The UKFF's ULTIMATE Action Hero [WINNER ANNOUNCED]

[Rey_Piste]

2 hours ago, John Matrix said:

Ha, too bloody true.  Try searching Fall Guy best bits for inspiration.  Fall Guy best tits more like.  Eh? Lads? Eh?

Look  at the camel toe on her,you wouldn't get that on a Saturday afternoon anymore.

[DEF]

Right I've just watched the first 25 minutes of the feature length pilot. I'm actually sort of glad I've never seen it because it's all sorts of awesome and arrogantly I had assumed I would have seen everything on the list. This way I get to buy an entire series to get my teeth into. Cheers for voting for The Fall Guy everyone.

[PowerButchi]

He wasn't the type to kiss and tell, but he'd been seen with Farrah. 

[John Matrix]

edit.

Edited August 10, 2017 by John Matrix

[Surf Digby]

To my shame, I don't think I've seen Mad Max. I know that I've seen numbers 2 and 3, and that I watched 2 without having seen 1 first, but I've got a feeling that I never went back and watched it.

I've not seen any of the Mad Max films for the best part of 20 years so I might have to binge them when I get an afternoon to myself.

The Fall Guy was something I wanted to watch as a kid because most of my friends did, and it also had that Glen A Larson look to it. My Dad had a strong dislike for American TV though, and he'd already made allowances for Knight Rider, Buck Rogers and a few others..

[John Matrix]

 

 

 

 

#17 Ash Williams

 

 

When compiling a list of action heroes, you have to go a long way to top a man who cuts off his own hand and attaches a chainsaw in it’s place.

 

Unlike most entries on this list, Ash is far from the architypical hero, or at least not at first.  Whilst he may become braver the more possessed monsters he faces, and whilst presenting with far greater confidence in the latter films, the character remains generally incompetent -  in fact, killing demons might just be the only thing at which he’s proficient…and proficient at it he most certainly is.

 

Whilst more horror movies than straight action pictures, Williams does share one quintessential character trait with his more traditional list-mates - that being a propensity for quotable dialogue and great one liners.

 

Renowned in pop culture, Williams has the distinction of being one of only a handful of non ‘monster’ characters from the horror genre to have achieved such notoriety.  A loveable rogue, rude, obnoxious and yet genuinely kind hearted, there’s plenty of money still to be made from the Ash Williams character

 

The UKFF said:

 

- Cut off his own hand, replaced it with a chainsaw. That’s all.

 

- The whole reluctant hero schtick with the good comedy lines really does it for me. He's basically a fairly inept prick, but eventually comes good.

 

Lasting Legacy:

 

Simply put - a licence to print money.  The Ash Williams character has spawned literally hundreds of t-shirt designs, collectable action figures, you name it.  The character that put, and almost single handedly kept Bruce Campbell in the public eye (although this poster will always have a soft spot for his turn in the first two Maniac Cop pictures).

 

The franchise also spawned numerous video games dating as far back as 1984, when the character was, ahem, bought to life, and playing in the homes of all proud owners of ZX Spectrums and or Commodore 64's 

 

 

Almost inevitably, graphic novels followed, Ash was even portrayed on stage, albeit not by Campbell, in a limited broadway run in 2007.

 

Whilst the three films remain firm cult favourites, the first now 36 years old, a whole new audience were exposed to the zany world of Ash Williams back in 2015,  with the launch of Ash Vs Evil Dead a TV series now in it's second series - proof if proof be needed, that his lasting legacy is every bit as durable as the character itself.
 

 

 

Edited August 11, 2017 by John Matrix

[Rey_Piste]

2 hours ago, John Matrix said:

Almost inevitably, graphic novels followed, Ash was even portrayed on stage, albeit not by Campbell, in a limited broadway run in 2007.

Evil Dead: The Musical has been showing off and on in Vegas for years now.

It is a bit of a left field choice since the first film was a relatively straight horror and the second is more horror comedy, but Army of Darkness is a straight up action film. Bruce Campbell also plays a good action hero in The Adventures of Brisco County Jr and as Autalycus in Xena: Warrior Princess.

Edited August 11, 2017 by Rey_Piste

[Chest Rockwell]

Yeah, army of darkness is definitely what I nominated him on the strength of. Was the first of the evil dead films I ever saw, and remains the one I've seen the most times.

[John Matrix]

 

#16 Jack Burton

Your typical action hero whilst physically impressive, is generally restrained, softly spoken and whilst others heap on praise, lauding their skills and accomplishments, it's not often they'll engage in waxing lyrical.

Not ol' Jack Burton - an 'inverted' action hero if such a thing exists - A tireless self promoter with unshakable confidence who, ultimately, when push comes to shove, isn't quite at the elite level he'd like to you think.  

If Burton were a pro-wrestler, he'd surely be the most over guy on the roster, such is his ability to talk the talk.  However, it'd all come crashing down the moment he stepped in the ring and was exposed as a bumbling, clumsy oaf - nowhere is this better illustrated, than in the payoff to Jack's rousing 'follow the leader' speech.

That said, it's made clear early on that Burton can perform under pressure, such as the bottle catch that warrants his first use of "It's all in the reflexes" one of his many catchphrases and a line as cringeworthingly unreassuring as that prick at the pool table who assures you his shank leading to a triple double on the black was indeed 'played for and got'.  This of course plants the seeds perfectly for the films finale, where Burton disposes of the evil David Lo-Pan in a rare display of said reflexes, set up to perfection by a hilarious 'near fall' just moments prior.

This in itself is a flawlessly executed culmination of many a comedic action sequence, more notable for the leads ineptitude than his efficient disposal of the bad guys.

Who could forget the infamous "HYAAAAAAAAAARRGGH!" scene, or indeed the epic moment where Burton fires his weapon triumphantly into mid air, only for, well...

and therein lies the charm.  You can't not root for Jack Burton - his excessive bravado perfectly contrasts, yet at the same time, complements the reality of his ability, and I think the characters around him realise that.  Much in the way that Jay in the Inbetweeners is 'tolerated' for all his shit talking, everyone knows Jack is harmless enough - I think we all know and have a soft spot for someone like that, and Jack Burton is one of the very finest examples ever committed to celluloid.

The UKFF said:

Nowhere nearly enough.

Lasting Legacy

Again, nowhere nearly enough.  So it's had numerous re-releases and re-masters, and all that jazz, but what hasn't these days?  Big Trouble in Little China is a wonderful, wonderful film, and Jack Burton, genre notwithstanding is perhaps one of the best characters i've ever seen, both in conception and execution - is he complex? Multi layered, with an unexplained dark side? No.  But he's fucking hilarious, whilst capable when it matters, leading to a shit load of entertainment en route.  

There are some film franchises i'd rather were never touched, never re-booted, never proposed for sequels in the hope of a quick nostalgia buck, but if Kurt Russell returned tomorrow in any capacity as Jack Burton, i'd be there - and I reckon you would too.

 

 

Edited August 14, 2017 by John Matrix

[John Matrix]

Because one film can have two different, yet simultaneously wonderful soundtracks.

#15 Rama

The most recent addition to the list is, coincidentally, also the most recent of the names on the list so far and the first pure 'martial arts' action star to crack the top 20.  Almost a sub genre in it's own right, martial arts movies are a different breed - not as physically imposing as their Hollywood counterparts, these guys more than made up for it in energy and athleticism and where the golden age of action heroes are famed for their larger than life character and charisma, the likes of Rama bring a quiet, brooding intensity to the screen.

Iko Uwais burst onto screens in 2011's The Raid, a violent, intense and outright nasty action thriller set in Indonesia and directed by a Welshman no less.

A member of an elite SWAT team, as we'll soon discover, Rama's hands and feet are every bit as lethal as the Heckler & Koch HK416 he's pictured holding above - credit to the wonderful http://www.imfdb.org for that little detail.

From the franchise's first fight scene, set in a crack-den hallway it's abundantly clear this isn't your happy go lucky, plucky underdog choreography which made Jackie Chan an international star, nor is it the deliberately paced, action, pose structure which made Bruce Lee an icon.  Instead, The Raid, and Rama in particular are at the centre of a smorgasbord of hyperbolic and brutally realistic fight scenes, leaving the viewer exasperated, and regularly wincing like buggery.

...and that's just from one fight scene.

The beauty isn't in the violence though, it's in the creativity, and variety - you've got lengthy intricate one on one fights, large multi person brawls, hand to hand, weapons -  fuck me do they love a machete out in Indonesia - throughout the dozens of fight scenes across the two films to date, we see Rama take on, and conquer a whole host of different stylistic match ups with the standard of action so consistently high it's almost impossible to pick out the best ones.  Instead, I give you the 'greatest hits' if you will.

It's safe to say, Rama is hard as nails, perhaps more legitimately so than any other entrant on the list - all credit to Gareth Evans for re-capturing the spirit of the 'Golden Harvest' era, with intricate choreography, lengthy protracted takes that suck you in so deep you almost forget for a moment your watching a movie - so uninterrupted is the action, it could just as easily be a brawl in your living room, albeit a vastly technical and bloody one.

The UKFF said:

Was put off by this as it was subtitled at 1st and didn't think I'd be able to keep up, thankfully it's pretty much 100mph of non stop action with minimal talking and some stunning fight sequences

The Raid's protagonist, I think he may be indestructible, basically laying out all around him.

Lasting Legacy:

It's too early to tell, but with two films in the bank and a third on the way, it's clear we haven't seen the last of Rama.  With the film makers looking for ever more implausible situations from which Rama can emerge victorious, perhaps the third film will see him drafted to Smackdown where he forms a team with a repackaged Shinsuke Nakamura who must get over despite having to pedal a rickshaw to the ring whilst wearing rice hats.

[John Matrix]

 

#14 John Wick

 

 

“A murdered wife is SO cliche, we need a new angle here if we’re gonna shift tickets!”

 

“Murdered puppy?”

 

“GENIUS!”

 

and there we have a catalyst for the killing spree Keanu Reeves’ John Wick embarks upon in 2014’s movie of the same name.

 

Any action movie which centres on the life of a ‘retired assassin’ always has a glimmer of hope, and it should come as no surprise that an action movie directed by former stunt performers ought to at the very least, deliver on thrills just so happens John Wick does so in spades.

 

If you’ve got a hard-on for head shots, John Wick is your man.  

Taking gunplay to the next level, Wick doesn’t waste a round, ensuring every bullet does as much damage as possible, seen here in the frenetic nightclub rampage from the first film.

As this list develops we notice a pattern emerge, with our favourite heroes the ones who can unlock a variety of puzzles, and Wick is no exception.  

Clearly adept in Martial Arts, we see him struggle, yet ultimately find a way to deal with Jiu-Jitsu practitioner Ms Perkins, shit, he even manages to win a fight against Poundland Van Damme and Bloodsport 2 star Daniel Bernhardt with his fucking hands tied together.

 

It’s not often a cult hit goes on to repeat the trick, but earlier this year, Reeves and director Chad Stahelski did exactly that, turning up the dial even further, with Wick no selling bullet wounds to the abdomen whilst killing motherfuckers with a PENCIL.  Yes.  A pencil.

 

I’ll leave you with this.  John Wick has killed 212 people in under three hours, two thirds of them in the sequel  You can even view a breakdown of how they were dispatched thanks to this legend.

 

The UKFF said:

 

I passed on watching the 1st John Wick film for ages as I saw Keanu Reeves was the star and thought it would be shite, boy was I wrong 1 of the best action films I've seen in years and the 2nd one is up there too

 

Lasting Legacy:

 

Much like its predecessor on this list, John Wick has two incredible films under his presumably ‘black’ belt, and with a third confirmed, it’s safe to say this terrific new addition to the action ranks isn’t going anywhere any time soon  - however, the warning signs are there - with rumours of an expanded universe on the horizon, how long is it before studios take a more active interest in the franchise and pump a load of money in before stripping it of all it’s charm?

 

Let’s keep our fingers crossed.  When our kids grow up, I reckon it’s the likes of John Wick they’ll be chatting about in the playground as they run around firing imaginary guns made of twigs at each others heads.

 

[Scott Malbranque]

A beautiful closing statement, Colonel.

I don't know why people sh!te on

Keanu Reeves

as an action star. The cunt is fucking tremendous! He's been the lead in

Point Break, Speed, The Matrix, John Wick...and I'll fucking well stand by Constantine,

which surely cements him up there with the action greats.

And he evidently ages in reverse dog years.

 

[John Matrix]

You're too kind as always chief!

For those of you playing catch up, the list so far is as follows:

#20 - Jason Bourne

#19 - Colt Seavers

#18 - Mad Max

#17 - Ash Williams

#16 - Jack Burton

#15 - Rama

#14 - John Wick

So we're a quarter of the way through the countdown - what are people's thoughts on the list so far? Still lots more to come, any surprise inclusions? Any you thought would rank higher?

Discuss.

 

[Gus Mears]

I'm just thankful Colt Seavers was in. Spoiler alert I guess, but I was one of the people who nominated him and I hope it means that a couple more Roger Mellie's get in, despite action often being seen as a the preserve of film as a genre. Also, goes without saying, but thanks Matrix for the work up to this point. 

[DEF]

I'm pretty surprised by a bunch of them to be honest. I had previously considered Jack Burton for my own list and come to the conclusion that seeing as hes sort of essentially the sidekick rather than the hero I ruled him out. However I'm awfully fond of him and that wonderful write Matrix has done has fully turned me around on the whole thing and really regret ommitting him from my own list. (Even if my own list itself has no bearing on the UKFF countdown I still spent a silly amount of time on it)

John Wick and Rama I can't justify purely because they haven't stood the test of time to my eye yet. Having said that they are utter bad asses. I really hope the 3rd Raid goes back to the simpler basic narative the 1st had. Don't get me wrong the 2nd is jaw dropping from an action perspective but it's hella convaluted in the plot department.

Ash was a surprise but a happy one. It he hadn't even occured to me as I see the Evil Dead movies as a horror franchise but you are all absolutely bang on about Army of Darkness. But even without AOD I'd say you can make a case for him. A true tour de force from Bruce Campbell. He's similar to Jack Burton in some regards. In fact if I was a billionaire type I'd throw every pound I had at making Big Trouble in Little Army of Darkness a reality.