Customer Reviews

Action Speaks Louder: Violence, Spectacle, and the American Action Movie

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Considering how dominant the action film is in American popular culture, it's pretty astounding how little serious scholarship there's been about this important genre, outside of feminist rants (albeit justifiable), or overly intellectualized, post-modern deconstructions written by and for the miniscule audience of academics. ACTION SPEAKS LOUDER is the rare book which is written for the rest of us - for the educated, curious movie-goer who wants to think more seriously about movies we know and might even love.

While he's not above placing films in their historical context, or speculating about their larger meanings and their influences on society, author Lichtenfeld never loses sight of the fact that these movies are commercial enterprises - mass entertainments made within the confines of a commercial marketplace. He explores creative choices made by filmmakers and writers, and the book is peppered with interviews. Aware that form is content, Lichtenfeld delves into the stylistic features of the movies. He also explores how technological advances patently change the nature of these movies.

ACTION SPEAKS LOUDER combines the details fans love (think of a great DVD commentary) with serious scholarship. And best of all, it's highly readable (think extended New Yorker article) - not bogged down by the obfuscating, post-modern jargon that dominates academia. Highly recommended.

Being both a lover of film and a student of history, you can imagine my interest in this book. Who can deny the impact movies have had on the 20th (and now 21st) century? And what type of film most exemplifies what movies are capable of? Action, brother. Action.

I was introduced to this book and this author through a radio talk show I heard recently. Mr. Lichtenfeld came across as extremely intelligent, likeable and very knowledgeable about his subject matter. I immediately ordered the book from Amazon.

I read it through in one weekend (it's so accessible to even non-film students) and I couldn't believe how much I learned about movies that I had watched over and over again all my life. Mr. Lichtenfeld treats the topic with reverence without once losing the joy of what makes these movies great: the characters, the chases, the explosions and, of course, the lines. His breakdowns of each landmark film and his separation of them into specific categories makes it so easy to follow the development of the action genre over the last half century.

Even the bad films (my apologies, Mr. Seagal), of which there are many, are used as examples of the importance and social influence this genre has had on recent generations. They're all in here: science fiction, superhero actioners and even westerns, of which I have a particular fondness, are discussed.

I will pass this book on to my other film-loving friends with my highest recommendation. And now I'm off to watch 'Lethal Weapon' for the 56th time, albeit with a new outlook.

Finally action movies get their due! It's about time.

As a film student, nearly every class requires certain readings that for us students never do much to enhance our knowledge of the subject matters. Usually, the readings are overly theoretical, and worse, sometimes filled with glaring errors. But "Action Speaks Louder" not only deftly makes it clear that Mr. Lichtenfeld knows what he's talking about -- consistently providing correct dates, names of key crew, and even quotes from the films - while also giving insights into popular movies we've all seen but never from this point of view. What is also very commendable is how up to date Mr. Lichtenfeld is on newer action films. His extended analysis of "Batman Begins" is not only fascinating, but was so thorough and interesting I went out this week to buy the new DVD. His commentary on "War of the Worlds" is also insightful; his writing skills in general drew me into some films I never really thought much about, and in doing so I've grown in respect for the action movie genre. And what's really fun are the unique film stills Mr. Lichtenfeld has pulled -- action shots I've never seen before. So I highly recommend this dynamite look into the action genre. Not only does Mr. Lichtenfeld clearly enjoy writing about film and genre, he has some really interesting things to say, and in the end provides a whole new look into the action genre that makes me want to sit back and watch a couple of explosions from some classic action films.

Lichtenfeld's book is required reading for anyone interested in the contemporary action film. Beyond its obvious merit as the best book available on the genre, I can recommend it as a model of genre criticism. I've used this as a text in my course on action cinema at Wesleyan where I teach it as an exemplar of genre studies. Lichtenfeld offers a compelling thesis about the genre's popular/cultural appeal without losing sight of industrial imperatives. This book does much to balance to often overly theoretical writing on the subject by offering a grounded, historically-minded account. Moreover, Lichtenfeld's critical observations are spot on, and his descriptions of scenes and sequences will send you back to the films again and again. The additions to the new edition further shore up his argument and expand the scope of films. It is also a fun read!

This is going to be short because english is not my first language.

This is an excellent study on the action genre. I never thought somebody could analize action movies like this.

Lichtenfeld has worked both in making films and as a film critic and commentator, including doing extra features for DVDs of several action films. He sees this popular film genre as "derived from the Western, film noir, and the police procedural (with special guest appearances made by the disaster film and others [with an evolution] quite analogous to the horror film." Though many films depict violence and mayhem, the action film is distinguished in that it ushered in a "new violence [which] would be deployed more to pleasure audiences than to jar them." This "new violence" came about from a shift in standards marking a "New Hollywood" and related changes in structures and pacing of films and cinematographic techniques such as lingering on the violence by slow-motion and close-ups. It is these and other elements, not merely the violence and plotting, which account for the new genre of the action film. The cluster of elements reflected changes in the culture's psychic relationship with violence and what it looked for in entertainment. Bonnie and Clyde is pointed to as a seminal action film, with the films Billy Jack, Shaft, and The French Connection closely related to it in paving the way for the action film by demonstrating its popularity and giving guidance for filmmakers. Advertising, publicity, and marketing of action films has as much a part in the author's multifaceted study of this major contemporary film genre as film history, film editing, and cinematography. References to numerous action films over the past couple of decades make for enjoyable as well as engaging and stimulating reading.

Useful because it shows there is a deeper level of impact than just the shoot 'em up bang-bang to the typical action picture.

Written by someone who knows this genre of movie and tries to separate it from the 'thrillers.' I have always preferred action from the time of the musical, 'West Side Story,' which had so much violence I would not let my young teenage son Justin watch it. I loved the music, Natalie Wood, and some of the story but I hated the street fighting. It was not the influence Justin needed in his young life.

Another I loved with Michael Pare in 'The Philadelphia Experiment' full of action and partly science fiction, American style. He was my blue-eyed strawberry blonde duplicate of Jim Darling. Eric Lighenfeld mostly talks about some of his favorite action films. I have seen many of them, but veered away from others for different reasons. I did not see the Schwarzenegger 'Terminator,' 'Total Recall,' 'True Lies,' or the others he made as I did not want to struggle to understand what he was saying.

Neither did I watch any of the Clint Eastwood 'Dirty Harry' movies or Stallone's films because of the ugly violence and I don't like to see ugliness when I pay to watch a movie. I did like Steven Seagal's features but failed to see the 'Death Wish' episodes. I may have seen 'The Matrix,' but did not watch the sequels, 'Matrix Revolution," or 'The Matrix Reloaded.' They were just too 'out-of-this-world violent for me. Most action movies don't bother me except for the loud noises of fighting. I did like Mel Gibson in 'Braveheart' and 'The Patriot.'

He states that the "apotheosis of self-parody for both the genre and for Hollywood as a whole was the movie , 'Last Action Hero.' He shows that action films use parody over interrogation, self-deprecation over self-reflection. He should go to see 'Serenity' and 'Better Luck Tomorrow.'

I did see some he mentioned and liked 'Daredevil,' 'Spiderman,' 'The Phantom,' 'The Shadow,' 'Dick Tracy,' 'The Crow' (I loved the song, "It Can't Rain All the Time from that feature); saw 'Armageddon' and 'Independence Day' but can't remember whether I liked them or not. There have been more modern action films the past two years which I have seen, but apparently he hadn't as they were not mentioned.

Because of the loud noises and violence in this genre, it is popular only with young people (whose violent streak is being repressed in today's society). The Fifties had many spectacles (Biblical and Egyptian royalty), but it was a violence of a different sort. Those heathens didn't know any better, and used violence for 'sport.'