1. GENRE RESEARCH
ACTION FILMS

2. Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is
thrust into a series of challenges that require physical
feats, extended fights and frenetic chases. They have
a resourceful character struggling against incredible
odds such as, life-threatening situations, an evil villain,
with victory achieved at the end after difficult physical
efforts and violence .Story and character
development are generally secondary to explosions,
fist fights, gunplay and car chases.

3. Original Action Films
During the 1920s and 1930s, black and white action-based
films were often "swashbuckling" adventure films, an
example of this is Douglas Fairbanks who wielded
swords or Winchester rifles in period pieces and
Westerns.

4. The Mark of Zorro (1920)
The Mark of Zorro is a 1920 silent film
starring Douglas Fairbanks and
Noah Beery. This genre-defining
swashbuckler adventure was the
first movie version of The Mark of
Zorro. Based on the 1919 story "The
Curse of Capistrano" by Johnston
McCulley, which introduced the
masked hero, Zorro, the
screenplay was adapted by
Fairbanks and Eugene Miller.

5. Douglas Fairbanks
Douglas Fairbanks, Sr.
(May 23, 1883 – December
12, 1939) was an American
actor, screenwriter,
director and producer. He
was best known for his
swashbuckling roles in
silent films such as The
Thief of Bagdad, Robin Hood,
and The Mark of Zorro.

6. The Charge Of The Light Brigade
(1936)
The Charge of the Light Brigade is a 1936
historical film made by Warner Bros. The
film starred Errol Flynn and Olivia de
Havilland. The story is very loosely based
on the famous Charge of the Light
Brigade that took place during the
Crimean War (1853–56).
The battlefield set was lined with trip
wires to trip the cavalry horses. Dozens
were killed during filming, forcing U.S.
Congress to ensure the safety of
animals in motion pictures. The ASPCA
banned trip wires from films as well.
Unlike the rest of Flynn's blockbuster
films, because of the use of trip wires
and the number of horses killed, it was
never re-released by Warner Brothers.

7. Errol Flynn
Flynn was an overnight sensation in his first starring role,
Captain Blood(1935). Quickly typecast as a swashbuckler, he
followed it with The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936). After his
appearance as Miles Hendon in The Prince and the Pauper (1937), he
was cast in his most celebrated role as Robin Hood in The
Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), his first film in Technicolor. He
went on to appear in The Dawn Patrol (1938) with his close friend
David Niven, Dodge City (1939), The Sea Hawk (1940) and Adventures
of Don Juan (1948).

8. Sands Of Iwo Jima (1949)
Sands of Iwo Jima is a 1949 war film that follows a group of
United States Marines from training to the Battle of Iwo Jima
during World War II. It stars John Wayne, John Agar, Adele Mara
and Forrest Tucker. The movie was written by Harry Brown
and James Edward Grant and directed by Allan Dwan. It was
produced by Republic Pictures.
It was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actor in a
Leading Role (John Wayne), Best Film Editing, Best Sound
Recording (Daniel J. Bloomberg) Best Writing and Motion
Picture Story.
Rene Gagnon, Ira Hayes and John
Bradley, the three survivors of
the five Marines and one Navy
corpsman who raised the second
flag on Mount Suribachi during the
actual battle, appear briefly in the
film just prior to the re-
enactment. The first recorded
use of the phrase "lock and load"
is in this film.

9. John Wayne
Marion Mitchell Morrison (born Marion Robert Morrison; May 26, 1907 – June 11,
1979), better known by his stage name John Wayne, was an American film actor,
director and producer. An Academy Award-winner, Wayne is the biggest box
office draw of all time. An enduring American icon, he epitomized rugged
masculinity and is famous for his demeanor, including his distinctive calm voice,
walk, and height. His acting breakthrough came in 1939 with John Ford's
Stagecoach, making him an instant star. Wayne would go on to star in 142
pictures, primarily typecast in Western films.
Wayne moved to Orange County, California in the 1960s. He died of stomach
cancer in 1979. In June 1999, the American Film Institute named Wayne 13th
among the Greatest Male Screen Legend of All Time.
John Wayne's enduring status as an iconic American was formally recognized by
the U.S. government by awarding him the two highest civilian decorations. He
was recognized by the United States Congress on May 26, 1979, when he was
awarded the Congressional Gold Medal

10. James Bond
The long-running success of the James Bond
series (which easily dominated the action films of
the 1960s) essentially introduced all the staples of
the modern-day action film. The "Bond movies"
were characterized by larger-than-life characters,
such as the resourceful hero: a veritable "one-man
army" who was able to dispatch villainous
masterminds (and their disposable "henchmen") in
ever-more creative ways, often followed by a
ready one-liner. The Bond films also utilized quick
cutting, car chases, fist fights, a variety of
weapons and "gadgets", and ever more elaborate
action sequences.

11. 1970s
In the 1970s, Bond saw competition as gritty detective stories
and urban crime dramas began to fuse themselves with the
new "action" style, leading to a string of maverick police officer
films, such as those defined by Bullitt (1968), The French Connection
(1971) and Dirty Harry (1971); all of which featured an intense car
chase inspired by the popular stuntwork of the Bond films. Dirty
Harry essentially lifted its star Clint Eastwood out of his
cowboy typecasting, and became the urban-action film's first
true archetype. Proving that the modern world offered just as
much glamour, excitement, and potential for violence as the old
west, Dirty Harry signaled the end of the prolific "cowboys and
Indians" era of film westerns

12. Dirty harry
Dirty Harry is a 1971 American crime thriller produced and
directed by Don Siegel, the first in the Dirty Harry series. Clint
Eastwood plays the title role, in his first outing as San Francisco
Police Department Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan.
Dirty Harry was a critical and commercial success and set the
style for a whole genre of police films. The film was followed by
four sequels: Magnum Force in 1973, The Enforcer in 1976, Sudden
Impact in 1983 (directed by Eastwood himself), and The Dead Pool
in 1988.
In 2008, Dirty Harry was selected by Empire magazine as one of
The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time.

13. Hong Kong Action Films
Hong Kong action cinema was at its peak from the
1970s to 1990s, when its action movies were
experimenting with and popularizing various new
techniques that would eventually be adopted by
Hollywood action movies. This began in the early
1970s with the martial arts movies of Bruce Lee,
which led to a wave of Bruceploitation movies that
eventually gave way to the comedy kung fu films
of Jackie Chan by the end of the decade. During the
1980s, Hong Kong action cinema had re-invented
itself with various new kinds of movies. These
included the modern martial arts action movies,
featuring physical acrobatics and dangerous stunt
work.

14. Bruce lee
Bruce Lee (born Lee Jun-fan; 27 November 1940 – 20 July 1973) was a
Chinese American, Hong Kong actor, martial arts instructor,
philosopher, film director, film producer, screenwriter, and founder of
the Jeet Kune Do martial arts movement. He is widely considered by
many commentators, critics, media and other martial artists to be the
most influential martial artist, and a cultural icon.
His Hong Kong and Hollywood-produced films
elevated the traditional Hong Kong martial
arts film to a new level of popularity and
acclaim, and sparked a major surge of
interest in Chinese martial arts in the West in
the 1970s. The direction and tone of his films
changed and influenced martial arts and
martial arts films in Hong Kong and the rest of
the world, as well. He is noted for his roles in
five feature-length films: Lo Wei's The Big
Boss (1971) and Fist of Fury (1972); Way of the
Dragon (1972), directed and written by Lee;
Warner Brothers Enter the Dragon(1973),
directed by Robert Clouse; and The Game of
Death (1978), directed by Robert Clouse.

15. 1980s
The 1980s would see the action film take over Hollywood
to become a dominant form of summer blockbuster;
literally "the action era" popularized by actors such as
Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis
and Chuck Norris.
Steven Spielberg and George Lucas even paid their
homage to the Bond-inspired style with the mega-
hit Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). In 1982, veteran
actor Nick Nolte and rising comedian Eddie Murphy
smashed box office records with the action-
comedy 48 Hrs which is credited as the first
"buddy-cop" movie. icon
That same year, Sylvester Stallone starred in First
Blood, the first installment in the popular Rambo film
series. The film proved to be successful and was
followed with a sequel in 1985, Rambo: First Blood Part II
which became the most successful film in the series
and made the character Rambo a pop culture.

16. Rambo Series
Rambo is an action film series based on the David Morrell novel
First Blood and starring Sylvester Stallone as John Rambo, a
troubled Vietnam War veteran and former Green Beret who is
skilled in many aspects of survival, weaponry, hand to hand
combat and guerrilla warfare. The series consists of the films
First Blood (1982), Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985), Rambo III (1988), and
Rambo (2008).

17. 1990s
The 1990s was an era of sequels and hybrid action. Like the
western genre, the spy-movies and urban-action films were
starting to parody themselves, and with the growing revolution
in CGI (computer generated imagery), the "real-world" settings
began to give way to increasingly fantastic environments. This
new era of action films often had budgets unlike any in the
history of motion pictures. The success of the many Dirty Harry
and James Bond sequels had proven that a single successful
action film could lead to a continuing action franchise. Thus the
1980s and 1990s saw a rise in both budgets and the number of
sequels a film could generally have.

18. Saving Pvt Ryan
Saving Private Ryan is a 1998 American war film set during the invasion of
Normandy in World War II. It was directed by Steven Spielberg, written by
Robert Rodat. The film is notable for the intensity of its opening 27 minutes,
which depicts the Omaha Beach assault of June 6, 1944. Afterwards, it follows
Tom Hanks as U.S. Army Captain John H. Miller and seven men, as they search
for a paratrooper, Private First Class James Francis Ryan (Matt Damon), who
is the last surviving brother of four servicemen.
Saving Private Ryan was well received by audiences and garnered
considerable critical acclaim, winning several awards for film, cast, and
crew as well as earning significant returns at the box office. The film
grossed US$481.8 million worldwide, making it the highest-grossing domestic
film of the year. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
nominated the film for eleven Academy Awards; Spielberg's direction won
him a second Academy Award for Best Director. Saving Private Ryan was
released on home video in May 1999, earning $44 million from sales.

19. Sub Genres
Action Comedy - A sub-genre involving action and humor.
The sub-genre became a popular trend in the 1980s when actors who
were known for their background in comedy such as Eddie Murphy,
began to take roles in action films. The action scenes within the genre
are generally lighthearted and rarely involve death or serious injury.
Comedy films such as Dumb & Dumber and Big Momma's House that
contain action-laden sub-plots are not considered part of the genre as
the action scenes have a more integral role in action comedies.
Examples of action comedies include The Blues Brothers (1980), 48 Hrs.
(1982), Beverly Hills Cop (1984), Midnight Run (1988), Bad Boys (1995), Beverly
Hills Ninja (1997), Rush Hour (1998), Charlie's Angels (2000).

20. Die-Hard scenario
Die-Hard scenario - The story takes place in limited location; a single building,
plane, or vessel - which is seized or under threat by enemy agents, but are
opposed by a single hero who fights an extended battle within the location using
stealth and cunning to attempt to defeat them.
This sub-genre began with the film Die Hard and has become popular in Hollywood
because of its crowd appeal and the relative simplicity of building sets for such
a constrained piece. These films are sometimes described as "Die Hard on a...".
Among the many films that have copied this formula are Under Siege (terrorists
take over a ship), Snakes on a Plane (poisonous snakes take over a passenger
plane), Speed (Die Hard on a bus), Under Siege 2: Dark Territory and Derailed( hostages
are trapped on a train), Sudden Death (terrorists take over an Ice Hockey
stadium), Passenger 57, Executive Decision and Air Force One (hostages are trapped
on a plane), Con Air (criminals take over a transport plane)

21. Disaster Film
Disaster Film - Having elements of thriller and sometimes
science fiction films, the main conflict of this genre is some
sort of natural or artificial disaster, such as floods,
earthquakes, hurricanes, volcanoes, etc., or nuclear
disasters that are shown with heavy action scenes, special
effects, over the top destruction and, in modern day, use of
CGI. Examples include Independence Day, Daylight, Earthquake,
2012, The Day After Tomorrow.

22. Martial arts
Martial Arts - Martial arts films contain numerous fights between
characters, usually as the films' primary appeal and
entertainment value, and often as a method of storytelling and
character expression and development. Martial arts films
contain many characters who are martial artists, and these
roles are often played by actors who are real martial artists. If
not, actors frequently train in preparation for their roles, or the
action director may rely more on stylized action or filmmaking
tricks. Martial films include The Karate Kid, Kung Fu Hustle, Fearless,
Ninja Assassin

23. Sci Fi Action
Sci-fi Action - Sharing many of the conventions of a science
fiction film, sci-fi action films emphasizes gunplay, space
battles, invented weaponry, and other sci-fi elements weaved
into action film premises. Examples include Terminator 2, The
Matrix The Island, Star Trek, Aliens, I, Robot, Transformers, District 9,
Predator, Robocop, Avatar

24. Avatar
Avatar is a 2009 American epic science fiction motion capture film written and
directed by James Cameron. The film is set in the mid-22nd century, when
humans are mining a precious mineral called unobtanium on Pandora, a lush
habitable moon. Cameron began developing the screenplay and fictional
universe in early 2006.Avatar was officially budgeted at $237 million. Other
estimates put the cost between $280 million and $310 million for production and
at $150 million for promotion. The film was released for traditional viewing, 3-D
viewing (using the RealD 3D, Dolby 3D XpanD 3D, and IMAX 3D formats), and for "4-
D" experiences in select South Korean theatres. The stereoscopic filmmaking
was touted as a breakthrough in cinematic technology.
The film broke several box office records during its release and became the
highest-grossing film of all time worldwide, surpassing Titanic, which had held
the records for the previous twelve years. It also became the first film to gross
more than $2bn .Avatar was nominated for nine Academy Awards, including Best
Picture and Best Director and won three, for Best Cinematography, Best Visual
Effects, and Best Art Direction. The film's home release went on to break
opening sales records and became the top-selling Blu-ray of all time. Following
the film's success, Cameron signed with 20th Century Fox to produce two
sequels, making Avatar the first of a planned trilogy.