The evolution of ACTION GENRE

Martelle Kumar

Over the years these high energy films have made some changes.

EARLY ACTION1920's to the 1930's the predominant films were classic swashbuckling movies where heroes would

battle villains with the swords. Heros like Douglas Fairbanks as a "Swashbuckler“

Swashbuckler films are an action-adventure subgenre often characterised by swordfighting and adventurous heroic characters.

Mainly set in Western Europe in the period between the late Renaissance and the age of reason with

appropriately lavish costumes.

1920’s- 1930’s

In the 40's and 50's War Movies, Cowboy Movies, and Spy Adventure Films took the stage as the top action films of the time.

1940’s-1950’s

Early action

The leap from sword fighting to spy movies/western styled films in early action may be because of the change in culture. Spy

and western were more realistic than sword fighting. The costumes became more normal and associated to the theme,

it therefore became more realistic to the audience

WHY

EARLY ACTION

During the 60's it was Ian Fleming's larger than life creation, James Bond.. It was inspired by movies like North by Northwest (A 1959 American thriller) and The Guns of Navarone(a 1961 British-American Action/Adventure war film) 

The James Bond dominated the 60's.

Part of their appeal were the larger than life characters (both heroes and villains). A great feature of the Bond movies was that 007 was basically a "one man army."

He would dispatch his opponents with either fist fights, weapons or futuristic gadgetry.

The Bond films were also adorned with many car chases and Martial Arts combat.

1960’s

EARLY ACTIONThe 70’s introduced a gritty dectective and urban crime dramas shaped the a new ‘action style’

Movies like Dirty Harry (1971) entailed featured the convention of intense car chase inspired by the popular stunt work in previous the Bond films. Movies dismissed western themes and showed that the modern world offered just as much glamour, excitement, and potential for violence as the old west.These films brpught an end of the prolific "cowboys and Indians" era of film westerns.

long with this change came the major introduction to Martial Arts Action. Movies like You Only Live Twice, enter the Dragon with Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris

1970’s

DEVELOPING ACTION

A gate way to a new culture wass exposed as audiences were facinated by martial art films in 1970’s

The cross-pollenization of genres (such as spy-films and war movies, or westerns and detective dramas) would become the norm in the 1980s. It should also be noted however, that the 1970s

saw the introduction of martial-arts film to western audiences.

1970’S

DEVELOPING ACTION

Again the genre made changes to cater to the far from niche audience. The gritty cop feel became popular

because it was within belief. The bond era created a new field to see authority and underground villains. The

audience mainly at this time was men 25+ as it attracted them a hard hitting edgy feeling.

COW BOY TO COPS

SHAPING ACTION

The 1980s would see the action film take over Hollywood to become a dominant form of summer blockbuster; literally "the action era" popularized by strong male. Movies like lethal weapons (1989) proved that low-budget plots could attract millions. The one man army attracted loads. Rising comedian like Eddie Murphy smashed box office records with the action-comedy in 48hrs. More action movies added comedy roles in the film. As more ethnicity's got introduced to action movies more audiences became bigger fans in general, more African Americans were more accepted in block busters due to the culture change.

Mors stunt were introduced, more explosions and bigger budgets became the norm.

1980’s

Shaping ACTION

The comedy elements in action has increased to attract more audience. Action with comedy makes an action movie more accessible for more females and a younger audience as its takes less stress from the fast paced action throughout the film.

More ethnic groups were introduced to action movies to attract more the one man army theme also attracted more and more as well known Hollywood stars began appearing in films.

More family friendly?

ACTIONThe 90’s became and era of sequels to the successful action movies from the 80’s. Hybrid action was also created; western films were joined by spy movies and urban action parody movies. The revolution in CGI (computer generated imagery) changed the “real-world" settings become new futuristic environments.The success of the many Dirty Harry and James Bond sequels had proven that a single successful action film could lead to a continuing action franchise. Thus the 1980s and 1990s saw a rise in both budgets and the number of sequels a film could generally have. Where in earlier decades, sequels were frowned upon by most filmmakers and filmgoers alike, the 1980s saw a serious effort on the part of studios and their stars to not only attempt to capture the magic one more time, but to continually top what had come before. This basic drive led to an increasing desire on the part of many filmmakers to create new technologies that would allow them to beat the competition by taking audiences to new heights of roller-coaster-like fantasy. The success of Batman (1989) led to a string of financially successful sequels, and within a single decade, had proven the viability of a new sub-genre of action film; the comic-book movie.

1990’s

ACTION

In the 2000’s we saw woman starring in more action movies, these movies became major blockbusters as they appealed to a greater audience. Earlier films in the 90’s had a few hits with female leads in the 2000s females watched because the protagonist were woman added a common sense of equality to films that are typically male dominated. Movies like Charlie angels (2000) starring Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Lucy Liu and the hit in Lara Croft :The Tomb Raider starring Angelina Jolie (2001)

Now its not ushockingto see a female lead but most still have a starring dominant male lead.

2000’s-present Females

ACTIONOld action movies saw American gangsters or Russian villains because they were seen as the threat. In 2000’s after the 9/11 tragic terrorist attacks middle eastern characters joined the list to villains as were a new threat.

Gadgets are becoming more futuristic, the gadgets have become symbolic. Stunts have become more exaggerated and with bigger budgets and new technology they have become bigger. With new technology the impossible became possible. Some action movies still use classic weapons and classic stunts to add different touch. More action movies include

2000’s-present Villains, gadgets and stunts

ACTION

TODAYS ACTION HAS BEEN MOULDED BY THE OLD DEVELOPMENTS. EVERYTHING IN NEW ACTION HAS BEEN INFLUENCED BY OLD FILMS

Today