interesting to see how she fares against a 'superior' hunter. "It knows how to hunt. I know how to survive." "Whatever did this, I can kill it." Plot: "The origin story of the Predator in the world of the Comanche Nation 300 years ago. Naru, a skilled female warrior, fights to protect her tribe against one of the first highly-evolved Predators to land on Earth." Naru is played by Amber Midthunder. She's described as Native American (Lakota and Assiniboine), European, Spanish, and Asian, but she play a Comanche. Love the idea that it's set in a time where everyone needed survival and hunting skills. The tomahawk on a rope is bad ass. Also, they show a row of young Indian men. Comanches had a rite of passage for 15-16 year old boys—Wikipedia excerpt:
Looks like there are some trappers in the movie as well. Hoping for LOTS of Gnarly Kills! It's the holy trinity of Action, Horror, and Sci-Fi. #bringtheaction
Tom Cruise Master Class Cannes 2022 Tom Cruise is incredible in myriad ways. This fascinating and informative conversation showcases his passion for film. Love that Maverick is doing so well in the Box Office. Can't wait to see it tomorrow! He really should have received an Oscar for Magnolia! There's nobody like him. What a career, what a life! I could transcribe the whole thing but here are the quotes I love most.
That is the biggest draw for me in movies. The worlds that are created. Take Oblivion, for example, or Live Die Repeat. He does this even with Mission: Impossible because of the team and the places they go. It feels like he's bringing us along.
Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning
- Part One Teaser
#expend4bles Standee
Appears at CinemaCon
ambuLAnce Equal Parts
Chase and Crazy
From the kamikazi drone footage to the color-assault thermals to
the intensely gritty flavor of L.A. to Lorne Balfe's
hard-hitting score, this IS an ACTION MOVIE.
Essentially about one
man's desperation to find the funds for his wife's surgery, we
meet his crazy 2nd generation bank-robber brother and find out
he's no longer rich but still crazy. A Heist-gone-wrong chase ensues . . .
In this hilarious promotional video Jake Gyllenhaal reveals that he looked to Michael Bay's energy to create the intensity his character "Danny" needed. With what's at stake, we root for Yayah Abdul-Mateen II's character "Will" as Michael Bay shoots what seems to be a full-length Chase movie. (Michael Bay says it's a Heist movie @7:03 but there's too little on the planning of the heist and, for me, the heist is just the set-up not the meat.) The pace and the tension are heightened by a jarring Terminator-esque and musical score. An hour and a half in, I was exhausted (in a good way) and not just because of the action; a lot of that was owing to the music. It was gratifying that when I looked up the musical score to find Lorne Balf, he was the one who did the score to Terminator: Genisys! In this interview (@7:11), Balf says that's the tricky thing about a movie's theme music "either hits you, or it doesn't." In this movie, it definitely 'hits'. How great that even the score hits hard. Parts of it sounded like a racing sonogram heart beat. It was definitely not the typical bold orchestral feel of the action-blockbuster-series movies (until a little bit at the end). That music, and in so many other ways, it reminded me of The Rock (1996), the 2-dimensional characters for comic relief, but especially the style of the script. They even quote the movie.
There's a lot packed into this Action Movie and no shortage of Boy Toys (as one would expect with Michael Bay). The technology brought in splashes of color with thermal vision, like an periodic assault to the eyeballs. It made a nice contrast with all the black and white from the police cars, and there were SO MANY police cars! I heard "200" at one point. This might be the first movie where I thought there should be a police-car crash count. There were black and whites, blacks, and white-on-whites—all Dodge Challengers or Chargers. Never seen white-on-white police cars before. Apparently it's called "ghost graphics" (this car is a Columbia, SC police car). That looked bad ass. Check out the particulars of all the vehicles at Internet Movie Cars Database IMCDb.
Between the two police "R.V.s" (to quote Die Hard, but you knew that), the color assault thermals, the "Triggerfish" tech, and all the guns, we were already over the top when we get to the tricked-out lowriders (especially the armed 1963 Chevrolet Impala Sport Coupe). If you love cars, you'll love this movie. The cop cars fall like dominoes! Grand Theft Auto came to mind. This was the first time I heard of "Triggerfish" (Great name because IRL trigger fish bite hard!). From Wikipedia + Arstechnica: Triggerfish is the tracking of a cellphone by a mobile FBI van (wireless intercept and tracking team) that seeks to locate a cellphone lacking GPS tracking by scanning for its emissions. They are able to intercept a cell phone call by a man-in-the-middle attack if the option is enabled and the user makes or receives a call. Triggerfish can be deployed without the user knowing about it, and without involving the cellphone provider. That may be significant because the legal rulings requiring law enforcement to meet a high "probable cause" standard before acquiring cell location records have, thus far, pertained to requests for information from providers, pursuant to statutes such as the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) and the Stored Communications Act—so this circumvents that. Other notable Police moments included the S.I.S. chatter (SIS stands for the Special Investigation Section, the real-life tactical surveillance unit of the LAPD) about having a strategy that was part "chess match and cage fight." But don't take yourselves too seriously. LOL
The characters were 2-dimensional in the best way—we're not here for Drama—and yet, it was super dramatic and full of emotion. Gritty L.A. streets and alleys and endless freeways helped to wind up the action. At times it felt, intentionally, like a maze. The traffic, the gridlock, the sense that everyone is always on the move there lent to the humor in the line "Guys, are we on a tour of L.A., or can we get to a hospital?" It was most definitely a tour of L.A. A little To Live and Die in L.A. with the wrong-way freeway scene, and it had to have the obligatory L.A. aqueduct chase (like Terminator 2). It really felt like Bay was making an homage to T2 when the 2 helicopters gave chase while Danny shot at them while hanging out the window. I can't say it matched the intensity but the graffiti with the eyeballs . . . WOW! It also felt a little like Speed. What they all have in common was intensity, and they never let up.
COLOR ME IMPRESSED Michael Bay's use of color in this movie as bright as the colors of 6 Underground, and it made me see what his palette is . . .
FIREPOWER Internet Movie Firearms Database has the
low down on all the weapons in this movie but the one that stood
out the most was Danny's. It's a Troy M7A1 PDW.
THE SENSEI In the tradition of Sylvester Stallone and Steven Seagal Action Movies, this movie has Michael Bay taking on causes, like
When Will is in custody but wounded, the callousness of the police shows in that they don't immediately get him the life-saving medical treatment he needs. Bay included a classic Seagal Action Movie moment similar to the pimp-through-the-windshield opening credits of Out For Justice:
DRONE DIRECTING and VR Here's a look at the future of Action Movies. What's not possible anymore? Creatively, this is mind blowing. ALL the "crazy" comic book angles can come to life.FULL CIRCLE Some say the sign of a great movie is they end where they started . . . "Don't let go." In that way, the movie is more about a day in the life of Eiza González's character Cam Thompson. Her character drives a lot of scenes. Would be interesting to calculate if she has the second most screen time (I think Danny has the most for sure, but I could be wrong). I think the thing I love most about Michael Bay is how much he loves Action Movies. If you're a Michael Bay super fan too, you'll enjoy this . . .
Baytastic ambuLAnce NOW SHOWING
Are you an MMA Fan? Get your
favorite fighter's t-shirt! The T-shirts are "made to represent the fighters style and personality, not a company design aesthetic, and are shipped worldwide. Each sale helps to put money in the fighters' pockets whether they are active, injured or retired. Support your favorite fighters!" The prices are reasonable too. The artwork is excellent . . . Here are some sample of the creative [HOT!] designs . . .
You can just tell that he has a great sense of design. The images are not crazy over-sized like everything seems to be these days. It's a passion project for him, so that's amazing too. Hope you like the shirts as much as I do!
Spiritwalker Korean Action
Movie Releases 4/12/22 The lead actor is the heartbreaker in the beautiful Korean Drama "Chocolate" (still on Netflix), Yoon Kye Sang. The plot summary reads "After waking up from a car crash unable to remember anything about this life, a man beings regaining consciousness in a new body every 12 hours. Now, he must piece together his identity, all while evading attacks from pursuing agents and dangerous criminals alike. But with no memory—and no allies—his time is running out." It seems a little Inception, a little Crank, and a little Long Kiss Goodnight, maybe even a little John Wick with the dark suit and gun skills. If it's anything like The Villainess, it's sure to pack a punch. I can't wait! I already pre-ordered the DVD! From Wikipedia: "Yoon Kye-sang is a South Korean actor and singer. He began his career in 1999 as part of the K-pop boy band god, then left the group in 2004 and pursued an acting career. He made his acting debut in the film Flying Boys (watch here Part 1, Part 2), for which he won Best New Actor at the Baeksang Arts Awards."
Chad Law "Section Eight" Another Killer Action
Movie 2022 is off to a great start with this news! Writer Chad Law (#chadknowsaction) posted this poster for his latest movie (in post production/there are 4 more after this) "Section Eight." Tagline: "They Make a Killer Team." Starring . . . Scott Adkins, Dolph Lundgren, Dermot Mulroney (big fan), Mickey Rourke, Ryan Kwanten, and Robert LaSardo (Robert has over 49 movie roles in the works for 2022!). Stay tuned to IMDb for a release date. Storyline: "After avenging the murder of his family, a former soldier is sprung from prison and recruited by a shadowy government agency." Chad is writing with Josh Ridgway, and the Director is Christian Sesma. Judging by the poster, they are going to blow shit up! Follow @Elmberry31Chad on twitter | @lawofchad on instagram What's it like to be a really cool action movie screenwriter? Find out more in this Action Flix.com interview with Chad by action super fan and blogger, John M. Jerva.
If you are craving great Action Movies
after a lean 2021, check out some of these other
Chad Law movies . . .
Meet
the
new year: Same as the old year?
Are there any true Action Movies to look forward to in 2022? There are! And lots of Comic Book Movies . . . FIRST, the Action Movies: ►January 7 The 355 (PG-13 ACTION, THRILLER) I was tempted to hate on this but after seeing Ana de Armas in Bond 25, I think being beautiful and dressed in a feminine way does necessarily invalidate an action performance. As long as these women don't trip in heels, get their hair in their eyes, or lose a boob or something equally stupid and cliche, maybe they can pull it off as convincingly as Ana. That might sound hateful, especially coming from a woman, but I really REALLY want to see women in Action Movies more properly attired. Maybe it's just me . . . So we have Jessica Chastain (American), Lupida Nyong'o (British), Diane Kruger (German), Penélope Cruz (Colombian), and Bingbing Fan (Chinese) as the top agents from around the world. I like the back story of the "355"/no name. Won't it be interesting to see how these very competent agents play as 'incompetent' women. Careful. At least the screenplay had some female input.
►January 7 American Siege (R ACTION, THRILLER) Action Movie Freaks will see anything Bruce Willis is in. Despite complaining about Action Movies, he's still making them. "An ex-NYPD officer-turned-sheriff of a small rural Georgia town has to contend with a gang of thieves who have taken a wealthy doctor hostage." Looks like a version of Ransom "Give me back my son!" I'm down even though all the action will likely take place in the last 15 minutes.
►February 18 Uncharted (ACTION, ADVENTURE) Game movie starring Mark Wahlberg and Tom Holland. So some fans are fussing about the casting. The movie is "a prequel to the games, starring Holland as a younger Drake, showing us details of how he came to meet and befriend Sully." I think it looks amazing and the action looks just like it does in the game. I love the casting and think they will make it great fun. Surprised to hear Led Zeppelin but love their music! AND . . . by the way "EXCLUSIVELY IN MOVIE THEATRES" so get your ass out and see it on the big screen where it should be seen.
►February 22 A Day to Die (ACTION, CRIME) Directed by Wes Miller and starring Bruce Willis, Frank Grillo, Leon Robinson, and Kevin Dillon (he's great!). "A disgraced parole officer is indebted to a local gang leader and forced to pull off a series of dangerous drug heists within 12 hours in order to: pay the $2M he owes, rescue his kidnapped pregnant wife, and settle a score with the city's corrupt police chief, who is working with the gang leader and double-crossed him years ago." Frank Grillo = Action :) Looks "gritty" and good. Hope the action is not sacrificed for the sake of the drama. Here are some behind the scenes shots:
►March 25 The Lost City (ACTION, ADVENTURE, COMEDY, ROMANCE) This is so Romancing the Stone! It looks kind of stupid but stupid can be really funny. If I laugh 'til I can't breathe once, that's all I am looking for. I love Sandra Bullock and I love Channing Tatum. The rest is gravy.
►March 25 Everything Everywhere All at Once (R ADVENTURE, COMEDY, SCI FI) What's this doing here with the Action Movies you ask. Michelle Yeoh. Watch the trailer and tell me you don't agree. She's killing it!
►April 8 AmbuLAnce (R ACTION, CRIME, DRAMA) Directed by MICHAEL BAY! #shutupandeatyourawesome
►April 8 Bullet Train (ACTION, THRILLER) Directed by David Leitch, and starring Brad Pitt, Sandra Bullock, Michael Shannon, Hiroyuki Sanada, and Bad Bunny (!). Based on a bestselling novel of the same name by Japanese author Kõtarô Isaka, it is described as a dark, satirical thriller that follows the perilous train ride of five highly motivated assassins. This will hinge on great performances. I hope it's a great showcase for the talents of David Leitch and Brad Pitt. Be interesting to see how Sandra Bullock fits into this.
►April 22 The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (ACTION, COMEDY) Nicolas Cage!
►April 22 The Bad Guys (PG ACTION, ANIMATION, COMEDY) There is tons of Action in this movie. Looks like great fun.
►April 22 The Northman (ACTION, ADVENTURE, DRAMA) Everyone's talking about Alexander Skarsgard's already perfect physique. Anya Taylor-Joy is in this (The Queen's Gambit). She's so anime looking to me. And, she was born in MIAMI! (as exotic as this sounds, this is #soMIAMI "Anya was born in Miami, the youngest of six children. Her father is Scottish who was born in South America, and her mother is Spanish-English who was born in Zambia in Africa, to an English diplomat father and a Spanish mother from Barcelona."
►April 29 Memory (ACTION, THRILLER) Starring Liam Neeson, Guy Pearce, Ray Stevenson, Louis Mandylor, and Monica Bellucci. "An assassin-for-hire finds that he's become a target after he refuses to complete a job for a dangerous criminal organization. A remake of the 2003 Belgian film 'The Memory of a Killer'."
►May 27 Top Gun: Maverick (PG-13 ACTION, DRAMA) . . . TOM CRUISE The Movie Star, the Man! A sequel was inevitable. Everything Mr. Cruise does is quality so I know it will deliver.
►
►June 6 The Wrong Place (THRILLER) Bruce Willis movie. "A meth amphetamines cook hunts down the former Police chief of a small town in order to silence him before he can deliver eyewitness testimony against his family, but ultimately finds himself up against more than he had bargained for."
►June 10 Jurassic World Dominion (PG-13 ACTION, ADVENTURE, SCI FI) I guess we never tire of dinosaur movies. I even watched Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous on Netflix. "Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard star as Owen Grady and Claire Dearing and are joined by Laura Dern, Sam Neill, and Jeff Goldblum, who reprise their roles as Dr. Ellie Sattler, Dr. Alan Grant, and Dr. Ian Malcolm." Aaaah, at last a return to sarcasm. Trash talking is one of my Action Movie Essentials!
►June 17 Buzz Lightyear (PG-13 ACTION, ADVENTURE, SCI FI) Surprisingly, the back story we didn't know we really wanted.
►September 30 Mission: Impossible 7 (ACTION, ADVENTURE, THRILLER) . . . more TOM CRUISE Mission: Impossible movies overtook Bond for me a few movies ago. Tom just gets it. He understands the assignment and always exceeds expectations. M:I 3 was even ahead of its time. The stunt work is always without equal. Gotta love it!!!
►
Comic Book Movies ►January 28 Morbius (PG-13 ACTION, ADVENTURE, DRAMA) Jared Leto. Enough said.
►March 4 The Batman (ACTION, CRIME, DRAMA, MYSTERY) What is there to say about YET ANOTHER Batman movie? Robert Pattinson's teeth look funny. He can't be worse than Christian Bale (not a fan). Here's an interesting Trivia notes from IMDb: "To prepare himself for the role, Robert Pattinson wanted to absorb as much of the characters legacy as possible and read loads of different Batman comics from different eras in the months before filming started." Commendable! And . . . "t was confirmed early on that Robert Pattinson signed a three picture deal, meaning this is to be the first film of a new Batman trilogy."
►May 6 Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (ACTION, ADVENTURE, FANTASY) Directed by Sam Raimi
►July 8 Thor: Love and Thunder (ACTION, ADVENTURE, FANTASY) From IMDb Trivia: "Chris Hemsworth, on his 8th time playing the character of Thor, achieved his biggest physique ever for this film—getting up to 231 pounds for the role. His longtime trainer, Luke Zocchi said, 'He is in phenomenal nick. He's the biggest he has ever been. He's the heaviest he's ever been.' This extent of musculature required Hemsworth to eat at least 8 times a day during the entire duration of filming just to maintain all the muscle mass he had acquired. " Oh yeah, he's jacked!
►July 29 Black Adam (ACTION, FANTASY, SCI FI) Starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson! "Plot unknown. A spin-off from 'Shazam!' centering on the film's anti-hero." In this first look video, Pierce Brosnan says "Nothing compares to this."
►October 7 Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse - Part One (ACTION, ADVENTURE, ANIMATION)
►November 4 The Flash (ACTION, ADVENTURE, FANTASY)
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►December 16 Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (ACTION, ADVENTURE, FANTASY) Aquaman gets to be Jason Momoa again. And the suit is dark now :( SMH sigh . . .
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YEAR 2: The London ACTION Festival PLANE: Starting out 2023 with a BANG! |
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Johnny Strong is 48 now. He started out acting but then took
a 10-year break to further his martial arts experience by
training in Jiu Jitsui (black belt) and to make music. I love
that he makes his art on his own terms. He was featured in the
first volume of Mike Fury's book
Born in 1967 in Stamford, Texas (west of
Dallas/Fort Worth, 2010 population 3,124), JJ Perry
(Jordan Andrew Perry aka "Loco") started his martial arts training
at age 7 in 1975. From his
Maybe
it's just the barrel of the gun, maybe it was the intensity of
the character (owing to Jake Gyllenhaal's acting skills) and/or
the intensity of the plot, but this is a scary-looking gun. "Michael Bay DRIVES toward to the energy of the scene." Gyllenhaal
said. He really took that to heart.
