Have Directors Forgotten how to Film Action?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 11 ก.ย. 2024
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Chris Stuckmann talks about the growing number of incompetent action films that seem to be plaguing Hollywood, and what can be done to fix it.
I thought John Wick was gonna be a generic action movie from the trailer.... I still regret not watching it in the theaters.
it was an amazing movie
Loved it, John Wick 2 and Mission: Impossible - Fallout are my favorite movies right about the first John Wick
Same here
and they both getting sequels in 2021
Likewise. Had absolutely no interest in seeing it. Watched it on HBO and loved it.
Then last week a friend was telling me he didn't want to see it because it was "played out" already.
Tried to explain how the action was different-but he wasn't convinced.
Compared to so many youtubers this guy is actually incredibly humble, quiet-spoken and decent. Good for him.
Siko Man Google "Zoe's snapped neck Chris stuckmann" have your opinion changed
I don't get it.
*zods
Agree!
You mean arrogant, unfunny, cringe and pompass
Keanu Reeves actually learned competitive tactical shooting for his role in John Wick. It's clearly visible in the well-filmed, wide-shot heavy shootout scenes.
The Matrix and Man of Tai Chi have the best fight scenes. 💜💜💜
Glad to hear im not the only one who doesnt like these shakey cams and fast cuts, they really make action sequences dull and disapointing
xisumavoid I think they are good when used sparingly.
the staircase fight scene in the protector was awesome, how come that didnt catch on like a disease
Shakey cam pissed me off
It’s nice to see that you’re a movie fan xisuma
+ you lose orientation
Even if Tom Cruise isn't that great a person, I have nothing but respect for how committed he is to doing his own stunts.
Weird man, great actor.
+teheyepatch Everyone I talk to says that they can't stand the guy, but I love Tom Cruise. Why? Just look at my profile picture! Nuff said!
+teheyepatch he is Hollywood's answer to Jackie Chan.
elmohead I love Tom Cruise, I just watched Ghost Protocol again last night.
+teheyepatch He's not a bad person, he's just crazy.
Mad Max Fury Road is an example of how to do an action movie right.
***** Me too! When I saw the trailer, I was like, meh, this is like another 300 but with cars. So glad to have been wrong! So glad!
+Mau jo yeah movie is awesome best action movies in 5 years the only challenge is mission impossible ghost protocal and fast five and mission impossible rouge nation and skyfall superhero movies dont count
For real I've heard some people saying its shit and that honestly baffles me. Fury Road is the best action movie in years!!
I think it has something to do with a lack of a story.
Mau Jo Yea I didn't think it was one of the greatest action movies ever. Well I probably say that because I started watching it 15 minutes in and I didn't know what was going on.
Quentin Tarantino is know for his great dialogue, but when he does action, it's fantastic!
Mysterious Coconut Even Yuen Wo Ping has said he was not needed for Kill Bill since Tarantino had already planned everything out.
@Andrew K i respect your opinion, but i disagree. Even a love story i have seen a 1000 times can still suprise me because of the writing
John Wick... Amazing action cinematography
i love the knife fight at the end of the home invasion part.
Dredd is magnificent. Karl Urban never removes the helmet. It's violent, interesting, and VERY similar to The Raid: Redemption.
But it IS a different movie. It's excellent action material. Couldn't recommend it more.
Yeah, that movie is done really well, not using stupid cliches, making the plot and action tense and interesting.. I think I'll watch it again.
SzczesliwyCzlowiek Fuck yea.
I'm going to watch it again, too.
***** Hey, good for you, pal!!
In fact, you know what?
In honor of you.....
*I'M GONNA WATCH THE MOVIE AGAIN!!*
Thanks for the suggestion!!!
that stupid blonde cunt ruined the entire movie
i liked it when the black guy was fucking her
I loved Batman vs. Bane in "The dark knight rises". I loved the way it was filmed and the fact that it was filmed without any music. You could hear every punch which made Bane appear even more threatening and stronger. The whole scene was so dark and dirty. The soundeffects really were incredible.
but the fight choreography was terrible.
the fight on the street made me hate the entire movie
andyofzz yeah it is very horribly choreographed some of the police and terrorist fighting looks like they were playing.
I guess that you are forgetting about the other fight scenes in that movie. In one that, if I remember correctly, was on a rooftop and batman was surrounded my henchmen, one of them LITERALLY FELL DOWN FOR NO REASON WITHOUT BEING HIT OR ANYTHING. You should look it up. It looks so funny
left4deadian The thing is there were literally hundreds of people on set, so of course some would look a bit silly because they couldn't choreograph a fight for hundreds of people at the same time.
I think another problem with action films these days is the 'speed up/slow down/speed up' style that Zack Snyder used in 300. It's so overdone.
Excessive slow-mo and zooming in and out, Zack Snyder's signature (and annoying) style
He calmed down that style in Man of Steel.
Edgar Ascensão Actually I thought it got worse in MoS, relative to how fast the action was moving
If you think it's bad in 300 the. You should watch the recent resident evil movies.
TheGoldenCaulk I think it works in comicbook movies. Only Zack Snyder should use them though, same with shaky cam and Paul Greengrass. Only these guys know how to use their respective styles to enhance the experience.
Children of Men is a great film with some amazing action scenes. And one of the best films in the last 15 years.
Carlos D. Montemayor Thank you for mentioning this movie it does have really good action in it because the director and cinematographer knows what they were doing filming an action or intense scene it was planned very well thanks for awesome cinematography, really good acting, and innovative camera work, these action scenes helps depict the horrors of a dystopian world and the horrors of war.
Did you watch the behind-the-scenes of the ... um ... unfortunate car scene? Reminds me of the clever camerawork from The Raid 2.
Yeah I have seen it on how they did the camerawork for the car scene and I'm still blown away by that scene even it show something horrible that happened so I don't want to spoil it.
The original Matrix. When Neo and Trinity entered that building and took everything out and saved Morpheus. One of my all time favorite action scenes of all time.
For me, the best action films in the last 5 years have been Mad Max Fury road, The Raid 2 and The Raid 1. John wick was another example of how great action films should be made.
Matthew Vaughn uses shaky cam a bit in Kingsman but it's not used terribly. You can acutely see what's going on, it's not used to hide bad choreography. He does it because the fights are very fast paced and sometimes you need to make the camera move very frantically with the actors. Matthew Vaughn might be the next Paul Greengrass.
Señor Steffan sorry to break it to ya... but that is still bad shaky cam
@@st.wvllxw7238 Kingsman doesn't have shaky cam. Its a dynamic camera but the screen doesn't shake.
I wonder if any of the people who disliked this video are directors who have forgotten how to film action.
Shakey cam was pretty good back in Saving Private Ryan... but today is a whole different deal
*Mission Impossible: Fallout*
The stunts,
The camera work,
Actors' commitment,
Everything about this movie us fucking incredible. ❤
The Mask of Zorro may not have been the best of films but God the action scenes were epic. They don't make action like that anymore. With a few exceptions of course
Very underrated movie in my opinion.
Have to mention Captain America Winter Soldier had really, really intense fight (especially the knife fight).
Dude, you just made me wanna see it more. Jealous of those at the premiere.
Galen Marek It is easily the best MArvel film just below, but not too far from, The Avengers.
Heard that Russo Bros love the Raid movies, so they incorporated those hand2hand combats in TWS.
Nikish Chauhan
Well then it is the Best Marvel film for me as I put Avengers behind Iron Man 1.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier is an example of what a 21st century action movie should be like.
The newer Daniel Craig Bond films have had some of the best action I've seen in recent years. Casino Royale is one of my favorite action films of all time, and it has absolutely incredible camera and stunt work. It's fantastic. My favorite action film of all time has got to be The Matrix. I really don't have many gripes about that film I can think of. It's just a movie that's nearly flawless and more action films should be made like it.
talking bout dramatic directors directing action. Christopher Nolan, as great as the Dark knight trilogy was, the fight scenes are lame compared to what Batman can actually do in the comics.
Vinny Banana Nolan was going for realism in the series, so he couldn't have batman doing some amazing things like the comic book character would.
Bananna Squid
Martial arts is real.
Vinny Banana Batman needs a scene like Kiss of The Dragon where he takes out a room full of dudes using mad different styles.
I'd like to see a batman fight scene where he is fluidly fighting against many opponents yet the punches and hits have a real heft to them and where he is using his environment to his advantage. After all he, as a character, is generally displayed as a genius martial artist at the peak of human strength. However, I agree that I think Nolan was going for a more realistic style, yet he made batman look more like a brawler and less of an intelligent physical fighter. That's just my opinion though . I still enjoyed the Nolan batman films a lot. In fact, they're my favorite live action renditions so far. Sorry if my opinion offends anyone.
Preston Owens Agreed dude. If I was writing the script or was the director explaining to the fight coordinator, I would say Batman's fights need to be like he is playing chess with his fist and feet...Batman is strategic and is going to be one step ahead.
Captain America 2 : Winter Soldier was pretty good as an action movie too.
+Kylo Ren 3.5/10
+Kylo Ren The fights were quite good but I thought the editing was a bit too choppy.
+Manta 8/10
+HiMate! The hero, however, was actually even more "Mary Sue" than Rey. That hero is actually a man that I'm describing!
+Anshuman Kumar It was okay. There was still a lot of choppy editing and shaky cam during the fight scenes though.
Jackie Chan once mentioned; "If the camera is shaking, it means you don't know how to fight."
+HoldShifft2Run Not if it's Paul Greengrass.
@@thefirstbourne149 Nah, hand-to-hand combat scenes from Supermacy and Ultimatum still badly shot
@@cps1247 I think only first bourne film was good rest of two film are mehhhhh
@@cps1247 i agree for supremacy but in ultimatum greengrass perfected it and Bourne vs Desh was amazing
@@hayrettinresitkayacan4568 if you're pointing out to shaky cam, I can see why you dislike it but personally I think the 3rd was the best
I just love listening to people with reason. It makes me hope for better
Yeah, but its sad that theres not very many of them
+XDnumbersnlettersXD I don't know, I think there's a lot of them. However, in all of human history, the morons have outnumbered the competent people and we are still standing and thriving. We'll be alright.
+George Daugherty eh, there's a whole lot of people nowadays without reason. Apparently Star Wars the force awakens being similar to a new hope makes it a "bad movie"... And they can't be reasonable when you try to explain to them that's their opinion, and doesn't affect how good TFA is as a movie.
Mine MLG Yeah, but like I said, they have outnumbered the competent and we're still standing and thriving. We're fine, man.
John Wick and Collateral had some pretty great action sequences!
Say what you will about Zack snyder, but he is the greatest action director. Hes a visual director. Watchmen, 300, sucker punch (Bad plot, awesome action), Man of steel. Especially man of steel. Those fights were so fucking intense, all DBZ with the power punches and the speed. Full blown Kryptonian showdown.
Eh the mos action scenes were kind of annoying, random zoom shots and shaky cam yuck.
90mv He used handheld cam in mos and idk why ppl hate on zoom shots, i think it really shows how big the scope of the scene is
I completely agree! The MoS fightscenes with Superman and Watchmen's fightscenes with Rorschach or Nite Owl, give me so much confidence for the fight scenes in BvS.
John McTiernan says Hi. 😂
4 words Mad Max Fury Road
three words Overrated Action Movie, it was perfect shot for shot wise and makeup wise but the characters sucked but the girl with the metal arn was cool but the rest were meh
the action and stunt choreography was spot on
agreed.
Agreed this is a great movie!!!! It revived the action movie!!!
Joostin you are so wrong Mad Max Fury Road is an amazing movie and is in no way shape or form overrated
One film that would certainly quench your thirst for well-filmed and well choreographed action is The Raid 2. This is the ultimate action film.... I can't stop singing praises for this movie because I just enjoyed it so much that I want everyone out there, who loves badass brutal action films, to go and see it...
Oh shit yes!! I absolutely loved The Raid 2, the direction was fantastic and such a step up from The Raid 1. I've been telling absolutely everyone about this film haha. It's always great to see someone who loves it as much as I do lol. You should check out my review for The Raid 2. From one Raid fan to another... I'm sure you'll like it ;)
WeegieMovies i think the ironic thing is, the raid franchise worked because they not actually bring something new. As stated by Gareth Evans, he actually incorporated the technique and elements that were used by great action film of old into his film because he knew it will work.
Anas Affandi Exactly, it's not that they brought 'something new', it's that the film was so well directed using well-established moves and techniques that it felt like a fresh, new take on action staples. And there actually was quite a few unorthodox moves in there. For example, when the guy they're shaking down for money runs away and is thrown through a window by Rama, there was actually two DPs to move the camera in such a way that it goes through the window and rotates to correct its position without cutting. Gareth Evans is, honestly in my opinion, the most exciting director working at the moment and I cannot wait to see how he progresses.
Anas Affandi I think it also worked because the story was simple, to the point, but also quite good.
I HATED the bad guys, I was rooting for Jaka, Rama, and Donnie the entire time. It was frickin relief when they finally got Mad Dog.
then you see Zach Synder filming the batman warehouse scene, the action was fucken beautifully, sure somes of his movies plots are questionable but his style of doing action is awesome like man of steel,300, watchmen and BvS. So keen for the justice league movies and hearing what happening atm
its like straight coming out of Arkham's game fighting action xD
ooitung95 so true
i go so hype and almost scream when batman do the grappling gun move...
Exactly. That scene was incredible. Shame the rest of the fight scenes in the movie weren't like that.
what's better? a bad movie with one great action scene or a great movie with even greater action scenes
With the Dark Knight Trilogy, everyone has gotta at least admit the fight scenes got better and better. Nolan definitely isn't the best at directing fight scenes, but I give him credit for trying to improve. The action scenes in Inception are pretty amazing
Agreed, I mean the fight scenes in Batman Begins were a mess, but they got better and better with each film to the point where the filming style was perfect, though the choreography could still be better.
Well both BB and TDK had crappy action scenes. Inception and TDKR have really great action, Im glad Nolan improved that aspect on his films.
My action scenes are probably 'the kitchen' in The Raid 2, the 'Tracking Shot' in The Protector, the 10-on-1 fight in Ip Man, the highway chase in The Matrix Reloaded, Bond vs Sniper in Skyfall, and so on and so forth.
+Tyler H I know it's shaky cam, but I'm hoping that because Stuckmann defended Greengrass, I can make this comment, and I think another one of the top fights is the Bourne vs Desh fight. It is really closely edited, but all of them do allow some background, and most of the clos-ups are on the hardest hits.
THANK YOU for mentioning The Matrix. That trilogy has the finest fight sequences in all US cinema.
Those movies are very visual. Lots of CGI (done right) that allows for many seamless transitions that work best with a wider camera focus.
The matrix sequel rooftop cgi fight scene was horrendous!
“Trilogy” .....huh ,i think the first matrix is the only one in the trilogy that actually that good
I loved the Kung Fu fight!
When you started to talk about shaky cam it reminded me of what my orchestra teacher taught me and my class once before about the use of vibrato (a way of playing the notes of a song that makes it sound sad or emotional...i can't describe it properly)
Anyway, my class kept using this new special way of playing music in every chance we got to practice the song we were playing. The teacher got upset because everything was out of tune. She said that we should only use vibrato as like "a fine piece of expensive jewelry only to be worn with purpose."
*Point is, get everything right _then_ use that special technique. Otherwise things will look and/or sound terrible.
Shaky cam can be a good thing, people just got to use it right and give a real sense of purpose. Any special method itself is not going to make a great action scene or any other form of art.
I think people just get too excited when learning something new. And from that excitement they think that any use of that special technique will magically make anything awesome. Because they think it alone made someone else's stuff awesome.
Nothing like complete CGI and a bunch of explosions! Seriously, no.
Hi Chris: I was wondering if you're a fan of South Korean films, specifically the Action Films. There's many great SK Action films that are excellently shot, and not to mention directed and put together. Asian Cinema is really excellent with fight and scene choreography and films like The Man From Nowhere, The Good, The Bad, And The Weird, and many others which are so much better than %99.9 of Action Films today. Man From Nowhere actually inspired the "Window Jump" scene in Bourne, as they did it first.
I loved the Raid as well, though IMO the 1st is better than the 2nd since I find it's too bloated, and that the simplicity of the original actually makes it better. Though I feel that another issue while watching it was that I'd seen a lot of it before. Don't get me wrong, the fights are great, and well crafted, but I'd seen a lot of it already done in other fields, and in fact some of these characters and these fights had been done in other films as well. For example, the Baseball fighter that the main character faces at the end was already done in another film I'd seen before, which while I watched the Raid I couldn't tell if Evans had been inspired by it or ripped it off(I still hold that Raid and Dredd had so many strange similarities that someone ripped off the other). The story had already been done in other films before too. So while it was all well done, executed, etc, the film is too lengthy and in such sharp contrast to the original that it concordantly diminishes the final result.
But there's a lot of great films out there from Asia that you'd love if you liked these films.
MIKEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
+Laughingstock Media Dredd's script was started being written much earlier than Raid. Even director of Raid said no movie was ripping off any other. In fact, Judges going in one of mega blocks to clean up crime, were a normal routine for them going far as back in the 80s comics.
Yeah but the films have so many similarities that when you watch them back to back that you have to think there was something going on there.
Since no one has brought it up yet, I love the action in Equilibrium and I also really like the fight at the end of Jack Reacher.
Zack Snyder films the best modern action IMO. I don't care what one may think of his films, but damn that guy knows how to make an action scene.
CGI and shakycam are film problems
why are cgi a problem
+malik sakti I think it's poorly done CGI that ruins the immersion of a movie that is the problem, not CGI itself.
+LeadMuncher09 CGI should be used to compliment practical effects and add something which practical cannot. It could be used for small assets or objects in the background but not entire backdrops
+DistortedCartoons that's because you only notice bad cgi. I bet there are great cgi effects that you didn't even realize were cgi.
Almost everyone replying to this is quoting RocketJumps CGI video.
I made the mistake of seeing The Matrix after Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. While I was still blown away, I was spoiled by the incredible performances in CTHD. The fight between the two women is one of my favorite fight scenes of all time. Unexpectedly, the church scene in Kingsmen is also one of my favorite. It was a delight, and that is rare in a movie. They thought about (and should have!) making that scene much longer. It was cool seeing the explanations of the camera work in The Raid 1 and 2.
I honestly think the 'Kill Bill' series' were some of the best action films of our generation.
Amazing fight choreography, fantastic cinematography, what more could you want from a straightforward revenge story?
Hell yeah the kill bill series created both my love for cinema and quentin tarantino at a young age.
I think it's because Tarantino loves foreign cinema. He really wants to learn from those films. He takes his time to film the action scenes. Also he expects a lot from his actors. I agree it's great action.
Greatest action movies: Die Hard, Aliens, T2, MI: Fallout, The Terminator, Winter Soldier, Speed, The Matrix
The Raid: Redemption! That's all I had to say
And now there's the Raid 2
Vincent Nguyen ye, Raid 2 is very, very good.
Even the people who hated Batman v Superman agreed that it had some great action sequences in which you can actually tell what's going on. That Batman warehouse scene was awesome.
Mad Max Fury Road has some of the best action scenes I've ever seen. The camera was always exactly where it needed to be. Every action sequence felt like watching an Olympian stick the perfect dive over and over again. You watch the brilliant choreography build and build and they cap it off perfectly every time while the music just elevates it. Even just watching Max load a rifle for Furiosa while driving the war rig was intense and engaging. That movie is a game changer because it shows filmmakers how they should be doing action nowadays. Not this over reliance on CGI or shaky cam BS.
On shaky-cam. I fully blame the Jason Borne movies for that. I'm fine when it's artfully done and in action scenes. But I remember a few instances, which I believe was mostly in The Borne Supremacy, that really turned me off to the whole shaky-cam thing. That was when they used shaky-cam everywhere... like oh, standard dialogue scenes, a person in a room with a few other people and they're just talking... oh shit gotta shake that camera!
It really turned me off from movies that use shaky-cam all the damn time. Which is why to this day I have never seen Cloverfield.
+RyoHazuki224 Cloverfield's shaky-cam is kinda meant to be unprofessional. Ok, that didn't change the fact that even I was closer to throwing up the first time, but that's not really the same thing, and that's the style. Even with the Bourne movies, the only fight I can think of that didn't work was the bathroom fight. It wasn't edited well enough. The standard dialogue scenes are what they are, but filmed with a documentary-esque style, not a shaky one. Plus, Chris mentioned how the fight with Desh was a much better fight than the previous fight, because the sound design is better, and the editing, isn't necessarily smoother, but more sharply focused. Greengrass wasn't trying to be lazy with it, and I'm pretty sure even Doug Liman's fights in The Bourne Identity weren't so much different than the later movies, only they didn't use handheld that much.
A few action movies that I've enjoyed a lot are The World's End, Scott Pilgrim, The Protector, Kick Ass, Avengers, Rush Hour, 300, The Lord of The Rings: Return of The King, and Hot Fuzz.
I agree 150% Chris they need to go back to Old School movie making. Because this is getting Ridiculous.
Shaky cam and lens flares = movie cancer.
i love the old bond fistfights, like connery and shaw on the train. just two guys and little space. simple and very intense !
i totally agree, although skyfall actions sequences were really good in my opinion, especially the one in Shanghai in the empty building
The Casino Royale fight scenes are INCREDIBLE. Some of the best I've ever seen.
The cargo airplane fight in "The Living Daylights" rocks!
Ragitsu Very under-rated Bond film!
Daniel Epler The first fight scene in Quantum of Solace is also GREAT.
I also really hate Shaky Cam. It sucks! When you mentioned it, I was also thinking of Taken, because they used it alot in those movies. When you also mentioned Hunger Games which was great, I remembered feeling freaking irritated with the shaky cam in that running/killing scene. I didn't who was who and where they were going nor what they were doing, It was quite disappointing. Though, it's true, they did have a reason. BTW, if you were implying that the Taken sequels were bad, I agree.
+Dignora Gonzalez Also, one of my most favorite action/drama films from the 90s is Leon: The Professional. If you can please do a review if you haven't already, that would be amazing!;) thanks!
Especially in that "opening" scene it can have some reason. After all chaos breaks out, and that is one of the few moments when shaky cam can help to translate the chaos to the viewer.
Another good use is to give actions more impact. Like in a fight scene where a punch hits so hard it not only hurts the opponent, but also disrupts the entire world so hard, even the camera outside the world feels it.
Is there any chance we'll see a video like this but for car chases and races? Such as how to choreograph one, how to pull off the stunt driving, how to film the actors in-car, etcetera?
Samniss Arandeen mad max pretty much saved that now
Samniss Arandeen Need for Speed did that very well and all of the stunts performed in the movie were actually done. No CG at all.
arbiter5100 So did the later Fast and Furious films. They really did drop motherfucking cars out of a motherfucking plane.
I'd still like to see a "how to film car chases" video though, not only because it would be fun to watch, but hopefully so chases don't go the way of the good action scene.
There is not an actor working today at Tom Cruise's level of fame who commits to action scenes as much as he does? Two words, Chris: JACKIE CHAN.
Eh, in terms of fame, Tom Cruise is leagues ahead of Jackie Chan, who has kinda fallen off the map.
I'd say that's majorly debatable in China. If we're talking western world, yes, Tom Cruise would be the most famous. But the western world is actually only a fraction of the overall marketplace.
J Hallenbeck Jackie Chan hasn't been making pure action movies for a while, right?
(but also, my favorite action scene of all time is in Legend of Drunken Master, when he's fighting a billion people in the building and gets that weird bamboo rod that splits into a bunch of parts with the sliding cloth that controls the spread of the slivers...HOLY POIJPOSIJOPIJ)
J Hallenbeck well the US is a VERY large fraction of the box office. so thats kind of stupid to say but anyway, I have a few friends who live in china now, and have been for a couple years. they were big fans of Jackie Chan(because he's a badass) but they say alot of people in China don't actually like Jackie Chan that much. Don't know if its true, or they just met people who dont like him but just saying... and even if everyone loved jackie chan in china, tom cruise is still more popular.
***** Yes, Tom cruise might be more popular (although this is all semantics) but the point is; Jackie Chan operates at the same level of fame and does all his own stunts. Just because you personally do not live in a country where he is considered a mega-star does not mean other countries share the same view. Just as Cruise is known around the world but he's not 'popular' in every country.
And believe it or not but U.S. box office only accounts for a fraction of revenues these days. India, China and Japan account for the lion's share of box office. The U.S. domestic market is small comparatively, while the international market is dominant. That's why all U.S. commercial films tend to pander to the lowest common denominator so anyone from any culture/country can 'enjoy' them.
Anyway, point is; Tom Cruise is not the only international movie star who does his own stunt work. In fact, what he does when compared to Chan is rather quaint and tame.
What I find especially sad is when there's great stunt work or practical effects but the camera is so shaky and the editing so quick that you can't see them and appreciate them. For example:
Legion's behind-the-scenes video dedicates like 10 min to their creepy ice cream guy (played by Doug Jones!). In the film, however, his scene takes only a few seconds and your attention goes to his CGI mouth, completely missing the practical effects on his arms and legs.
Avengers had many awesome action scenes. But their behind the scenes shows this amazing stunt with Captain America jumping from car to car - a scene that goes by so fast in the film that you barely notice it and you suspect it was done in CGI.
These things make me sad : /
Shaky cam can work very well, it all depends on the director and the actor performing the scene. I loved Taken's action scenes, and that was primarily because Pierre Morel was skilled at shooting very visceral action (the exact opposite is seen by Megaton in Taken 2) and due to Liam Neeson totally killing it as usual. The best kind of action is the kind where you want to mimic what's happening on screen because it feels so exhilarating and intense.
Well said !
Too bad that no studio take into account your words, I fight myself against the effects of disastrous shaking direction, and frantic editing.
If Bourne movie shots enchainent each other well, it's because Greengrass knows how to frame them.
The action is always placed at the center of the frame which allows the eye to spot it immediately, and not to be lost.
So we just follow Bourne and others, in the Waterloo station, fluidly without losing sight.
On the contrary, in Quantum of solace, they hired the bourne editor (academy awarded), but the directing was too bad, and can't be saved by a good editor.
Daredevil's hallway fight scene is the best.
And the stairwell fight scene!
the show is just amazing
I dont get what ppl see in Hunger Games. Its an ok movie, i dont consider it great.
Well for starters, the Hunger Games is based on a popular book, and people think that the movie is a faithful retelling of the novel. Secondly, the movie has a cast full of good actors. Actors who are decent at retelling the Hunger Games story. And lastly, people, including myself, like the dialogue and the chemistry between the characters.
still, I dont think is a great movie.
Yeah, I can see where you're coming from.
Agreed. Not the best movie I have seen
***** The fact it was based off the book was what made it bad for me, since the books were way better.
I know I'm going to get some hate for this but honestly I think Revenge of the Sith had some of the best action scenes of the series. The opening Corusaunt battle. Perfect way to direct a CGI space battle. You can see everything. You feel the ships exploding. Also the final duels between Anakin and Obi-Wan as well as Sidious and Yoda. You can see everything. The angles of the camera make sure you can catch all the action. It gets intimate when it needs to be during the blade locks. On Mustafar it shows what is happening around them. Plus a lot of them did their own stunts for that movie. As much as people complain about the prequels there was still a great deal of practical stunt work being done.
Problem was the light saber duels look more like they're dancing than fighting. I enjoyed them- but they would have been much better if they hadn't been choreographed so obtrusively.
If anyone wants to ser how a solid action movie should be, watch a Jackie Chan movie.
Or and issac florentine movie
Just watch die hard or the matrix and you will be fine
Totally agree with the shaky cam thing, it needs to end. What really gets under my skin though is the overuse of handheld camera work. I agree that it was done well in Collateral and it can be a useful tool. What i am really talking about is when there are two or more people in a room, having a conversation, and the camera is constantly bobbing up and down, zooming in and out, and panning left and right. It completely ruins movies for me.
Quentin Tarintino is good at filming action. Well, if you can handle how violent it is. Django was bloody to the point that I think it was a bit much, but it was exhilarating none the less.
Yeah, the first time I watched Django, I did feel a little sick inside. But then the second time I watched it I was fine. I think that is his bloodiest film. That or Kill Bill.
I like Django but I was actually really surprised it wasn't gorier and bloodier than it was, coming from Tarantino. Some terrible things happened but you didn't actually see the really messed up stuff.
midnight15086 The shootout was pretty bloody. Django was bloodier than Inglorious Basterds.
Although I agree with you, you didn't give your reasoning on why exactly The Bourne series is an exception from that complaint aside from some vague comments like "it just works."
Yes! the raid! Best martial arts film!!!
Nah Bruce Lees films were better
Joostin Reviews It was it's own style, they are fantastic, but these newer films have a more modern cinematic style
I dunno, the Raid 2 has some of the best combat, awesome gun fights and even one of the most exciting car chases too.
Swoooze that's what I meant. Both of them. But I agree the 2nd is the best one.
I meant compared to Bruce Lee's movies which are just hand to hand combat. Awesome fighting true, but the Raid 2 is just nuts!
Shakey cam works best when you don't realise it's being used.
Fincher who is well praised and instantly recognisable for his very locked down style of filmography used it in a clever way. In the finale of Seven they introduce a subtle shakey cam with the helicopter perspective. When Summers is running too and from the box the camera shakes in commonality with how he'd be running. Throughout the scene, there is contrast between shots of the detectives which is still quite shakey and shots of Jon Doe which is locked down and very stable.
There a little bit of shakey cam works as a CONTRAST, between the delirious turmoil the detectives are going through in realising what Jon Doe has done and how in control Jon Doe is in perfectly orchestrating his plot that is all falling into place.
Shakey cam was introduced a bit earlier in the film with the chase scene where it was established that the perspective would shake when following a running character.
Well, I guess it wasn't really "shakey cam" just handheld camera that was technically shakey but it was still very clear to see what's going on.
What did you think about Dredd? Personally, I still can't believe that people went to the theaters to see Taken 2 that came out the same weekend & made 50 million in its first weekend over Dredd!?!?!?!? smh, I give up.
He gave it a B+.
Nodo nian thx
Dredd is a top film Karl Urban is Dredd!
Bokkakuichi Dredd is probably one of the best action movies released in the past 10 years, in my opinion.
dredd was surprisingly good cant wait for the next one
Some of my favorite action movies include the original Matrix, Batman Begins/Dark Knight Rises, Wolverine, pretty much all Jackie Chan/Bruce Lee movies.
Some of the best action films.. First Blood, Die Hard, Terminator 2, Lethal Weapon.. They had wide shots, great actors, big scenes, practical stunts. I wanna see what's going on!! I hate the shaky camera effect and cartoonish cgi. I walk out of the theatre with a headache!
Great topic of commentary and interesting points Chris.
I love this series and would like you to talk about how directors have forgotten to make horror films or more specifically build suspense, dread and horror. Hitchcock has to be my biggest inspiration and i love how Spielberg even managed to build suspense in the film "Duel" even though the acting and overall plot is poor.
Chris, I think you should also acknowledge that horrifying hand to hand combat scene in Gods Of Egypt. And I'm talking about that scene on the waterfall, with all the 300 slow mo, 360 cam, cheap green screen FX and unfinished CGI. That scene alone,sums up how messed up fight scenes are nowadays.
I always chuckle to myself when 60 year old Karl Malden filmed a foot chase in Streets of San Francisco tv show in 1972 and it felt better than most action movies scenes of today
And I think Neill Blomkamp uses shaky cam pretty well in District 9 and Elysium
I feel like you would make an exceptional director, Chris.
Matrix : Keanu Reeves puts the work in !
Terminator 2 : Arnold
Jackie Chan Movies !
I miss these wish you would do more on occasion even just 3 or 4 a year. Was a fun watch on a very bad pain night Mr Stuckmann thank you.
There's plenty of reasons why action movies rarely or never sticks with me and you point them out so well. I much rather go watch a movie that happens to have an action moment or two in them, but overall that isn't what it's sold as. That's not where the focus is at because I'd like to watch a story. And I'd like to see what is going on.
One of the best modern fight scenes has to be Batman and Bane fighting in the sewer from The Dark Knight Rises!
totally agree its filmed to perfection
You've got to be kidding me...!
No I think it's a very well donefight just my opinion
sayenshin if it's not matrix, hong kong action like sequences it must be bad...right?
vorjay Not at all. The way it was filmed was excellent, but Batman basically fought like a football player and I thought when I watched it for the first time that it ruined what made the character special. But that's just my opinion.
hated the shakey cam first time I saw it. Hate the quick cuts too.
Agree with everything you said except maybe for the use of shaky cam in the Bourne movies. I liked the movies but didn't particularly care for the shaky cam style. I assume it was to convey a feeling of disorientation because Bourne was always on the run, but it was at the cost of making me nauseous. Perhaps I just need to watch those movies again to appreciate it, though.
Not just that, they used shaky cam during a serious dialogue scene at the end of the movie, and it was so freakin' distracting.
The shaky cam in Bourne movies is not as bad when watching them on TV, as opposed to a movie theater.
Agreed, the camera bobs around when they are stationary sitting in a café for dialog and the camera is moving, what gives with that? are they on a boat?
Inception had amazing stunt work. The hallway scene blew my mind, JGL did his own stunts, the camera was fixed, and I was literally on the edge of me seat the entire time.
Chris, you spoke so much meaning in this video. I was on the point of checking my family tree to see if we were related somehow. But with me, it's not just action sequences that can ruin a film - it's any kind of movement from the camera. Hand held or shaky allows the camera to stand out. The camera should be invisible at all times. If the camera looks to be shot from a shoulder, we're reminded that somebody is filming it. But even then, we were still singing from the same hymn sheet, then I reached 9:15 when you began to praise Greengrass. He must be the best example of a shoddy film maker. I remember getting excited over Captain Phillips until I found out who directed it. There's only a few perfectly shot films out there and the reason is because film companies have time restrictions. For perfect camera work watch The Green Mile again or more recently Drive. I would still like to post your link onto my shaky cam page if that's okay? Please let me know.
Raiders Of The Lost Ark is my favorite movie of all time. You are 100% right. I think you should do an action movies Chis, because you sound like you know what you are doing.
KILL BILL vol 1 has the best action scenes.
you clearly have not seen the raid 2 eh
namawapaya
I don't think you understand the steps and attention to detail QT used to make the action scenes work in KILL BILL. If you watch classic Japanese films you can see the amount of time it took to pull of well sequenced action scene. Especially the scenes in the CRAZY 88 battle. At the end of the day all film is subjective and everyone is entitled to their own opinion.
Terminator 2 is probably my favourite action movie. The motorcycle-truck chase sequence I will never forget.
I appreciate videos such as these that ask the BIG questions regarding film making. This heavy criticism is very much needed.
John Wick, all the Indiana Jones movies, Casino Royale, Skyfall, Quantum of Solace, the first Matrix movie, The Bourne Identity, Ronin, Mad Max: Fury Road, Die Hard, Terminator 2, Speed, The Dark Knight, Super Cop...those are some I really enjoy.Of course there are more, but those movies stand out to me.
I blame CG to a certain extent as well. It went from being a tool to do things that *werent* possible, to being a replacement/convenience for things that ARE possible. Just look at Indiana Jones 1 and then 4.
Exactly. Now it seems just a substitute for either laziness or corporate desdline restraints. In the end, the art suffers.
to quote Jason Statham "You ain't ever gonna get an Academy Award for doing Crank and you certainly won't for doing all the other movies I've done"
Halfway through this video I am offended that you never mention the matrix, then you're not just mention it, you use it as a closure, way to go, Man. I really miss The Matrix kind of action, you know...
The Dark Knight. That Joker Truck scene while Batman defends the Harvey is the most amazing action scene I ever saw.
I agree with this guy. Movies need to stop the shaky cam. I was really into the new Spider-Man movie until the shaky cam started during the action scenes.
What you said in min 13:18 .......totally true. The Dark Knight Trilogy is a perfect example of that. Nolan made good movies with an interesting adaptation of fictional characters in the mot realistic way possible, but the action scenes were really dull for me, being the 3rd one (dark knight rises) a total snooze fest.
You think the Dark Knight's action is bad
rumble in the bronx is still one of my favorite action movies
What a brilliant film that was!!!😆🖒
Same
I couldn't believe how awesome the Doug Liman completely discernible shaky-cam fight scenes in the first Bourne flick were. Mr. and Mrs. Smith too, in the kitchen. It's all about the shutter speed and fight rehearsals with the camera team involved, blood. I couldn't believe how hard core the first Bourne fights were. That pen in the hand thing. Fucking awesome. The worst shaky cam offender I can think of is Eagle Eye. What the hell happened in that car chase? What was the sequence of events? No idea.
I'm beyond fed up with the action that's extremely frustrating to try to watch instead of thrilling.
Personally, I think shaky cam is an example of the "follow the leader" effect. One movie does it well (Bourne), so all the other directors try to copy it without understanding what made it work in the first place. This pattern happens with many Hollywood trends: slasher movies in the 1980s after Halloween, overuse of CGI in the 1990s after Jurassic Park, so on and so forth.
The Batman series by Nolan had the some bad fight scenes
Yeah, the cherry on top would have been awesome fight scenes especially between him and the henchmen
Yep i agree the fight scenes in those movies were terrible
Did you mean "bad fight scenes" or "best fight scenes"?
Yes, that fight between Bruce and Neeson's character when his mansion is burning in the first film was just terrible
My Top 10 Action Films
10. Kingsman: Secret Service
9. Die Hard
8. Atomic Blonde
7. Skyfall
6. The Matrix
5. Terminator 2: Judgement Day
4. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
3. Mad Max: Fury Road
2. The Raid 2
1. John Wick: Chapter 2
The action in Skyfall was pretty amazing if you ask me, and Sam Mendes is primarily a drama director.
One of the best action sequences I have seen in this millennium was Fellowship of the Ring final fight with the Uruk-hai as the camera follows the Uruk pursuit of Aragon down the hill. That was such a wide sweeping shot and all practical effects. I love the action sequences in the old Run Run Shaw martial arts films of the 60's and 70's. Ben-Hur Chariot race is classic. Shaky cam in Saving Private Ryan was done like they had a combat cameraman with them. That was done right. The camera was not too exaggerated so you could see the awesome cinematography and action.
Here's what I think the problem is: I find that in Eastern movies (Hong-Kong Martial Arts etc.) many stunt teams and movie stars are Martial Artists turned actors while in the West they are Actors trying to look like they can fight. Because Martial Arts style fights are now so common place in cinema worldwide then it works its way into most fight scenes even if the actors can't do them. So they use really fast cuts and shaky cam to cover it up while in Eastern movies all of the actors are capable fighters and so the camera can smoothly follow the action instead.