The 411 Top 5 03.29.06: Week Two

Posted by Trevor Snyder on 03.29.2006

The Top 5 Movie Action Scenes

There are certain things in life that are just undeniably true: We are all going to die. The next Uwe Boll movie will suck...hard. Shannon Elizabeth has a great rack. And guy's love a good action scene.

But which action scenes do guys love the most? Well, we can't pretend to speak for the entire male population, but we can speak for all of us here at 411. So, allow me to present:

THE TOP 5 MOVIE ACTION SCENES


Trevor Snyder

5) Bank Heist Shootout- Heat
4) Storming the beach at Normandy - Saving Private Ryan
3) Final Car Chase - The Road Warrior
2) Freeway Sequence - The Matrix Reloaded
1) Hospital Shootout - Hard Boiled

You gotta hand it to Michael Mann, nobody does L.A. crime movies better. When Heat was released, audiences couldn't wait to see Al Pacino and Robert Deniro finally share screen time. In the end, the two only really have two scenes together, but it's forgivable because of the movie's sheer quality, and amazing sequences like the daytime shootout between Deniro's gang of bank robbers and the LAPD. The sequence is particularly unique in that it is not set to music, giving it a more realistic feel than most action scenes. I feel almost bad getting excited watching the opening battle sequence in Saving Private Ryan, considering it's an actual event where a lot of real people were wounded or killed. But there's no denying that Spielberg did one hell of a job with the scene, creating the most intense depiction of war ever seen on film (and indirectly jump-starting a wave of hundreds of WWII video games). If the Mad Max series is known for one thing, it's amazing car crashes, many of which occur in the final act of The Road Warrior, the best film of the series. As the gang of villains pursue the tanker filled with oil (or so we think) that Max is driving, we are treated to some of the most spectacular crashes you will ever see, and we are constanly left wondering how no stuntmen were ever killed filming a Mad Max movie. It's interesting that the most impressive action sequence of the entire Matrix trilogy doesn't even feature Neo (Keanu Reeves), at least until the very end. You have to give it up for the freeway sequence, not only for the scene itself, but for what the filmmakers went through to put it together (building their own three-mile stretch of freeway). What starts as a simple car chase just keeps escalating and escalating, until you're not sure what else the Wachowski's could possibly throw at you. And hey, if nothing else, it features a kung-fu fight inside a cramped, moving vehicle. That alone earns it a spot here. Roughly halfway into John Woo's classic Hard Boiled, Tequila, the heroic cop played by Chow Yun-Fat, repels into a warehouse and single-handedly battles an army of triad members. It's a breathtaking sequence, and about a hundred times better than anything most Hollywood action movies have to offer. Hard Boiled could have stopped there and been one of the best action movies ever, but it goes on to become the best action movie ever with its climax, in which Tequila and fellow cop Tony, played by Tony Leung, take on yet another army of triad members, this time in a hospital, with the innocent doctors and patients caught in the crossfire. The chaotic shootout lasts almost 45 minutes, and features some of the most exciting gunplay you will ever see (including one particularly cool long, continuous, "first-person-shooter" type shot, following the two heroes as they blast their way through hallways and onto an elevator to the next floor, where the action, and the shot, continues). A thrilling reminder of the excitement Woo was capable of before being neutered by Hollywood.


Matthew Craggs

5) Chase scene - Stagecoach
4) Storming the beach - Saving Private Ryan
3) Charriot race - Ben Hur
2) The Pod Race! (I know, I know) - Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace
1) Chase scene - Ong Bak

Most summer action flicks try to keep our attention with constant action, and fail. Ong Bak is a movie that throws nothing but action at us after the first few relatively quiet moments and just won't let us go, for no other reason than Tony Jaa is completely badass. For those not in the know, the plot of Ong Bak is simple: Tony Jaa tries to steal back the head of a statue of Ong Bak, who I guess was... umm... a Thai warrior? He heads to the big city and kicks ass for about seventy minutes. For the most part it kicks off with a scene where Jaa jumps over object over object feet first. He practices some sort of break-dancing-fu where he spins on his head and kicks ass with his feet. If I were a religious man, I would give it up for "Jaahood," because this guy pulls off stunts that makes AJ Styles and his little Pele bicycle kick look like Matthew Craggs. As for the others, the Stagecoach chase scene and Charriot race are classic, the Saving Private Ryan opening is the most effective part of the picture, and the pod race... don't worry, I'm prepared to duck the tomatoes... was the second most effective action scene. I was younger, I saw it in the theatres (it loses all it's effect on my 20 inch tv) and it blew my mind. As much as I recognized that The Phantom Menace blew on the whole, this sequence got the blood pumping and did something to me I had never had done before.


Scott Rutherford

5) Rescuing The Princess - Shrek
4) Getting On The Bus - Speed
3) Giving The Bird To The Russians - Top Gun
2) Opening Car Chase - Lethal Weapon 2
1) Flash Kills Ming - Flash Gordon

#5 - Who said action has to be contained to films with muscled up men? This animated green ogre showed he was one smart cookie, and funny to boot, as he rescued Princess Fiona from the fire breathing dragon…very underrated. #4 - This whole movie centered around whether the bus was going to go above 50mph, and you know it had to or else the story was useless. But I be damned if they didn't turn it into a great bit of storytelling, and when they did break the magic speed barrier, getting Keanu on the bus became even more fun. #3 - Never has an opening scene set up the tone for a movie better than this. There really isn't that much action to speak of, and in fact a shot wasn't even fired in anger, but the sight of two US flyboys upside down over a Russian MIG fighter giving them the finger is a classic scene in any movie. #2 -This film had a massive legacy to live up to, and from second one you are in the middle of a rather insane car chase through downtown L.A that just kept going. I know there have been technically better car chases (The Italian Job and Ronin spring to mind), but this was a blend of pure action, things exploding, and cars colliding to set up the story of a great movie. #1 - A much under loved film for the early '80s that was as well known for it's terrible story and acting as it was for it's great action sequences. The best of these is Flash going headlong into the imperial palace of the evil Ming the Merciless in a broken down rocket ship under the barrage of laser blasts from the "Lightning Shield". This was the big climax, because if Flash dies Earth will be destroyed, and his girlfriend will have to marry the evil Ming, and shit would be very bad. Cheesy as you can get, but hella fun.


George H. Sirois

5) Murphy and Lewis vs. Clarence, Emil, Joe and Leon – Robocop
4) Battle on Autobot City – TransFormers: The Movie
3) Battle Against the Barbarian Horde – Gladiator
2) The Battle for Hoth – Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
1) The Battle of Helm's Deep – The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Robocop was the first R-rated action film I was able to see (on my 12th birthday), and I still remember the impact it had on me, especially the last battle between Murphy & Lewis and Clarence's gang. Seeing Emil get pushed into the toxic waste was a classic moment all by itself, but to follow it up with Robocop stabbing his interface needle into Clarence's neck was the perfect way to end the sequence.
Two years earlier, my uncle took me to see TransFormers: The Movie, and seeing all the characters I had known for the past 2-3 years getting laid out on a slab was a little hard to take at first. But as it went on, the battle between the Autobots and Decepticons at Autobot City was the first time that fans got to see just how much both sides hated each other. There was no holding back from the very beginning, all the way to the final battle between Optimus Prime and Megatron.
Then there was the battle against the Barbarian Horde in the Oscar-winning Gladiator. We'd seen Maximus do some great work as both the General in the Roman Army and in the smaller-scale coliseums, but this was the first time we had seen him as both the general he was and the gladiator he now is all at once.
The attack on the Rebel Base by the AT-AT Imperial Walkers was the perfect way to show the Rebellion that the Empire wasn't screwing around anymore. It was not only a great achievement in cinematic storytelling, since we got a great glimpse of just how much more powerful the Empire was than the Rebellion (not to mention the movie ending with the Rebellion on the losing side), but it was also a great achievement in visuals, since the ILM team were able to shoot stop-motion animation with a white background and make it look terrific.
But in terms of storytelling, build-up, execution, and knowing just when to say when, the Battle of Helm's Deep from The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers hit just the right spot for me. While the battle at Minas Tirith was epic all in itself, it was a little too much for me. Helm's Deep had the perfect balance of action, drama, suspense, excitement and a little touch of humor as well. Could have done without Legolas doing a little Middle Earth style surfing, but it provided a charge that both audiences I saw it with definitely enjoyed. So even though The Two Towers came up with the least amount of awards, I have to give it my appreciation for giving me my personal favorite action scene.


JT

5) Getting Elenore - Gone in 60 Seconds
4) Lobby shootout - The Matrix
3) Highway chase - Matrix Reloaded
2) Jedi vs. Rebellion - Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones
1) Bar shootout (the one in Cheech's bar) - Desperado

I really liked Nic Cage trying to get Elenore, because it was something that the entire movie had built towards. The car had backstory, and Cage and Elenore actually had a history. You knew he was saving it for last, why he was saving it for last, and how much it meant to him. Very suspensful build to a great chase. Choices #4 and #3 are probably a little biased, as the Matrix trilogy is my favorite "movie" of all time. The lobby scene in the first one was great to me, because it was finally payoff for all the movie had been building to. We knew that Neo was going to be uploaded with all these awesome ways to kick ass, including martial arts and weapons training, but the lobby scene was really the first time we got to see all of that in action. In part two, I think you have to love any scene that involves two men kicking each other's ass on the top of a speeding semi (especially considering who Morpheus was and what agents are capable of). The twins were good as well in this scene, and Niobi (Pinkett-Smith) drove that car just as good as she drives a ship (as evidenced in part 3). I also found it awesome when Morpheus was fighting the twins in the parking garage to kick off the sequence. #2 was a personal favorite, just because while I'm not a huge Star Wars nut, I have always liked the thought of how bad ass Jedi's are, and seeing two hundred of them in action was great. I especially liked Sam Jackson jumping off the ledge, right into the heat of battle. As for my #1, I personally think that the shoot-out between Antonio Banderas and all of Cheech's little hench man in the first half hour is one of the greatest action scenes in cinematic history. You had already heard Steve Buscemi talk about what a beast El Mariachi was, and he completely confirmed it by kicking ass in a major way. When Banderas catches the guy with his legs and kicks him off while dumping two clips into that guy might be my favorite "shoot a person" clip of all time.


Arnold Furious

5) Helms Deep - Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
4) Opening sequence - Raiders of the Lost Ark
3) Rooftop Explodes - Die Hard
2) Lobby scene - The Matrix
1) Hospital scene - Hard Boiled

#5) The attack on Helms Deep. Just the whole thing. Brilliant. #4) The opening sequence with the boulder and all the traps. #3) Rooftop explodes, McClain dives off the top of a skyscraper with only a firehose to stop him dropping to his death. Then kicks his way back into the building. Then the firehose falls. Tension & action and near death experience all rolled into one. #2) It's the point in the film where the Matrix really steps up from an interesting sci-fi film to an awesome action movie that happens to be in the sci-fi genre. #1) All the elements come together to make this scene what it is. It's just amazing stuff; absolutely mind blowing. The running gun battle through the series of windows alone would make it good enough to be #1, without all the explosions and baby rescuing going on around it. And the most amazing thing of all? No CGI. Mostly done in one take. John Woo is the man!


Chad Webb

5) Sean Archer disguised as Castor Troy escapes from Aera 1 prison – Face Off
4) Murphy and Lewis vs Clarence, Joe, Emil, and Leon - Robocop
3) Invasion of Queen Bavmorda's Castle - Willow
2) Battle of the Five Points, The Natives vs The Foreigners – Gangs of New York
1) The Last Battle of the Bandits vs the Samurai/Villagers - Seven Samurai

5 - One of the best action films that I have seen was Face/Off, and the particular scene I selected took place after Sean Archer went undercover as Castor Troy. He has found out what he wanted to find out from Castor's brother, and he decides to escape from the prison. This was a spectacular action sequence all together with an unforgettable jump into the ocean, from the top of the prison.
4 - It was a great day for me when I found a copy of Robocop, the Criterion edition on DVD. I had heard that it was the version of the film that was close to an X rating. The sequence involving the dude being pummeled by a car after being drowned in toxic waste was great, as well as the car chases, and just about everything.
3 - Willow always has a special place in my heart, and the final battle scene in which Willow, Madmartigan, and Fin Raziel launch a surprise attack to sneak into the castle. A battle between two elderly witches, Willow trying to save baby Elora, and Madmartigan vs General Kael made for a memorable battle and a hell of an action scene.
2 - At the beginning of Gangs of New York I was amazed by the opening battle for the Five Points, which has a fantastic score behind it as the Natives and Foreigners just plain butcher each other until Priest Vallon is killed by Bill Cutting.
1 - Seven Samurai is an action film that paved the way for many to follow it, and the final battle of the bandits and the samurai deserves number one just because it crafted so perfectly. I urge everyone to check it out for themselves if they haven't seen it.


Bryan Kristopowitz

5) Motorcycle chase - Escape From L.A.
4) Garage shootout - Army of One: AKA Joshua Tree
3) Freeway car chase - Bad Boys 2
2) Club slaying - Blade
1) Woman handcuffed to car steering wheel - Maniac Cop 2

5 - Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell) is back in action, forced by the fascist United States Police Force to infiltrate the new Los Angeles Island, where Peruvian revolutionary Cuervo Jones (George Corraface) has the "Black Box," controls to the "Sword of Damocles" satellite weapons system which, if "improperly used," could shut down the world's power permanently, and get the Box back. Snake has ten hours to do it or he'll die from a fast moving disease injected into his hand. Big stakes all around. Snake gets to LA, starts walking around, asking people where this Jones guy is, and then, while coming upon a giant street carnival, whamo slammo there he is, in a parade of cars and horses, trying to rally the people around him. Snake runs. He commandeers a motorcycle and floors it. He fights off people left and right, sending their vehicles crashing into roadside debris. Snake sees a ramp up ahead. He goes for it. Up the ramp, through the air, and into the back of a pick up truck. He then takes out a shotgun and shoots the thug behind him. Amazing stuff. Despite the fact that the effects look cheesy (even way back in 1996 they looked cheesy), the scene, like the rest of the flick, is filled with energy and, well, the greatest screen character in history. Snake jumps from truck to truck until he is hit in the face with some kind of rope ball thing. The sequence ends with a hilarious showdown. "Bangkok Rules" rule.

4 - Dolph Lundgren has been doing the low budget action flick thing since, well, probably "Universal Soldier." He's good at it, and since he's some kind of kickboxing martial artist guy, he's believable as a kick butt action guy (it also helps having a square jaw and being 6 feet tall and almost killing both Stallone and Van Damme on screen. Oh, yeah, and Frank Langella). In Army of One, Dolph plays a prisoner on the run from corrupt cops he used to work for in a smuggling ring. He's also upset that his truck driving buddy Ken Foree got blown away on the side of the road right in front of him. A whole bunch of stuff happens, Dolph captures a cop (the hot Kristian Alfonso), steals a hot rod Ferrari, smacks around an old woman he diddled, and then goes to a garage where one of the bad guys, Jimmy Shoeshine (Michael Paul Chan), is, well, doing bad guy stuff. Dolph infiltrates the garage and proceeds to lay waste to about twenty guys. Two handguns, shotgun, Uzis, sliding across the floor on one of those mechanic backboard things with wheels (all the while shooting, running out of ammo, then picking up a fresh gun off the floor to keep shooting), and then engaging in a quick beat down of Chinese gunman #1 (Joe Son, Random Task from the first Austin Powers movie) and thrusting a metal spike into his chin. Overall, this is one of those low budget action movies that surprises you on how good it is, even if it has a sequence where you can see the camera car and crew reflected in the side of the Lamborghini with George Segal and Beau Starr in it.

3 - Pretty much every action set piece in this flick is insane and amazing. When you learn that Michael Bay put cameras in crash cars and sent them off to get smashed into, you find out that the sickening and over the top car crashes you see are the result of a fairly practical shooting method. Cars fly everywhere. And that's all you remember. That's all this reviewer can remember.

2 - Traci Lords, the hip and edgy scumbag vampire, brings fresh meat to the meat locker party rave and eventual blood shower orgy (and where Donal Logue gets his tip licked off to the side in a scene cut out of the TNT/TBS version), only to have it interrupted by Wesley Snipes, Mister flying kung fu vampire killer, Blade. The blood soaked vampires attack, only to be quickly obliterated by the man in the trench coat with the sword and shotgun. This reviewer remembers seeing this in the theatre with his brother, turning to him after Blade sets Donal Logue on fire and escapes to the alley behind the building, and saying "Holy crap. That was cool." And when the flick was over, that was all either of us could say. The flick defied any other description. The opening especially. And this stuff happened a full year before everyone crapped their pants watching The Matrix. Amazing hooha.

1 - The super hot Claudia Christian, as police psychologist Susan Reilly, is in the wrong place at the wrong time as not-quite-dead super zombie killer cop Matt Cordell (Robert Z'Dar) pulls her from the cab she was riding in (the one with four flat tires that Laurene Landon drove on its rims, sending sparks everywhere, because Cordell was coming in his 70's cop car) and handcuffs her to the steering wheel of a nearby car and then pushes it downhill. While still attached to the outside, Claudia's character has to find a way to stay alive while she tries to navigate the runaway car through traffic and various hazards. And this is all done without CG. In a low budget action horror flick. This absolutely insane sequence, at least in this reviewer's opinion, puts every other action scene in movie history to shame. The much ballyhooed Matrix Reloaded freeway chase can't wash this scene's underwear. 16 years later, Claudia's car adventure still packs a wallop.

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And there you have it. I have to admit, it was nice to see Robocop get a couple mentions, but c'mon guys, where was the love for the scene from Robocop 3 where our hero straps on a jet-pack and flys? That's good stuff. Also, it's interesting to note that it only took two weeks for Flash Gordon to make an appearance in the Top 5. That was...certainly unexpected. But, I do have to agree with Rutherford: flying an entire space-ship into a guy is pretty cool, not to mention a highly effective way to off someone.

And speaking of offing people (Trevor Snyder, master of transitions), we'll be getting a lot more of that next week, as we look at the Top 5 Death Scenes. Until then, I'm gonna go watch Robocop 3 again. He flies, people!