Tag Archives: action movies

Quigley Down Under’s Villain Isn’t Such a Bad Guy

Posted on May 4, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

When it comes to villains, Elliott Marston is among my favorites. During my recent rewatch of Quigley Down Under in preparation for my Cinematic Chiasmus article, I noticed that Marston is surprisingly sympathetic. I’m not saying he’s a paragon of … Continue reading →

Posted in Random Stuff | Tagged action movies, films, heroes, movie review, movies, quigley down under, tragic hero, villains, western genre | Leave a comment

Quigley Goes Down Under and Back Up Above to Make a Perfect Chiasmus

Posted on April 13, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

Chiasmus occurs in a work of art when the first half of a story mirrors the second half in minute detail. So a chiasmus begins and ends in the same way, and it reaches a crucial turning point in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinematic Chiasmus | Tagged action movies, chiasmus, films, movie review, movies, quigley down under, western genre | 1 Comment

James Cameron and Star Trek Predicted Each Other’s Next Film for a Decade

Posted on March 23, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

For an entire decade, every year that a Star Trek sequel debuted in theaters, James Cameron also released a film of his own. From 1984 to 1994. That coincidence might seem to warrant a reaction like “So what?” if it … Continue reading →

Posted in Movie Matchups | Tagged 1980s, abyss, action movies, aliens, films, james cameron, movie review, movies, science fiction, sequels, star trek, terminator, titanic, true lies | 2 Comments

My Favorite Moment in Speed Isn’t What You’d Expect

Posted on March 2, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

My favorite moment in the film Speed is one that I don’t think would stand out to most people. But when you notice it, you might just realize how powerful it is. It’s not the scene where Jack Traven chases … Continue reading →

Posted in Significant Scenes | Tagged action movies, arthritis, films, God, movie review, movies, speed | Leave a comment

The Symmetry of the Alien Trilogy

Posted on January 19, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

Last week I published an article showing that Alien and Alien3 mirror each other quite well. For the sake of completeness, I now present the chiasmus of the entire Alien Trilogy, including Aliens in the middle. I had previously published … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinematic Chiasmus | Tagged action movies, alien, chiasmus, films, horror, movie review, movies, science fiction, sequels | Leave a comment

3 Superb Indiana Jones Standoffs

Posted on December 15, 2020 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

I realized immediately after writing last week’s article about great movie standoffs that I had missed three of the very best ones. And they come from three of the best action movies ever made: Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana … Continue reading →

Posted in Significant Scenes | Tagged 1980s, action movies, films, indiana jones, movie review, movies, raiders of the lost ark, sequels | Leave a comment

10 Great Standoffs in Movies

Posted on December 8, 2020 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

Standoffs are great because they create instant drama and force characters to reveal important parts of their personalities by how they react. When two or more characters face a situation in which they can’t win by taking direct action, they … Continue reading →

Posted in Significant Scenes, Videos | Tagged action movies, aliens, die hard, dragonheart, face off, goldeneye, robocop, science fiction, sequels, speed, the naked gun, the thing, videos, waterworld | 1 Comment

Wouldn’t It Make More Sense for the 2 Schumacher Batman Film Titles to Be Transposed?

Posted on November 10, 2020 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

As we all know, the four Batman films that came out from 1989 to 1997 are called Batman, Batman Returns, Batman Forever, and Batman & Robin. Those first two Tim Burton titles are fine. Batman appears on the scene and … Continue reading →

Posted in Movie Matchups | Tagged action movies, batman, batman and robin, batman forever, comic books, films, joel schumacher, movie review, movies, movies based on books, puns, sequels | 4 Comments

Movies That Force Heroes to Make an Impossible Choice

Posted on November 3, 2020 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

Great movies force their protagonists to make hard choices that help us understand their true character traits and motivations. Sometimes those choices are extremely difficult, messy, and uncomfortable while others only have the appearance of being like that while they … Continue reading →

Posted in Significant Scenes, Videos | Tagged action movies, avengers, batman forever, comic books, empire strikes back, films, heroes, Marvel cinematic universe, movies, sequels, spiderman, superman, the dark knight, the matrix, videos | Leave a comment

The Unique Chiasmus of Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man Trilogy

Posted on September 8, 2020 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

I have written many articles in my Cinematic Chiasmus series. I’ve found individual films to be a chiasmus, like Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Superman: The Movie, and RoboCop (1987). Even though these films spawned sequels, I never felt prompted … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinematic Chiasmus | Tagged action movies, chiasmus, comic books, films, movie review, movies, movies based on books, sequels, spiderman | 2 Comments