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- Big Trouble in Little China
- 20th Century Fox
The action genre is the gift that keeps on giving; however, we aren’t always appreciative of the treasures the deities such as Stallone, Schwarzenegger, and Dudikoff share with their loyal worshippers. There are many underrated action movies that have slipped right under the radar, flopping at the box office and threatening to be forgotten as nothing more than yippee ki-yays in the void.
Hindsight isn’t 20/20, though; it’s a roundhouse kick to our sensibilities, waking us up from slumbers of indifference. It’s time to dig through the action film archives and pick out the diamonds in the rough. Don’t forget to vote on the flicks you think are dreadfully underrated and deserve more attention.
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How Much It Cost: $19-25 million
How Much It Made in the US: $11.1 million
Big Trouble in Little China's greatest sin was releasing around the same time as James Cameron's Aliens. It might not be as famous as John Carpenter and Kurt Russell’s other team-ups, such as Escape from New York and The Thing, but the film features a scrumptious combo of martial arts madness and fantastical elements that’s stood the test of time and left the audience wanting more. Big Trouble in Little China has become a bona fide cult classic and a mandatory mention on every best action movies of the 1980s list. Equally important, its unique aesthetic and unmistakable tone inspired other films such as 1995’s Mortal Kombat and Thor: Ragnarok.
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How Much It Cost: $75 million
How Much It Made in the US: $45.4 million
As an adaptation of the 1960s TV show, The Man from U.N.C.L.E. has an unremarkable name. It doesn’t exactly tell us what the film is about, which is one of the reasons the general audience gave it a skip upon release. It’s a shame, because the Guy Ritchie-directed spy movie, starring Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer, electrifies with a stylized approach that’s categorically different from other espionage franchises such as James Bond and the Bourne films. Despite the forgettable title, this action-packed film more than proves Cavill has the license to thrill and should always be a contender to play 007.
Underrated?How Much It Cost: $50 million
How Much It Made in the US: $13.4 million
Judge Dredd is not a typical comic book series. There are no capes and cowls; instead, it’s an exploration about the dangers of police states and authoritarianism. Dredd - the second live-action adaptation of the Mega-City One judge, this time played by Karl Urban - embodies this message and flaunts it in a sci-fi film that’s the illegitimate love child of The Raid and RoboCop. Much like the comic book, it looks and feels different from everything else out there. Unfortunately, Dredd arrived in a year when audiences had just watched the record-breaking The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises, so they both eclipsed this effort. Even so, Dredd still remains the best comic book film of 2012.
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How Much It Cost: $85 million
How Much It Made in the US: $47.7 million
A Peter Berg-directed action comedy starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Seann William Scott, and Rosario Dawson? Take our money! Unfortunately, 2003’s The Rundown didn't. It arrived before Johnson laid the smackdown on Hollywood's A-list scene and not everything he touched turned to gold, so it went relatively unnoticed upon release despite the good reviews. The buddy comedy dynamic between Johnson and Scott deserves a revisit, though, as these two actors show off a natural chemistry that can’t be faked. Dare we say, it might be as strong as Johnson and Kevin Hart’s exchanges.
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How Much It Cost: $25 million
How Much It Made in the US: $13.7 million
Surprisingly, Warrior didn’t open against a major film in 2011, but it still failed to clean up at the box office. Considering how UFC had only started to crawl into the mainstream spotlight around then, Gavin O’Connor’s film was a picture well ahead of its time. That takes away nothing from its quality, though. It’s a sports drama bursting with heart and character, exploring the dynamics of brotherhood and the intensity of life in the octagon. It was never meant to be a blockbuster by design, but it holds all the action-packed moments and a decent story to boot as well.
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How Much It Cost: $85 million
How Much It Made in the US: $50 million
No one knows why Last Action Hero failed to connect at the box office. Perhaps it’s because it’s a parody of the action genre, and too many people had close attachments to the unintentionally parodical characters that Arnold Schwarzenegger created in the ‘80s and ‘90s. Maybe it’s the fact it opened a week after Jurassic Park gobbled up all the money for 1993. Looking back with fresh eyes, it’s a quirky and entertaining film that beautifully captures (and makes fun of) everything we love about old-school action flicks. Its sense of self-awareness is uncanny.
Underrated?
