That two of the films on my list are animated (spoilers!), not to mention one of which is targeted for kids, might seem to indicate that its been a weak year for action. Read on to hear me dispute that hypothesis as sissy!
Honorable Mention: Ip Man 2
What kind of action junkie would I be if I neglected to mention the rare opportunity to see master Sammo Hung square off against the punching machine that is Donnie Yen. The film ultimately transforms into a remake of Rocky 4, but Wilson Yip still pulls off a memorable and exciting martial arts yarn.
5. Alien Vs. Ninja
While there is a good 20 minutes of lousy acting and even worse writing to wade through before the titular adversaries initiate their brawl in this cheapie creature feature from Sushi Typhoon, the impeccably choreographed mayhem that follows more then makes up for it. The sheer creativity and enthusiasm throughout the film’s bevy of set-pieces that include sword-fights, fist-fights, tail-fights and even a zombies, sees the film transcend its lo-fi DV aesthetic and become both a bona fide “pause-rewind-play” action classic and an emphatic reminder that Yuji Shimoura (the film’s action director) is among the very best in his field. Plus a dolphin-faced alien holds a gun like a gangsta. That has to count for something.
4. Redline
Presumably taking place in some thousand years in the future of whatever universe Speed Racer inhabits, an intergalactic race between rocket powered cars, hovercrafts and tanks (etc..) is held on the planet Roboworld, whose government swears to eliminate any and all participants with their cybernetic army. The lead animator from Ninja Scroll (Takeshi Koike) directs, while the director of Funky Forest and the Kill Bill animation sequence (Katsuhito Ishii) writes and designs the characters. With this premise and talent, I think I loved this film before I saw a frame.
Then I saw it and all I can properly say is that this film doesn’t so much conclude, it explodes.
Check out the trailer.
3. Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World
In the world’s first “fight-sical”, Brad Allen and the Jackie Chan stunt team seamlessly transform a sublime ensemble cast of young funny people into kung fu fighters, while Edgar Wright joins Tarantino in the club of gweilo director’s that can actually compliment a Hong Kong stunt team and not just rely on them as a crux. And not only do the fights achive a breathless balance of being both exhilirating and hysterical, but they’re also subtly layered with loving nods to both iconic video games and classic martial arts movies. References to Tekken and Street Fighter abound, complete with pitch perfect voice-over exclaimations of “K.O.” courtesy of Bill Hader, Satya Bhabha apes the Ken Lo leg shuffle from Drunken Master 2, Marry Elizabeth Winstead puppeteers Michael Cera’s body ala Dirty Ho, and is it just me or does Michael Cera kick Brandon Routh’s head like Stephen Chow kicking a soccer ball.
2. Toy Story 3
The misadventures of Woody, Buzz and the gang may be intended to be a family affair, but as always Pixar’s latest animated triumph is stuffed with delirious action spectacle. Sure they’re computer generated creations and not flesh and blood, but the constant peril they are thrown in is guaranteed to leave you both breathless and genuinely concerned that someone isn’t going to make it. In fact in the final act, after a barrage of action beats that rival the final two reels of Temple of Doom, the characters are ultimately faced their own mortality and incredibly actually end up accepting the possibility of their own demise. This is the darkest place the studio has ever delved, and it punctuates the already stellar action-packed climax with devestating emotional weight.
1. Thirteen Assassins
Thirteen Assassins is an exceptionally conservative film for Takeshi Miike. Granted there are definitely some ecclectic moments of perversion and the ol’ ultra violence, but for the most part this story of twelve samurai determined to assassinate the Shogun’s sadistic younger brother unfolds in a traditional “chanbara” style. After two thirds of methodical character development and exposition, eventually swords get unsheathed, and heads and arrows start to fly in full on forty minute action sequence that, without out hyperbole, never lets up. Even when characters get a moment to chat, someone’s getting skewered and sliced in the background. It is one of the most ambitious set-pieces Miike has ever directed, and one of the most spectacular, satisfying (and not to mention legible) action sequences in recent memory period.
