Eco warriors

Posted by Vicki on 03.04.05

Action films in the 1980s had the obligation to provide the audience with as many explosions as they could quasi-realistically fit into 87 minutes. Such escapism allowed the masses to block out the failures of the Trickle Down Effect to improve quality of life and the threat that the US presidency posed to the cooling of the Cold War.

Periodically all sense of realism was abandoned in favour of providing visual released, one example of this being the entire of 'Tango and Cash'.

As the era progressed the ferocity and number of explosions decreased dramatically: instead they were replaced with computer generated effects and increased firepower - thus making the action more personal, so by having Rambo taking out the Communists the ordinary watcher lost the need to take out his employer.

The initial excitement and mass audiences that flocked to see such films led to a substantial increase in budgets, without necessarily ensuring the quality of the film itself rose - allowing for a situation where 'Eraser' and 'Last Action Hero' were made possible.

Plot flaws aside, the simple reason that neither film performed more than adequately at either the cinema or on video is because the core target audience's expectation of frequent, large and genuine looking explosions that resemble 'Lethal Weapon' rather than 'Chain Reaction'.

'Chain Reaction' is one of several films from the mid to late 1990s that sought to show an awareness of the importance of not destroying the environment. It is possible to draw a direct causal line between the rise in popularity of green issues amongst the general public and the screen writers use of saving selected biospheres (normally in small mountainous towns in Central USA) as an easy and effective way to provide a human side to an action hero.

Thisis the basis of Steven Seagal and his pony tail taking on neon green toxic waste and oil barons in 'Fire Down Below' and 'On Deadly Ground'. The cult appeal of such films has ensured a devoted fan base and place in popular culture - for very different reasons than 'Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!'. This ensures that a significant proportion of the Western population in their 20s and 30s associate protecting the environment as being the best way to avoid being accosted by Steven Seagal's terrifying dress sense.

Whether this untapped power is sufficient to mitigate the damage caused by Captain Planet only time will tell.