Something so much has happened over the past couple of weeks that the whole world seems, if not frozen, then very noticeably slowed down. Our editorial staff, alas, is no exception. We want to write for you and we write, but analytics summing up the results of action films for 2019 We are still delaying. Today we will focus on two nominations: not popular and popular. It's about Historical, fantasy or wuxia film и Best Blockbuster of Last Year.
Historical, fantasy or wuxia film 2019
Traditionally, one of the most “voiceless” nominations. It's a bit of a shame, considering that classic action cinema largely came out of Chinese kung fu fairy tales and historical costume cinema. True, to be honest, 2019 did not give us many truly interesting and high-quality projects. It’s interesting that among the nominees there are three representatives of Bollywood... However, the Japanese won.
Kingdom (dir. Shinsuke Sato, 2019) 38%
Think about it... The gold medal in this category was taken by a pseudo-historical film based on a series of Japanese comics, which in turn are based on Chinese novels about the Warring States period! Non-trivial, yes. But the unconditional victory (33 votes) draws attention to this movie. Let's try to figure out what's wrong with it?
First, the "Kingdom" - this is a real blockbuster, which Japan hasn’t spoiled us with for a long time. Secondly, in relation to other historical epics, there is no constant tension and endless drama here, which is what Chinese and Indian films are so fond of. IN "Kingdom" there is enough of a certain “Japanese naivety”, humor and outright overacting of the young actors, which makes it possible to “take” the two-hour running time quite easily. Thirdly, the film is beautiful both in terms of location and soundstage filming, and in terms of costumes and special effects. Well, we can finish this list with action. Read more about him.
Even though the action takes place in China of the 3rd century and Japanese actors play famous characters, the presentation of the material remains, nevertheless, Japanese. It is felt that in the action scenes the local directors “spied” on their colleagues from Hong Kong, but on the whole, they remained faithful to their “school”. There are many fights in the film, they happen often and among them there are both mass and duels. Scattering warriors from just one swing of the nagitata "Kingdom" no, but there are fights that refer us to classic ninja films, where the characters have different abilities and tricks. As soon as the battles take place under more or less real conditions, we see the sweeping Japanese style, which is replete with the best examples of action films from the land of the rising sun.
This feeling intensifies when you see such seasoned action actors in the frame as Masaya Kato и Taka Sakaguchi. The latter, by the way, has a quite spectacular battle scene against the main character performed by Kento Yamazaki.
In general, from the entire list of options presented in this nomination, "Kingdom" quite deservedly rises in pathos. Well, or the whole point is that, unlike most of the nominees, the film Shinsuke Sato officially released in Russia. In any case, first place!
Breakthrough (dir. Kim Sung-hoon, 2018) 13%
Literally six months before the original Netflix series "Kingdom" won the hearts of zombie-themed fans, a South Korean film called "Breakthrough". It's curious that "Kingdom" - this is also a South Korean series, and its director is the namesake of the film's director Kim Sung-hoon. And the plot in both works is very similar. However, the success of the series simply did not allow the film to take its share of popularity.
The plot takes place during the Qing Dynasty in Joseon Province, where a conspiracy against the ruler is brewing. The main instigator is a local general who uses an infected Dutch sailor to develop an epidemic and build up an army of “walkers” who should help him carry out his evil plans.
Well... Bloodthirsty zombies in ancient Korea? Already unconventional and interesting! The main character is a spoiled simpleton prince, who, however, has no equal in wielding a broadsword? If he is played Hyun Bin, that's just wonderful! Behind the scenes intrigues and a well-twisted plot? Sales!
Despite the fact that "Breakthrough" With its “silver” it has come far from first place, there is something to praise the film for. This is not an ordinary zombie movie, but a well-structured story with interesting characters and good (for a zombie movie) action. In addition, the film is beautiful and you can see where its budget went. Costumes, surroundings, makeup, visual and computer effects, extras... All this looks “expensive and luxurious” and is pleasing to the eye.
The main character is also well-executed Hyun Bin – in almost two hours of screen time, his character goes through a difficult path and truly changes. The views of the palace being besieged by walkers look cool, but you worry about the fate of the characters. According to the traditions of the genre, not everyone will survive.
There are fights in the film, and not only against zombies. In them Hyun Bin proves that it’s not for nothing that he is often invited to action projects. The final battle against the main villain on the roof of the burning throne room is also quite good.
Summarizing, "Breakthrough" Only those who are not repulsed by zombie themes will watch it, but if such a person simultaneously loves costume historical cinema and sword fights, then you can enjoy the film. In any case, 11 people voted for him.
Knight of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang (dir. Yan Jia, 2019) 12%
Literally one vote behind the South Korean zombie movie is fantasy with Jackie Chan starring. Personally, we from "Knight of Shadows" We didn’t really expect anything, because everything was clear from the trailers. But the film still made it into the top three.
And to be honest, the FFI editors don’t really understand what won the votes of our website visitors in this movie. In terms of genre, the film is a light fairy tale, the dark colors of which thicken only at the very end, when the viewer already “exhales” like that very beaver. There is criminally little action here, knowing whose name is in the title title. In fact, old Chan has one scene in the film that could be called a fight scene. In it, the grandfather, in the best traditions, confronts several enemies, using the surroundings at hand. But unlike Jackie's hits, we understand that we are seeing an older man on screen, whose character uses a brush more often than his fists. In addition, Chan himself "Knight of Shadows" not many, and mostly young talents rule the roost. Computer effects for such projects are traditionally weak, and the story is drawn out.
But the film still received third place on our fantasy cinema pedestal. Maybe because despite Chan's advancing years and the dubious quality of Chan's latest action films, many action movie fans miss Jackie. By his enthusiasm, his grimaces and smile, his entertaining kung fu and the general positive attitude of his films. Yes, it's not "Myth" and "Little Big Soldier"But "Knight of Shadows" cannot be called an outright failure of a film, but the love story of a girl and a demon, around which the plot revolves, as well as the good-natured Jackie Chan with his otherworldly henchmen, can really be of interest.
One way or another, but serious Avanhard и "Project X" we still have to wait for more from Chan, but oh "The Secret of the Dragon Seal" I want to forget. That's why "Knight of Shadows" and fills its niche!
Blockbuster 2019
As in the case of the previous nomination, it cannot be said that last year gave us many interesting blockbusters. Some were not even included in the shortlist (we wave our pen to the last "Star Wars"), and some, like "Shazama" didn't focus on the action. True, we thought that the last film in the franchise would beat everyone to the punch. "The Avengers", like this It happened in 2018, but the film based on Marvel comics had to fight with John Wick himself...
John Wick 3 (dir. Chad Stahelski, 2019) 24%
And again Mr. Wick... Well, this charming and silent killer became a real champion in the results of action films for 2019. It is both the best action film and the best martial arts film, and one of the fights in it won silver... The main prize-winner "John Wick 3" became also in the nomination "Blockbuster of the Year".
With a hefty budget of $55 million, the film made it back multiple times, securing the release of a sequel and a spin-off. The story of the revenge of a former assassin, which got out of control and opened up to the curious viewer a whole world of assassins with its own code, rules and various artifacts, was liked by the vast majority. The third film raises questions that we have asked more than once, but the fact remains that this film was expected and from it we got what we wanted - a real “carnival of action.”
But in this nomination we are interested in several other aspects. If the first two films were quite “intimate” in terms of locations and characters, then "Parabellum" is not limited only to wet night streets and the Continental Hotel. John Wick travels, meets new characters, expanding the lore of the franchise, fights killers in various locations, and weaves in new storylines.
Already in the second part, progress in visuals and expensive pictures, special effects and the musical component became noticeable. The third film magnifies all this. After all, you must agree, it’s always nice to look at how effectively a motorcycle chase takes place, or how Keanu Reeves fighting the Indonesians from "Raids", or how beautiful Halle Berry orders his dogs to bite off the manhood of local killers, when it is served tasty, bright, expensive, with pleasant visuals and competent camera work?
This kind of polish is lacking in many lower-class action films. Maybe someday the main character of such a project will be Scott Adkins… Wait and see. well and "John Wick" Congratulations on 40 votes and the first position on our list of the best blockbusters!
Alita: Battle Angel (dir. Robert Rodriguez, 2019) 16%
Legendary creator "Terminator" James Cameron had plans to film Japanese comics "Dreams of Weapons" since the late 90s. Around the same time, copyrights were acquired, but the project did not even reach the production process, changing producers and screenwriters for many years.
Last year, the long-suffering project finally came out, after which... it frankly failed at the box office. And, as in the case of the film adaptation of another cult work of Japanese cyberpunk - "Ghost in the Shell", it’s a shame for the movie, which turned out to be a very strong blockbuster with its few weaknesses.
The author is in the director's chair "Faculty", "Sin Cities", "Grindhouse" и "Machete" - Robert Rodriguez, which seems to know how to present even brutal trash as an interesting movie. The story for people unfamiliar with the original looks quite interesting: a certain doctor discovers a cyborg girl in a landfill and repairs her. Alita, at first timid and modest, over time learns more about the world and what the fighting prototype really is and now wants to regain all the memories of the past.
What's good about the film? Without a doubt, an absolutely stunning picture that fully and accurately conveys the world 300 years after the Great War. There are no complaints about the special effects, the main character is performed Roses Salazar Even if it seems a little repulsive at first because of the big eyes, but very soon you get used to it. An excellent cast is in place, and the fantastic action is conceived and implemented in an interesting way and with its own twist. After all, each cyborg in this world is unique, and is also endowed with its own unique weapon. Alita herself is not simple either, whose speed and strength the local producers play up well.
But the main weak point is "Alits" - this is an unfinished story. Hollywood screenwriters transferred the first story arc into their film as carefully as possible, but did not get rid of the problems that were in the original from the beginning - after all the plot twists and turns, dashing action and drama, the story ends with nothing, and judging by the box office, we will not see a sequel .
But that doesn’t mean you can’t spend almost two hours reading a beautiful cyberpunk tale and not enjoy it. Can! And second place in this category only proves this!
Avengers: Endgame (dir. Anthony Russo, Joe Russo, 2019) 13%
In previous results, the first part of this inextricable duology took gold in this category, but now it lost to as many as two of its “colleagues” in the glossy picture, and in the current voting it practically stood on par with "Hobbs and Shaw" and new "Hellboy". But "The Avengers" - this is not just a blockbuster. It's hard to deny that "The final" became a real event in the media. It's safe to say that an era has passed with some of the franchise's characters. It's scary to think: Robert Downey Jr appeared on screens with his Tony Stark in 2008! Now his story and the story of many other avengers is ending to make way for the young.
The film starts almost where the previous one ended: Thanos destroyed half of humanity and now the heroes come up with a new plan to counter the titan, in which they cannot lose.
"The final" picks up the serious tone of the story "Infinity Wars" and carries it through the entire film, despite the overtly comical characters in some, sometimes quite tense moments. We, the audience, understand that we are watching the end of an entire cinematic universe, a long-running series, the characters in which are almost like family to you. And if in previous films it seemed that each of the superheroes was immortal, then "Infinity War" showed that this is not so.
In addition to a polished picture, cool special effects and a complex story, "The final" captivates with a huge amount of fan service. Even if you're not a comic book fan and just watched all of these movies over the past ten years, you'll be interested in what the filmmakers have in store for you. Almost all the actors from the previous films returned to their roles, and flirting with the viewer’s expectations puts them in a kind of spiritual mood.
As usual, the action is in perfect order, if we are talking about the framework of a superhero comic movie. The final fight of Captain America, Iron Man and Thor against Thanos looks pretty cool from a choreographic point of view! Well, the final chords of the film are unlikely to leave anyone indifferent. They didn’t leave us...
Despite the bronze in our voting, the last "The Avengers" are doomed to endless revision, like many blockbusters from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
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Tags: Alita: Battle Angel, Avengers: Endgame, John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, Kingdom, Knight of Shadows: Walker between Halfworlds, Creeping, Russo Brothers, Jackie Chan, results of action cinema 2019, Keanu Reeves, Kim Sung-hoon, Kento Yamazaki, Masaya Kato, Robert Downey Jr., Robert Rodriguez, Shinsuke Sato, So Sakaguchi, Hyun Bin, Halle Berry, Chad Stahelski, Yan Jia
Tags: Alita: Battle Angel, Avengers: Endgame, John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, Kingdom, Knight of Shadows: Walker between Halfworlds, Creeping, Russo Brothers, Jackie Chan, results of action cinema 2019, Keanu Reeves, Kim Sung-hoon, Kento Yamazaki, Masaya Kato, Robert Downey Jr., Robert Rodriguez, Shinsuke Sato, So Sakaguchi, Hyun Bin, Halle Berry, Chad Stahelski, Yan Jia
I suspect that instead of Hyun Bin's name, the name should be Jong Dan Goon. With all due respect, he is the first half of a television actor, and by and large he has no big hits. Unless of course Hyun Bin is confused with Won Bin.
Dmitriy,
It’s not that anyone in our editorial office really knows much about South Korean cinema, but Hyun Bin is remembered for “Cooperation,” “The Fraudsters,” and “Negotiations.”
Chan Dong-gon, of course, is a much more seasoned actor with a more extensive filmography. And he's a cool villain here. This is undeniable.
Danil Chupakhin,
Swept away. I watched all three "Weeks" to the hushed tones. I got the following impression. All fans of genre cinema know that now the most spectacular action films are filmed in Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, or, at worst, Korea and China. And not the trash of the 1980s, but stunt ones with high-quality choreography. And I got the impression that Hollywood, in the person of Reeves - Stahelski and company, wants to tell the world that we can draw Thor not only on a computer. Hollywood is the coolest. And then came “Bloody Fathers”, “The Equalizer”, “Blondes”, “Wiki”, etc. That’s the theory.
Dmitriy,
The main thing is that people accept, vote with rubles and wait for more. Therefore, I think that they succeeded. Moreover, in Asia it is now difficult to find high-quality action. All ropes and pop stars starring as action heroes.