C
Cahill: U.S. Marshal
See it – This is one of John Wayne’s most underrated westerns. Sure, it was made a little after his prime, but it’s a great story and an exciting, stylish western. Wayne plays an aging marshal whose job has caused him to neglect his young, trouble-making sons. When his sons get involved with some outlaws, the Duke gets the opportunity to show off his mad skills. 3 action rating.
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Captain America
See it - 4 action rating
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Captain America: Civil War
4 out of 5 action rating
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
4.5 out of 5 action rating
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Cast a Giant Shadow
Very few memorable moments in this one. An entirely too-long movie that is short on action and long on talking. Compare it to Midway in that it has a great cast but not much excitement. It is the story of a Jewish American military advisor who is called on by the fatherland to help the Israelis fight the Arabs. A good story but very slow in parts. If you’re expecting an epic war movie you’ll be disappointed. 1 action rating
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Castle Keep
I would call this campy, even zany. It tries to be “artsy,” similar to “Thin Red Line,” only it doesn’t work. The director must have been on drugs. Burt Lancaster is a major with an eye patch in the U.S. army commanding a squad of men charged with protecting a medieval castle. Sounds good so far right? That’s what I thought. Well his men don’t even fire their guns till the very end. Ol’ Burt is more concerned with having sex than fighting Nazis. Peter Falk co-stars as a soldier more concerned with baking bread. Seriously, he’s a baker, and more importantly, he’s not funny in this role. This is no action movie. This is a made-for-TV quality movie at best. I’m not a fan of most 70’s war movies, and even though this was made in 1969 its close enough. 1.5 action rating
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Catlow
See it – A gleeful western that was maybe a little more light-hearted than Louis L’Amour would have wanted. Still, as one of the few films adapted from the stories of the great western author, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Yul Brynner stars as a fun-loving outlaw who’s being hunted by two men. One is a marshal who happens to be an old friend. The other is the real villain, played by none other than Leonard Nimoy. That’s right, “Spock” in a cowboy movie. That should be enough incentive right there. Plenty of gunfights and action from start to finish. 3.5 action rating.
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Centurion (2010)
See it - This action masterpiece stamps itself as the ultimate guy movie in the first few minutes, when a soldier takes a leak off the ramparts of his fort only to be promptly stabbed with a spear where the sun don’t shine. Starring Michael Fassbender, this unknown gem can be described in one word – incredible. Picture the opening battle in “Gladiator,” but lasting for an hour and a half. Despite its non-stop violence, the film is often poetic and beautiful. The story revolves around a handful of survivors of a Roman legion that is brutally massacred. They are ruthlessly hunted and chased through the wilderness. This gory action movie never lets up for a second, and is a must-see for any guy. 5 action rating
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Chappie
2 out of 5 action rating
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Chato's Land
Charles Bronson stars as a half-Apache on the run from a ruthless posse led by Jack Palance. This is a raw, gritty western that explores the primal nature of man. It is too dark for my taste, and honestly it is hard to get into this movie. It’s just missing that “classic” feel. Of course, it has plenty of action, but quantity doesn’t mean quality. In short, it’s just a typical Charles Bronson flick. 3.5 action rating
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Cheyenne Autumn
One of the finest films ever made about Native Americans. Unfortunately, we only get to watch two major battles scenes, which makes for a pretty slow movie-watching experience considering the film is about 2.5 hours long. If you come into the movie expecting a drama more than an action movie, you will get more out of it. John Ford’s better movies starred the Duke, but this one’s got Richard Widmark. He holds his own, but movie buffs will get a bigger kick out of a pretty funny cameo by Jimmy Stewart as Wyatt Earp near the middle of the movie. 2 action rating
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Chino
There’s really nothing but fistfights in this sleepy western. Which is a bit shocking considering it stars the gung ho Charles Bronson. It’s certainly one of his tamest movies. And if you are a Charles Bronson fan, I’m guessing you don’t watch his movies for the plot. Which leads to the question, why then would you want to watch this movie? 2 action rating.
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Chisum
See it – One of John Wayne’s top 10 westerns, and maybe the most action-packed movie he ever did. A great story about real-life characters John Chisum, Pat Garrett, and a young Billy the Kid. A true rip roarin’ shoot-em-up western in the truest since of the word. 4.5 action rating
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Clash of the Titans
Let’s take a journey to a world where gods rule, horses fly and men wear skirts. This is a fun, old-fashioned movie that’s great if you like action, better if you like mythology, and just terrible if you’re into neither. Better than “Percy Jackson” but not as good as “Jason and the Argonauts.” About the same as the 1981 original in story and quality. Sam Worthington stars as the demi-god Perseus in his encore performance to his breakout role in Avatar. 3.5 action rating
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The Comancheros
See it – John Wayne gives us yet another rip-roaring western. This time he’s a Texas Ranger fighting Comanches, outlaws, and gun-runners. This movie’s got two large scale battles and a couple other smaller fight scenes. 3 action rating
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Conan the Barbarian (2011)
4 action rating
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Contraband
1.5 action rating
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The Counterfeit Traitor
See it - This is a very thrilling WWII espionage movie, especially toward the end. I’ve never wanted to punch a kid as much as I did the evil Nazi boy. But I digress. William Holden plays a Swedish businessman who becomes an allied spy. Unfortunately this is not an action movie, and most of it is very slow. But the ending is very satisfying and it is a good overall war time film. 1.5 action rating
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The Cowboys
See it – Another John Wayne classic, this is the story of a cowboy (go figure) who enlists the help of a bunch of pre-adolescents to help him with a cattle drive. When some bad dudes find out, they decide that stealing the cattle will be like stealing candy from a baby. A very intense movie for a John Wayne western. There is not much action until the end, but it is well worth the wait. 1.5 action rating.
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Cowboys and Aliens
Am I the only one who thinks Daniel Craig wears pants that are way too tight? 4 action rating
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The Crazies
See it - “The Happening” meets “28 Weeks Later” in this very entertaining zombie-ish movie. There’s plenty of “jump” scenes, but it feels more like an action movie than a horror movie. 3.5 action rating
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Cross of Iron
If you are looking for an action-packed WWII movie, this is a decent choice. But a family-friendly classic this is not. Sam Peckinpah adds his usual smattering of nudity and slow motion violence. James Coburn is pretty good as a battle-hardened German sergeant who immediately clashes with his new inept commanding officer. But this despairing film offers no hope and is largely pointless. After re-watching the preposterous ending several times, I’m convinced Peckinpah completely ran out of ideas and didn’t know how to end his movie, so he just let it crash. 4 action rating.
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Cry of Battle
This low budget war movie is painful to watch. It stars James MacArthur and Van Heflin, who have both been in some very good movies. But this one is a disaster. It flows poorly, it lacks action, and it focuses more on the concept of lust than the heroics of war. It is a story about two Americans in WWII who get caught up in the Filipino resistance. But this movie misfires badly, and the ending is horrible. The world won’t be any worse off if this film is forgotten. 2 action rating.
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Custer of the West
This movie doesn’t feel like an old-fashioned epic. The scenes are choppy, the character development is shoddy, and the music is subpar. But Robert Shaw is not a bad Custer. In fact he’s one of the best at playing the role of the anti-hero. There is also plenty of action, although the director seemed a bit obsessed with first-person-view chase scenes. A long western that recounts Custer’s many military campaigns up to and including the inevitable battle of Little Bighorn. However, this film really lacks a heart and soul and it’s as simple as that. 4.5 action rating
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