Argo succeeds quite well as an action-suspense film, with excellent storytelling and filmcraft. Beyond that, it admirably touches on issues of trust, loyalty, and the difficulty of …more »»
Film Talks Tagged ‘Action’
Avatar (2009)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — January 15, 2010
To a large degree, the environmental morality play contained in Avatar is painted in broad and simple strokes. Still, there is something compelling in the film’s embodiment of connection to and respect for the land. …more »»
Batman Begins (2005)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — January 17, 2010
Batman Begins is an superb example of what excellent screenwriting and directing can do for a familiar story. Batman can easily be (and has been) produced with simple action and black-and-white morality. Christopher Nolan …more »»
Batman Begins (2005)
(After viewing)
by Randy Heffner — January 17, 2010
Watching Batman Begins, seeing Bruce Wayne’s internal struggle to find the right response to evil, and seeing the contrast with Ducard’s definition of justice, I want to find a clearer and better response to the offenses …more »»
Cloud Atlas (2012)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — November 11, 2012
Loosely weaving many lives together over a period of perhaps 500 years or more, Cloud Atlas explores the interconnectedness and interdependencies of our lives. Across past, present, and future, the film presents varying embodiments of …more »»
District 9 (2009)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — February 19, 2010
District 9 finds a compassionate — and violent — angle from which to explore shallow and ugly prejudice. As it pits the supposed goodness and wisdom of “the authorities” against the supposed brainlessness and vulgarity of …more »»
Drive (2011)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — October 1, 2011
The trailers for Drive promise an action flick full of intensity and fast driving. There is indeed plenty of intensity and also some very good driving. There are some very bad bad guys, and great peril of life and limb. If that’s all one wants in a film, …more »»
The Hurt Locker (2009)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — February 17, 2010
Three quite different men; three different experiences of war. The Hurt Locker takes us inside a fictional Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team — a bomb squad — in Iraq. I can understand complaints from …more »»
Inception (2010)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — July 28, 2010
What do you remember? Or, was it in a dream? Do you have reality straight in your mind? In your subconscious? The confluence of such questions is the space Inception perceptively explores. Part of the genius of Christopher Nolan’s writing and directing is …more »»
Inglourious Basterds (2009)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — February 20, 2010
If you take pleasure in revenge and you choose to go on taking pleasure in it, Inglourious Basterds will give you plenty to feed your pleasure. I don’t want that to be me, yet there is truth in what the film …more »»
Insomnia (2002)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — September 30, 2010
“This is why I did that…it wasn’t so bad.” Insomnia, another fine piece of work directed by Christopher Nolan, cunningly explores self-justification from multiple angles. …more »»
Sucker Punch (2011)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — May 21, 2011
With a mix of chagrin, delight, and mock ignominy, I must say that Sucker Punch really had something going on. Much of the film is pure video game in its construction, and the narration …more »»
Surrogates (2009)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — September 28, 2009
Surrogates is an interesting mix of science fiction, action, and crime genres with a bit of the romantic as well. I’d like to say that it explores our struggle to be authentic humans, but …more »»
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — December 28, 2011
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy comes off with an intriguing mix of the slow and unemotional pace of the main character, Smiley, who is driving the action, countered by an emotionally charged, rapid-paced plot, while having little rapid or suspenseful onscreen action. Multiple subplots, as well as the film itself, are built around …more »»
Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
(Before viewing)
by Randy Heffner — January 15, 2013
Zero Dark Thirty is tense, tight, and deep into the uncertainties and risks of intelligence work in a post-9/11, terror-ridden world. Indeed, the film’s exploration begins and ends with that fact: that our world is …more »»
