Patrick's 20 Favorite Action Movies

05. True Lies (1994)

James Cameron’s True Lies is almost two movies in one. It starts off as a typical action/spy movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger as Harry Tasker on the trail of stolen nuclear weapons and takes a massive diversion as he learns his wife (Jamie Lee Curtis) who thinks he is a boring computer salesman is pursuing another man. He uses his spy resources to try to foil her attempts at dating while giving her life the spice it apparently needs. This all turns to horrible shit when he inadvertently gets her caught up with the terrorists he is chasing and she learns the truth about him while in danger for her life. True Lies is an interesting movie as it is funny and exciting and just a little bit creepy. You can’t really call it a poignant study of the dynamics of married life but it does speak volumes about passion fizzle and jealousy.  It is also a good example of how honesty is the best policy. As with most Cameron films, this is a big movie and the scale of the action scenes and location is amazing. The choreography is great and the action is always exciting. The humor is also great as it really plays off of the juxtaposition of the boring and the exciting and the lengths people will go to try to be close to one another. The performances are also great as cliches and genre conventions are turned on their heads. A very well rounded action picture with something for everyone.

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6 Comments


  1. The Professional? I effing HATED that movie SO MUCH!!!! UGH. You know when you think a movie is just so bad that it makes you angry that you watched it? That is how I feel about The Professional.

    I just don’t DIG movies like that as a general rule.


    1. Given that you never saw the Matrix because it ‘didn’t look even remotely good’ I think it is safe to say this whole list is probably not material you would dig.


    1. GJ: As I said above: I tried to keep it to movies that didn’t stray too far into other their own sub-genre where I could, for instance I avoided primarily martial arts movies as they deserve their own list.

      Ninja Assassin definitely goes on the martial arts list which currently doesn’t exist.


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