Why I Love Awesome Movie Fights Part 4! (#10-#1)

10. The Boondock Saints

This cult classic is one of my favorites. With numerous of awesome scenes including a final scene that will give you chills, the famous MacManus brothers are no strangers to fights. But the best is without a doubt “THE FIRE FIGHT!”.

9. Avengers

The Avengers was better than anyone could have ever imagined. The stars of the film were without a doubt Ironman and the Hulk. They not only gave us the best action sequences, they were the funniest characters as well.

8. Kill Bill Vol. 2

The fight between the Bride and Elle Driver is awesome. The scene is both violent, gruesome, and calm. I don’t know how that makes sense but it does. Oh and the fight ends with Ms. Kiddo snatches Elle’s eye ball and then steps on it!

7. Transformers 3

There were tons of awesome fight sequences in this trilogy. The best in my opinion is the final fight between Optimus Prime, Sentinal Prime and Megatron. Optimus asserts his dominance and takes names doing it.

6. Casino Royale

James Bond is no stranger to awesome fights.  In his first stint as Bond, Craig had some great fights but none better than this bathroom fist fight. In this bathroom brawl, Bond destroys his enemy. It aint pretty but its Bond.

5. Fast Five

With a combined 5000 pounds of muscle, the Rock and Vin Diesel gave audiences what they wanted. The two mammoth men take brawling to new heights in this intense ground fight. They may not be able to act, but they can definitely fight.

4. The Dark Knight Rises

The only movie to make the list twice. The second fight between Batman and Bane shows the true force and brutality of these two characters. I remember watching this fight in IMAX and being shocked by the power of these two. Just watch Bane’s series of punches. WOW!

3. Kick Ass

Hit Girl is one of the greatest movie characters ever. Her dirty mouth and awesome fighting skills make her so freaking entertaining. When she breaks into a room full of criminals, she shows them who is boss.

2. Kill Bill Vol. 1

Before the Bride can avenge O-Ren Ishii, she must go through the entire Crazy 88s and a Chinese meteor hammer wielding school-girl. The scene is without a doubt the deadliest and bloodiest scene of all-time. Oh and yes, it is all with swords as guns don’t exist in this world of Tarantino.

1. The Matrix

Though this entire film should be on this list, ill include them all into one. From bullet dodging, to time stopping, to hand to hand combat, this film had it all and redefined the movie fight. Truly one of the best scenes ever.

Why I Love The Best Movie Fight Scenes! Part 3

Let's continue!

20.Gladiator

This film has tons of fights but the best are the Battle of Carthage and the Gauntlet. Before facing off against Tigers and a gladiator champion, Maximus proves himself against a number of chariots and a gauntlet of foes. He kills them all and takes names.

19. Fight Club

There are tons of fights in this duly named film. The best has to be either Ed Norton beating himself up or the brutal fight between Norton’s nameless character and Jared Leto’s Angel Face. You can’t really blame the nameless character for his brutality, he simply “felt like destroying something beautiful.”

18. Rocky 4

Despite being the most unrealistic and staged boxing fight ever, the fight between Rocky and Ivan Drago is awesome. The music, the montages and the glistening bodies add up to movie magic. The site of both these men still sends chills down my back. ROCKY ROCKY ROCKY!!!!!!!!!!!

                                               (DISCLAIMER: MALE NUDITY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

17. Eastern Promises 

Viggo Mortensen etched his name into history with this violent film. In this scene, a naked fight ensues in a steamy bathhouse between Viggo and his enemies. The rawness of this scene is simply amazing and disturbing in all the right ways.

16. Spiderman 2

There were numerous fights from this film, but the amazing battle between Spidey and Doc Ock on and in a subway train is the best.  The fight, combined with Spidey’s avoidance of everything in his path is arguably the best fight scene in Spidey History.

15. Oldboy

You may not know this movie but you should. The famous scene of Oh-Dae Su and a corridor of henchmen is awesome. With nothing but a claw hammer, Su gives us a bloodbath. Its pure, its bloddy, it’s a classic.

14. Matrix Reloaded/Revolutions

Both of these films has some amazing fight sequences, too many to list. Here are some of the best.

13. 300

No one will ever forget the day that 300 Spartans stood strong. This film changed movies visually forever and that is due to the amazing fights. Death, hand to hand combat, and chiselled abs spells a top 15 spot on this list.

12. The Raid-Redemption

This film was awesome. A crime lord traps a swat team in an apartment building and orders the entire population to kill them. GO HOME AND WATCH THIS MOVIE!!!!!

11. King Kong

I saw this movie for this scene alone. King Kong declares his dominance in the jungle with an awesome fight against the T-Rexes of the wild. Kong ends the fight by snapping the dinosaur’s jaws; a pure display of strength and dominance. 

Why I Love The Best Fight Scenes Ever! Part 2

34. Top Gun
This high octane film is the macho film for the macho man. The intense fighter plane dog fights make for some great cinema.

33. Watchmen
The opening scene of this film is awesome. When the Comedian faces off with a shadowy villain all hell breaks loose. The fight is intense and graphic, which makes it that great.

32. Braveheart
This film is no stranger to awesome fights. Some say the best scene is the first scene in which William Wallace explodes with anger and takes revenge on the English soldiers who killed his wife. But my favorite is the awesome battle with the English army in which Wallace gives his famous Freedom speech.

31. X-2

The final fight between Wolverine and Lady Deathstrike (horrible name) was awesome. Two people with claws for nails and regenerating powers seems like an endless battle. Thankfully, Wolverine had a few tricks in his bag.

30. Snatch

Let’s stay in the Bear-Knuckle genre. In this Guy Ritchie film, Brad Pitt (in an underrated role) plays One Punch Mickey who takes on a foe in a fist fight. When ordered to throw the fight, Mickey takes a beating before taking things into his own hands. The highlight needs to be the awesome uppercut which literally lifts Mickey off his feat.

29. Raiders Of The Lost Ark

Indy faces off with a huge mustached mountain of a man. The two slug it out before Indy remembers the classic Ras Al Ghul saying, “Mind your surroundings.” Apparently, the Henchman didn’t hear the massive propellers coming.

28. Equilibrium

This underrated Sci-Fi features Christian Bale, Sean Bean and even Taye Diggs. The futuristic film features some of the best fighting and gun scenes ever captured on film, sadly, it didn’t get the hype that it should have.

27. The Karate Kid

What a classic film. No one who grew up in the late 80s and early 90s can forget this dramatic final scene. With a broken leg and the vicious Johny opposing him, the Crane Kick comes out of no where to save the day. Wax on, Wax off!

26. Terminator 2

Terminator versus the T-1000 was my childhood in a nutshell. I loved this fight from start to finish. The fight ended as every Arnold fight does, you think he is dead but one last back-from-the-dead shot wins the day.

25. Raging Bull

In this Deniro classic, Jake LaMotta takes on Sugar Ray Robinson and his face pays the price. The boxing scenes are still some of the best and Deniro’s face after a bloody encounter is still iconic till this day.

24. The Bourne Supremacy

Another Bourne film and another awesome fight. This hand to hand fight between Bourne and Jarda was awesome. Using literally everything they could to battle, these two characters etched their way onto this list.

23. Crouching Tiger

This nighttime fight highlights everything that was amazing about this film. The fighting and gravity defying jumping really changed movies forever.

22. The Wrestler

The Ram just punishes his body in an all out war. Using everything from thumb tacks, barbed wire and blunt instruments, we feel every blow as the Ram struggles after every shot to the head. This was an awesome fight.

21. The Dark Knight Rises

Bane vs Batman, enough said!

Why I Love The Best Fight Scenes Ever! Part 1

As we head into Thanksgiving, I would like to say how thankful I am for all the amazing fight scenes we have been blessed to witness. This will be multi-part post. Enjoy!

50. Aliens

Ripley uses a souped-up forklift to fight off the gigantic queen.  She is finally able to defeat the Queen after luring her into a cargo lock before shipping her off into space. This iconic fight lives in sci-fi infamy.

49. Sudden Death

Jean Claud Van Dam is the man. Watching him save the Stanley Cup was awesome but his fight scene with a giant Penguin was even better. Eventually, JCVD is able to defeating his foe using nothing other than a deep-fat frier. Classic Van Dam.

48. Warrior King

In this kung fu film, Tony Jaa unleashes fury on the bad guys. This guy just goes around snapping bones and loving it. Check this out.

47. Batman Begins

In his first stint as Batman, Christian Bale brings a raw toughness to the character. This rawness can be seen in every fight scene. Here is just a taste of the awesomeness. 

46. Commando

This lesser known Schwarzenegger film is one of if not my favorite. The awesomely painted Arnold takes on  Bennett with nothing but an awesome army knife and oh ya, an exhaust pipe. “Let Off Some Steam, Bennett.”

45.The Punisher

This underrated film was highlighted by an awesome fight with none other than Kevin Nash. Thomas Jane takes him on in an awesome fight that goes all over the small duplex. Thanks for the punishment.

44. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part 2

This may have been the most anticipated battle scene ever. With The battle of Hogwarts underway, Harry and his friends fight off the evil Voldemort and his legion of villains. It was everything we wanted.

43. The Lion King

This is probably the first fight scene I have ever seen. When Simba and his pals take on Scar, I was frightened and amazing. This fight opened my eyes to movie fights as Simba sends the evil uncle over the cliff.

42. Sin City

 The Awesome fight between Marv and the scary Kevin was awesome. In this rematch of sickos, Marv has some tricked up his sleeve and a clever in his pocket. Thank Sin City for this gruesome classic.

41. Die Hard 2

John McClane takes on two villains on the wing of a moving plane, sending one hurtling into the engine before making a death-defying leap back to saftey. Having previously breached the plane’s fuel tank, McClane reaches for his lighter and sends the whole thing up in flames. Yippie-kay-ay motherf*cker.

40. The Bourne Ultimatum

Jason Bourne should have his own countdown. He fights hard, with guns and even hand-to-hand combat. In close quarters there is no one better. In one seen we see him fighting the evil agent Desh, the results are just awesome.

39. Sherlock Holmes

The new take on Holmes was a great reboot. In the first film, a more graphic and violent Holmes is brought into the picture. The film’s best scene involved Holmes in a bare-knuckle fight in which Sherlock describes and predicts every move in the fight and then continues to follow through with his plan. WOW!

38. Anchorman

A fight between a quartet of rival news teams is amazing. With every comedic genius of the last 15 years in the scene, brutality and comedy ensue. Oh and did I mention there is a trident!

37. The Empire Strikes Back

The Star Wars empire is no stranger to great fights. While many could have made this list, the fight between Luke and Darth Vader is simply epic. 

36. X-Men First Class

In this absolutely awesome reboot to an awesome movie franchise, we are introduced to many of the major X-Men. But the emergence of Magnito (Fassbender) as the powerful force that he becomes is truly amazing. He literally fought off a nuclear war.

35. Mr. And Mrs. Smith

I am not embarrassed to say that I enjoyed this film and its action sequences. The turning point in the film is a hand to hand fight between Mr. and Mrs. which ends with a roll in the hay. This fight had action and chemistry.

Why I Am Desperately Trying To Catch Up In Homeland As Quickly As I Can.

BY MOSHE KOLB

As many of you know, Homeland is the new hit show that pretty much swept every big Emmy Award this past year including Best Drama. For those who don’t know, the plot is as follows: Volatile CIA agent Carrie Mathison (Emmy® winner Claire Danes) investigates and ultimately becomes obsessed with returned POW marine Nicholas Brody (Emmy® winner Damian Lewis), who she believes to be an al-Qaeda-turned terrorist after 8 years of torture and imprisonment; Brody struggles to resume his domestic life with his wife and two children whom he barely knows; and Saul Berenson (Mandy Patinkin) tries his best to support his bipolar protégé while pursuing leads of his own and trying to hold his crumbling marriage together.
I am currently on Season 1 Episode 9, but to say I am hooked is an understatement. As my wife can attest, I awoke dramatically from my sleep screaming something about Homeland. I’d like to share my favorite elements about the show and why by tonight I will be done with Season 1 and on my way into Season 2.

It’s an Improvement on 24

Homeland is an adaptation of the Israeli show Hatufim (Prisoners of War), and developed by two of the writers and producers of 24. Homeland is like watching “24 – Behind the scenes”. Homeland is the days, weeks, months and years that build up to that shrieking moment – that singular terrorist attack or assassination attempt.  24 was just that one day, that single moment.  Homeland is all the rich complexity that builds up to it; and it’s a frightfully entertaining. There’s certainly that familiar feeling of a ticking clock and a time bomb about to go off - but it’s the countless emotional explosions in the lives of the people involved that make the show.  In many ways 24 was all action, while Homeland is all suspense because you hold out hope that Carrie can prevent this from reaching that point where it becomes a 24-style disaster scenario.  All hell could break loose – but not yet…and that’s the genius of Homeland.

Simply It’s Unpredictable

I’m only 9 episodes in --- heading to I am sure the big final 3 episode finish and I have no idea how this is going to end. I don’t think I have felt this way since Season 1 of Damages. [See my brother’s post on Best All Time TV Seasons.] There’s mystery and suspense and carefully placed revelations about characters and motivations. The show has guts and isn’t afraid to show its cards early – but never all the cards, right?  One of my main problems with shows is the added twists, just for adding twists sake that make no sense in the story.  Homeland has somehow conquered that.  In 9 episodes, they have turned how you view Brody too many times to count ---- but yet it all makes sense. The character is so deep with motivations so intriguing that all the possibilities are so believable.  If the show proves anything…it’s that there’s no so such thing as the whole truth, motivations are a tricky thing, you can be made to feel empathy for anyone and there is always one level deeper.

“The Weekend”

Coming at just over halfway through the season, Homeland’s seventh episode, ‘The Weekend’, is simply one of the strongest single episodes in television history [clearly topic for another post]. This is the episode that made me a complete believer. This episode could easily have been a Season Finale and still been great --- but being in the middle it’s all the more powerful. If there was only this single episode, Claire Danes and Damian Lewis would still deserve to have won Best Actress and Actor, respectively.  After every episode I watch, I then read Grantland’s recap of the episode which is normally written by Andy Greenwald.  Though I enjoy his commentary --- at his loss but our gain he was on vacation the week this episode aired and Bill Simmons took over writing that episodes entry. I really don’t want to give much away --- but if you catch up and watch episode 7 then go and enjoy Simmons’ recap that provided a moment by moment commentary that matched the level and greatness of this episode.

http://www.grantland.com/blog/hollywood-prospectus/post/_/id/37493/bill-simmons-recaps-last-nights-homeland

Claire Danes / Carrie Mathison
My first encounter with Claire Danes was as Alice Marano in Brokedown Palace and I was sold.  To be honest though, sadly she hasn’t lived up to my hopes or expectations in anything else I have seen her do.  However, then came Homeland. This is truly a masterpiece --- the only similar transformation I have seen in a female character is Charlize Theron in Monster. The similarities between these two characters are actually quite strong. Most crucially, both these women are not “classic women”.  They are broken, sick, troubled, and crazy.  It isn’t often that women actors are given the ability to play such interesting and deep personalities.

To be clear --- Carrie Mathison is the most interesting character on TV, she’s amazing at her job while at the same time is absolutely crazy. She gets mood stabilizers from her sympathetic nurse sister for her personality disorder that is a secret from the CIA. She disproves the idea that female characters have to be either an icy controlled domineering woman or an emotionally unstable disaster.  Carrie Mathis is both --- she wouldn’t be as driven to stop the next horrific terrorist attack on American soil if she wasn’t both of these things.  They are what make her smart enough to follow her gut-instincts but also reckless enough to do things no sane person in her position would do to get the truth.  Here are some of Simmons’ comments on her: “She’s so crazy. I love Claire Danes on this show — one of my favorite TV characters ever. All bets are off with Claire in every scene. She’s a man-stealing, crazy-eyed, flirty, boozy, pill-popping, inappropriate drunk who also happens to be excellent at her job and our best chance to prevent the next major terrorist incident.” And on hearing that Claire forgot her psych meds, “Ohhhhhhhhhh boy. Drunk Claire is spending the weekend with Brody and she’s off her meds? I’m prepared for anything right now. They might have a threesome with a bear.”

Her quizzical stares, her girlish laugh, her tantalizing smile, her blonde hair, and that look of determination mixed with “I might have missed my meds today.”  She’s a thing of beauty. She’s scary as hell. And Claire Danes plays her to perfection.

Why I Am Craving A New Awesome Sci-Fi TV Series.

A good sci-fi show is perhaps better than a normal TV show for the following reason. When it comes to Sci-Fi, a good series will be able to fully create a new world or an alternate universe which we wish we could be a part of. That is why I love Sci-Fi so much. I love being taken into a new world an engulfed in what this new world has to offer. Here are my personal favorite Sci-Fi TV Series of all-time.

10.   Fringe

 Fringe started off as an X-Files lookalike with weekly stories and weekly sci-fi story lines. However, they thankfully realized this was a wrong plan. Instead the show just jumped into a singular storyline involving a mostly one-sided war between two parallel universes. The show has become quite good and with an excellent cast of Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson and John Noble, anyone can enjoy this sci-fi great. With these great characters and their equally great ‘alternates’ this show has quickly become a fan favorite, surviving 5 seasons.

9. Stargate SG-1

Stargate was a spinoff off a not-so-successful 1994 movie. The TV Show however became one of the preeminent sci-fi franchises on TV. SG-1 brought back the characters Jack O'Neill and Daniel Jackson from the film, now played by Richard Dean Anderson (MacGyver!!!) and Michael Shanks. The crew of soldiers are charged with defending Earth from the Goa'uld, the Replicators, and any other threats. The show is quite entertaining and lasted a solid 10 years. Check it out, if for nothing else, for MacGyver!

8a. Heroes: 2006-2010, 5 Seasons, NBC

When Heroes came onto the scene, it exploded. Heroes became an international sensation as characters became household names, actors became stars, and the entire world wanted “to save the cheerleader.” Heroes was very strong and very popular for most of its 5 seasons on the air but a weak and non-compelling storyline dragged this series down towards the end. Still the first few seasons make for an unbelievable watch.

8b. Lost: 2004-2010, 6 Seasons, ABC

Lost was a great sci-fi show. I just want to clarify that before I bash it. In my humble opinion, Lost was great at two things: 1) a great premise 2) daring to do whatever the hell the writers wanted. Now I would like to fault it for doing whatever the hell the writers wanted. The show seemingly decides to use time travel, alternate realities, monsters and the “others” in whatever way they liked. If a character was annoying, they killed him off, but if fans wanted him back they would just bring him back to life. The show makes absolutely no sense what so ever. Which may just have made it Sci-Fi genius.

7. Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles

People had their doubts about this Terminator TV Series but this show was awesome in its short lived life.  Josh Friedman and his writing team created an intense series that expertly built upon the Terminator mythology. From the awesomeness of Derek Reese (Brian Austin Green) to the complicated portrayal of Cameron (Summer Glau), to the kick-ass "What comes next?!" finale, we find ourselves still mourning this show's too-brief run. With a coming-of-age John Connor and a super hot Terminator, what else could you have asked for other than more episodes?

6. Star Trek: The Next Generation

After a rough first-two season start, The Next Generation proved that Trek can exist independent from The Original Crew. The adventures of Picard and his became THEEEE Star Trek crew for my generation. Though everyone could agree Picard was no Kirck, the show was still great and reminded us of why we love space so damn much.

5. Quantum Leap: 1989-1993, 5 Seasons, NBC

I grew up watching this show. Quantum Leap operated on a great premise. You had one scientist "leaping" into body after body across time, and his only companion was the holographic representation of a computer back home that only he could see. Way ahead of its time in terms of technology, Quantum Leap crossed genres like it was in style. Obviously the show was made by the awesome Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell who were heroes of mine growing up. The show had drama and comedy, making it a Sci-Fi classic.

4. Star Trek Original Series: 1966-1969, 3 Seasons, NBC

"Star Trek" is "Star Trek," a cultural phenomenon that bridges generations, survives and thrives in reinterpretation, and invites reinvention. Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner starred in this ground breaking show which has simply defined sci-fi for all of history. People even swap the term Sci-Fi for Star-Trekie. With numerous movies spawned from this original series, Star Trek didn’t redefine the genre it defined it.

3. Firefly: 2002, 1 Season, Fox (and a movie)

Joss Whedon had already become famous with Buffy The Vampire Slayer before this masterpiece. Though it only survived one season and a movie (for reasons unknown to mankind), Firefly could arguably be considered the greatest sci-fi show ever. . Firefly" posited a future universe that echoed today's political landscape but felt like a classic western. The crew of space pirates led by captain Malcom "Mal" Reynolds (Nathan Fillion) and his first mate Zoe Washburne (Gina Torres) are veteran "Browncoats" of the Unification War, a failed attempt by the outlying worlds to resist the Alliance's assertion of control.  Summer Glau and Sean Maher also star as the crew of misfits scavenge their way across the universe. This is arguably the greatest writing you will ever see.

2. The X-Files: 1993-2002, 9 Seasons, Fox

One of the longest-running shows of its kind (certainly on American network television), "The X-Files" was groundbreaking because it married the familiar TV formula of the police procedural (our heroes are FBI!) with the sci-fi (and they chase aliens!). The show was built on the awesome chemistry between David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson. The show gave new meaning to alien abduction and government conspiracies. The show overflowed into two movies but the series was the real star. Many argue that this show truly defined the sci-fi genre over the last 20 years. You will love the drama and pray for Moulder and Skully to get together.

1. Battlestar Galactica: 2003 intro mini-series, 2004-2009 series, 4 Seasons, SyFy

Based on the 1978 light hearted series, this show is the greatest sci-fi series ever. BSG with its numerous seasons, numerous movies and even a prequel and pre-prequel, is a work of art. The show has awesome graphics and brings an almost unbearably awesome drama to it. The story telling is intelligent and craftily pulled off on screen.

Though some of the acting isn’t great, there are some unreal performances and all the casting was done better than anyone could have imagined. The show has a huge following and has even created its own Fracking language. The show won me over in many ways. Of course using my favorite song of all-time (All Along The Watchtower) didn’t hurt. Drop whatever you are doing and please go on Netflix and watch this entire series. Thank you!