From his start as a struggling actor in Roger Corman-produced cheap exploitation movies to an Oscar winning movie in a matter of a few years is the type of Cinderella story that most actors dream of. Yet, the problem with Sylvester Stallone has always been his inflated ego. Many times in his career spanning back to the late 1960s when he appeared as extrasContinue reading “‘Cobra’ Has Bite To Slithering Story”
Tag Archives: action
‘FUBAR’ Keeps Fudging Up
FUBAR is the type of series an actor makes after a rough patch and has lost their standing many years earlier. One month away from his 78th birthday, Arnold Schwarzenegger has been a testament to his catchphrase “I’ll be back.” When Last Action Hero bombed, he did True Lies and got a temporary career resurgence.Continue reading “‘FUBAR’ Keeps Fudging Up”
‘Killer’s Game’ Is A Cheat
A movie like The Killer’s Game seems too be like someone took elements of movies like John Woo’s The Killer, the John Wick movies, and Boss Level and decided to make your standard one-hour and 45-minute action comedy. It’s one of those movies that seems to exist in a world where hired hitmen get paidContinue reading “‘Killer’s Game’ Is A Cheat”
‘Bad Boys: Ride Or Die’ Manages Gets To Its Destination Despite Its Problems
Five years ago, Will Smith was one of those stars in Hollywood who was infallible despite some huge career lows such as After Earth and even the pretentious The Pursuit of Happyness and the patronizing Seven Pounds. But a third Bad Boys movie following the disastrous Bad Boys II seemed like it was going toContinue reading “‘Bad Boys: Ride Or Die’ Manages Gets To Its Destination Despite Its Problems”
‘The Killer’ Hits The Target, But Misses The Bullseye
In 1989, The Killer was released in theaters around the world. The third pairing of John Woo and Chow Yun-fat would go on to set the Gold Standard of Hong Kong action flicks. Yun-fat and Woo had worked in the landmark 1986 A Better Tomorrow or True Colors of a Hero under its Chinese title.Continue reading “‘The Killer’ Hits The Target, But Misses The Bullseye”
‘Road House’ Manages To Kick, But…
Reviewing a remake of Road House is like reviewing a classroom of schoolkids who make those hand turkeys around Thanksgiving. It doesn’t take much, just an outline, and let the kids’ imagination do the rest. You can’t really critique it because it’s no way near high art, but if a child put a lot ofContinue reading “‘Road House’ Manages To Kick, But…”
‘Silent Night’ Full Of Sound And Fury Signifying Not Nothing
John Woo has been directing movies longer than most of the cast in Silent Night have been alive. But in 1986, he made a name for himself with A Better Tomorrow, a story of friendship, loyalty and family caught in the crossfires of law enforcement and the triads of organized crime. The movie was alsoContinue reading “‘Silent Night’ Full Of Sound And Fury Signifying Not Nothing”
‘The Matrix’ At 25: How It Changed Sci-Fi And Action Movies
T.S. Elliott famously stated “Good writers borrow; great writers steal.” And Aaron Sorkin also updated this by stating “Good writers borrow from other writers. Great writers steal from them outright.” The first I ever heard of The Matrix was during the 1999 Super Bowl where the images of Keanu Reeves bending over backwards as bulletsContinue reading “‘The Matrix’ At 25: How It Changed Sci-Fi And Action Movies”
‘Retribution’ For Wasting Time
Thirty years ago, Liam Neeson had rose from being a character actor in movies like The Delta Force and Excalibur to his Oscar-nominated performance as Oskar Schindler in Schindler’s List. Then, in 2008, he took a chance on a silly action thriller, Taken, where he turns into a vengeful father tracking down his daughter who’sContinue reading “‘Retribution’ For Wasting Time”
‘The Family Plan’ Is A No Contact
Mark Wahlberg’s evolution from a himbo rapper in the early 1990s who was always walking around dropping his pants to appear in advertisements for Calvin Klein to an Oscar-nominated movie star is a fascinating one. For a man who in his youth seemed on the path of being another Boston-area criminal in and out ofContinue reading “‘The Family Plan’ Is A No Contact”
Zane Says 