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zen Grand Master

zen

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Watched The Dark Knight Rises for the 2nd time this week. 
 

The action including its setting in the “occupied” Gotham and the score are amazing. Now I rate this among the best action films of the 21st century along with likes of Casino Royale, Mad Max Fury Road, etc. 

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bharathh Grand Master

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20 minutes ago, zen said:

Watched The Dark Knight Rises for the 2nd time this week. 
 

The action including its setting in the “occupied” Gotham and the score are amazing. Now I rate this among the best action films of the 21st century along with likes of Casino Royale, Mad Max Fury Road, etc. 

Mad Max is not comparable to Dark Knight. It was a pretty terrible movie. Laughable story. 

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zen Grand Master

zen

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11 minutes ago, Vijy said:

yes, it is a classic

 

I judge action films based on a variety of factors including action/stunts, score during action sequences, drama during/related to the action sequences, setting/location, etc. 

 

Among 21st century films, from the top of the mind recall, below are some of the best (in the order of release):

 

  • Bourne Identity (2002) - fast editing, raw action sequences, score, etc. 
  • Casino Royale (2006) - Parker chase, Miami & Venice action sequences, Bond tied up to the chair, score, location, etc. 
  • The Dark Knight Rises (2012) - action and drama related to it, the setting in "occupied" Gotham, the score, etc. 
  • Mad Max Fury Road (2015) - action choreography, cinematography, score, location, ..., ... 
  • John Wick 2 (2017) - for some innovative action and stunt sequences (including a throwback to Bruce Lee) 

 

and so on 

 

 

 

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Vijy Grand Master

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5 minutes ago, zen said:

 

I judge action films based on a variety of factors including action/stunts, score during action sequences, drama during/related to the action sequences, setting/location, etc. 

 

Among 21st century films, from the top of the mind recall, below are some of the best (in the order of release):

 

  • Bourne Identity (2002) - fast editing, raw action sequences, score, etc. 
  • Casino Royale (2006) - Parker chase, Miami & Venice action sequences, Bond tied up to the chair, score, location, etc. 
  • The Dark Knight Rises (2012) - action and drama related to it, the setting in "occupied" Gotham, the score, etc. 
  • Mad Max Fury Road (2015) - action choreography, cinematography, score, location, ..., ... 
  • John Wick 2 (2017) - for some innovative action and stunt sequences (including a throwback to Bruce Lee) 

 

and so on 

 

 

 

Die Hard

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bharathh Grand Master

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16 minutes ago, zen said:

 

I judge action films based on a variety of factors including action/stunts, score during action sequences, drama during/related to the action sequences, setting/location, etc. 

 

Among 21st century films, from the top of the mind recall, below are some of the best (in the order of release):

 

  • Bourne Identity (2002) - fast editing, raw action sequences, score, etc. 
  • Casino Royale (2006) - Parker chase, Miami & Venice action sequences, Bond tied up to the chair, score, location, etc. 
  • The Dark Knight Rises (2012) - action and drama related to it, the setting in "occupied" Gotham, the score, etc. 
  • Mad Max Fury Road (2015) - action choreography, cinematography, score, location, ..., ... 
  • John Wick 2 (2017) - for some innovative action and stunt sequences (including a throwback to Bruce Lee) 

 

and so on 

 

 

 

Agree on all of the above - except Mad Max. Terrible movie

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zen Grand Master

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1 hour ago, bharathh said:

Agree on all of the above - except Mad Max. Terrible movie


It is Mad Max Fury Road (not Mad Max, which was released in 1979) and it is not a terrible movie :facepalm:  … It is one of the best (esp. action) films of all time

 

PS Tends to get voted/rated as the best (or among the best):

 

https://metro.co.uk/2020/01/17/mad-max-fury-road-voted-greatest-movie-of-the-century-12076724/amp/

 

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maniac Grand Master

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Con Air one of the most underrated action films  of all time. Back in the good old days when I had cable tv it used to be on some channel at least once a month and every time I would start to watch it would be hooked. ATG movie. “Put the bunny back in the box” if you get this catchphrase you have good taste in movies :)

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bharathh Grand Master

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11 hours ago, zen said:


It is Mad Max Fury Road (not Mad Max, which was released in 1979) and it is not a terrible movie :facepalm:  … It is one of the best (esp. action) films of all time

 

PS Tends to get voted/rated as the best (or among the best):

 

https://metro.co.uk/2020/01/17/mad-max-fury-road-voted-greatest-movie-of-the-century-12076724/amp/

 

Both movies are terrible. 

 

Let's agree to disagree. 

 

One of my fav aciton movies is Salt. Very underrated

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zen Grand Master

zen

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21 minutes ago, bharathh said:

Both movies are terrible. 

 

Let's agree to disagree. 

 

One of my fav aciton movies is Salt. Very underrated


One can have an opinion but these are “known” classics in their genre. “Terrible” is a strong word which is not appropriate for such films. 

 

For e.g. some ppl may not like Gone With the Wind or Citizen Kane or whatever now but that does not make the film terrible … I guess what you are trying to say is that the film does not work for you despite its reputation. 
 

Salt is among my favorites but wouldn’t rate it among the top 10 or so action films of all time. 

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bharathh Grand Master

bharathh

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3 minutes ago, zen said:


One can have an opinion but these are “known” classics in their genre (for e.g. some ppl may not like Gone With the Wind now but that does not make the film terrible). I guess what you are trying to say is that the film does not work for you despite its reputation. 
 

Salt is among my favorites but wouldn’t rate it among the top action films of all time. 

I don't like Godfather 2 nor 3. 1 is as good as people rate it. All this is obviously according to me. Personally, I make my own opinion about movies. I find many top rated movies pretty poor in my opinion. Like the Godfather sequels for example. Django Unchained, Kill Bill etc. are others. 

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zen Grand Master

zen

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8 minutes ago, bharathh said:

I don't like Godfather 2 nor 3. 1 is as good as people rate it. All this is obviously according to me. Personally, I make my own opinion about movies. I find many top rated movies pretty poor in my opinion. Like the Godfather sequels for example. Django Unchained, Kill Bill etc. are others. 


Buddy, I would say something is weird with your taste! :p:
 

GF2 is one of the finest example of film making. Some of these films may require you to be in the right mood. 
 

I have the collectors 4k UHD edition of the GF trilogy :dance: 

 

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bharathh Grand Master

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2 minutes ago, zen said:


Buddy, I would say something is weird with your taste! :p:
 

GF2 is one of the finest example of film making. Some of these films may require you to be in the right mood. 
 

I have the collectors 4k UHD edition of the GF trilogy :dance: 

 

Art is subjective. I find a lot of movies that you like weird as well. There is no common standard for liking art. Picasso is considered one of the greatest artists - I find his work crap. 

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zen Grand Master

zen

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12 minutes ago, bharathh said:

Art is subjective. I find a lot of movies that you like weird as well. There is no common standard for liking art. Picasso is considered one of the greatest artists - I find his work crap. 


It can be but if someone say Statue of Liberty is terrible, then that becomes a questionable opinion (beyond the subjectivity of art)!

 

If you go through Sight & Sounds Top 100 - Link, there are many films many would not like but those are all (or most of them are) great films where the pros outweigh the cons.

 

Anyways, enjoy the films that suit your taste!! 

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zen Grand Master

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Anyways, the topic on action films got me wondering which are the top 5-10 action films of all time.

 

I am judging based on a variety of factors including action and stunt sequences, drama during (or related to) those sequences, setting/location, score, etc. ... Below is a tentative list based on top of the mind recall and in the order of release (English language only): 

 

  • Enter the Dragon: An ambassador of martial art films showcasing the best of Bruce Lee. Let's not forget the mirrors! 
  • Raiders of the Lost Ark: For the impossible situations that Indy has to come out from. 
  • Die Hard: One of the trendsetters! 
  • Leon: The Professional: One of the coolest action films. The score is brilliant. 
  • Matrix: Mind bending action. 
  • Bourne Identity: Any Bourne film would work so let's go with the first one. Raw action, fast editing, a consistent score that plays out through the film to create a tense atmosphere. 
  • Casino Royale: For stunts and some old fashioned action backed by a good score against good locations. 
  • Dark Knight Rises: Amazing action and score played out in Gotham under siege. 
  • Mad Max: Fury Road: Groundbreaking cinematography and score to enhance its great action choreography. The film can be viewed as a long chase sequence. 
  • John Wick 2: Innovative hand to hand combat sequences. Some throwback to Bruce Lee as well. 

 

I am sure there are few others that could have been considered but which may have escaped my mind at this point but the 10 above are all terrific action films so not sure if any addition-subtraction will create a major deviance ... All of the above are in my collection with their latest transfers (all in 4K except Enter the Dragon, which is in HD)!

 

 

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ravishingravi Grand Master

ravishingravi

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Garuda Gamana Vrishaba Vahana

 

Often Hindu understanding of our gods / déités is driven by western framework. This is fallacy. Our Gods were one of us and they were not necessarily puritanical or moral existence. In the recent film Kantara, we saw one version of Deva which is just pure intensity. Shiva itself is not a “nice” person in traditional sense. He is pure intensity and can oscillate between rage and generosity. But he is absolute life. 
 

Garuda Gamana is based on the interesting premise of - Shiva the destroyer, Brahma the creator and Vishnu the one who keeps balance. What if these three manifest in small town gangster world of mangaladevi. Right from starting titles you don’t where it’s heading where director chooses electronic “demon in me” English pop song before we drop down on this world. There is a lot to unpack. 
 

I found this video ( spoilers ) very useful. Few artists are open and capable of explaining their artistic choices like Raj Shetty. This is an exceptional talent. There is no doubt that what Kannada cinema is achieving on national stage will give more courage for more regional stories on larger scale. 
 

 

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