Favorite parts of action scenes

Narrowing a moment down in the Raiders truck chase is iffy, but the specific bit when Indy gets back into the truck, kicks the German soldier, then whacks his head forward and backward, then decks him — thump thump thump thump WHACK! — while John Williams' score rises to match it. Just an outstanding adrenaline rush every time.

 

Because I'm a sucker for shit happening in the background of shots, the bit in Die Hard where Al Powell's car goes off the incline, or whatever, and we see it through the rear limo window of the oblivious Argyle.

The Indiana Jones movies are among my all time favorite films. Excellent choice, Martin. That truck chase is one of the most satisfying and thrilling action scenes of all time.

And I know this one may seem obvious, but I will always love the moment where Neo picks himself off the floor, spits blood and does his 'bring it on' Kung fu gesture during the subway station fight with Agent Smith in the original Matrix ('99). Neo is the perfect hero in that moment, selfless, maybe perhaps beginning to believe in himself, but also ready to die for an ideal, and for a second the audience isn't quite sure if he might actually now be stronger than Smith since he comes back so strong and batters Smith for the next ten seconds before the agent regains the upper hand.

 

 

Psst, there's a whole thread for non-action bits.  Don't be that guy.

The Red v. Saul+Dale fight in Pineapple Express when Red yells "Timeout" gets me everytime

When the Haitian's body smashes into a parking garage column right when the obscenely overthetop chase scene in Bad Boys 2 begins. Endemic of the most ludicrously insane action movie ever

When Hulk picks up Loki and SMASHES fuck out of him.

 

Also, Mr Lee vs O'Hara in Enter the Dragon.

 

Sex and Fury has an awesome swordfight with Reiko Ike completely in the nude laying waste to a bunch of yakuza thugs. And there is this moment when the camera just follows her feet as she dances through the snow killing everyone. Here is the whole NSFW fight: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7vfqSgXwfU

 

Delinquent Girl Boss: Worthless to Confess has one bit in its climax where Reiko Ohshida chases a guy down a tiny hallway towards the (retreating)camera that makes me smile every time and then that leads into the 'Ah, add another to the Kill Bill influences list' part. NSFW-ish http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9T8EFXMPig&t=81m00s

 

Universal Soldier: Regeneration - There is this great bit that stayed with me when Arlovski is fighting one of the no name UniSols and he rapid punches him in the gut and then does a quick uppercut(with an accompanying spray of blood from the guys mouth).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zk95q7gLazM&t=00m45s

HIGHLANDER:  The satisfied AAAAAAAAAAHHHHhhhhhh that the Kurgan utters after taking Kastigir's head.

DIE HARD: Bruce Willis patting the centerfold as he runs by it.  It's just such a great moment during a really satisfying action scene.

Something that always tickled me is in the climax of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, just as Robin and the Sheriff are squaring up to start their sword fight, he quickly flicks his blade up and cuts Robin on the chin.  Rickman gives this fantastic leer and hand gesture that exemplifies the terrific flavor he brings to the role. 

 

I also like at the end of it when Robin's sword gets broken and his immediate response is to chuck the hilt at Nottingham.  It's a nice beat of desperation that many movies wouldn't "lower" their straight-up action hero (which Robin is) to.

 Serenity: The Operative pulls a sword; Mal pulls a small screwdriver and everybody laughs. A little bit later Mal jams the screwdriver into The Operative's foot. Everybody groans.

I'm not joking either.  I literally cannot watch that scene and not get a charge out of it.  It's a combination of the music, the editing, Martin Kove's booming "Finish him!" and Pat Morita's* magnificent visage.  I've probably seen it a hundred times (not the whole movie, just that scene) and I have the same reaction every time.

 

* He actually plays the moment perfectly.  Miyagi is cool as a cucumber throughout the whole movie.  Seeing him get excited for a second makes you go "whoa... it's on!"

 

Have I thought about this way too much?

 

There's a cute bit in the behind the scenes with that hero sword at the end that gets used by both guys at different points in the fight, but they gave Rickman a bigger, heavier version so he'd look more like a weed while wielding it. But somehow Rickman's manic energy kind of manages to exaggerate the intended effect but also show that he's a guy who isn't kidding around. Spoon or Big Boy's Sword - dude's a maniac.

 

 

MIAMI VICE: That bit where the big skinhead gets shot in the head. Really nice violent reprisal/come around for the earlier scene where he and the other neo-nazi's shoot up the guys in the car.

 

Edit: Miami Vice, not Heat..what an eedjit.

Edited by Nardo - 5/30/12 at 11:02pm

Some obvious ones:

 

HardBoiled: This movie is pretty awesome in general, but it's that hospital gun-fight that truly makes the film legendary.

 

Mortal Kombat: Recently re-watched this movie and thought it to be largely goofy, but that Johnny Cage/Scorpion fight is surprisingly top-notched.

 

The Raid: All of it.

 

Ip Man: That scene where Donnie Yen takes on 10 guys is fucking mesmerizing.  

If it's Hard Boiled, this is THE moment:

 

The scene: terrorists invade the olympic village in MUNICH. When the Israeli dude pushes the door on the incoming AK47. Such an unexpected and intense moment.

The Man From Nowhere- Secs 24-26- Just love the way he flips the knife backhis other hand. Shows some real skill here.

 

The kitten during the Chuck Norris/Bruce Lee fight in Return of the Dragon. Such a weird choice, yet I can't imagine the fight without it.

 

Also, the "intermission" during the Darth Maul/Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan fight in Phantom Menace where the shields go up, and Maul paces like a hungry wolf. That touch of menace is never topped in the prequels.

Fellowship of the Ring: Aragorn telling Frodo to run and turning the corner into 50 Uruk-Hai, then raising his sword, is my fav moment in the trilogy, great action continues, but I think its Legolas just pouring arrow after arrow for 5 seconds into the hapless orcs that gets me the most going

Batman '89

 

The alley fight with Joker's goons. When Bats goes up against the karate guy with 2 swords. There's that KILLER shot from below where, sparks flying, Bats takes him on. The batsuit has never looked better on film than in that shot & the rhythm of the fight choreography is a thing of beauty. Arguably the best Batman moment ever captured on film.

 

What I always love about that scene is when Frodo runs away in slow-motion, his cloak does this absolutely perfect flutter behind him.  I don't know if they just got incredibly lucky and caught the shot or if they sweetened it in post, but for a slow-mo shot, it has such energy to it.

 

In Terminator 2, in the final confrontation, Robert Patrick doing that finger-wag and shake of his head at Linda Hamilton after she tries to blast him into the furnace.  Really, anything Patrick does in that movie.

The Expendables. Terry Crews and his shotgun. At the three minute mark of this video:

Legolas machine-gunning arrows is definitely the highlight of the action scene at the end.  

 

A bit I love in Fellowship is sort of an afterthought to the action scene, as Aragorn is the last man heading out of Moria.  They have switched over from the action score to the mourning music, dropping into slight slo-mo, and he instinctively ducks an arrow without taking his eyes off the hole Gandalf fell into.  It's emblematic of Viggo's simultaneously badass and soulful performance, as in a single moment he's able to convey a real sense of grief, but also that it's not going to slow him down, without a word of dialogue.

The first time Vasquez opens up with her giant Steadicam gun in ALIENS.  The sound design in this movie is incredible.  

 

'LET'S ROCK!"

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. 

 

It's the opening engagement with the Acheron coming out of the fog. Balls flying pell mell, spars snapping, wood splinters the size of small swords, and just as sharp, ricocheting around the deck. Captain Aubrey emerges from below decks where he's been helping co-ordinate gunfire (and pointing a piece himself) when a shard of wood clocks him across the brow. Momentarily dazed he sinks down, the sound fades into distant echoes, and for a second Aubrey looks like he may pass out (and more importantly lose command of his ship at a vital moment). But, by sheer force of will, he comes around, the sounds of the battle coming back perfectly timed with his recovery, and snarling he picks himself up and continues the fight.

 

A wonderful vignette signalling the fighting instinct and determination within the character, and masterful filmmaking.

Punisher: War Zone-The absolutely sublime, resigned "you've got to be fucking kidding me" facial reaction from the unfortunate goon who gets blown the fuck up by a grenade in a paint can.

 

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol-Paula Patton kicking Sabine Moreau out the window with a rather startling abruptness.

 

Fellowship of the Ring-During the already lauded Amon Hen fight, when Lurtz throws the dagger at Aragorn, he blocks it with his sword. What makes this cool is it was totally unplanned. Lurtz was just supposed to throw and miss, so Viggo did some spur-of-the-moment improvisation. It's arguably way better than the intended shot.

 

There are loads more, I'm sure, but curse my fragile memory.

One of my personal favorites is from Aliens.  Everybody is retreating through the maintenance shafts, and Vasquez has just run out of ammo for her pulse rifle.  She blasts an alien with her sidearm, crippling it, then pins it's head against the wall with her boot, and blasts it's fucking brains out. 

We've gotten 34 posts without Inigo Montoya catching his sword that got flipped high in the air in Princess Bride! Inconceivable!

 

Not to turn this into a "Cool Things in FOTR" thread, but I also love the scene in Moria as the Fellowship is running down a flight of stairs, and Legolas casually vaults from one flight to the next.  It's totally CGI, but it's so in-character, it's perfect.

Scott Pilgrim vs the World. When Ramona grabs Roxy Richter's foot when she tries to round house kick Scott. Ramona sounds so sexy when she says,"Do that again and I will end you."

 

It's deliciously flamboyant!

 

That's pure Jackie. Worth digging into his older HK stuff like Project A 1&2, Mr Canton and Lady Rose (or whatever the DVD is called in any given release) and Armor of God & Operation Condor for movies where the stunt sequences get more creative.

 

 

The Raid: R - there's a bit just before the guy gets necked on the broken door, where the fight is just at a crazy pitch and that guy HAS HIS EYES CLOSED he's in such a frenzy. That's a really great team right there. Imagine the level of trust and confidence they have with each other to hit that pitch in a complex piece of choreography like that.

 

Expendables:

Damn, yes, Crewes' autoshotty. Holy crap. Which reminds me...

 

Rambo:

When he destroys the driver of the jeep. It's wonderfully queezy even after a movie full of endless violent depravity. But it also acts as a kind of "engine ignition", like a guy starting up a lawnmower or chainsaw before getting down to business. It's that sudden escalation of power and noise that helps the extended action scenario change up a gear and really open up.

 

 

Reservoir Dogs:

I remember my first viewing of this movie, during the torture scene, thinking "Can someone just put a bullet in this piece of shit?" and a micro-second later Mr Orange obliges. That's a filmmaker who knows an audience. He knew the exact second that Mr Blonde's on-screen cool-factor ran out and he needed to go.

 

 

District 9:

During the raid on MNU headquarters - when Wikus just reduces a dude to splatter and Christopher goes "FUCK!!!".

Any spin-move flourish in a John Woo action sequence.

 

Hard Boiled is FULL of these.  Chow Yun-Fat revealing his shotgun after doing a jump and a roll away from gunfire.  Almost ANY move that Philip Kwok performs as Mad Dog... just SO graceful.  Spinning out of a motorcycle skid and blowing away FOOLS!

 

And of course, Tom Cruise's ridiculously superfluous spin-move in the lab shootout in MI2!  Followed by Dougray-Face!!!

 

fucks sake, forgot to come back and mention which bloody part. Stupid work.

Anyway, the Lee vs O'Hara grudge match.  As good as "boards ... don't hit back" is it's nothing to what comes next.  They face off, hand to hand and boom! Mr Lee smacks O'Hara before he can move.  O'hara is fucked off, they reset and EVEN THOUGH O'Hara's expecting it, Mr Lee does him like a kipper again.

The rest is just icing on the cake.

RAIDERS:  That little leg wobble that Indy does the first time the huge bald mechanic punches him in the face by the airplane.  It's almost a Looney Tunes-esque fall.  

The enitre sequence had me holding my breath the first time I saw it, but the first moment of this action scene blew my mind.  I knew I was in store for something fucking amazing when this happened:

 

 

Post 44 finally mentions Last of the Mohicans (shame on everyone). 

 

I was going to post the moment in that fight (right before it ends) where it pauses on Magua, all fucked up and unable to do anything but watch what is about to happen.  Before Chincagchook swings his gunstock, where the scene just hovers for a second.  The score probably helps.

 

King Kong 2005: When Kong bites the tongue out of the V-Rex after they rush at one another at spits it away

 

Avatar: Say what you will about the film, but when the Colonel escapes in his little mecha suit, dropping from a burning and crashing Dragon super-helicopter (or whatever it was), his little landing in the forest just in front of the wreckage was the most badass moment in the film.  And it was for the bad guy.

 

Equilibrium: the top down view of Bale's Cleric surrounded by 6 (8?) cops where he just spins around shooting each one in the head two or three times each

 

Braveheart: During one of the big battles, some asshole gets hit by a hammer and blood actually spatters on the camera

 

Staying with blunt trauma, Return of the King (maybe the EE): When the orcs/goblins are arguing over Frodo's shit, and the big one takes a huge bowling ball/cannonball (a big sphere made out of metal) and smashes the little one's head with it

 

Hopefully, I remember some more to add later.

 

I didn't actually hear that line until the 3rd time I saw this. The first two times the audience was so big that the cheers/laughs drowned it out. Great moment.

 

Personally loved Cap destroying the 2(?) Chitari on the roof of the cab after giving the cops orders. Big Cap fan and wish there had been a big Captain America level boss fight for him at the end.

The Avengers approaches Die Hard levels of amazing small moments; There's a Die Hard thread around here somewhere with a ton of them. Along with bits like Al Leong and the candy bar, nearly every facial reaction and line reading from Rickman is perfection; not all are during "action" scenes, of course, but the look on his face as he has to repeat, in English, "Shoot. The. Glass!" has me on the floor every time.