It’s pretty cool to be an action fan right now. In cinema, Tom Cruise takes the ‘Mission: Impossible’ series to new heights, crazy genre works like ‘RRR’ or ‘Shin Ultraman’ come to us from all over the world and with the success of the ‘John Wick’ series, one A whole new form of tangible action is becoming increasingly popular. Following in the footsteps of Chad Stahelski, more and more stunt experts who have long been established in the industry are getting the opportunity, although in the case of Sam Hargrave (“Extraction” series) or JJ Perry (“Day Shift”) so far “only” on Netflix and not in the cinema. Something is also developing in this direction in Germany and I am waiting for the day when Can Aydin (stunts and action choreography for titles such as “Violent Night” and “Obi-Wan Kenobi”) can direct a feature film.
But this isn’t all that new, as the foundation for this current era of increased focus on action expertise has been going on for years – in an area so often underestimated and stigmatized: the direct-to-video segment!
Direct-to-video has a bad reputation…
The direct-to-video sector has been around since the 1980s. It quickly turned out to be an opportunity to make money by releasing cheaper films directly on VHS to video stores instead of to theaters. In the beginning it was mainly sex and action that worked, but later more and more horror was added.
Over the years, the reputation of DTV titles has deteriorated. The mass that was pumped into the market really produced a lot of crap. Nowadays, as video stores and their limited space become a thing of the past and streaming services dominate, even more titles are being released – and of course, more nonsense.
This has made “DTV”/“Direct to Video” a dirty term for many. In discussions, films are dismissed by saying that they cannot be good because they were released directly to the home theater. Or bad cinema films are criticized by saying that they have the quality of a direct-to-video film.
…but it’s not deserved
I think this is a shame because there are currently more gems appearing in the direct-to-video sector than ever before. For years, the reputation was also ruined by ex-cinema stars like Steven Seagal, Bruce Willis or, most recently, Mel Gibson, who, for a big check and little work, increased sales figures with their faces on the Blu-ray cover and at the same time regularly compromised the quality of the film in question.
But next to it People have found a niche in this area to make really hard and cool action with significantly fewer compromises than they would have to make in the cinema-studio system. Of course there is an actor like Scott Adkins in the foreground, but also directors like John Hyams, Isaac Florentine or Jesse V. Johnson, who also influence cinema action films with their ideas, teams and approach.
“Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning,” which dates back to 2012, is a masterpiece. The film refutes all prejudices against DTV films that only well-known brands (“Universal Soldier”) and well-known faces (Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren) are used to get money out of people’s pockets quickly and easily. Instead, John Hyams, an innovative filmmaker, has used this framework to implement his own vision without compromise.
Meanwhile, Isaac Florentine has taken a rather weak film (Walter Hill’s boxing drama “Undisputed” with Wesley Snipes) and, freed from the shackles of a large-scale studio production on the DTV market, created something much better with a whole series – with the ultra-tough prison actor “ Undisputed III: Redemption” as a magnificent climax.
And hardly any director knows better than Jesse V. Johnson how to regularly make films appear to cost several times their actual budget. Even if one of his titles is only mediocre (like the recent ‘White Elephant’), he has a few short action scenes that seem like more (and he was also the only director in recent years who managed to make Bruce Willis look good ). He even scored a very big hit in 2019 with ‘Avengement’.
Of course, I would also like to use the article to list not only these (hopefully some of you already know) classics of DTV action cinema. After all, heavy food is released regularly, including most recent films like ‘One Shot’, shot without any visible editing, and James Nunn’s just-released sequel ‘One More Shot’. William Kaufmann’s “The Channel – Brothers in Arms” (see article image) will soon also be available in Germany. Apart from “The Town”, no American film has come so close to the intensity of the big shooting in Michael Mann’s masterpiece “Heat” – and what’s more, a mini-budget DTV film does this several times, and packs it in, too. with an incredibly intense production an incredibly exciting journey.
There are even more prejudices
I know what some of you are thinking. DTV films tell well-known stories that have been seen before and have therefore become extinct. The dialogue is usually quite simple and I don’t really get any great acting. Naturally. Many (not all) of the stories have already been seen in one way or another. Someone needs revenge, is in the wrong place at the wrong time in true “Die Hard” style, or just wants a better life for themselves and their family. You shouldn’t expect sophisticated dialogue exchanges from the pen of Aaron Sorkin, and there’s a reason why Scott Adkins will probably never win an Oscar for Best Actor. But in an action hit, like it’s really buzzing, you can literally feel the blows, explosions and gunshots and it all affects you emotionally?
“Dune 2” director Denis Villeneuve recently complained that TV series have ruined audiences because they are now hungry for story, explanation and detailed dialogue. “I’m not interested in dialogue,” he then explained. “I don’t remember films because of good dialogue, I remember films because of strong images,” He also explained and then stated: “Pure images and sounds, that is the power of cinema” – and I take the liberty of extending this to good direct-to-video films, despite Villeneuve’s term “cinema” (especially action films ).
In particular, the many so-called B-movie directors such as John Hyams, Isaac Florentine, Jesse V. Johnson, James Nunn and William Kaufman mentioned in this article, as well as their action choreographers and stunt crews not mentioned in this article, understand this. They mainly use images and sound rather than story and exposition to make a movie great. They regularly find new ways to stage action in a varied way and make the audience feel it. That’s why I love the DTV area (and, by the way, innovative action cinema from all over the world – but that would be a whole new article), I’m happy about new discoveries there and I also like to browse through much weaker films.