The action movie. It’s an art form that everyone should be able to appreciate, especially with all the different types of action. There’s the intelligent action, made popular by the great Christopher Nolan, where you actually end up thinking about deep philosophical questions while enjoying your ass-kicking. In an established spy franchise like James Bond, you get your thrills mixed in with sex appeal and cool gadgets. Then there’s the formulaic movie where a guy just goes around killing people in order to accomplish some sort of goal (like saving your idiot daughter). I happen to enjoy all of these movies when they’re done right, and I’m looking forward to watching each and every one of them when they premiere in theaters.
But until that happy day when I can sit with my popcorn and watch all sorts of violence, I must be content with the little snippets of information that studios release in order to get us action movie lovers hyped. It’s lucky that all of these films are competing for Internet attention so that we get a closer look on the murder and mayhem to come. Here’s a look at Looper, Skyfall, Jack Ryan, and Taken 2 in pictures. Enjoy.
Looper
Putting the obvious comparisons to Chris Nolan’s Inception aside, Looper looks really cool in it’s own right. It’s not just about the brain-teasing aspect of time-travel that has me intrigued. Have you seen Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Bruce Willis? How cool do they look together? Even in the short clip of the two talking in a diner (which you can check out below) shows just how awesome Gordon-Levitt is going to be in his role as a 30 year younger Willis. Set in the future where time travel is possible, Gordon-Levitt plays Joe – an assassin who kills people that are sent back in time by gangsters in order to hide the evidence. When Joe is confronted by his older self all hell breaks loose, because Old Joe escapes for unknown reasons. Joseph Gordon-Levitt had to go through some intense make-up in order to transform into a young Bruce Willis, but that seems to be nothing compared with the various stunts and gun play that seems to be going on in the film. Looper is going to be an awesome ride, and I’m strapping in September 28th, 2012.
Clip from ‘Looper’
Jack Ryan
Though the release date for this movie is way in the future, Paramount has already released the first official photo of our new Jack Ryan – Chris Pine. Filming just started on the re-boot, so it’s a bit of a surprise to have this picture so early. The latest installment is being directed by Kenneth Branagh, who also plays the main villain, one of my favorite people due to his involvement in Thor along with some very awesome Shakespearean adaptations (Much Ado About Nothing, Hamlet, Othello, Henry V… yes I’m an English nerd). Jack Ryan has previously been played by such big names as Alec Baldwin (The Hunt for the Red October), Harrison Ford (Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger), and Ben Affleck (The Sum of All Fears). So Chris Pine has a lot to live up to, even if he is playing the younger version of the character. You probably recognize Pine on that motorcycle from his other big name role in Star Trek, James T. Kirk who was also fond of riding without a helmet. The film also features Kevin Costner, as Ryan’s mentor William Harper, and Keira Knightley who I’m assuming is a love interest. Jack Ryan is due in theaters December 25th, 2013. It’s going to be a Merry Christmas for action movie buffs.
Skyfall
The latest James Bond flick is gaining momentum, especially after the new trailer premiered showing a Bond that brings to mind the earlier versions of the super spy (aka Sean Connery). Though he may be drinking Heineken instead of a shaken martini, I think Daniel Craig will be able to give us all a reason to love the character again. After waiting so long for Skyfall to get off the ground (due to the bankruptcy of MGM), it’s great that a lot of material is being released to keep fans happy. The latest crop of photos show James Bond with some lady friends and holding his favorite gun (above). They also give us a glimpse of Javier Bardem’s Silva putting his crazy pants on in a glass jail cell while M (Judi Dench) looks on. The ladies in question are Agent Eve (Naomie Harris) who gives Mr. Bond a nice shave, and Bérénice Marlohe’s Sévérine enjoying a drink with our 007. Voldemort also makes an appearance in the film, in the form of Ralph Fiennes, who looks to be more of an executive than an ass-kicker (so he probably won’t be saying Avada Kadavra to anyone). Skyfall will drop November 9th, 2012.
Taken 2
The success of Liam Neeson‘s Taken was certainly a surprise, as was today’s release of a dozen new photos for the sequel along with a new poster (seen above). Taken 2 sees Neeson’s Bryan Mills in Istanbul where he gets cornered by the crime boss Murad (Rade Serbedzija), father to one of the men he killed trying to save his daughter in the first movie. A lot of pictures have to do with Neeson holding a gun or punching a bunch of dudes. But there are some “sweet” shots of Mills holding his daughter, gazing out into the sunset, and enjoying a nice milkshake with his ex-wife Lenore. Hopefully the ratio of ass-beating to cute family stuff is the same as in the first movie, and that means most of the time being spent watching Neeson throwing punches and growling at people (which is funny because Liam Neeson is the voice of Aslan in The Chronicles of Narnia films). Taken 2 will be hitting us October 5th, 2012, but for now enjoy these stills (taken from Total Film). You can almost make a flip book of awesomeness with them.
Which of these intense action movies are you excited about seeing? How do you feel about the latest pictures?
