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It's Friday, so here's another action film Letterboxd review from me. It's for a film most people in this thread have probably already seen, but I don't think I'd heard of until I saw it talked about here on SA. Until a few years ago, I'd never heard of Stone Cold but it gets talked about positively by action-film fans online, so I thought I'd give it a go. Alabama detective Joe Huff (former NFL player Brian Bosworth) is blackmailed by the FBI into going undercover as a biker in order to infiltrate a white-supremacist gang called "The Brotherhood", led by Chains Cooper (Lance Henriksen). Huff's undercover identity is "John Stone". From its opening scene, Stone Cold is at pains to point out that Joe Huff is simply too cool to be a cop. Because this is 1991, this means that he sports a bleached-blonde mullet, a black leather trenchcoat, and an occasional bandana. Bosworth performs just fine as an actor and an action performer, by the standards of 80s/90s action films, but the film is helped hugely by the presence of Lance Henriksen as the antagonist. Sitcom fans might also like the fact that we get Sam McMurray (Chandler's boss from Friends) and Gregory Scott Cummins (Mac's dad from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) before they were famous. Stone Cold flopped at the box office, but it delivers plenty of good, well-thought-out action scenes for its mid-range budget. Overall it's up to the standards of its era in terms of story, acting, and direction. It's kind of an overlooked little gem of an 80s/90s-style action film and is well worth your time if you're into that genre. You can see the trailer here.
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Feb 19, 2021 19:08
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It's such a fun movie, and one of my favorite rifftax episodes. The finale is so glorious, it's like the end of Hard Boiled but, like, made with Legos or something.
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Feb 19, 2021 21:49
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Stone Cold is amazing. The funny part about the ending is realizing that Huff completely failed in his job.
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Feb 19, 2021 21:55
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PeterCat posted:Stone Cold is amazing. So true.
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Feb 19, 2021 22:02
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Lance Henriksen is a time-tested madman but holy poo poo he's a loving savage in Stone Cold. If you're wondering how a 5'10" skinny guy with zero physical menace could convincingly lead a biker gang, this is your movie.
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Feb 19, 2021 22:27
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jase1 posted:I know it’s not an action movie and I’m not sure if this has been discussed but I finally was able to go through Banshee and I really enjoyed that show. The fights are brutal but it’s a lot of fun. It’s like Cinemax took a softcore porn movie and added good fight scenes to it. Check out strike back as well. It has some fantastic action pieces and the gunplay is awesome. Plus the chemistry between the two main leads is great. Buddy
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Feb 19, 2021 22:38
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Just rewatched Commando this time I tried the directors cut, but I didn't really notice any differences than other versions I've watched.
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Feb 20, 2021 21:26
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B-Rock452 posted:Check out strike back as well. It has some fantastic action pieces and the gunplay is awesome. Plus the chemistry between the two main leads is great. Funny you mentioned this, since I myself just started watching it. I'm on the second season, and it's wildly different from the first. So far, the second season is a lot more fun, for sure. The first season is kind of more a spy-type thriller with some unexciting to middling gun action, but it's not horrible. On the other hand, the second season doesn't seem to have Jodhi May, so it does have that flaw.
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Feb 20, 2021 22:07
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Narzack posted:Funny you mentioned this, since I myself just started watching it. I'm on the second season, and it's wildly different from the first. So far, the second season is a lot more fun, for sure. The first season is kind of more a spy-type thriller with some unexciting to middling gun action, but it's not horrible. On the other hand, the second season doesn't seem to have Jodhi May, so it does have that flaw. I actually haven't seen the first season, I think cinemax calls it Strike Back Origins. After the second season the action really ramps up as well, you can tell they did a ton more training for the guys as well. If you want a pretty good example of what combat pistol training looks like now, watch Stonebridge, the actor does a really really good job with it. The final few seasons with a new cast are pretty good as well but the main characters really don't have the awesome chemistry that Scott and Stonebridge have B-Rock452 fucked around with this message at 22:44 on Feb 20, 2021 |
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Feb 20, 2021 22:34
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The first season of Strike Back was a Sky1 production for UK tv and then from season 2 on Cinemax came in to co-produce which is why everything got ramped up. More guns, more explosions, more tits. I haven't really watched beyond season 4, but maybe its time for a rewatch.
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Feb 20, 2021 22:38
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Also, non-Hobbit Richard Armitage really looks like a beta(software, not weird mra stuff) version of High Jackman
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Feb 20, 2021 23:21
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I remember trying to watch the first season of Strikeback and bouncing off it, is it worth reading a synopsis and just trying from the 2nd season onwards?
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Feb 20, 2021 23:40
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It's kind of connected but watching the first season isn't required at all. I have never seen it and I consider strike back one of my favorite shows
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Feb 20, 2021 23:49
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John Hyams is going to be in Scott Adkins show, time to reacquaint myself with his Universal Soldiers movies. Day of Reckoning rightfully gets all the glory, but Regeneration is a solid piece of action filmmaking as well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKJRclCn_dk
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Feb 21, 2021 00:03
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Narzack posted:Also, non-Hobbit Richard Armitage really looks like a beta(software, not weird mra stuff) version of High Jackman
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Feb 21, 2021 00:36
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Hollismason posted:Just rewatched Commando this time I tried the directors cut, but I didn't really notice any differences than other versions I've watched. I think the scene with garden tools is slightly bloodier or something.
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Feb 22, 2021 05:30
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MrBling posted:The first season of Strike Back was a Sky1 production for UK tv and then from season 2 on Cinemax came in to co-produce which is why everything got ramped up. Shooting in South Africa and Eastern Europe gets you a lot of bang for your buck in special effects buck but they seemed to be going a bit too far. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-atvY416P9E&t=67s There was an earlier version of this BTS bit which did not crop out the unprotected camera guy at the bottom left being completely engulfed in burning liquid. I also saw an interview with Rhona Mitra where she did not get into details but seemed to have hated the shoot. edit: Youtube had this in Related and I feel bad for a lot of the people in it who are solid but will likely be unable to keep it from being sunk by Ruby Rose being terrible: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANwyOKNnCVI CeeJee fucked around with this message at 15:04 on Feb 22, 2021 |
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Feb 22, 2021 15:01
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CeeJee posted:edit: When did we start hating Ruby Rose? I tried to read an Andy McNab novel once and gave up when he couldn't introduce a woman character, no matter the context, scene or circumstances, without saying whether she was hot. There was almost literally a scene that was 'The crying woman begged me (a super badass) for help. I noticed she had nice hair and big tits'
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Feb 23, 2021 01:30
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Snowman_McK posted:When did we start hating Ruby Rose? Whichever John Wick movie she was in where she didn't have any lines and this convinced people she was a good actor/should be a girl boss in every movie.
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Feb 23, 2021 16:37
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Ruby Rose was good in John Wick 2 but in the end she didn't work as a main antagonist because she couldn't have a convincing final showdown with Wick. And I think they realized that which is why they went and cast Dacascos for JW3. Both of the first two have that issue though where you get to the end and it's just Wick vs. a coward or an old man and there's no challenge to it for him. You at least need a threatening henchman. A simple way to make JW 2 better would've been to have Wick fight Ruby Rose in the train instead of Common and then give Common the big final battle at the end. Basebf555 fucked around with this message at 16:55 on Feb 23, 2021 |
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Feb 23, 2021 16:53
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I feel like the idea of Ruby Rose is better than anything I've actually seen her do.
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Feb 23, 2021 17:27
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Yeah it says something about a career when it's most memorable role is a non-speaking one.
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Feb 23, 2021 19:29
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Ruby Rose was bad casting for bat woman and then she left after a year of a plot line that would have been better if she could act
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Feb 23, 2021 20:07
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Ruby Rose was good in John Wick because all she had to do was look cool
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Feb 23, 2021 20:48
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Bullbar posted:Ruby Rose was good in John Wick because all she had to do was look cool Yea but then it came time to actually fight Wick and she couldn't do much except swing her arms wildly for a few seconds before getting brutally owned.
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Feb 23, 2021 20:57
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To be fair once John Wick is hit in his critical spot (his dog) he becomes impervious to damage and incapable of failure.
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Feb 23, 2021 21:31
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Basebf555 posted:Yea but then it came time to actually fight Wick and she couldn't do much except swing her arms wildly for a few seconds before getting brutally owned. Especially when everyone else, from Common to the random sumo wrestler dude, looked great working with Keanu and she was just... fine.
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Feb 23, 2021 22:12
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Speaking of John Wick, I just rewatched chapter 3 again and that fight against Yayan Ruhian and Cecep Arif Rahman is still amazing. Those two are just a joy to watch, and the bit where Wick goes "Back off guys, I got this" is still hilarious. And like with Man of Tai Chi, it's fun to watch Reeves against dudes who are way smaller than him. Yayan Ruhian and Cecep Arif Rahman are obviously dangerous enough to justify a kind of manhandling that would make Wick the heel in a wrestling match.
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Feb 25, 2021 21:18
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There's two cool behind-the-scenes things about that scene: The guys were constantly picking Keanu up from the floor in rehearsals, so they included that in the fight. They were originally supposed to die at the end of the fight, but Keanu and the director decided they were too much fun and had too much heart to kill. So they got to live. Apparently that last line from Wick brought down the house in Indonesia. Megaman's Jockstrap fucked around with this message at 21:25 on Feb 25, 2021 |
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Feb 25, 2021 21:20
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Grendels Dad posted:Speaking of John Wick, I just rewatched chapter 3 again and that fight against Yayan Ruhian and Cecep Arif Rahman is still amazing. Those two are just a joy to watch, and the bit where Wick goes "Back off guys, I got this" is still hilarious. And like with Man of Tai Chi, it's fun to watch Reeves against dudes who are way smaller than him. Yayan Ruhian and Cecep Arif Rahman are obviously dangerous enough to justify a kind of manhandling that would make Wick the heel in a wrestling match. The hand to hand fighting style that they came up with for Wick really is genius because it plays to Keanu's strengths and covers up his weaknesses. The ju-jitsu/wrestling stuff is so perfect because it's not about ultra-quick movements and over the top spin kicks or anything like that, Wick basically covers up and defends until his opponent gives him an opening and then he tries to end the fight as quickly as possible with one or two powerful blows. And Keanu is actually a legitimately big dude so it's believable that he could hit someone once in the neck or whatever and they'd be down for the count.
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Feb 25, 2021 21:25
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Also Judo is like, super interesting to watch. It's also fun to practice - hell all of the grappling arts are, and in a movie you can cut out the boring (to the audience!) positioning struggle and just have them toss each other around and do cool locks. Surprised there aren't more shoulder throws and poo poo in action movies in general - they rock!
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Feb 25, 2021 21:37
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Watched Martial Law now watching Martial Law 2
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Feb 25, 2021 21:40
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I loved watching him figure out that he couldn’t out-martial arts them and then he busts out a fuckin Angle Slam through a giant glass floor like he’s Justice Pain in CZW.
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Feb 25, 2021 23:04
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Megaman's Jockstrap posted:Also Judo is like, super interesting to watch. It's also fun to practice - hell all of the grappling arts are, and in a movie you can cut out the boring (to the audience!) positioning struggle and just have them toss each other around and do cool locks. Surprised there aren't more shoulder throws and poo poo in action movies in general - they rock! They're also a great way to help set the rhythm even in a more punchy kicky kind of fight. The Raid's finale uses them (not really pure judo, I know) really well to semi organically break up the individual stanzas. Megaman's Jockstrap posted:They were originally supposed to die at the end of the fight, but Keanu and the director decided they were too much fun and had too much heart to kill. So they got to live. It jives well with them helping him up and not being that interested in killing him. If they kept giving him chances and he killed them at the end, that scene plays out very differently and quite poorly.
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Feb 26, 2021 00:27
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That scene in John Wick 3 where it's just him and a bunch of other people throwing antique knives and axes and hatchets at each other in a narrow hallway is one of my favorite action movie fight sequences ever. So loving brutal. Right up there with The Raid 2's fight with Baseball Bat Boy and Hammer Girl.
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Feb 26, 2021 00:37
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Gonz posted:That scene in John Wick 3 where it's just him and a bunch of other people throwing antique knives and axes and hatchets at each other in a narrow hallway is one of my favorite action movie fight sequences ever. So loving brutal. Right up there with The Raid 2's fight with Baseball Bat Boy and Hammer Girl. I love the blend of really intricate choregraphy along with the sense that they're all caught off guard and are making it up as they go along. A lot of Korean martial arts films do that too (City of Violence and the Korean remake of Fighter in the Wind are excellent examples)
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Feb 26, 2021 00:42
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Snowman_McK posted:They're also a great way to help set the rhythm even in a more punchy kicky kind of fight. The Raid's finale uses them (not really pure judo, I know) really well to semi organically break up the individual stanzas. There was an older show around 2008 called the Human Weapon which was a BJJ MMA guy and a big strong former NFL galoot went around the world learning different fighting styles (or in the case of the ninjitsu episode, learning how to make me cringe). One of the best episodes is with the Judo guy; the MMA guy spars with him and is like "holy poo poo, I cannot throw this man. He never goes off-balance" and the overlay footage is him trying to push and trip the Judo guy, who is a bit stocky and only a little bit smaller than the MMA guy, but it looks like he literally weighs around 400 pounds more than his "real" weight. The MMA guy tries everything to move the Judo dude and the Judo dude just kinda slightly moves his hips and feet and doesn't....go....anywhere.
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Feb 26, 2021 01:46
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgR7FVE2TZo Judo is no joke.
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Feb 26, 2021 01:48
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Gonz posted:That scene in John Wick 3 where it's just him and a bunch of other people throwing antique knives and axes and hatchets at each other in a narrow hallway is one of my favorite action movie fight sequences ever. So loving brutal. Right up there with The Raid 2's fight with Baseball Bat Boy and Hammer Girl. I finally watched The Night Comes For Us the other day and the whole movie is like an extended take of that scene. Insanely good but so loving brutal.
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Feb 26, 2021 02:04
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Megaman's Jockstrap posted:Also Judo is like, super interesting to watch. It's also fun to practice - hell all of the grappling arts are, and in a movie you can cut out the boring (to the audience!) positioning struggle and just have them toss each other around and do cool locks. Surprised there aren't more shoulder throws and poo poo in action movies in general - they rock! Whenever I see a Judo guy in a random action movie I point at the screen like I'm a 5 year old who just saw Sans Undertale. Then the Judo guy usually gets killed immediately.
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Feb 26, 2021 02:44
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