Is John McClane the toughest movie character ever?
Poor old John McClane has tackled some of the nastiest terrorists over the years – and survived to tell the tale.
His latest adventure, Die Hard 4.0, is a thrilling and wonderfully silly action flick, and definitely worth a trip to the cinema.
But it poses an interesting question: Is John McClane the toughest film character ever?
Obviously, we’d have to ignore anyone with ‘superpowers’. McClane is a character based in reality (although this is a reality unfamiliar to most of us; jumping off exploding rooftops, clinging onto mobile aircrafts, driving cars into helicopters!
But who could beat McClane in a battle?
First let’s count out all the bad guys. The first rule of films is baddies never win (unless they’ve signed up for a sequel).
Indiana Jones is one of the toughest guys about. He gets hit more than anyone else, but keeps coming back for more! However, his phobia of snakes would work in McClane’s favour.
Achilles took on entire armies in Troy, but McClane would probably target his weak ankle.
The Spartans in 300 would prove a formidable challenge for many. But modern weaponry would baffle the warriors and McClane could seize the initiative in the confusion.
Stallone’s cinematic efforts introduce a couple of interesting contenders. Rambo is basically a one-man army, but he tends to rely on his fancy survival knife and sewing kit. Rocky, on the other hand, uses his bare hands (strapped up hands in padded gloves) to defeat his foes, including the smooth-talking Mr T. And the fact that he managed to grow a full beard in about three days while preparing for his fight with Ivan Drago – now that’s impressive. However, the fact that Rocky would lose a battle of the minds with a slug probably doesn’t bode well for his fight with McClane (not that the Die Hard great excels in the brains department).
So who can go the distance with McClane? Well, look no further than Arnie. His characters are proper tough!
John Matrix in Commando ‘eats green berets for breakfast’, Ben Richards in The Running Man defeats a series of WWF-style assassins and Douglas Quaid in Total Recall actually survives a tricky couple of minutes on the surface of Mars, without oxygen!
But Arnie’s toughest role was Dutch in Predator. Not only did he resort to a dirty fist fight with an alien hunter, but he also survives a nuclear explosion by jumping into a medium size ditch!
Did McClane survive such an explosion? If he did, he’s not telling anyone.
So the undisputed toughest movie character of all time is…Dutch from Predator.
Can anyone take his title?
Published Date:
16/07/2007
Modified Date:
16/07/2007
Can Pirates 3 save the day?
When did they decide to turn all successful films into trilogies?
Just because one film is a box office smash, it doesn't mean making two more based around the same concept is a good idea.
Pirates of the Caribbean was incredibly unusual - it appealed to just about everyone in the family.
The story was straightforward and simply an excuse to have our heroes stumble from one battle to another.
But this would never stretch to another adventure. So the film-makers had to try something new - a story.
It's not that Dead Man's Chest was particularly bad, just that the Curse of the Black Pearl was much better, much simpler.
No doubt At World's End will attempt to tie up all the loose ends, and I hope it manages it without confusing everyone in the theatre.
We can no longer watch a film on its own. We have to watch the instalments: the innovative intro, the meaty middle, and the thought provoking conclusion (usually with a couple of years between each).
This means you can no longer go to the cinema to watch the latest blockbuster. You have to check your diary over the next few years to make sure you have ample time to see the disappointing sequels too.
I hope Pirates 3 is a big success. But not too successful - that will only encourage them to make three more!
Published Date:
23/05/2007
Modified Date:
16/07/2007
Breaking the language barrier
I once had a friend who would refuse to watch any film with subtitles because he 'didn't go to the cinema to read'!
You may think this was a frivolous line, but he was a surprisingly stubborn man and flatly refused to watch any of the delights foreign cinema has to offer.
I always thought this was a real shame, as many of my favourite films in recent years have been foreign language movies.
The latest of these is The Lives of Others (15), directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. It is a fantastic thriller about a surveillance expert working for the Stasi in East Germany. His life becomes entwined with his targets, and he learns to embrace human contact.
The Lives of Others is one of the finest films in recent years and thoroughly deserved the Oscar last year (despite calls for Pan's Labyrinth). The performances are excellent and the story is gripping.
Subtitles are not such a big deal anyway! After about ten minutes or so, the viewer forgets they are actually reading and is absorbed by the film (unless it's not particularly good!).
Some foreign language films have the 'dubbing' option when they come out on DVD, but I feel that loses the original raw emotion.
And clearly there is still the demand for subtitled films - The Lives of Others screening I attended was very busy, considering it was a midweek screening.
Let's just hope the cinemas and distributors continue to support these foreign language films, to allow us to view a broad range of movies - rather than just rely on Hollywood for intellectual nourishment!
Published Date:
27/04/2007
Modified Date:
27/04/2007
How to enjoy a film
I am a fortunate individual who visits the cinema pretty much every week.
I hope to offer my views and comments in regular blogs to anyone who is interested in the latest movies.
But, as I was watching Shooter last night, I caught a glimpse of someone truly enjoying a movie - and I felt I had to write this down.
Perhaps I now take films for granted, but I rarely gasp in shock, I never look away in terror and I can't recall the last time I cheered - well, perhaps the end to Dude, Where's My Car?
While watching Shooter - which is a perfectly entertaining film, if a little silly in places - a man exclaimed 'Oh my goodness' during horribly predictable scenes, he shouted and applauded Mark Wahlberg's character whenever he finished off a bad guy and he threw popcorn over the surrounding three rows during the action scenes.
Was I annoyed? Well, actually no. I was just a little jealous. One of the worst things about the cinema, admittedly, is having to sit near other people (crunching, slurping, talking). But this man was clearly having a great time. He loved the film, for whatever reason, and was not ashamed to show it.
Of course, if everyone reacted like this, it would be absolute anarchy. But it's nice to know films still affect people in such a way.
One to watch:
The Lives of Others - should be out in most cinemas next week
Set in East Germany before the fall of the Berlin Wall, the critics have fallen in love with this drama
One to avoid:
Pathfinder
Vikings, American Indians, battles - it all should be great, but early indications are very negative.
So there we go. I'd welcome any comments or suggestions for films to see.
I'll keep updating and hope to see you back here again.
Published Date:
17/04/2007
Modified Date:
17/04/2007