Action Movie A-Z: The Inevitable and The Alternative

Action movies have undergone somewhat of a revolution recently. The Eighties were the golden years, bringing us the likes of Arnie, Sly and The Muscles from Brussels. 

However, the cinema-going public were left scratching their heads throughout the mid-to-late Nineties, when the action mantle was inexplicably taken up by such unlikely lads as Christian Slater, John Cusack and Ray Liotta, to name a few.  Some performed admirably, but none could rightly claim the throne of those that had gone before.  The future of the action movie, for a time, looked a little shaky.

But all that is changing. The charismatic raising of an eyebrow and the sound of a voicebox coated with gravel has signalled the return of old school values to the genre. The Rock and Vin Diesel are genuine contenders. Action is casting aside its sensitive heroes, and the big man is back in vogue. High fives all round, we say.

To celebrate The Action Hero Revolution, over the coming weeks hecklerspray will attempt to bring you The Definitive A to Z of Action Movies: The Inevitable and The Alternative.  Be sure to check the site every Tuesday to wonder at the likes of H for Hong Kong, O for One Liners, and X for…well, we’ve got a few weeks to come up with that one.  The Inevitable kicks off next week with A for Arnie - including his ten best quotes, his five best movies, his five biggest turkeys and links to Arnie samples.  The Alternative begins with American Ninja - including Michael Dudikoff, where are you now?

Anything of this nature is bound to court controversy, so if you have any alphabetical action suggestions please leave them below to prevent us from making horrendous mistakes such as choosing P for The Pacifier instead of Peckinpah, or R for Roadhouse instead of Rodriguez.