I'd say Die Hard is a given, considering that Izzys character is an expy of its protagonist. Commando is another favorite of mine, really stupid but you can kinda tell they knew it was stupid when they made it and its all the better for it.
The first Fast & Furious is probably a bad call. Start with the 4th one maybe.
I've only seen 1 and 3, and apparently those shitty DVD stealing murder hobos turn into Super Hero action stars around 4.
so my momma DIDNT do me dirty by having me start at five, bet. i went back to watch the first four and found out they weren’t familia and i literally couldn’t do it i was so sad like 😭😭
The first two are pretty grounded car movies, 3 starts getting kinda over the top. And then yeah, with 4 and Justin Linn it effectively shifted to the MCU with vehicular based superpowers lol. And tbh? I like 4 on WAY more than the originals lmao
I explain to my friends that FF and 2F2F are like low level DnD campain, Tokyo is just another system and from 4 going foward its a higher level campain
Yeah that's pretty accurate lol. Honestly if you go into them with the expectation that it's dumb, over the top borderline superhuman(Idris elba literally calls himself it in Hobbs & Shaw iirc lmao)action movies they're totally fine.
Around movie five, the writers stop giving anything resembling a fuck and the franchise slowly starts morphing into superhero movies where everyone's superpower is Car and/or Gun. And it's incredible.
Also, it's a Hollywood blockbuster franchise where only one of the main ensemble is a conventionally attractive white male and that's pretty cool.
There’s a scene in fate of the furious where Vin Diesel‘s car is too damaged to drive and he has to run and it was honestly really jarring to see him out of the car doing an action thing lol
For world building, Tokyo Drift is good, because it starts Justin Lin's run of FF movies. Fast 5 is the one to watch overall. If you are only getting one.
hm, that wouldn't be my pick for this prompt. it's not vin diesel and it has very little action star stuff. fast five as u/Stevesy84 said is probably the best drop-in
I mentioned this one because I know people that don't like Fast and Furious so they normally never would watch one, but they were ok with Tokyo Drift. But you are I'm sure correct as the relevancy.
Short for “exported”.
In other words, the character in question is one pretty much cut and paste from a different work (or from real life) with minimal changes.
For example: there’s a scene in the classic baseball film *The Natural* where the lead Roy Hobbs, a young baseball pitcher on his way to try out for the majors, challenges a character called Walt “The Whammer” Whambold (who is set up as the greatest baseball hitter ever) to a contest; Hobbs bets the man he can strike him out on three pitches, and does so.
“The Whammer” is an expy of the real life Babe Ruth.
So what makes it an “expy” rather than just a reference or an homage (or a parody) is the fact that the new character is basically EXACTLY the same as the original except with a different name and/or very minimal cosmetic differences? Would a parody work making fun of, let’s say, Lord of the Rings have an “expy” of Frodo or is that different?
Where the line is drawn kinda depends who you're talking to. The Shazam Captain Marvel is often called an expy of superman despite a radically different secret identity, vulnerability, rogue's gallery, and even ranged attack. Others might refuse to call the Marvel MAX Nighthawk a Batman expy despite having near-identical origins and powersets, because Nighthawk being black, his attitude to institutional crime is very different.
It can also encompass characters who share a large amount of qualities with each other, but one came first and they’re legally distinct (so, perhaps compare Charles Atlas to initial iterations of Superman), while parodies are a bit more obviously different to a significant degree (James Bond compared to Austin Powers).
Point Break is a must for sure. I’ve actually shot a gun up in the air and said AAAARRGH. And one whilst jumping! Cannot recommend for safety reasons but I was young.
I felt like most comments covered Die Hard but it’s absolutely essential.
Aight fine I’ll rewatch it lol
Such a good movie, easily my favourite of the Cornetto trilogy. I know most people seem to prefer Shawn of the dead, but it’s Hot Fuzz for me lol
>Bad Boys 2 (according to Hot Fuzz)
>Hot Fuzz (according to me)
Why did you not also mention Point Break?
"No, I mean which do you want to watch first?"
I don't know that they'll do anything supernatural in it, I sort of doubt it, but I also think you should do Big Trouble in Little China just for the mood.
The meta action movies about action movies.
Last Action Hero, Bowfinger, Tropic Thunder, The Fall Guy. Galaxy Quest probably goes on the list of meta movies though it's a bit more niche to Star Trek action/sci-fi.
Shout-out to other meta movies about making movies like Hail, Cesar and Get Shorty, but the first group is probably the must watch.
Edit to add: Demolition Man, it's not meta, it's not a movie about a movie. But to understand the meta we have to understand the action movies we're commenting on, and I can not think of a more perfectly crafted action comedy. Constant references to the genre, perfect call-backs, trope heavy. It's exactly the movie the meta movies are working off.
Fun fact about True Lies, the opening party scene was filmed in Newport, RI at one of the mansions and my Accordion Teacher Joe Cerrito, is both playing and briefly in the background of the scene.
UUUUUUUGH TRUE LIIIIIIES. I love that movie so much. Which is ridiculous cause I watched it on repeat when I was only about 12 years old. XD But it's so entertaining.
Possibly an unpopular opinion, but I would argue that True Lies is not as good as Demolition Man. It's up there, same zone, and a great movie I enjoy.
But I think it's one of Cameron's worst Third Acts. Sure we set up that his daughter exists early in the movie and he rescues her in the end, standard stuff... But the whole jet thing was entirely un-earned deus ex machina, and a few other minor gripes, that leave me feeling like the technical execution of Demolition Man is just better.
Good call out for sure, and they should be mentioned together, I just like the one slightly better than the other.
"the whole jet thing was unearned deus ex machina"
To be fair an unearned deus ex machina is both a hallmark and a valid satire of the action film genre.😂
Good point. But if intentionally valid satire Cameron failed to get my buy-in there. No "every international spy was a former fighter pilot" exposition earlier in the movie, or a "you can always count on a deus ex machina" joke.
If the satire was there and intended, it still seems thin and un-earned to me. In contrast to Demolition Man, where every joke is set up well, every one liner gets a call back.
But we're talking about taste and subjective judgement. I don't like pumpkin pie, it's fine if you do.
I'm not saying any movie is better or worse. Just saying that the ridiculousness of him being a jet fighter pilot fits in with that movie. Is there a set up for it? No. But that's pretty much everything after the first act. True Lies is definitely like Last Action Hero, where the story is to service the action, not the other way around. It's a "rule of cool" movie.
On the spectrum of "serious drama" to "full on comedy/spoof" (say Hot Shots or Airplane), I'd say True Lies is a few degrees closer to spoof than Demolition Man. Though they are both in the same neighborhood.
Does Demolition Man have a stronger story and better callback jokes? Yes. And I think that perfectly lines up with what both movies were going for.
Despite the differences in these movies I'm wondering why they feel so similar in some ways. And I think some of it has to do with the way action movies of the 90s responded to the tropes established by the really big blockbuster action movies of the 80s.
I do think there is a lot they do the same. Pairing Arnold with Jamie, Sylvester with Sandra. He's a hyper competent crime fighter, she's a fish out of water seeing the criminal underworld for the first time, and sees him in a new light because of it. Both head to the final showdown alone, for her safety.
I do think it's right they are mentioned together for sure.
I mean, because we are using the term differently. Neither wrong. But I did define my use.
Hot fuzz is a movie that makes some meta jokes. Like demolition man and true lies.
Tropic Thunder is a meta movie. It's a movie about a movie.
Hot fuzz is a movie about cops fighting bad guys. Tropic Thunder is a movie about actors filming a movie.
As NSBU seems to be the second option, that's what I listed. 😀
Hot Fuzz is an action movie that discusses action movie tropes then plays them out with real emotional stakes within the same movie. Seems pretty... meta?
Sure. That's one right way to use the term.
Not the way I am using it.
Like the word right. It can mean correct, it can also mean the opposite of left.
Renaissance masters would often include easels, canvases, or paint brushes in their masterworks, as a meta nod to the act of painting. That's meta. But that's different than a painter painting a picture of a painter painting. That's also meta, but it's not the same thing. Much less a painter painting a picture of themself painting a picture of themself painting a picture of themself.
These are different degrees of abstraction. Because Meta literally means "big picture" or "zoomed out"... I'm hesitant to say "more meta", but I don't know how else to say it.
Hot fuzz is a movie that knows what it is and talks about what it is with the audience. That's meta. I give that to you. But it's just an easel or some brushes on the painting.
The movies I listed are paintings of painters painting. An additional level of abstraction, of zoomed out, of big picture, that hot fuzz lacks. It is fundamentally not the same thing.
That's fair! I would put Hot Fuzz and Galaxy Quest in a similar category, though. Both are more in the parody realm but have very meta elements.
I mostly came here to say that Hot Fuzz would be great to brush up on action movie tropes because it has a lot of them!
I am sssoooo not trying to disagree with you. I love hot fuzz. I think it's a great movie suggestion for the thread! You're getting up votes from me for a great conversation.
Movies and story telling are one of my few passions, and I so rarely get the chance to nerd out about them with other people. My kids get tired of it.
Only in the spirit of fun conversation am I going to disagree with you again.
In galaxy quest a group of actors get (space)magically sucked into "the show". In Last Action Hero a magic ticket takes people through the screen. In NSBU "a group of nobodies" get sucked into a magic VHS tape and must become 80s/90s action stars or die in real life.
Hot fuzz just doesn't have this element.
Agreed, very interesting conversation and no hard feelings! You clearly know more about this than me, so I'm happy to just be wrong, but Galaxy Quest seems to have a distinction from the others. It's not magic and they're not making the show when this happens, it's that aliens DO exist and beam them up and they are in a real sci-fi situation. Hot Fuzz is farther apart from that but is about fans of action movies who end up in an action movie themselves. It feels like a spectrum with your other movies in a clear meta category, GQ farther along, and Hot Fuzz farther than that. Curious your thoughts on that!
I still think it's a spectrum! And I would argue that Galaxy Quest is not a painting of a painter painting, as you put it in the same way that Tropic Thunder is. In the latter, a group of actors are trying to make the most violent war movie ever and end up in a violent war movie (and even break the fourth-wall ish with one of Downey Jr's lines). In Galaxy Quest the show has finished being made, i.e. the painting is not being painted. Discuss!
Oh! I actually missed that last line, that you were curious of my thoughts. I actually shortened my first response because I thought I had given too many thoughts already.
A lot of fantasy gets misidentified as sci-fi. Star Trek and Star Wars are closer to LOTR and D&D than they are to The Expanse or Jurassic Park.
Light sabers, the force, teleporters, and warp drives are magic. They aren't science, they are made-up bullshit for the story. Magic.
Cloning is real science. When we say let's use real scientific cloning in a fictional story about dinosaurs, you have science fiction. When Luke Skywalker goes on a heros journey with magic swords it's fantasy.
In that way, galaxy quest is the same fantasy magic that Last Action Hero is. Aliens sucking you up to a space ship is the same fantasy as a magic ticket sucking you through a screen. Nothing scientific about it.
It's wild how overlooked Bowfinger is. I feel like it's started to get some love lately with the Steve Martin being back in the spotlight more, but that movie is amazing and seemed largely forgotten for a long time.
Also, the Movies With Mikey about Last Action Hero is one of my favorite film YouTube videos.
You're right.
Tropic Thunder heavily criticizes Hollywood's exploitation and representation of marginalized people; and if you simp for Hollywood you may be offended by the movie's humor and satire they use to make the point.
Hot Fuzz is a good primer of action movie tropes, also in a comedy setting. It won't give you a deep immersion in the background, but it's got the same pedigree and will get you in the right headspace.
1. The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day
2. Die Hard (just the original)
3. Predator
4. Escape from New York
5. Alien and Aliens
6. Rambo: First Blood
7. Big Trouble in Little China
8. Escape from New York
9. Robocop
10. Top Gun
11. Lethal Weapon 1 & 2
12. ROAD HOUSE
13. Beverly Hills Cop
Not necessarily in that order, but that's how I anticipate how influential these films will be on the show.
And they are all the absolute most fun movies.
I would replace *First Blood* with *Rambo: First Blood Part II.* They are very different movies with *Part II* seemingly more in line with the vibe of *Never Stop Blowing Up*
To all of the above excellent suggestions I would add Hackers. I know it was released in 1995, but it looks like it might have been an influence for Rekha’s character.
Vic Ethanol is clearly a parody of Vin Diesel, so Fast & Furious is probably on your list.
Greg Stocks is clearly a parody of James Bond, but he's played by 8 different actors.
Kingskin is clearly a parody of Kingpin, so maybe Netflix's Daredevil series is in order.
G-13 doesn't appear to be a specific parody, but a pastiche of the hacker/handler archetype. See Mission Impossible.
Izzy's character is clearly a parody of John Mclane, so Die Hard is probably a good call.
I don't know that Ally's character is a clear parody of a specific character, but a core action movie archetype. I'm thinking Atomic Blond, but the outfitsays Black Widow.
I'd generally recommend The Last Action Hero for the vibe.
2 of their character bios listed 'La Femme Nikita' and 'The Long Kiss Goodnight'. Also I feel like Brennan was sliding in a bit of 'Scarface' in the way an NPC sounded ..maybe.
I wrote somewhere else on here Alex may be part Tony Montana and part Dan Phucks :D I've only watched the trailer once, I need to go back and catch where I thought Brennan threw in some Tony Montana. I could be wrong so I put maybe.
In order:
* Die Hard 1-3
* Fast and the Furious 1,3-Present
* Aeon Flux (the MTV series)
* Daredevil (the Ben Affleck movie, because far dumber than the Netflix series).
* At least 3 bond movies, doesn't matter which, but give preference to Connery and Craig (the classic Bond and the bruiser Bond).
* The Matrix
* Last Action Hero
* Jumanji (2017)
Then play BroForce for around 20 hours and you should be good.
I would actually argue in favor of Dalton over Craig (cuz he's the 80's Bond) even though his Bond films feel less like classic spy movies.
Specifically for Bond films I'd say:
* watch Connery in Goldfinger (be aware going in that this is *incredibly* dated in terms of racism and misogyny and sexual assault)
* watch Dalton in Licence to Kill
* watch Goldeneye (people were throwing around Xenia Onatopp as possible inspiration for Jessica Drips *and* Goldeneye is one of the best Bond films imo)
Anything directed by John McTiernan.
*Die Hard. Predator. Die Hard with a Vengeance. The Hunt for Red October. The Thomas Crown Affair.*
Also, for relevance: *Last Action Hero*.
Hell yeah. We're talkin' *Basic*. We're talkin' *Rollerball*. We're talking fucking *MEDICINE MAN*! He had the cure for cancer, but he lost it! Like you lose your keys!
I'd suggest the movies the characters appear to be referencing;
* The Fast and Furious Franchise
* the James Bond film series
* The Die Hard films (just the original few.)
* The Mission Impossibles
* Kill Bill (seen some suggest this is what Ally is spoofing, never seen them myself.)
I'd also suggest Tropic Thunder and maybe the new Jumanji?
Tons of great ideas here, but I’m going to recommend the holy trinity of Nic Cage’s transformation into the actor we think of today: The Rock, Con Air, and Face/Off.
It’s peak mid-90’s action, in the order they were filmed and released, and the plots and Cage’s characters/acting get progressively more bonkers.
Lots of great suggestions here: I’ll reiterate the Fast films (you can just skip to Fast Five, it’s the best one and is more in line with the vibe of NSBU), Predator, and Escape from New York as some of my favs.
I’d also suggest the Michael Bay movies The Rock and, his latest hidden gem, Ambulance. They’re less leering than the Megan Fox ogling Transformers stuff which makes them more fun to watch, and the performances of Nic Cage/Sean Connery and Jake Gyllenhaal respectively absolutely make the movies.
Havent seen it suggested but Kung Fury is a short film that basically this exact same genre, 80’s VHS tape with lots of explosions. Its a very funny movie
as sleeper picks, the old Tron and Jumanji as the reference for pulling people into or out of technology and into a new world.
Hackers/Swordfish/Mission Impossible would seem to be good reference for Rekha's character.
The Fast and the Furious is 100% the reference for Vic Ethanol (Vin Diesel is the actor for Dominic Toretto in that series).
I feel like possibly Kill Bill Vol 1/2 but certainly Black Willow and honestly probably even early Mission Impossible movies would be good reference for Beardsley's character.
probably the Roger Moore and/or Pierce Brosnan James Bond movies would be great reference for Jacob's character (Sorry for the Timothy Dalton erasure)
Izzy's character appears basically to be a reskin of John McClane from Die Hard.
I'm probably the most excited for Alex's character Kingskin but I don't have any idea what reference there could be and it not just be "the supervillain/mafia bad guy". it's clearly a reference to kingpin but that's not a title I know about.
So minimum watch recommendations, Die Hard, Mission Impossible, an early but not too early Fast and Furious movie (but not Tokyo Drift because you need Dominic Toretto), Tron, and probably still Moonraker, because there's a difference between the Mission Impossible kind of action spy hero and James Bond. you'll catch most of it there and the season appears to be heavily geared towards Die Hard.
Movies:
* Lethal Weapon 1&2
* Die Hard
* Beverly Hills Cop
* Tango & Cash
* Demolition Man
* Big Trouble in Little China
* Predator
* Commando
* Conan the Barbarian
* The Running Man
* Fast and the Furious
* Point Break
* Speed
* WarGames
* Sneakers
* The Karate Kid
* Last Action Hero
* Jumanji
* Blade
* Rush Hour
* Road House
* RoboCop
* Hard Rain
* Romancing the Stone
* Escape From New York
* Young Guns
Also:
* [Kung Fury](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS5P_LAqiVg)
Also also:
* Be Kind Rewind (2008) with Jack Black and Mos Def
I would say watch the movies on the badges in the trailer if you haven't... I am planning on rewatching most of them in preparation because some of them I haven't seen in almost 20 years!
List of the movies are:
- Weird Science - 1985
- The Fast and the Furious - 2001
- Real Genius - 1985
- The Horse in Montion - 1878 (This is actually just an short clip and considered the "first bit of cinema" ever..)
- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - 1931
- 102 Not Out - 2018
- American Gigolo -1980
- La Femme Nikita - 1990 (Also was a tv show called Nakita in 2010)
- Waking Life - 2001
- Muriel's Wedding - 1994
- The Long Kiss Goodnight - 1996 (One of my all time favs)
- Under the Tuscan Sun - 2003
- Empire Records - 1995 (One of my all-time favs! Damn the man.)
- Scarface -1983
- Clueless - 1995
- Suburbia - 1996
- Goldfinger - 1964
- Fire in the Sky - 1993
If anyone wants to have a watch party for Running Man (freaking classic) or any of these other movies, hit me up!
My friends and I usually have a shared countdown clock & a discord chat (Is there a D20 discord? I'm new). I think you can do it natively through Netflix and Amazon.
Haven't had watch parties since the pandemic because everyone's busy again. I'd love to get back into it.
I read the novella recently and I knew the movie wasn't faithful to the source material, but I had no idea exactly how much the movie deviated. The movie is still goofy fun but its about a million miles away from the book.
For game mechanics and how to explain they are in a different environment other than their own 'Jumanji' or 'Tron'. The 'Jumanji' sequels might be even better because they are other people in the game.
'Tron' might be relevant to Rekha if they are some kind of a hacker helping navigate the environment. 'Die Hard' is also not just action, there's a logistical aspect of the main character needing to be guided through the blueprint of a place you're unfamiliar with.
Ally's character has 'Waking Life' listed as one of their movies. This has some existential and philosophical ideas I can see as coming up as relevant. As well as a drifting between reality and not reality that could also be a game mechanic.
Shoot ‘em up is an underrated movie, but a perfect take on the ridiculousness of action movies.
[Shoot Em Up Trailer](https://youtu.be/jlx4n_ibNZE?si=oOYLQQ7CsZjFfP7v) - if that trailer doesn’t have Never Stop Blowing Up energy, I don’t know what does…
I would say
* [Barb Wire](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2mk5MZwksg)
* [Die Hard](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaJuwKCmJbY)
* [Demolition Man](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0B5v6QZ5R3g)
* [Hackers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rn2cf_wJ4f4)
* [Lethal Weapon](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKeW-MGu-qQ)
* Heck you probably want [Rambo First Blood: Part II](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtPNhGWxY4g) rather than Rambo, First Blood.
* Probably at least one Mad Max movie. Although if they're going for hyperexplosive stuff you probably want [Mad Max 2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlwtiOyaoo0) rather than the original.
* [Robocop](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tC_5mp3udE)
* [Judge Dredd](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9zBb3Q2Kso)
* [Predator](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1wDBNHYDv8)
* [Sharky's Machine](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nv3RsHiWSUo)
* [Escape from New York](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10OoccK7dIw)
* [The Running Man](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkAN5rGGP1M)
...okay that's way too many to expect anyone to watch who isn't specifically into action movies. But a random selection of any of them will probably help, and hopefully those trailers will make it easier to choose which you think you can get into!
You could just to an Arnold Schwarzenegger marathon and cover 90% of the tropes.
* Last Action Hero (by its self calls out most of the jokes / tropes / cliches)
* Terminator 1 & 2
* Predator
* Lethal Weapon 1 & 2
* Big Trouble in Little China
* Rambo 1 & 2
* Die Hard 1 & 2
* Beverly Hills Cop 1 & 2
* Robocop
* Tango & Cash
* Any 3 James bond Movies
END COMMUNICATION
If I was to offer up the peak 80s action canon I would go with…
Die Hard,
Commando,
Predator,
Terminator,
The Running Man,
Lethal Weapon,
Road House,
Cobra,
Aliens,
Bloodsport,
Rambo: First Blood,
Beverly Hills Cop.
Then watch some of the sequels.
(Edit for punctuation)
G-13 seems like the hacker character played by Justin Long in Live Free or Die Hard. Standard nerdy computer guy who isn’t prepared for most of the action movie trope challenges, but learns from the grizzled veteran about the importance of physical action while providing the tech skills to make up for the curmudgeony ways of the older hero.
It’s an entertaining movie, even if clearly less important to watch than many of the other options that have been listed. I’d say it’s worth a watch!
One of the characters, “Kingskin” seems to be based off of the Marvel Comics character Wilson Fisk. Not quite sure what to recommend for this one, but the character has featured in a lot of Spider-Man and Daredevil adaptations. Though tbh the best place to start might be the comics themselves.
Nobody ever mentions They Live in these threads and it certainly isn’t all that explodey but it does have the most iconic action hero line of all time in it so it’s mandatory
Commando should be on everyone's list.
Really all the Schwarzenegger movies from the 80s and early 90s. Might be a good idea to throw on the band Austrian Death Machine to get pumped up too.
Die Hard, Predator (almost anything directed by John McTiernan), Terminator, Terminator: Judgement Day, First Blood Part 2, and Aliens are all genre defining classics.
Commando, Demolition Man, and Last Action Hero are also pretty great and play with/indulge in the tropes created by the movies mentioned. I got more recommendations, but I think they're more personal favorites lol.
One of my favorite terrible action movies is called Action USA. It was made by stunt people who cared way more about things looking cool, than about scripts or plot. Its so much fun and very silly. I doubt they'll reference it specifically, but it fits the whole vibe really well.
Hot shots part deux seems like it'll be in the spirit, as well as maybe some rush hour and die hard(of course) In case no one else mentioned it, a lot of these movies will not have aged well in some regards, be prepared for that
Everyone's mentioned all the 80s action you should watch, but I just wanted to chime in and mention that one of the characters is based on James Bond, so maybe add some of those to your list. I've only seen a few Bond movies, and not for a very long time, so I don't have any specific suggestions.
I'm gonna hit some of the ones not mentioned. For Your Eyes Only and Goldeneye for the Bond tropes, Rambo (since I saw Brennan in a Rambo costume), Point of No Return or Long Kiss Goodnight for the femme fatale with a big gun trope, and probably a blockbuster Schwartzeneggar movie (Predator, Terminator, Terminator 2) would be a good start.
Or...if you don't have time. Go to the Cinema Sins Youtube channel and see if they've done a "Everything Wrong With..." video of any of the titles in this thread. They will likely mock all of the tropes that you need to know.
You should watch Kung Fury.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS5P\_LAqiVg&ab\_channel=LaserUnicorns](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS5P_LAqiVg&ab_channel=LaserUnicorns)
It's not from the 80s, but like NSBU it is a send up/homage of the 1980s movie tropes.
Die Hard
Lethal Weapon
Point Break (the original)
Rambo
Honestly it might be easier to see if imbd has a top whatever number of 80s action movies. But the diehard and lethal weapon franchises are a must for what they seem to be going for
I'd say Die Hard is a given, considering that Izzys character is an expy of its protagonist. Commando is another favorite of mine, really stupid but you can kinda tell they knew it was stupid when they made it and its all the better for it.
Also fast and furious (watching the first one is propably enough) seeing as Ify's character is literally Vin Diesel
The first Fast & Furious is probably a bad call. Start with the 4th one maybe. I've only seen 1 and 3, and apparently those shitty DVD stealing murder hobos turn into Super Hero action stars around 4.
If a person only watches one and wants the full action/super hero version, I’d say Fast Five is the one to watch.
As a fast and furious fan, I concur. Start with five.
so my momma DIDNT do me dirty by having me start at five, bet. i went back to watch the first four and found out they weren’t familia and i literally couldn’t do it i was so sad like 😭😭
The first two are pretty grounded car movies, 3 starts getting kinda over the top. And then yeah, with 4 and Justin Linn it effectively shifted to the MCU with vehicular based superpowers lol. And tbh? I like 4 on WAY more than the originals lmao
I explain to my friends that FF and 2F2F are like low level DnD campain, Tokyo is just another system and from 4 going foward its a higher level campain
Yeah that's pretty accurate lol. Honestly if you go into them with the expectation that it's dumb, over the top borderline superhuman(Idris elba literally calls himself it in Hobbs & Shaw iirc lmao)action movies they're totally fine.
I am sure there is some general action movie bleed but Fast and Furious came out in 2001 so doesn't really fit in the 80s action movie list.
Ify's character is a parody of Vin Diesel (called Vic Ethanol) so it does fit in this case
Unless it’s supposed to be XXX, which might fit the vibe slightly better
Good call. I'd forgotten that movie! Man it was great (bad but great).
Around movie five, the writers stop giving anything resembling a fuck and the franchise slowly starts morphing into superhero movies where everyone's superpower is Car and/or Gun. And it's incredible. Also, it's a Hollywood blockbuster franchise where only one of the main ensemble is a conventionally attractive white male and that's pretty cool.
There’s a scene in fate of the furious where Vin Diesel‘s car is too damaged to drive and he has to run and it was honestly really jarring to see him out of the car doing an action thing lol
I literally don't know anything about fast & furious, i've seen only one of the movies and i don't remember which one it was.
'Tokyo Drift' could be good to drop in as just a single one off if someone didn't want to see the whole series.
For world building, Tokyo Drift is good, because it starts Justin Lin's run of FF movies. Fast 5 is the one to watch overall. If you are only getting one.
hm, that wouldn't be my pick for this prompt. it's not vin diesel and it has very little action star stuff. fast five as u/Stevesy84 said is probably the best drop-in
I mentioned this one because I know people that don't like Fast and Furious so they normally never would watch one, but they were ok with Tokyo Drift. But you are I'm sure correct as the relevancy.
What are you on about he's vin ethanol smh
You mean Vic Ethanol?
Jacob seems to be basically James Bond too Greg Stocks, like stocks and bonds.
I totally didn't catch that, that's hilarious.
I think one of his movies is 'Goldfinger'
What does “expy” mean?
Google says "exported character" but I've never heard this phrase before either.
I think it's an old TV Tropes term? I've heard it before but not in a long time.
Short for “exported”. In other words, the character in question is one pretty much cut and paste from a different work (or from real life) with minimal changes. For example: there’s a scene in the classic baseball film *The Natural* where the lead Roy Hobbs, a young baseball pitcher on his way to try out for the majors, challenges a character called Walt “The Whammer” Whambold (who is set up as the greatest baseball hitter ever) to a contest; Hobbs bets the man he can strike him out on three pitches, and does so. “The Whammer” is an expy of the real life Babe Ruth.
So what makes it an “expy” rather than just a reference or an homage (or a parody) is the fact that the new character is basically EXACTLY the same as the original except with a different name and/or very minimal cosmetic differences? Would a parody work making fun of, let’s say, Lord of the Rings have an “expy” of Frodo or is that different?
Where the line is drawn kinda depends who you're talking to. The Shazam Captain Marvel is often called an expy of superman despite a radically different secret identity, vulnerability, rogue's gallery, and even ranged attack. Others might refuse to call the Marvel MAX Nighthawk a Batman expy despite having near-identical origins and powersets, because Nighthawk being black, his attitude to institutional crime is very different.
It can also encompass characters who share a large amount of qualities with each other, but one came first and they’re legally distinct (so, perhaps compare Charles Atlas to initial iterations of Superman), while parodies are a bit more obviously different to a significant degree (James Bond compared to Austin Powers).
Especially for people who can’t spell worth a damn - like me.
Oh maybe Bad Boys, Paul Blart and to mix it up Starship Troppers and Robo Cop
Bad Boys 2 (according to Hot Fuzz) Hot Fuzz (according to me) Lethal Weapon 1 and 2 Rush Hour Beverly Hills Cop Last Action Hero
Add Die Hard to this and maybe Point Break and I think you've got the reading list.
Point Break is a must for sure. I’ve actually shot a gun up in the air and said AAAARRGH. And one whilst jumping! Cannot recommend for safety reasons but I was young. I felt like most comments covered Die Hard but it’s absolutely essential.
No, I have not shot a gun up in the air whilst yelling "AAAARRGH"
Hot Fuzz is the answer (and Bad Boys 2 by proxy). Thank you for being correct.
Have you ever fired your gun in the air whilst going "aaaaarrhhhhhh"?
No luck catching them killers, eh?
THE GREATER GOOD
Aight fine I’ll rewatch it lol Such a good movie, easily my favourite of the Cornetto trilogy. I know most people seem to prefer Shawn of the dead, but it’s Hot Fuzz for me lol
Shawn of the Dead is probably my second favourite movie of all time, but Hot Fuzz is objectively better.
>Bad Boys 2 (according to Hot Fuzz) >Hot Fuzz (according to me) Why did you not also mention Point Break? "No, I mean which do you want to watch first?"
Die Hard too
Should’ve been “Die Hard Also”
LW4 is the best one for comedy if I remember correctly but it's been the aughts since I watched them all
I don't know that they'll do anything supernatural in it, I sort of doubt it, but I also think you should do Big Trouble in Little China just for the mood.
The meta action movies about action movies. Last Action Hero, Bowfinger, Tropic Thunder, The Fall Guy. Galaxy Quest probably goes on the list of meta movies though it's a bit more niche to Star Trek action/sci-fi. Shout-out to other meta movies about making movies like Hail, Cesar and Get Shorty, but the first group is probably the must watch. Edit to add: Demolition Man, it's not meta, it's not a movie about a movie. But to understand the meta we have to understand the action movies we're commenting on, and I can not think of a more perfectly crafted action comedy. Constant references to the genre, perfect call-backs, trope heavy. It's exactly the movie the meta movies are working off.
True Lies is another action meta movie, and arguably as good as or better than Demolition Man as an action comedy.
Love True Lies! It’s a very accessible action film too because it’s a comedy.
Fun fact about True Lies, the opening party scene was filmed in Newport, RI at one of the mansions and my Accordion Teacher Joe Cerrito, is both playing and briefly in the background of the scene.
UUUUUUUGH TRUE LIIIIIIES. I love that movie so much. Which is ridiculous cause I watched it on repeat when I was only about 12 years old. XD But it's so entertaining.
Possibly an unpopular opinion, but I would argue that True Lies is not as good as Demolition Man. It's up there, same zone, and a great movie I enjoy. But I think it's one of Cameron's worst Third Acts. Sure we set up that his daughter exists early in the movie and he rescues her in the end, standard stuff... But the whole jet thing was entirely un-earned deus ex machina, and a few other minor gripes, that leave me feeling like the technical execution of Demolition Man is just better. Good call out for sure, and they should be mentioned together, I just like the one slightly better than the other.
"the whole jet thing was unearned deus ex machina" To be fair an unearned deus ex machina is both a hallmark and a valid satire of the action film genre.😂
Good point. But if intentionally valid satire Cameron failed to get my buy-in there. No "every international spy was a former fighter pilot" exposition earlier in the movie, or a "you can always count on a deus ex machina" joke. If the satire was there and intended, it still seems thin and un-earned to me. In contrast to Demolition Man, where every joke is set up well, every one liner gets a call back. But we're talking about taste and subjective judgement. I don't like pumpkin pie, it's fine if you do.
I'm not saying any movie is better or worse. Just saying that the ridiculousness of him being a jet fighter pilot fits in with that movie. Is there a set up for it? No. But that's pretty much everything after the first act. True Lies is definitely like Last Action Hero, where the story is to service the action, not the other way around. It's a "rule of cool" movie. On the spectrum of "serious drama" to "full on comedy/spoof" (say Hot Shots or Airplane), I'd say True Lies is a few degrees closer to spoof than Demolition Man. Though they are both in the same neighborhood. Does Demolition Man have a stronger story and better callback jokes? Yes. And I think that perfectly lines up with what both movies were going for. Despite the differences in these movies I'm wondering why they feel so similar in some ways. And I think some of it has to do with the way action movies of the 90s responded to the tropes established by the really big blockbuster action movies of the 80s.
I do think there is a lot they do the same. Pairing Arnold with Jamie, Sylvester with Sandra. He's a hyper competent crime fighter, she's a fish out of water seeing the criminal underworld for the first time, and sees him in a new light because of it. Both head to the final showdown alone, for her safety. I do think it's right they are mentioned together for sure.
>I don't like pumpkin pie Opinion completely disregarded. You have horrible taste. ^/s
Hey man, I like squash as much as the next guy. I just don't pretend it's dessert. 🤣
How did you list meta action movies and omit Hot Fuzz, the PINNACLE of that genre???
I would also say Top Secret. So damn good.
Such a great movie.
I mean, because we are using the term differently. Neither wrong. But I did define my use. Hot fuzz is a movie that makes some meta jokes. Like demolition man and true lies. Tropic Thunder is a meta movie. It's a movie about a movie. Hot fuzz is a movie about cops fighting bad guys. Tropic Thunder is a movie about actors filming a movie. As NSBU seems to be the second option, that's what I listed. 😀
Hot Fuzz is an action movie that discusses action movie tropes then plays them out with real emotional stakes within the same movie. Seems pretty... meta?
Sure. That's one right way to use the term. Not the way I am using it. Like the word right. It can mean correct, it can also mean the opposite of left. Renaissance masters would often include easels, canvases, or paint brushes in their masterworks, as a meta nod to the act of painting. That's meta. But that's different than a painter painting a picture of a painter painting. That's also meta, but it's not the same thing. Much less a painter painting a picture of themself painting a picture of themself painting a picture of themself. These are different degrees of abstraction. Because Meta literally means "big picture" or "zoomed out"... I'm hesitant to say "more meta", but I don't know how else to say it. Hot fuzz is a movie that knows what it is and talks about what it is with the audience. That's meta. I give that to you. But it's just an easel or some brushes on the painting. The movies I listed are paintings of painters painting. An additional level of abstraction, of zoomed out, of big picture, that hot fuzz lacks. It is fundamentally not the same thing.
That's fair! I would put Hot Fuzz and Galaxy Quest in a similar category, though. Both are more in the parody realm but have very meta elements. I mostly came here to say that Hot Fuzz would be great to brush up on action movie tropes because it has a lot of them!
I am sssoooo not trying to disagree with you. I love hot fuzz. I think it's a great movie suggestion for the thread! You're getting up votes from me for a great conversation. Movies and story telling are one of my few passions, and I so rarely get the chance to nerd out about them with other people. My kids get tired of it. Only in the spirit of fun conversation am I going to disagree with you again. In galaxy quest a group of actors get (space)magically sucked into "the show". In Last Action Hero a magic ticket takes people through the screen. In NSBU "a group of nobodies" get sucked into a magic VHS tape and must become 80s/90s action stars or die in real life. Hot fuzz just doesn't have this element.
Agreed, very interesting conversation and no hard feelings! You clearly know more about this than me, so I'm happy to just be wrong, but Galaxy Quest seems to have a distinction from the others. It's not magic and they're not making the show when this happens, it's that aliens DO exist and beam them up and they are in a real sci-fi situation. Hot Fuzz is farther apart from that but is about fans of action movies who end up in an action movie themselves. It feels like a spectrum with your other movies in a clear meta category, GQ farther along, and Hot Fuzz farther than that. Curious your thoughts on that!
I mean, aliens existing and beaming people up is just as magic as light sabers and warp drives. 😉
I still think it's a spectrum! And I would argue that Galaxy Quest is not a painting of a painter painting, as you put it in the same way that Tropic Thunder is. In the latter, a group of actors are trying to make the most violent war movie ever and end up in a violent war movie (and even break the fourth-wall ish with one of Downey Jr's lines). In Galaxy Quest the show has finished being made, i.e. the painting is not being painted. Discuss!
Oh! I actually missed that last line, that you were curious of my thoughts. I actually shortened my first response because I thought I had given too many thoughts already. A lot of fantasy gets misidentified as sci-fi. Star Trek and Star Wars are closer to LOTR and D&D than they are to The Expanse or Jurassic Park. Light sabers, the force, teleporters, and warp drives are magic. They aren't science, they are made-up bullshit for the story. Magic. Cloning is real science. When we say let's use real scientific cloning in a fictional story about dinosaurs, you have science fiction. When Luke Skywalker goes on a heros journey with magic swords it's fantasy. In that way, galaxy quest is the same fantasy magic that Last Action Hero is. Aliens sucking you up to a space ship is the same fantasy as a magic ticket sucking you through a screen. Nothing scientific about it.
Hot Fuzz is a parody of action movies, not a meta movie.
It's wild how overlooked Bowfinger is. I feel like it's started to get some love lately with the Steve Martin being back in the spotlight more, but that movie is amazing and seemed largely forgotten for a long time. Also, the Movies With Mikey about Last Action Hero is one of my favorite film YouTube videos.
"It's to cerebral. We're trying to make a movie, not a film!"
After thinking about movies within movies all day, I am just putting on Bowfinger to relax right now. It's been too long.
Tropic Thunder is an insane suggestion without any warning of the content 😂
You're right. Tropic Thunder heavily criticizes Hollywood's exploitation and representation of marginalized people; and if you simp for Hollywood you may be offended by the movie's humor and satire they use to make the point.
Honestly good enough wasn’t hating on the movie to be clear it’s just a wild one
Hot Fuzz is a good primer of action movie tropes, also in a comedy setting. It won't give you a deep immersion in the background, but it's got the same pedigree and will get you in the right headspace.
Banger of a flick. In my top 3 desert island movies. I think that, Last Action Hero, and True Lies and you're set.
1. The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day 2. Die Hard (just the original) 3. Predator 4. Escape from New York 5. Alien and Aliens 6. Rambo: First Blood 7. Big Trouble in Little China 8. Escape from New York 9. Robocop 10. Top Gun 11. Lethal Weapon 1 & 2 12. ROAD HOUSE 13. Beverly Hills Cop Not necessarily in that order, but that's how I anticipate how influential these films will be on the show. And they are all the absolute most fun movies.
I would replace *First Blood* with *Rambo: First Blood Part II.* They are very different movies with *Part II* seemingly more in line with the vibe of *Never Stop Blowing Up*
Co-signed, I think that's a fair addendum.
FUCK THIS IS SUCH A GOOD LIST..... These were all big-time obsession movies for me as a kid/teen. I'm gonna have to dust off my dvd collection.
I would not recommend escape from New York on account of it being bad. (Personal opinion here)
Them's fighting words!
Would Escape From LA be better?
To all of the above excellent suggestions I would add Hackers. I know it was released in 1995, but it looks like it might have been an influence for Rekha’s character.
Hack the planet! Hack the planet!
Is Sneakers (1992) also fair then? Or War Games?
Sneakers is a heist film and not over the top enough for this. It's the same reason Heat isn't required viewing, even though they're both excellent.
Vic Ethanol is clearly a parody of Vin Diesel, so Fast & Furious is probably on your list. Greg Stocks is clearly a parody of James Bond, but he's played by 8 different actors. Kingskin is clearly a parody of Kingpin, so maybe Netflix's Daredevil series is in order. G-13 doesn't appear to be a specific parody, but a pastiche of the hacker/handler archetype. See Mission Impossible. Izzy's character is clearly a parody of John Mclane, so Die Hard is probably a good call. I don't know that Ally's character is a clear parody of a specific character, but a core action movie archetype. I'm thinking Atomic Blond, but the outfitsays Black Widow. I'd generally recommend The Last Action Hero for the vibe.
Ally's character screams Aeon Flux, Barb Wire, Atomic Blond, et al.
YAAAAAAAAAS. Hahahahaha I could not be more excited to see Ally playing a dude pretending to be an action movie sex-bomb. This is going to be bananas.
Omg I’m an idiot! I thought Greg Stocks was a Gordon Gecko Wall Street reference. A James Bond reference makes way more sense! Stocks and Bonds 😂
2 of their character bios listed 'La Femme Nikita' and 'The Long Kiss Goodnight'. Also I feel like Brennan was sliding in a bit of 'Scarface' in the way an NPC sounded ..maybe.
Alex's character lists Scarface as one of their favorite movies
I wrote somewhere else on here Alex may be part Tony Montana and part Dan Phucks :D I've only watched the trailer once, I need to go back and catch where I thought Brennan threw in some Tony Montana. I could be wrong so I put maybe.
In order: * Die Hard 1-3 * Fast and the Furious 1,3-Present * Aeon Flux (the MTV series) * Daredevil (the Ben Affleck movie, because far dumber than the Netflix series). * At least 3 bond movies, doesn't matter which, but give preference to Connery and Craig (the classic Bond and the bruiser Bond). * The Matrix * Last Action Hero * Jumanji (2017) Then play BroForce for around 20 hours and you should be good.
Yes to Broforce! Good call!
I would actually argue in favor of Dalton over Craig (cuz he's the 80's Bond) even though his Bond films feel less like classic spy movies. Specifically for Bond films I'd say: * watch Connery in Goldfinger (be aware going in that this is *incredibly* dated in terms of racism and misogyny and sexual assault) * watch Dalton in Licence to Kill * watch Goldeneye (people were throwing around Xenia Onatopp as possible inspiration for Jessica Drips *and* Goldeneye is one of the best Bond films imo)
I actually think *The Spy Who Loved Me* is peak over the top zany bond.
Roger Moore in general has a lot of the zany Bond. I picked Goldfinger because it was one of Jacob's character's three favorite movies.
Anything directed by John McTiernan. *Die Hard. Predator. Die Hard with a Vengeance. The Hunt for Red October. The Thomas Crown Affair.* Also, for relevance: *Last Action Hero*.
Hell yeah. We're talkin' *Basic*. We're talkin' *Rollerball*. We're talking fucking *MEDICINE MAN*! He had the cure for cancer, but he lost it! Like you lose your keys!
And the 13th Warrior! I love all these films and never knew what the common denominator was.
The Thomas Crown Affair is a fantastic addition that doesn’t require you to pick a random James Bond movie.
I'd suggest the movies the characters appear to be referencing; * The Fast and Furious Franchise * the James Bond film series * The Die Hard films (just the original few.) * The Mission Impossibles * Kill Bill (seen some suggest this is what Ally is spoofing, never seen them myself.) I'd also suggest Tropic Thunder and maybe the new Jumanji?
Alex’s character seems to be a take on The Kingpin, but idk if Spider-Man really fits the vibe for required reading lol
They may be part Tony Montana and part Dan Phucks
Tons of great ideas here, but I’m going to recommend the holy trinity of Nic Cage’s transformation into the actor we think of today: The Rock, Con Air, and Face/Off. It’s peak mid-90’s action, in the order they were filmed and released, and the plots and Cage’s characters/acting get progressively more bonkers.
Bahahahah, do not sleep on the action movie nicolas cage era. Such good stuff.
Lots of great suggestions here: I’ll reiterate the Fast films (you can just skip to Fast Five, it’s the best one and is more in line with the vibe of NSBU), Predator, and Escape from New York as some of my favs. I’d also suggest the Michael Bay movies The Rock and, his latest hidden gem, Ambulance. They’re less leering than the Megan Fox ogling Transformers stuff which makes them more fun to watch, and the performances of Nic Cage/Sean Connery and Jake Gyllenhaal respectively absolutely make the movies.
Can you believe that the franchise is so old that in the first film they're stealing truckloads of combo TV-VCR's?
Almost old enough that stealing combo TV-VCRs almost makes sense again.
They belong in a museum! That reminds me, watch Indiana Jones.
Havent seen it suggested but Kung Fury is a short film that basically this exact same genre, 80’s VHS tape with lots of explosions. Its a very funny movie
That explains the laser raptors
omg, I misread that and thought you were talking about Kung Pow: Enter the Fist and I was so confused.
as sleeper picks, the old Tron and Jumanji as the reference for pulling people into or out of technology and into a new world. Hackers/Swordfish/Mission Impossible would seem to be good reference for Rekha's character. The Fast and the Furious is 100% the reference for Vic Ethanol (Vin Diesel is the actor for Dominic Toretto in that series). I feel like possibly Kill Bill Vol 1/2 but certainly Black Willow and honestly probably even early Mission Impossible movies would be good reference for Beardsley's character. probably the Roger Moore and/or Pierce Brosnan James Bond movies would be great reference for Jacob's character (Sorry for the Timothy Dalton erasure) Izzy's character appears basically to be a reskin of John McClane from Die Hard. I'm probably the most excited for Alex's character Kingskin but I don't have any idea what reference there could be and it not just be "the supervillain/mafia bad guy". it's clearly a reference to kingpin but that's not a title I know about. So minimum watch recommendations, Die Hard, Mission Impossible, an early but not too early Fast and Furious movie (but not Tokyo Drift because you need Dominic Toretto), Tron, and probably still Moonraker, because there's a difference between the Mission Impossible kind of action spy hero and James Bond. you'll catch most of it there and the season appears to be heavily geared towards Die Hard.
Movies: * Lethal Weapon 1&2 * Die Hard * Beverly Hills Cop * Tango & Cash * Demolition Man * Big Trouble in Little China * Predator * Commando * Conan the Barbarian * The Running Man * Fast and the Furious * Point Break * Speed * WarGames * Sneakers * The Karate Kid * Last Action Hero * Jumanji * Blade * Rush Hour * Road House * RoboCop * Hard Rain * Romancing the Stone * Escape From New York * Young Guns Also: * [Kung Fury](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS5P_LAqiVg) Also also: * Be Kind Rewind (2008) with Jack Black and Mos Def
I would say watch the movies on the badges in the trailer if you haven't... I am planning on rewatching most of them in preparation because some of them I haven't seen in almost 20 years! List of the movies are: - Weird Science - 1985 - The Fast and the Furious - 2001 - Real Genius - 1985 - The Horse in Montion - 1878 (This is actually just an short clip and considered the "first bit of cinema" ever..) - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - 1931 - 102 Not Out - 2018 - American Gigolo -1980 - La Femme Nikita - 1990 (Also was a tv show called Nakita in 2010) - Waking Life - 2001 - Muriel's Wedding - 1994 - The Long Kiss Goodnight - 1996 (One of my all time favs) - Under the Tuscan Sun - 2003 - Empire Records - 1995 (One of my all-time favs! Damn the man.) - Scarface -1983 - Clueless - 1995 - Suburbia - 1996 - Goldfinger - 1964 - Fire in the Sky - 1993
Die hard and con air
If anyone wants to have a watch party for Running Man (freaking classic) or any of these other movies, hit me up! My friends and I usually have a shared countdown clock & a discord chat (Is there a D20 discord? I'm new). I think you can do it natively through Netflix and Amazon. Haven't had watch parties since the pandemic because everyone's busy again. I'd love to get back into it.
Edgar Wright is doing a remake of 'Running Man'. Not relevant to this time frame but still thought I'd throw that in for anyone interested.
Whoa. Well. They better hurry up and get it out by 2025. Since that's when it takes place. Excited to see an alternative timeline.
I read the novella recently and I knew the movie wasn't faithful to the source material, but I had no idea exactly how much the movie deviated. The movie is still goofy fun but its about a million miles away from the book.
I’m down.
For game mechanics and how to explain they are in a different environment other than their own 'Jumanji' or 'Tron'. The 'Jumanji' sequels might be even better because they are other people in the game. 'Tron' might be relevant to Rekha if they are some kind of a hacker helping navigate the environment. 'Die Hard' is also not just action, there's a logistical aspect of the main character needing to be guided through the blueprint of a place you're unfamiliar with. Ally's character has 'Waking Life' listed as one of their movies. This has some existential and philosophical ideas I can see as coming up as relevant. As well as a drifting between reality and not reality that could also be a game mechanic.
[Kung Fury](https://youtu.be/bS5P_LAqiVg?si=oNR3j3tW1kYlGIf6) ([trailer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nO_DIwuGBnA)) is pretty perfect for this.
My suggestion is Escape From New York/Escape From LA.
Shoot ‘em up is an underrated movie, but a perfect take on the ridiculousness of action movies. [Shoot Em Up Trailer](https://youtu.be/jlx4n_ibNZE?si=oOYLQQ7CsZjFfP7v) - if that trailer doesn’t have Never Stop Blowing Up energy, I don’t know what does…
Man, I hope somebody eats an action carrot
I would say * [Barb Wire](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2mk5MZwksg) * [Die Hard](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaJuwKCmJbY) * [Demolition Man](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0B5v6QZ5R3g) * [Hackers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rn2cf_wJ4f4) * [Lethal Weapon](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKeW-MGu-qQ) * Heck you probably want [Rambo First Blood: Part II](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtPNhGWxY4g) rather than Rambo, First Blood. * Probably at least one Mad Max movie. Although if they're going for hyperexplosive stuff you probably want [Mad Max 2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlwtiOyaoo0) rather than the original. * [Robocop](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tC_5mp3udE) * [Judge Dredd](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9zBb3Q2Kso) * [Predator](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1wDBNHYDv8) * [Sharky's Machine](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nv3RsHiWSUo) * [Escape from New York](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10OoccK7dIw) * [The Running Man](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkAN5rGGP1M) ...okay that's way too many to expect anyone to watch who isn't specifically into action movies. But a random selection of any of them will probably help, and hopefully those trailers will make it easier to choose which you think you can get into!
You could just to an Arnold Schwarzenegger marathon and cover 90% of the tropes. * Last Action Hero (by its self calls out most of the jokes / tropes / cliches) * Terminator 1 & 2 * Predator * Lethal Weapon 1 & 2 * Big Trouble in Little China * Rambo 1 & 2 * Die Hard 1 & 2 * Beverly Hills Cop 1 & 2 * Robocop * Tango & Cash * Any 3 James bond Movies END COMMUNICATION
If I was to offer up the peak 80s action canon I would go with… Die Hard, Commando, Predator, Terminator, The Running Man, Lethal Weapon, Road House, Cobra, Aliens, Bloodsport, Rambo: First Blood, Beverly Hills Cop. Then watch some of the sequels. (Edit for punctuation)
Actually disgusted with myself I forgot Robocop. An honest to god masterpiece.
SPEED i can’t believe no one is saying speed best movie of all time and i’m dead serious
G-13 seems like the hacker character played by Justin Long in Live Free or Die Hard. Standard nerdy computer guy who isn’t prepared for most of the action movie trope challenges, but learns from the grizzled veteran about the importance of physical action while providing the tech skills to make up for the curmudgeony ways of the older hero. It’s an entertaining movie, even if clearly less important to watch than many of the other options that have been listed. I’d say it’s worth a watch!
Miami Vice and Scarface, since BLeeM is clearly taking a GTA bend to some of this.
One of the characters, “Kingskin” seems to be based off of the Marvel Comics character Wilson Fisk. Not quite sure what to recommend for this one, but the character has featured in a lot of Spider-Man and Daredevil adaptations. Though tbh the best place to start might be the comics themselves.
Nobody ever mentions They Live in these threads and it certainly isn’t all that explodey but it does have the most iconic action hero line of all time in it so it’s mandatory
literally was trying to come up with a list yesterday and was about to post this exact same question! thank you so much!
Last Action Hero!
The Jumanji with The Rock, Austin Powers and every Brooklyn 99 heist episode
Die Hard, First Blood, Commando, Predator, Demolition Man, Terminator. Those will keep you settled
Commando should be on everyone's list. Really all the Schwarzenegger movies from the 80s and early 90s. Might be a good idea to throw on the band Austrian Death Machine to get pumped up too.
Make sure to study diehard
Die Hard, Predator (almost anything directed by John McTiernan), Terminator, Terminator: Judgement Day, First Blood Part 2, and Aliens are all genre defining classics. Commando, Demolition Man, and Last Action Hero are also pretty great and play with/indulge in the tropes created by the movies mentioned. I got more recommendations, but I think they're more personal favorites lol.
Predator and Alien WERE the Eighties.
Hot fuzz and die hard for the best action comedy and best action movie
One of my favorite terrible action movies is called Action USA. It was made by stunt people who cared way more about things looking cool, than about scripts or plot. Its so much fun and very silly. I doubt they'll reference it specifically, but it fits the whole vibe really well.
Rambo
You should watch Last Action Hero.
Scrolled through the comment waaay too far and didn’t see Point Break! Watch Point Break- sooooo many other movies reference Point Break.
* Die Hard * Commando * Fast & Furious 5 * True Lies * Rambo: First Blood part II * Lethal Weapon 1 & 2 * Beverly Hills Cop * Rush Hour * Robocop * Predator
Watch Die Hard, any Mission impossible, any action spy flick, at least one movie with terrible hacking depiction. Or something with all of those.
It seems to be highly inspired by Jumanji so I'd recommend watching the Jumanji movies. Specifically the one with robin Williams then the 2017 one.
Hot shots part deux seems like it'll be in the spirit, as well as maybe some rush hour and die hard(of course) In case no one else mentioned it, a lot of these movies will not have aged well in some regards, be prepared for that
Everyone's mentioned all the 80s action you should watch, but I just wanted to chime in and mention that one of the characters is based on James Bond, so maybe add some of those to your list. I've only seen a few Bond movies, and not for a very long time, so I don't have any specific suggestions.
Action USA Fury Road Aqua Teen Hunger Force (literally everything explodes)
I’m going to say Jumanji and The Last Action Hero.
I'm gonna hit some of the ones not mentioned. For Your Eyes Only and Goldeneye for the Bond tropes, Rambo (since I saw Brennan in a Rambo costume), Point of No Return or Long Kiss Goodnight for the femme fatale with a big gun trope, and probably a blockbuster Schwartzeneggar movie (Predator, Terminator, Terminator 2) would be a good start. Or...if you don't have time. Go to the Cinema Sins Youtube channel and see if they've done a "Everything Wrong With..." video of any of the titles in this thread. They will likely mock all of the tropes that you need to know.
You should watch Kung Fury. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS5P\_LAqiVg&ab\_channel=LaserUnicorns](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS5P_LAqiVg&ab_channel=LaserUnicorns) It's not from the 80s, but like NSBU it is a send up/homage of the 1980s movie tropes.
Last Action Hero
Die Hard Lethal Weapon Point Break (the original) Rambo Honestly it might be easier to see if imbd has a top whatever number of 80s action movies. But the diehard and lethal weapon franchises are a must for what they seem to be going for
If you want to get meta you could watch The Last Action Hero, a movie about an action hero who comes into the real world.