For any given
action movie one can follow the
plot line along until the
climax and it will follow, more or less, what I am about to describe. It is important to define the
term action movie because there are many genres which can be confused with this one.
Star Wars is not an action flick, it is an adventure film. Thusly, it follows
the hero's journey plot line. A good example of a generic action movie is the
Wesley Snipes film
Blade, which I will be using as source material for the rest of this write up.
Ok, so, one gets through the whole
rising action bit and they get to the climax of the film which is typically characterized by the
protagonist meeting and
grappling with his
archnemesis. Typically, but not always, the
hero will first be put at a
disadvantage. This allows a further
element of suspense and
risk. In order to overcome this disadvantage, someone (typically the
hero's
love interest) will have to make a
sacrifice. The sacrifice can
vary from
extreme (one's
life) to
minor. Anyway, after the sacrifice the hero is now ready to kick some
villian ass and accordingly, a massive fight insues. One
interesting thing, in
contemporary action films (those produced in the past, say, 5
years) is that the big fight scene will often be
preceded by, like, a
bad ass moment. Something along the lines of the hero cocking his
head to the side and smirking as
pounding techno music begins and the
rumble ensues. In
Blade, this is when Wesley Snipes retrieves his sunglasses and begins
beating the shit out of
cronies. Finally, the
climax is completed when the hero
destroys the
villian one last time. After that, the rest is
falling action.