Article By: Dan Clark

Welcome to another installment of Streaming for Your Pleasure where I highlight films that are currently streaming on Netflix. In this installment I am focusing on action movies. I don’t know about you but sometimes when the proper mood strikes  I fiend for some not stop action thrills. In order to make your lives easier I picked out some films that are worth your viewing pleasure. To keep things exciting I choose a variety of films. Some are recent hits while others are classics in the genre. Certain choices are rather obvious and I’m sure you’ve seen them countless times before, but there are a few hidden gems as well. Whatever your cup of tea might be there’s a film here that you will find worthy of adding to your Netflix que.

Mission: Impossible-Ghost Protocol

Directed By: Brad BIrd

Written By: Josh Appelbaum, André Nemec

Starring: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg

Synopsis: Super-agent Ethan Hunt dangles from skyscrapers and otherwise takes daring to new heights on another operation from the Impossible Missions Force. Helping Hunt get the job done is droll fellow IMF agent Luther Stickel.

Quick Take: The Mission: Impossible franchise is quite an interesting action series. Every installment has its own unique feel and style that sets it apart from the rest.  The latest installment is my personal favorite. Brad Bird made an flawless transition from the world of animation to live action. He put his knack for visual storytelling to good use making some amazing set pieces. Ghost Protocol is fun, fast, and funny. Everything you need for a great action movie.

The Warriors

Directed By: Walter Hill

Written By: Sol Yurick (novel) and David Shaber (screenplay)

Starring: Michael Beck, James Remar,and Dorsey Wright

Synopsis: In a future, dystopian New York City, turf gangs and cops rule the streets. When one gang leader tries to bring all gangs together against the cops Coney Island’s The Warriors are framed for his murder and the entire city turns on them.

Quick Take: The Warriors may not be the first thing you think of when you think of action movies. There are no guns, explosions, and no heroes with massive muscles and kung fu kicks. What it does have is a unique framework that allows for some distinctive and gritty action. Watching this group of rambunctious young kids navigate their way through the streets of New York City while fighting off an endless array of colorful characters makes it one hell of a ride.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day

Directed By: James Cameron

Written By: James Cameron, William Wisher Jr.

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong

Synopsis: The cyborg who once tried to kill Sarah Connor is dead, and another T-101 must now protect her teenage son, John Connor, from an even more powerful and advanced Terminator, the T-1000.

Quick Take: You really don’t need me to tell you why you should check out this movie. I mean it’s one of the greatest Science Fiction and Action movies of all time. The special effects still hold up well and the action scenes have become legendary. If anything all I could do is tell you why you should check it out again. Rewatching it reminds you why this franchise still exists today. Even two lackluster sequels cannot devalue this classic.

Ronin

Directed By: John Frankenheimer

Written By: D. Zeik

Starring: Robert De Niro, Jean Reno, Natascha McElhone

Synopsis: Ronin is the Japanese word used for Samurai without a master. In this case, the Ronin are outcast specialists of every kind, whose services are available to everyone – for money. Dierdre (undoubtedly from Ireland) hires several Ronin to form a team in order to retrieve an important suitcase from a man who is about to sell it to the Russians. After the mission has been completed successfully, the suitcase immediately gets switched by a member of the team who seems to work into his own pocket. The complex net of everyone tricking everyone begins to surface slowly, and deadly

Quick Take: Ronin is best become known for it’s well executed car chases, and it is easy to understand why as they are supremely well executed. They are easily some of the best chases in the last thirty years. Besides just the car chases it was quite a joy watching Robert De Niro and Jean Reno team up. It was an odd pairing that surprisingly worked.

Thief

Directed By: Michael Mann

Written By: Frank Hohimer (novel), Michael Mann

Starring: James Caan, Tuesday Weld, and Willie Nelson

Synopsis: Frank is an expert professional safecracker, specializing in high-profile diamond jobs. After having spent many years in prison, he has a very concrete picture of what he wants out of life–including a nice home, a wife, and kids. As soon as he is able to assemble the pieces of this collage, by means of his chosen profession, he intends to retire and become a model citizen. In an effort to accelerate this process, he signs on to take down a huge score for a big-time gangster. Unfortunately, Frank’s obsession for his version of the American Dream allows him to overlook his natural wariness and mistrust, when making the deal for his final job. He is thus ensnared and robbed of his freedom, his independence, and, ultimately, his dream

Quick Take: Drive was one of my favorite films of 2011, and one big reason why was its ability to emulate films like Michael Mann’s Thief. It’s distinctive style and ambience help set the stage for Michael Mann’s career. This was Michael Mann’s first time directing a feature film and his ability to craft a story quickly made itself evident.

Death Wish

Directed By: Michael Winner

Written By: Brian Garfield and Wendell Mayes

Starring: Charles Bronson, Hope Lange, and Vincent Gardenia

Synopsis: A New York City architect becomes a one-man vigilante squad after his wife is murdered by street punks in which he randomly goes out and kills would-be muggers on the mean streets after dark.

Quick Take: Before there was Liam Neeson as the one man wrecking crew in Taken there was Charles Bronson in Death Wish. Charles Bronson was already an action icon, and he moved that status to a new level. He took the Old West style of vigilante justice he become synonymous for and placed in into the streets of New York. It serves as mollification for those who feel powerless against the forces that are determined to make the world a more dangerous place.

Lone Wolf McQuade

Directed By: Steve Carver

Written By: B.J. Nelson and H. Kaye Dyal

Starring: Chuck Norris, David Carradine, and Barbara Carrera

Synopsis: J.J. McQuade is a Texas Ranger who doesn’t exactly follow the rules, is unruly, and prefers to work alone, which earns the nickname, Lone Wolf McQuade. When he discovers some criminals have automatic weapons, he discovers that they were stolen from the military. He tries to handle on his own, as usual, but in the end, an old friend, and a prisoner, whom he was keeping under wraps, are killed. He is then relieved of duty. But then an FBI agent, who also wants to get these guys, offers to help McQuade, and along with a rookie, they track down the mastermind.

Quick Take: If you ever wondered why Chuck Norris became the internet legend he is today it is films like this. It’s a movie that is absolutely ridiculous and barely resembles any type of reality. It makes Chuck Norris into the ultimate badass despite his complete lack of charisma, but that’s part of the fun. Plus it’s an opportunity to see Chuck Norris go toe to toe with the star of Kung Fu David Carradine. Hard to beat that.

Face/Off

Directed By: John Woo

Written By: Mike Werb and Michael Colleary

Starring: John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, and Joan Allen

Synopsis: A revolutionary medical technique allows an undercover agent to take the physical appearance of a major criminal and infiltrate his organization.

Quick Take: John Woo did not have the best career as an American director, but he did manage one action gem during his time in the states. When you dissect the concept of Face/Off you are left scratching your head in a fit of confusion. It simply does not make sense, but contextually it is not nearly as farfetched. Plus all the well stage gun fights and boat chases you have no issue accepting it. Plus you get to witness John Travolta and Nicolas Cage face off in an over acting competition for the ages. It’s the thing legends are made out of.

The Dogs of War

Directed By: John Irvin

Written By: Gary DeVore and George Malko

Starring: Christopher Walken, Tom Berenger, and Colin Blakely

Synopsis: Jamie Shannon is a soldier of fortune who will stage a coup or a revolution for the right price. He is hired by British mining interests to scout out Zangaro, a small African nation with rich mineral deposits but a brutal and xenophobic dictatorship. Arrested soon after his arrival, Shannon is imprisoned as a spy, badly beaten, and tortured. Eventually released, he returns to London and is subsequently offered to opportunity to secretly invade Zangaro’s capital and lead a military coup. Shannon accepts, but quietly has his own agenda to pursue.

Quick Take: This movie has largely been forgotten, and I kind of understand why.  It’s a hard film to quantify especially when compared to other action film of the early 1980’s. Perhaps the best aspect of the film is the novelty of watching Christopher Walken play the role of action star. He was previously in The Deer Hunter before this, but that was far more dramatic role than this. It’s a movie you need to see to believe.

Top Gun

Directed By: Tony Scott

Written By: Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr.

Starring: Tom Cruise, Tim Robbins, and Kelly McGillis

Synopsis: As students at the Navy’s elite fighter weapons school compete to be best in the class, one daring young flyer learns a few things from a civilian instructor that are not taught in the classroom.

Quick Take: I have a strong belief that Top Gun is the quintessential 1980’s movie.  From the soundtrack to the fashion to the bad attitudes everything was designed to appeal to the early MTV generation. Like  many films of this time the conflict was rooted in the Regan era of the Cold War politics as well. This film holds a special place with many people, and I personally find myself quoting it on a consistent basis. If you have yet to watch Top Gun do yourself a favor and step into the Danger Zone.

Bad Boys and Bad Boys II

Directed By: Michael Bay

Written By: George Gallo, Michael Barrie,and Marianne Wibberley

Starring: Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, and Joe Pantoliano

Synopsis: Bad Boys “Two hip detectives protect a murder witness while investigating a case of stolen heroin.”, Bad Boys 2 “Two loose-cannon narcotics cops investigate the flow of Ecstacy into Florida.”

Quick Take: Michael Bay has become a dirty word to many movie fans due to his recent work. Before he was working with giants robots he was actually quite the action director. His humor has always been overt, but it works much better in the Bad Boy franchise mostly due to the performances of Will Smith and Martin Lawrence. You do have to give him credit for his ability to have fun. Few directors would go to the lengths he does.

Hard Target

Directed By: John Woo

Written By: Chuck Pfarrer

Starring: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Lance Henriksen, and Yancy Butler

Synopsis: A woman hires a drifter as her guide through New Orleans in search of her father, who has gone missing. They discover a deadly game of cat and mouse behind his disappearance in the process.

Quick Take: The majority of Jean-Claude Van Damme’s better..er..uh..more well known films like Bloodsport , Kickboxer, and Universal Soldier are not available on Netflix Streaming . On the  bright side this film does have John Woo directing, but this is the Hollywood water down version of John Woo. There are glimpses that remind you why John Woo is so beloved in the action world that make it worth watching. Also Van Damme is sporting one of the best mullets in movie history.

Commando

Directed By: Mark L. Lester

Written By: Jeph Loeb and Matthew Weisman

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rae Dawn Chong, and Dan Hedaya

Synopsis: A retired elite Black Ops Commando launches a one man war against a group of South American criminals who have kidnapped his daughter to blackmail him into starting a revolution and getting an exiled dictator back into power.

Quick Take: If you were going to sit someone down and show them what it means to be an 80’s action movie put them in front of Commando. It has the huge explosions, muscles, one-liners, and the trademark of one man with the ability take down an entire army single handedly. (The key is to occasionally duck) Schwarzenegger’s immense screen presence was at full throttle and allowed you to enjoy the ridiculousness.

Equilibrium

Directed By: Kurt Wimmer

Written By: Kurt Wimmer

Starring: Christian Bale, Sean Bean, and Emily Watson

Synopsis: In a futuristic world, a strict regime has eliminated war by suppressing emotions: books, art and music are strictly forbidden and feeling is a crime punishable by death. Cleric John Preston (Bale) is a top ranking government agent responsible for destroying those who resist the rules. When he misses a dose of Prozium, a mind-altering drug that hinders emotion, Preston, who has been trained to enforce the strict laws of the new regime, suddenly becomes the only person capable of overthrowing it

Quick Take: When The Matrix was released it altered the framework of action cinema.  Many films attempted to repeat tha tsuccess , but most did not fare nearly as well.  Equilibrium was one of the few that made it work. Before Christian Bale was wearing the Cape and Cowl he was playing a futuristic ninja in this. The fight scenes in this are absolutely crazy and rank as some of my favorites. If you are a huge fan of  The Matrix I would defiantly recommend this. You might be pleasantly surprised.

Shooter

Directed By: Antoine Fuqua

Written By: Jonathan Lemkin and Stephen Hunter

Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Michael Peña, and Rhona Mitra

Synopsis: A marksman living in exile is coaxed back into action after learning of a plot to kill the president. Ultimately double-crossed and framed for the attempt, he goes on the run to track the real killer and find out who exactly set him up, and why.

Quick Take: Shooter was billed as Mark Wahlberg’s attempt at a Bourne film, and while there are certainly similarities it ended up being a better produced  version of an  early 80’s gritty action movies. This plot shares a lot of similarities with films of that era. The themes of distrust of the government and lone survival were common place during that time. So if you are a fan of that style and wish to return to it Shooter could suit you just fine.

The Expendables

Directed By: Sylvester Stallone

Written By: Dave Callaham and Sylvester Stallone

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, and Steve Austin

Synopsis: Mercenary Barney Ross leads a ragtag band of hired guns charged with overthrowing a South American despot, a job no official military unit is willing to touch. But once on the ground, the team learns there’s more to the mission than they were told.

Quick Take: This year a lot of 80’s action stars are trying to make a comeback. I mean we have a Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Bruce Willis movie coming out within weeks of each other. It’s been quite awhile since we could say that. A big reason this return is happening is due to the success of The Expendables. People often dreamt about what it would be like if Rambo, John Mcclane, and The Terminator were all in the same movie, and this is as closest we are ever going to get to that actually happening. It is the wet dream of the 80’s action movie fan.