ENTER THE ACTION CLUB: ACTORS IN THEIR 50's++ ROCKING THE BOX OFFICE!

Hi Friends,

How are you doing? Hope you enjoyed reading last month's post on digital film making and how the accessibility of technology in today's age and time has made it possible for each of us to become digital film makers in our own right.

Earlier last month I watched Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation and I quite loved the kick-ass action particularly the plane stunt pulled off in the opening sequence of the film. Previously, Ethan Hunt scaled Burj Khalifa in Ghost Protocol...remember? I wonder what's lined in the next M:I!Air, building... probably now it's time to expect some mind-boggling action taking place in a submarine in the abyss of the ocean or on Mt. Everest! Concept wise, Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation was both interesting and intriguing particularly IMF shaking hands with Secret Service and Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) meeting the  femme fatale James Bond, Ilsa Faust! Actor Tom Cruise never seems to age...he is our good old Ethan Hunt and still packs a punch in all these decades of film business! Who would say that the actor is in his 50's!

Now as I mentioned of Tom Cruise,I was reminded of a plethora of actors in their 50's and above who give us the adrenaline rush with their super-kinetic action films even to this date! If I were to take films between 2014 to 2015 alone then there are quite a few of them that I am reminded of. For starters we have Keanu Reeves in John Wick where he takes on the part of an ex-hitman who comes out of his retirement and unleashes hell on the mob who steals his prized car and kill his wife's last gift to him. The remorseless assassin is out on a vengeance! Keanu Reeves effortlessly executes some stylized action sequences in the film with panache and vigor! I'd say he has 'matrixed' his age in a 'mysterious age-defying' maze and continues to give the younger actors of today a run for their money at the box office!Are you ready to witness some more of Keanu Reeves? Then brace yourself for John Wick 2! Coming soon at theaters near you! :)

Next on the list we have is Oscar winner,Liam Neeson who in his 60's is "Taken" and "Run(s) All Night" "Non-Stop"! :) Just last year the Irish actor appeared in the third installment of the Taken series where he plays the part of an ex-government operative, Bryan Mills who is set to clear his name in a brutal murder that he did not commit. And that sets the pace for some exciting chase and pursuit sequences in the film. And that's not all, in the mystery-action-thriller, Non-stop you have action taking place mid-air during a transatlantic flight where fellow passengers are put at risk unless the airline transfers $150 million into an off-shore account...so how does  air marshal Bill Marks handle this operation is what you have to watch out for and keep your eyes glued to the screen to find out what unfolds next! And this year in Run All Night, ex-hitman Jimmy Conlon has to figure where his loyalties lie when he has to choose between his mobster boss-friend and estranged son in an action drama that broaches the topic of gun violence prevalent today while keeping it taut, engrossing and gripping.All in all,Bryan Mills + Bill Marks + Jimmy Conlon = Liam Neeson! Liam Neeson would have made a terrific James Bond... nevertheless he can still play the part of an ageing James Bond (if the makers so choose to make one for a change!) considering his action star appeal among the youth!

After Liam Neeson next we have is two time Oscar winner, Sean Penn who in his mid-50's joins the action bandwagon with the slick flick,The Gunman where he takes on the part of a sniper who is forced into hiding after killing the minister of mines of the Congo only to become the target of the same mercenary assassination squad himself! Though the film may not have exactly set the guns blazing at the box office...but what the heck,this is just the beginning! Who knows after two or three action films you might just see him in The Expendables! So all you Sean Penn fans out there...watch out for this space! I do hope that The Gunman is not his last in this genre!

Speaking of The Expendables, how can one leave out Sylvester Stallone and his ever-expanding brigade of veteran action superstars like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Harrison Ford, Bruce Willis,Jean Claude Van Damme Mel Gibson, Wesley Snipes, Antonio Banderas, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgreen etc. from this illustrious list! They are men of steel who with their unique expertise and never-say-die attitude have regrouped together for some really exciting and dangerous battles in the past! As of 2014,they have three successful missions under their belt and still counting! Now it's time to infuse some fresh blood in the franchise with Keanu Reeves, Tom Cruise, Denzel Washington and Liam Neeson joining the fray! And then it's sure to rock as one of the biggest action ensemble ever on board, never before in the history of Hollywood as they get set to fire their ammo at the B.O.!

At the mention of Arnold Schwarzenegger in The Expendables 3, I was reminded of his recent release,The Terminator which was rebooted as Genisys. Though the film had an interesting concept to go by but it somehow got lost into too much details of the time lapse/ line of events between the past, present and future that at the end of it I was left all confused! Anyway... what's interesting here is that Arnie kept his "I'll be back" promise alive even after more than a decade since his last release - Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. However in my view,something was amiss about Genisys.At one moment I thought that 'The Terminator' would die in the bunker beneath the facility especially when everyone gets teary-eyed and begin saying their goodbyes...then he suddenly appears out of the debris and upgraded.That emotional connect was lost at this juncture of the film unlike what we saw happen in The Terminator 2: Judgment Day where he melts into the molten steel and you as an audience felt his void long after you left the theaters. Anyway,since we are here discussing about ageing action superstars taking the center-stage in action films, Arnold Schwarzenegger is no doubt fighting fit...though those wrinkles on his face give out his age but those fab abs and muscles still pump up blood in our system! With Genisys...Arnie is indeed back from his hiatus and walks into the spotlight of solo action heroes once again!!

Last but not the least,we once again have a two time Oscar winner, Denzel Washington rounding off this list with his film,The Equalizer.Though the actor is in his 60's yet he balances both author-backed and action roles with equal ease. Even as Robert McCall believes that he has put his mysterious past behind him and is all set to begin a new life but a meeting with a young girl under the control of violent Russian gangsters is going to change that forever. Armed with hidden skills, he comes out his self-imposed exile to help her and lets loose vengeance on those who assault the helpless. That's what crime action thriller,The Equalizer is all about! Though I have not seen the film, but I can well imagine that it has Denzel Washington written all over and promises a lot of firing guns,ka-boom,bang-bang, hot chase/ pursuits,screeching cars and insane violence forming a major crux of the film. 

All said and done...this is just the beginning of the action genre! With actors past their 50's joining the league along with their yesteryear counterparts...it's gonna be one thrilling ride indeed! So brace yourself for a lot of bad-ass action in the years to come!

Hope you enjoyed reading this month's post? If you did,then do share your thoughts in the comments section of this post.

Love,

Sonyaa