Author: John Acquavita

In the most ultimate action tournament, who would reign supreme? From May 1984–April 1985, Marvel Comics published a 12-issue series about an otherworldly being (the Beyonder) who, just for fun, takes Earth’s mightiest heroes and villains (e.g., the Avengers, Spider-Man, Doctor Doom, Fantastic Four, Hulk, Magneto, X-Men, among others), transports them to another planet (Battleworld),…

A surprisingly solid Saturday night actioner! Before streaming channels like Amazon Prime, Hulu, Netflix and scores of others popped up, Blockbuster Video ruled supreme. But before Blockbuster opened its doors, those of us of a certain age can vividly remember the anxiety we felt in locally owned stores with fewer rental selections. We were anxious…

Arnold’s ‘Commando’ deserves the ultimate legacy that is ‘No Chance’ (2017) Action movies from the 1980s are a special breed unto themselves. Not only did they elevate stars such as Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal and others to otherworldly fame, they left permanent impressions on the psyches of those…

Van Damme’s Kickboxing Legacy Lives on with Kickboxer: Retaliation (2018) Earlier this year, the action movie gods smiled upon us when Kickboxer: Retaliation was announced (here was our first look article back in January). Alain Moussi returns in the updated version and story of Kurt Sloane, a character Jean-Claude Van Damme (JCVD) and Cannon Films…

UAMC Discussion on Sylvester Stallone’s greatest actioner. Rambo: Sir, do we get to win this time? Trautman: This time it’s up to you. Note: This post is a follow-up to a blog posted last year, entitled “The Top 5 Most Ultimate Action Movies of All Time.” While I wholeheartedly appreciate the author’s enthusiasm for the…

Hell Hath No Fury Like Liam Neeson in ‘Taken’ (2008). “I don’t know who you are. I don’t know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don’t have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills: skills I have acquired over a very…

Lionheart takes on Bloodsport for JCVD Supremacy With Jean-Claude Van Damme’s recent revelation that later this year he will begin filming Lionheart 2, a direct sequel to 1990’s stellar Lionheart, I thought it was a good time to revisit this classic JCVD flick. Many fans rightfully consider 1988’s Bloodsport Van Damme’s masterpiece. I couldn’t agree…

First Blood (1982): My First Ultimate Action Movie Whether it’s your first word, first step, first kiss, first job, first date, etc., life is about milestones. Why are high school reunions fairly well-attended? People are nostalgic. They want to remember life way back when. They wax poetic about their younger days when life was simpler….