Image via Complex Original
In the 1980s, it was Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. In the 1990s, the honor was passed to Bruce Willis and Jean-Claude Van Damme. But in 1998, a new kind of action star made an impression on moviegoers around the world, thus challenging the six-packed titans of Hollywood for the title of World’s Greatest Action Star…
Jason Statham may not have been officially bestowed that title (yet), but with an average output of 2.2 films per year since his debut in Guy Ritchie’s Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, it would be hard to argue that the 46-year-old Brit has many worthy contenders for the label. And who would want to? Statham would totally kick your ass. Here is Everything Jason Statham Has Taught Up About Action Movies.
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One-liners sound cooler with an accent.
“Hasta la vista, baby!” – Arnold Schwarzenegger
“Because of my big legs and karate, I can do the splits no problem.” – Jean-Claude Van Damme
“You’re the disease, and I’m the cure.” – Sylvester Stallone
Okay, so The Italian Stallion may have been born in New York. But his audible challenges with the English language make his quote from Cobra appropriate here, too. Simply put: those often cheesy one-liners that fly fast and furious out of the mouths of action stars sound way more intimidating when coupled with a foreign accent. And way cooler when that accent happens to be a British one. Yes, even when that line is “I now pronounce you man and knife.” (Listen for yourself here.)
Fists are for pussies.
Fistfights are so 1950s. Sure, they happen. But today’s action stars know that the most entertaining way to win an argument is with a weapon. And while knives and guns are effective, they’re also pretty obvious. The Stathamator likes to mix things up when it comes to his weapons of ass-kickery. These have included, in no particular order, a basketball, fire hose, poker table, front door, 10-speed bicycle, shovel, decorative wall sconce, hurler, and white button-down shirt. Then there are his feet, which deserve to be knighted by the Queen herself; Sir Jason Statham’s Feet has a nice ring to it, no?
Bald is badass.
Go ahead—say something to Jason Statham about his receding hairline. We dare you! Same goes for Bruce Willis, Vin Diesel, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Samuel L. Jackson or Ving Rhames. In the action movie genre, male pattern baldness has been replaced by male pattern badass.
Generic titles are always a cover.
Whether he’s The Transporter, The Mechanic,or one of The Expendables, don’t let the nondescript title of an action movie fool you. It’s all a ruse to not give away very much about the character or the plot line (if one does indeed exist), and is a titling trick that has worked well for the genre for years now. (See: The Terminator, The Fugitive, The Rock, The French Connection.)
Revenge is the ultimate motivator.
Action film scribes have got it pretty easy when it comes to their main character’s motivation, because they know that vengeance is the ultimate plot point to take a movie from Point A to Point B and allow for some serious—but narratively appropriate—beat downs in the process. If the taglines to even a few of his movies tell us anything, it’s that Statham has sought out his fair share of revenge on the big screen: In Redemption, Statham learns that “All Roads Don’t Lead to Salvation.” In Crank, Statham is a man with “Poison in His Veins, Vengeance in His Heart.” And in War, he goes head-to-head with Jet Li, only “One Wants Justice, The Other Wants Revenge.” You get the picture.
Women are merely props.
Even when the aforementioned revenge revolves around a female love interest, action films are one of Hollywood’s most impenetrable boys clubs. The women who do play a part are usually just meant as a bit of a sexual distraction, a piece of eye candy to keep male viewers interested in between car chases, shootouts, and bank heists (yes, even when said female gets top billing).
A perfectly tailored suit doesn’t get in the way of a good dropkick.
There’s one thing to be said about Jason Statham that can’t be said of many action stars before him: the guy knows how to wear a suit! Even better: he knows how to fight off a gaggle of bad guys while wearing said suit and still look GQ-ready when he’s the only one left standing. Now that’s impressive!
Cars are for crashing.
They also make for a wildly cinematic explosive. They’re great for driving, too. And racing. And jumping out of—or throwing someone else out of. Basically, a car—especially a cool car—is an action star’s best friend. Like K.I.T.T. to Michael Knight.
A good choreographer makes all the difference.
No, not Debbie Allen or Bob Fosse. We mean the Cory Yuens of the action world—the fight choreographers who turn what could be a yawn-fest of a tussle into a flawlessly composed thing of beauty. Yuen is no stranger to the Hollywood action scene; he has worked as an actor, stunt coordinator, choreographer, and director for more than 40 years, collaborating with the likes of Jean-Claude Van Damme, Jet Li, and (of course) Statham in The One, War, The Transporter series and The Expendables.
If audiences will pay to see a movie once, they’ll pay to see it a second and third time.
And we’re not talking about seeing the actual same movie multiple times in the theater. We’re talking about lining up for the sequel(s) of a successful action movie that sticks pretty close to the exact same elements and storyline that made the first outing so popular. Case in point: The Expendables, The Expendables 2 and—just in case you hadn’t had enough of too many elderly action stars on one screen—2014’s The Expendables 3.
