Title: Action Movies - Filmbug
Headings: Action Movies
Action Movies
Rise of the action film
Current trends
Feminist theory
Sub-genres

Content: Feminist theory
Feminist film theory has been used to analyze action movies, owing to their rare variance from a core archetype. The separation between the physical male, who controls the scene and the gaze, and the female, who is almost always the object of the gaze, is very clear in most such films. Although female characters in most action films are nothing more than objects, a prize for the winner, hostages, loving wives and the like, there has been a move towards stronger female characters such as those in works by James Cameron and Kathryn Bigelow, and a move towards "girl power"-style feminine empowerment (e.g. Charlie's Angels), in place of the traditional "damsel in distress". Sub-genres
Action drama - Combines action set-pieces with serious themes, character insight and/or emotional power. This sub-genre can be traced back to the origins of the action film. Carol Reed's The Third Man (written by Grahame Greene) was an award-winning predecessor of this sub-genre. Buddy cop - Two mismatched cops (or some variation such as a cop and a criminal) team-up as the main protagonists. Major examples are Rush Hour, 48 Hrs., Lethal Weapon, and Hot Fuzz. Action comedy - Mixture of action and comedy usually based on mismatched partners (the standard "buddy film" formula) or unlikely setting.