In The Running Man the future is depicted as an authoritarian police state with a broken economy. When our man Richards (Schwarzenegger) faces airport security and has no travel pass, he rummages through his bag until a line of anxious tourists forms behind him. "We got a plane to catch!" one yells, so the guard lets [...]
Action Kickback
Actionist Mini-review – Pet Sematary
onWhile Pet Sematary's presentation might feel a tad Lifetime-y now, it still serves up a great tale on the human inability to accept the end of life, hitting all the right beats with regular thrills, superb gore moments, and eerie atmospherics that make for an exemplary horror film. As a bonus, it would be utterly [...]
Genre Mini-reviews – How films measure up to the Action Kickback Model
onI'll be posting short reviews for the sake of search-ability, focusing on genre and how they live up the Action Kickback Model. I'll review genre films in general; action, horror, sci-fi, etc. The main points I want to address with the reviews are: Story - Do we care what's happening? Genre Promise - Does the [...]
Indie Action Weekly-ish Roundup – August 14, 2012
onHiroshi Adachi's Shoreline Operation with Emmanuel Manzanares Sleeping Dogs, action by EMC Monkeys, funded by Enix themselves! Reddit article here. Green Jade by Movie-Do
How Science Fiction Lost Its Edge – A Genre Study
onWhile working on a science fiction concept I'm developing, it's been interesting to study how the genre itself functions. Science Fiction has two key responsibilities: Predicts the logical ends of a technological trajectory and sets it up as the conflict. Utilizes current filmmaking and computer technology in a profound way.Or "Tech-porn". Often sci-fi films will [...]
Small Fish and a Promise
onThe latest series of events in Stunt People history have made it painfully obvious to me that you have to be a huge player to get any momentum in the entertainment world. Materials - Getting a printing company to make 1,000 DVDs on time when their regular clients print 50,000 is like pulling teeth. Printing [...]
Avoid Lecturing Your Audience
onThe recent hit Haywire with Gina Carano is putting the spotlight on actors who do their own fighting and stunts, but there seems to be a viewpoint that audiences are somehow responsible for the diminished quality in our action genre. An article on the subject has this to say: 7. Audiences: Free your mind – [...]
High-octane action videos you probably haven’t seen
onTired of stunts done with computer graphics? Wires that gently float actors down after a dangerous 4-foot jump? Still imagining the pads off camera? Here is some much-needed medicine for your ailment. Let's start early on, just at the peak of the Hong Kong "old school" kung fu film. "Shapes", or succinct, posing movements that [...]
An Introduction to The Action Kickback Movement
onIf you're reading this blog, "action fan" doesn't adequately describe you. You're an "action junkie." You like your action scene unprocessed and unrefined, no sugar added, preferably in a powdery form whose purity is demonstrated by its rapid solubility in a drink. When taken by the average film-goer, its potency separates his frontal lobe from [...]