John Wick Review

        Since this is the last day for my look at action films, I’ve decided to pick the one that I haven’t had a chance to look at back when it was released in 2014. I’ve been wanting to see the sequels and just recently I have bought the individual Blu-Rays. John Wick is what I believe to be the best action films of the 2010s. It started a series that is still in development and revitalized Keanu Reeves’ career with much appreciation. 

1. Never Mess with a Man’s Dog

        When we first see John, he’s bloodied and limping. The rest of the film acts like a flashback, we learn that his wife had passed away. She has gifted him a car and a new Beagle named Daisy. Wick slowly starts to love the dog. From there, masked intruders barge into his house and beat him up. Including doing the awful act of killing his dog. 

        As John wakes up from being knocked out, he vows revenge. Meanwhile, the Russian mobster Viggo chastises his son for killing and stealing Wick’s dog and car, saying that he will find him. The whole movie after the inciting moment is a revenge film. Since John is only looking for payback after having the final memories of his wife is stolen and murdered. 

        Aside from that, John is a great marksman. When he is confronted with Viggo’s men, he knows how to take cover and to really adjust on the fly. It’s from there that we learn that Wick used to be an assassin that was employed by Viggo. When John goes to New York City he knows a lot of people from his past. Like, he was probably that good in his profession that it made an impact on them. 

        For as much as he’s a good shooter, he takes the damage every now and then. This is the needed detail that every director who does an action movie has to have for a protagonist to be human instead of an overpowered joe with a weapon. Having Wick get shot or stabbed, or just strangled gives him more depth since he is easy to level with when he gets shot and he has to be stitched back together. Nine times out of ten, the use of this tiny detail will elevate a standard action movie to a great action movie. 

2. Gun Action

        Now, of course when you watch or heard of this film, it is the action that’s the star. Specifically, the tight gun choreography. To be more in depth with the action is that it’s mostly drawn out with the shots that we see in John’s perspective. In context with the action films from that time is that most of the action was using shaky camera. The point of using that technique is to make the audience be in the action. 

        Although sometimes a standard action movie would overuse it and the action would be unreadable and hard to follow. In John Wick, the action is played out with quick edits and long takes of the action. It’s refreshing since, the action is engaging and easy to read since when John is being outmatched, the camera still tracks him when he adjusts on the fly. In other words, the action in John Wick has a specific name, Gun-Fu. 

        As far as blood goes, its nowhere near as exploitive as a Tarantino film. Where a simple gunshot would yield an arm loss or a body becoming a hose squirting blood like a faucet. John Wick is grounded with its approach that it never feels exploitive or trying to hard to be cool in the overall action. It’s played straight with what’s going on and it works so well. 

3. Overall

        Another short review, but I can’t stress that I really love this movie. It’s an appropriate way of closing out my introspection of action movies from 60 years and to see what changed. The recurring thing is to have the character be relatable. The action is good and needs to have a tight story to go along with it.  John Wick is a celebration of action movies and I’m glad I finally watched it. 

        John Wick gets a five out of five. 

 

The Bourne Identity Review

        It’s crazy to imagine that my look into action films end on Friday. This week has been just a breeze through on action films from the 90s to now. The Bourne Identity is in my opinion the one to really change the action film and espionage film. Even solidifying Matt Damon’s role as an action star in the subsequent sequels. 

1. Jason Bourne

        Based on the novels by Robert Ludlum, the first film on what was the trilogy has Damon portraying the amnesiac Jason Bourne. We see him adrift in the Mediterranean and picked up by fisherman. The captain cuts his gear and sees Bourne with bullets on him. He wakes up and goes into Switzerland to the bank. What he finds is numerous amounts of cash and various passports under assumed aliases. 

        Among the items he finds a pistol. As he leaves, Jason feels he is being followed. We then cut to shots from his perspective by seeing two cops look at him and hearing sounds of police sirens getting louder. To avoid any measure of being followed, Bourne goes into the American Consulate. And, he gets accosted and escapes. The whole film is mostly about trying to figure out who he is, while avoiding execution from the people who hired him. 

        I will say that since I have a vague understanding for espionage films, The Bourne Identity feels unique. It gives Jason his understanding for defensive measures without the need of any high-tech equipment. Later on I will discuss how the Bourne franchise changed the James Bond franchise. Jason also brings along a woman to help him named Marie. She is his co-conspirator when they try to find out who one of the operatives he is listed as. 

        What makes him more than a super-agent of sorts is that he doesn’t want Marie to be involved when the situation is becoming more severe. There is one moment that proves she is just more of an asset than liability. When they are investigating hotel records, Bourne thought of a really elaborate way of retrieving it. Marie goes to Jason, and saying that she just lied to get a copy that they need to look over. 

2. The CIA

        Again, far from the typical evil organization such as James Bond’s Spectre, the CIA is our main antagonist group. It’s an odd choice since it’s a respected US government agency. Now, I haven’t read Ludlum’s Bourne books and I’ve wondered if it was to veer from a fanatical group to something of a corrupt agency. Regardless, the moments where we see the CIA is chock full of rudimentary display of info. 

        I mean, they have the old beige Microsoft computers and a paper map to show where both Jason and Marie have been in France. I would expect to have everything be high-tech with everything being digital including the map. We do see why exactly he is being hunted. Bourne was supposed to assassinate an exiled African dictator. He didn’t comply with the order and was shot in the Mediterranean. As a result, the director of the program Conklin calls other agents in various parts of Europe to kill Jason. 

        They have eyes and ears in Paris that updates them where Jason is going. Honestly, I was not expecting actress Julia Stiles to appear since she is in 10 Things I Hate About You. It makes you think that there are probably more agents across the globe to find and contribute to the killings of specially trained agents who failed their missions. More so is that it makes me want to see the subsequent sequels to see if the CIA are corrupt or they have justifiable reasons to find Jason Bourne. 

3. How Bourne Changed Bond

        During the time Bourne films were coming out, the James Bond films had to be reworked as a way to revitalize the franchise. The last one with Peirce Brosnan was when the series was at its low point. With the release of the Daniel Craig Bond films, there appeared to be an effort to slowly steer away from the fanatical to a more grounded approach. 

        As was the case with Skyfall, that film put James Bond in a situation where to outsmart the villain was to not use any specialize weapons, but to use his own instincts and training. For one thing, it’s incredible to show an American film franchise change a British film franchise. Not only that, but it didn’t help that the Austin Powers films poking fun at the ridiculousness of the James Bond franchise. 

4. Overall 

        Now I want to see the rest of what was the Bourne trilogy. The Bourne Identity is one of the best action films of the early 2000s. Setting the stage for a trilogy and giving a spotlight to the Bourne books. 

        The Bourne Identity gets a four out of five. 

 

Speed Review

 

        I feel that with every decade Keanu Reeves has been acting, he’s always known for one movie. And it keeps piling up since he’s known for a whole lot. Such as being in: Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure in the late 80s. Speed and The Matrix in the nineties. The crappy Matrix sequels in the 2000s. With the 2010s having him in the John Wick films. Keanu Reeves can do no wrong, sometimes. Speed is one of the best action films in the 90s. 

1. Jack Traver

        Of course, the film has Keanu Reeves! So he plays a cop named Jack Travers in the LAPD. We see him and his partner Detective Harry rescue people from a rigged elevator. They work well in tandem since they find bombs in the elevator. From there, we see them face the bomber Howard. I will get to Dennis Hopper in a bit, but he is just over the top crazy. Not campy and exaggerated, but a right side of psychotic. You know what, he just wants money.

        The following day, Howard blows up a bus. He calls Jack and tells him that another is rigged. From there, he finds the bus and attempts to disarm the bomb. Jack is the 80s action star that’s in the 90s. Traver has his catch phrases and speaks in a very “actiony” way. Like, it’s a toughish accent that you have to watch the movie and you’ll understand. Either way, he is resourceful with attempting to stop the bomb. 

        Another thing I thought was that him and Harry were perfect to stop the bomb on the bus. Harry does help him over the phone via cell phone. Jack does get one passenger to help him, Annie Porter, played by Sandra Bullock. She’s supposed to be the regular person who is roped into something extraordinary. Annie becomes the driver and really adjusts to the situation. Well, gradually as the damn bus just barrels through just to survive. 

        This is another instance where our main character shows some emotion. Unfortunately, we do see his buddy die as Howard rigged his house to explode. Jack is crying and Annie gives him a pep talk to bring him back to reality. It’s a small moment but it gives our lead and us a break with what has been a literal crazy ride. Those small moments to at least have the main character show grief gives him more depth than just standard action hero. 

        One last thing is that Traver is pretty smart. He knows exactly how Howard operates. As Jack is figuring out how Howard is seeing everything that is happening, he realizes that he has a personal view of the bus from the inside. Traver uses his police squad and ingenuity to fool the mad bomber and to go under the bus to try to disarm it. 

2. The Bus 

        The main highlight is that the bus has to go to a specific speed to not arm the bomb to explode. Annie has to floor it to the max speed the bus is built for. Now, this concept could’ve gone south if it was handled by someone less competent. Here, it’s the most intense, adrenaline filled moment that made me excited. Obviously, having pictures to show various shots of the bus doing the crazy driving does not do it justice in the least bit. 

        Inside though are the other passengers. They are also regular people caught in a middle of a madman’s quest just to get his money. What I really like is that not all of the passengers are innocent, two people completely flip, and one points a gun to our hero. Jack tries to calm him down, but another passenger grabs him to stop him from doing anything drastic. The motley crew follow orders by Jack and even cheer him on when they do a stunt that has the bus drive on its side. 

        On a more technical matter, the bus goes through the ringer. The vehicle rams through, jumps, even go around an airport runway just to maintain its top speed. The moments where Jack tries to get in the bus and even open the hatch to see the bomb gives the transport character in its own right. 

3. Overall 

        I will say this, the sequel is so bad. Don’t for the life of you EVER watch it. Speed is one of those movies that should have been just a one movie thing. The sequel has a cruise liner, but no Keanu Reeves. Need I say more? Speed is the need you want to have a great time watching a great action movie. 

        Speed gets a four out of five. 

Raiders of the Lost Ark Review

 

        In the 1980s, Steven Spielberg owned the decade. With him as a director, producer, and getting into television. He could do no wrong. The film that really started his rise further into cinema’s beloved is with Raiders of the Lost Ark. Alongside his Southern California classmate George Lucas, they crafted a unique hero that harkens back to the adventure serials back when they were young. And, Steven Spielberg wanted to make a James Bond film but was not allowed. Lucas decided that the two of them should create their own hero. The rest as they say is history. 

1. Indiana Jones

        Harrison Ford plays our lovable archeologist. When we first see him trekking somewhere in South America, we immediately assume that he’s just a treasure hunter. Until it’s established later that he is a professor of archeology. Then later he is commissioned by an associate for Army Intelligence to get an artifact before the Nazi’s get their hands on it. 

        He enjoys hunting for the treasures since it’s something that he loves to do. As well that he is knowledgeable on their origins. Like when he and the agents from Army Intelligence talk about the Ark of the Covenant. He doesn’t believe most of it and has basic idea of what the Ark is used for. 

        The great thing about him is that he has help for finding the Ark. Like an old love who was related to a professor when he was in college and an excavator in Cairo. Their synergy works since Jones isn’t a treasure hunter who wants to keep the items for himself. For him, it’s to conserve it for history.

Another great thing is that Jones knows how to get the treasure. It’s established earlier when getting the golden idol that he knows where the traps are. Specifically where the ones filled with poisoned darts and spears. I think the best one is finding where specifically the Ark is. It’s a great moment and of course, he has to log it in his journal.

        Since I briefly talked about some 80s action films, Indy isn’t one who has a big muscles or has a walking assortment of weapons. He’s an everyman who makes up his plan as he goes along. The thing I noticed since reviewing Robocop and First Blood is that the protagonist has enough depth where they are put in extraordinary situations. They are the opposite of the muscle bounded heroes that they use their wits to outsmart the bad guys. 

2. Treasure Hunt

        Jones has competition other than the Nazis; Rene Belloq is his antithesis. When they meet up in South America, he takes the golden idol away from him. It’s something that happens every time they cross each other. He even mocks him that he gets to collect the stuff Indy finds just for himself. 

        The reoccurring thing that he says to him is that they are alike. Both are archeologists, hired by respective governments to get a key relic of the past. The only difference is that Belloq is doing it since the Colonel that is assigned to him tells Rene that Hitler wants to use the Ark as a weapon. You can think of him as an archeologist but he steals for nefarious purposes. I find it kind of odd as to why would Hitler use the Ark since it’s a famous Jewish artifact. Even the colonel tells Belloq that he feels uncomfortable with the Jewish tradition surrounding it. 

Interesting enough, for as much as we want Indy at least get one treasure in this quest, he never gets the thing. You can say that it’s a sacrifice since he doesn’t want to invoke the power of God. To me, it gives him more of a character growth since he’s not one to look for prestige. Especially when he threatens Belloq by destroying the Ark with an RPG so that no one can get it.

3. Faith

        Aside from the treasure hunt between Jones and Belloq is this idea of faith. It’s established earlier that Jones doesn’t believe in anything and just the facts that surround the Ark of the Covenant. You can’t blame him since he just sees archeology as just a relic of its time. Although, when he gets word of the Ark, he knows the basic gist of it, but goes so far as to not really believing any of it. The little moments where Indy is near an artifact that relates to the Ark the wind starts to pick up. It’s only alluded to that it can be a warning. Although, when Indy is near the Ark a literal storm arrives, clearly God is not subtle in the least bit. 

        I think it works well with Indy’s character growth since he wants to see the Ark since the only thing it has going for is just stuff he learned from Sunday school and the Bible. The part when he and Marion get kidnapped and the Nazis open the Ark is probably the best moment. It’s simply great seeing Nazis getting killed and getting their comeuppance. 

4. Overall 

        Need I say more? It kicked off a series of films and television series that shows Indy during his youth. There is a 5th movie coming out from director James Mangold, who directed Ford v Ferrari and Logan. Raiders of the Lost Ark is one of the best action movie and Spielberg film. 

        Raiders of the Lost Ark gets a five out of five. 

First Blood Review

 

        Sylvester Stallone is in my opinion the best action star to really evolve his craft. He became famous for his portrayal of boxer Rocky Balboa in the Rocky franchise. Little did anyone else know is that he partially wrote the script. With First Blood, the first entry in the Rambo franchise Stallone co-writes along with two other writers. This film is now part of my favorite movies that I have seen. 

1. John Rambo

        I have to stress this whenever I research a film, but First Blood is based on a book. Written by David Morrell, I have not sat down and read the book and I found out that Stallone reworked the script to make Rambo more sympathetic. Anyways, we see John roaming around the outskirts of Washington state. He finds the location his buddy from the Army lives, only to be told by a family member that he died. 

        From there, Rambo walks on the side of the highway and makes it to Hope, Washington. The sheriff of the town Will Teasle sees him and thinks he’s a drifter. In a matter of moments, he escorts him out of the town since he believes he might cause trouble. John walks back to the town and Teasle has him arrested. When Rambo is being processed inside the police department, the police abuse him which causes his flashbacks when he was a prisoner of war in Vietnam. 

        Ultimately, he escapes and runs to the woods with the police following him. This isn’t your typical action movie, especially since it’s from the 80s. It’s a more subdued one since there isn’t a body count. Only one death, but in Rambo’s defense is that it was by accident. What makes the character work is that he holds back. We’re told in different times in the movie where Rambo could’ve slaughtered them. It’s the abusive power that the officers did to him that makes him go overboard. 

2. Stealth

        The main highlight is the action since it’s not overt. The use of stealth is smartly utilized since Rambo hides in the forest from the police officers. We later learn that he used to be a Green Beret which makes everything he does like make traps and just survive make sense. It’s refreshing that the action isn’t the usual firefight or just a fist fight since, if the action is too drawn out it would be boring. 

        When the officers are searching the entire forest for John, most of them are scared since they really don’t want to encounter him. For instance, most of the officers are distracted when one of them lands on Rambo’s trap, they try to help the poor cop. Especially when the sergeant is caught by Rambo and he puts his knife on his neck. 

        Overall, the action is restrained which works since Rambo never says any stupid catchphrases. In fact, during an interview on The Howard Stern Show, Stallone spoke that he wanted his recorded lines to be cut since he didn’t believe that the movie would be any good. That’s why he doesn’t say much until the end. Which we will get into.  

3. Authority

        Another thing that I noticed is that authority from both officers and the Colonel are completely different. As I mentioned earlier, the police give John a lot of abuse. Like restraining him with a night stick. It seems like the cops are like that with the criminals inside the town’s police department. Like this one officer Galt, who really asserts his authority too much on Rambo. When he pushes off the officers, it gets personal for the officer since he wasn’t expecting that. It boils over when he is a shooter on a helicopter. Sherriff Teasle tells him that they are supposed to capture him. So Galt keeps blasting. 

        A while after that we see Colonel Trautman, a superior for Rambo when they were in stationed. He tells the Sherriff that they can’t stop John. It inevitably turns into a power of wits of who has the bigger authority. Trautman doesn’t yell and it really rubs Teasle the wrong way when his pride goes up. Just like Galt, he wants to kill Rambo. The representation is that Teasle wants to be the hero of the town but takes an extreme measure to do so.

        One last thing is just how underprepared the police and the national guard are when they are attempting to get John Rambo. This is probably another instance where I’m stretching here, but I feel that this is supposed to be like Vietnam. Instead of the jungle its in the forest. Rambo just outsmart everyone. It gets to a point where the other officers are arguing that they don’t want to continue even the national guards have doubts about Rambo. 

4. The Final Scene

        This is my favorite part of the film. Everything leads up back to the town. Rambo shoots the powerlines which has the town plundered in darkness. He tries to find the Sheriff and vice versa. Both of them are in the police department and John shoots the Sheriff, he wants the veteran to kill him. The colonel comes in and tells him the whole thing is over. Rambo then lets it out to his superior. Saying that the civilians were yelling to him that he was a baby killer. Just airing out his grievance with being back as a civilian.

        From there, we see something that is really taboo in 80s action films, the main protagonist crying. He tells Trautman that his friends are gone and they wanted to go to Vegas when everything was done. You just have to feel bad since, he just wants be in a place of normalcy. Just the shot with Rambo crying to the Colonel is something that wouldn’t happen in any action film, even today. 

5. Overall 

        First Blood is unlike any action film you’ve seen. Yes, it did spawn sequels, but they don’t come close to being this good. 

First Blood gets a four out of five. 

Robocop Review

 

        We’re now in the 80s, action movies are no longer bound to the cynicism of what was going on in the country. With a new sense of pride, action movies are more bombastic with muscles and intense gunfights. Every once in a while, a movie comes across to poke fun at the current society trends under the guise of an action movie. Robocop is that movie, beloved for the action and the title character, it’s everything you want to see just what happens when there’s an ideal cop. 

1. Murphy

        Ed Harris stars as Alex Murphy, who is the new cop for the Detroit Metropolitan Police Department. He’s our eyes and ears for the hellish place Old Detroit is. As soon as he walks in, the cops are manhandling the criminals. He is assigned a partner Officer Lewis by Sargent Reed and they get a report of criminal activity. This is where we see crime lord Clarence Boddicker who runs a drug racket. The operation goes south when Murphy is shoot to literal death as Clarence’s cronies blast everything to the officer. 

        Just earlier, we see the malevolent corporation Omni, who one of them sells the chairman on the new officer of the future ED-209. The machine goes haywire and accidentally kills a chairman. As the result of the mishap, chairman Bob Morton tells the boss that he runs a design team that builds “Robocops”. Just as word gets out that Murphy died, his corpse is escorted to Omni. We see POV shots of the engineers fixing and upgrading Murphy’s sight. 

        Later, we finally see Robocop in the flesh or mechanical parts. The suit is icon and it’s very stylized without any flair. It’s a nice touch that Murphy’s voice is automated with standard commands. Did I mention he’s bullet proof? The way he handles criminals is pure ingenious. For instance, when he sees a rapist holding a woman hostage, Robocop uses his targeting sight to shoot the dude in the groin by shooting through the woman, even though she didn’t feel anything. 

        The main idea is that underneath the armor and computer, Murphy is still alive. He has moments where he sees his final memories before his death. The shining moment in the film is when Alex becomes autonomous instead of just following direct orders. Officer Lewis gradually reminds him of who he is. My favorite moment is when Murphy removes his face shield. To show that he is still Murphy, without his actual body. 

2. Omni Consumer Products

        Obviously, it be too easy to have Clarence be the main bad guy for Robocop. The real bad guys is Omni. They control the police department and plan to gentrify Old Detroit and rename it. It would be one thing where no one in the 80s would have a company be controlling. Just that idea is quaint since we see that everywhere. Either Paul Verhoeven was on to something or decided to put it in as a joke. 

        One of the board members is named Dick Jones. He is the one who feels threatened by one of his associates due to making Robocop be better than Jones’ ED-209 robot. I feel that the use of the ED machine is supposed to be what they wanted Robocop to be. Being a machine that shows no empathy and to deliver justice by any means. Clearly, Robocop is human and develops a mind of his own to outsmart ED-209 by using stairs. 

        I think the most egregious thing that the corporation has done to Murphy was use his body for profit. By adding attachments even removing an existing arm that would hamper what Robocop would look like. It’s the opposite of what a typical 80s action movie would go through. Almost all of the protagonists in the action movies at that time were buff. Murphy’s body was blown to bits and ultimately given armor. I think it works as a subversion to show that muscle doesn’t mean much when the entire body is running a computer software. 

3. Legacy

        Without a doubt this film is a classic. It spawned sequels, tv shows, a cartoon show and made the character of Robocop a pop culture icon. At a glance, just the name has the level of cheesiness that could’ve easily been schlock. What helps it is having a character with enough depth where he is just someone you want to root for. He’s a simple man that is given an opportunity to live. Other than that, the sequels aren’t good. With the level of violence, I’m surprised that there was an animated show for kids. 

4. Overall 

        I can’t stress this enough, Robocop is a damn good movie. Full of good shootouts and tons of blood squibs where it’s borderline ridiculous and awesome to see. 

        Robocop gets a four out of five. 

The French Connection Review

 

        Director William Friedkin is always never in the conversation for the directors who changed Hollywood in the 70s. Mostly the big heavies are Spielberg, Scorsese, de Palma, Coppola, and Lucas to an extent, are always listed for the ones who ushered in a new way and style for filmmaking. The French Connection is Friedkin’s best work, second only to The Exorcist. It’s the cream of the crop of gritty 70s action films. 

1. Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle

        I have to constantly stress this, it seems like every film that is insanely great is based on a novel. Based on the novel which is a retelling of an actual event by Robin Moore of the same name, this film adaptation takes some creative liberties and I have not read the book so that’s my only opinion on it. The film is about detective Jimmy Doyle who works in the narcotics division, as he tries to stop a drug trade from happening and chasing the ring leader of all of it Alain Charnier. 

        To assist Doyle, Detective Buddy Russo is his partner to find and stop Charnier. Ostensibly, this is Doyle’s film, we actually get to see who he is as a cop. There are moments where we see them together when they are analyzing some documents about the drug traders. Jimmy is a lazy Detective whereas Buddy is more strait laced. It’s evident when Russo visits Jimmy’s apartment and just sees how disorganized it is. 

        Throughout the film, as the investigation goes to long, the chief assigns the duo to two federal investigators. It really angers Jimmy since he doesn’t want interference in his case. His entire evolution devolves to using nightly stakeouts to literally seeing an abandoned car that was used by the drug criminals and stripping it apart. That level of commitment shows just how grounded he is and it makes him a borderline anti-hero and vigilante. Gene Hackman plays him so well that his morale compass is sometimes questionable. 

        Like in one moment where we see the both of them enter a bar that has mostly black occupants. He has everyone stand up and face the wall, he interrogates one of them to find info on the drug trade. One moment that I like is when he’s trailing on the main leader Alain. The whole walk chase leads to the subway. It’s slightly comedic when Alain enters and Jimmy enters and exiting. At one point, Alain fools “Popeye” into exiting and the subway leaves. Making it, is Alain waving goodbye to Jimmy.

        One could interpret the film to be a Moby Dick analogue where Jimmy is Ahab and the white whale is Alain and the drug runners. He is constantly on the move and to be one step ahead of the bad guys that it drains him. One picture that I use is when him and Russo are in the police impound tearing apart the car, Jimmy is just tired that his clothes do the talking. The film doesn't end well, not that it ends crappy, I won't say what happens but Jimmy accidentally kills a Federal Agent who he thinks is Alain. 

2. The Best Car Chase Ever

        This is the highlight of the movie. When you Google the movie this scene usually pops out. I’ll even go as far to say that this is the best car chase I have seen, and I’ve seen Baby Driver. This whole part links to my next talking point of the film. Everything about it just screams crazy. Especially since, Jimmy is chasing one of the associates involved in the drug trade. He straight up borrows a civilian’s car to follow the train. 

        Nowadays, you can’t film a chase scene without a permit. Especially since everything seems staged, because that’s exactly how it’s supposed to be. The point is that there was no permit for this chase. Every turn, civilian reaction, right down to the crash and bumps are real. I think that Gene Hackman is one hell of a stuntman, but an absolute mad man for driving like that. Obviously, words can’t describe just how well this stunt is. Even with pictures offering snippets of the chase. It’s that good, no, great. 

3. Friedkin Method 

        Will Friedkin’s way of shooting a film is one of the main highlights. He has a very distinct touch that I noticed when I watch The Exorcist. It looks like a documentary. What I mean is that mostly when a character is walking or there’s that moment in the only car chase we see just how far away the car and train are. Aside from that it has touches of guerilla filmmaking. The one thing that I do love since it was filmed in New York City is those shots of the camera just looking at the people walking in Time Square as both Jimmy and Buddy are driving. It reminds me of Taxi Driver and it’s not confirmed perhaps Martin Scorsese saw that moment and applied it to his De Niro film. 

4. Overall 

        I love this movie, it won seven Academy Awards including Best Picture. William Friedkin is the director that is overshadowed by the big name directors of his time, but he absolutely deserves to be in the same conversation after this film. 

        The French Connection gets a four out of five. 

Enter The Dragon Review

 

        This is the second martial arts film that I have seen. The first one was back in 2006 in New Mexico of all places when I watched Jet Li’s Fearless. Enter the Dragon is considered the cream of the crop of martial arts movies. The definitive in terms that it actually was Bruce Lee’s final film before his passing. Nevertheless, I felt it’s appropriate to talk about this movie and just how influential it was going forward. SPOILERS will appear. 

1. Martial Arts Action

        The main highlight is the fight scenes. There’s no dispute about that, we watch the film for the fights and it delivers on that. Well, to make sure that there’s more to it than the fighting, it’s about Lee played by Bruce who’s invited by a special agent named Braithwaite. Who tells him that he’s investigating a crime lord named Han. The agent needs Lee to go to Han’s tournament to gather evidence to help Braithwaite put him away. 

        I feel that the mixture of genre such as spy and martial arts works well in the film. Since it’s not just seeing action being performed by Bruce Lee and John Saxon. If it’s just the action, it would be boring. Having Lee do more than just fighting shows that the whole tournament has a bigger purpose than what anyone might assume if they just tuned in. Also, the stakes is personal for Lee. Since his father explains to him that his sister was killed by Han’s men and it means more for Lee to find and stop Han from hurting more. 

        The action is pure, simple and to the point. Nowadays, you can’t have a fight scene without multiple cuts of different angles of the skirmish. The beauty in this film’s combat is that Bruce Lee was involved with the fight choreography. Which explains why the fight doesn’t go on for too long. His combat style is something to behold, it’s an art in and of itself. Interestingly, Jackie Chan makes an appearance. It’s a brief moment, but I think it was the unintentional passing of the torch between two men who knows martial arts. 

        Aside from Lee, the other supporting actors do their best and are competent for being fighters. We also follow Roper and Williams, played by real life martial artist Jim Kelly. It would’ve been lazy to have them just to have them. As competition for Lee to fight in Han’s tournament. In actuality, both Roper and Williams know each other and there’s a connection right there. We understand why exactly most of the fighters are being invited by Han, so that they can be in on his drug business. I must stress, having a reason, a believable one makes the action more interesting. 

2. Brucesploitation

        Before his passing, Bruce Lee was supposed to star and direct the film Game of Death. He unfortunately passed away from a brain injury. Director Robert Clouse was assigned to finish Game of Death, and it was bad. Having seen snippets of it, he crafted a story using the existing footage that was shot by Bruce Lee. 

        Additionally, with the rise of exploitation movies in the seventies. Meaning that a movie that tries to be successful by exploiting current film trends and that results into films just being bottom of the barrel garbage. Martial arts films were popping up left and right, such as film’s that were exploiting Bruce Lee by putting an actor who isn’t the actor but daringly putting on the poster that the film has Bruce Lee. Sometimes spelling his name varyingly such as Bruce Li, Bruce Lai, and so forth.

        The trend ended when Jackie Chan made a name for himself in Honk Kong action films. Films like Drunken Master and Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow cemented Chan’s role as the new king of martial arts films. I will probably attest that more marital arts action stars such as Jet Li and Donnie Yen has expanded the genre to be an artform for the niche.  

 

3. Legacy

        Like most things, this film started a trend amongst various entertainment mediums. Marvel Comics decided to create a character who is like Bruce Lee called Shang Chi who’s an expert in martial arts. Might as well put it out there, he’s getting his own movie. Enter the Dragon has been referenced by various movies years after the fact. Like being referenced in one of The Pink Panther movies and some comedies. 

        I was not aware that it was an inspiration for manga creator Akira Toriyama to create the Dragon Ball series. Now thinking of it, Goku is like Bruce Lee who’s an absolute master of martial arts and fighting in general.  It was only a matter of time for video games to borrow some elements from the film. Arcade classics such as Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat places an emphasis on tournament and on silky smooth fighting. One last thing is that, since it has elements of espionage, it was the most successful spy film that wasn’t tied to James Bond. 

4. Overall 

        This film has done so much for various mediums. It’s the king of kung fu films that many movies that are released recently miss the point of what made this film so successful. Bruce Lee ultimately deserves to be a pop culture icon after the release. And it’s such a shame that it was his last film before his death. 

        Enter the Dragon gets a five out of five. 

Dirty Harry Review

 

        I will always maintain that the 1970s is the best decade for cinema. It was also a transition period between the classical Hollywood to the new one. This is the movie where law and order is subverted from any notion one would have with authority. Clint Eastwood became famous for his appearance in the “Dollar” Trilogy, this film made him an icon. SPOILERS will appear. 

1. “Dirty” Harry Callahan 

        You would think at a first glance at the title, such as Dirty Harry one would think that it would be a porno. Since in that time, it was surprisingly popular. Anyways, Harry Callahan is the inspector for the San Francisco PD. He has his own methods with stopping a crime. We actually see him stop bank robbers when he’s visiting a burger joint. That’s when we see one of the most famous lines that is often misquoted. 

        Beyond that, he’s attempting to stop a deadly sniper in the city, who goes by the name of “Scorpio”. He leaves ransom letters that threatens to kill more unless he is paid. Harry throughout the movie tries to stop him, by using his own way of vigilante justice to stop the killer. Harry is in no way an anti-hero, he’s a vigilante. Meaning that he uses law enforcement without legal authority. This is probably the first instance where we see a police member become rogue within his department. 

        Now, when confronted by his superiors and the mayor that his methods are borderline questionable, he justifies it by explaining that the killer has a hostage. It’s probably one of the most interesting factors in the movie, and it’s him being restrained with what he can and can’t do. An attempt was made when the department assigns an officer to work with Harry. This is one of the best moments because we get to see Harry working with someone. It explores how he operates with someone besides him. 

        Chico Gonzalez played by the late Reni Santoni, is the one who really tries to understand why Harry has the nickname “Dirty”. We learn that when Harry rescues a suicidal jumper, he tells him that he’s called “Dirty” due to the jobs he has to do. We learn more that Harry doesn’t really like anyone. Although, we see that change when chasing Scorpio, he shoots Chico and puts him out of the case. Harry visits him when he is in physical therapy. It’s those small moments that give him depth and subtlety to show that he has humanity.

2. Real World 

        During the 70s, the bay area was plagued by the Zodiac Killer. To this day, no one knows the identity. There is one part where Scorpio takes a school bus hostage and Harry stops him. During the actual time, the Zodiac Killer threatened to harm a school bus full of children. I think it’s one thing to make a movie where a town is terrorized by an unknown threat. Especially when the screenwriters create a character to stop an unknown killer. I feel and it’s not corroborated with evidence, but I think the movie was a warning to the Zodiac Killer. 

        We might as well talk about the methods that Dirty Harry uses. Aside from the fact that an actual murderer was running around in the San Francisco area, crime was up during that time around the country. People really felt that the character was supposed to be the answer for the rise of urban crime that was going on. Nowadays, the methods are mostly questionable. This film can’t be made today for obvious reasons. Although, just a few years later, the film Serpico was released and exposed corruption that was happening in the NYPD. 

3. Legacy

        It’s no surprise that this film was a success. It propelled Clint Eastwood to icon level status and sequels were made after the film. I haven’t personally seen the films, in my opinion it should not have any follow ups. The ending is perfect since we see just how much has transpired and Harry tosses his badge. Feeling that his actions has alienated him to a point where he can’t consider himself within the law. 

Aside from that the film has been universally beloved and has made it in the countdowns for best films and best heroes. Copycats would appear after the success of Dirty Harry, some good such as Death Wish and Shaft. The bad ones including the final two sequels to Dirty Harry pretty much miss the point entirely with what the first film was going for. 

4. Overall

        This is probably one of the best films that I have seen from the 70s. It’s getting to be a large list, but everything about it such as the characters, the way it’s shot and small moments where it looks like a visual time capsule. Dirty Harry is one of the best action movies I have seen and laid the groundwork for a compelling character.  

        Dirty Harry gets a four out of five.