While impatiently awaiting our furniture and living essentials from Buffalo, my girlfriend and I decided to sit down and watch the Indiana Jones trilogy. Now, those who know me think this is going to turn into another rant about one of the three, but it isn’t going to. I promise. Rather, it dawned on me after the less than impressive Green Lantern that superhero movies might be wearing down because they often retread familiar territory, namely the fact that they in some way or another acquire super human powers (Batman and the Punisher being the lone exceptions, though I would argue Batman’s super power at times is money, making him the best superhero to invest in).
So while watching the Indy films, I realized that some of the best heroes we have in classic films are in fact very ordinary people and are much more human than super. More often than not, these iconic action heroes are the result of an incredibly well-written script. Whether they’ve misplaced their shoes or see that X marks the spot, these moments usually stem from a script that is forced to be creative and clever, ironically as a result of the fact that the hero is a mere human.
Now before I go ahead and make a list that I’ll be horribly criticized for, whether by a bad addition or omission, I’m going to just say right now I’m not including James Bond into this simply for the reason that after a couple of films, the story forced him to be superhuman. That’s not to say any of these character below haven’t been, but not over a span of 22 films. Sure, a few have had unnecessary sequels, but Bond kept being regurgitated for us until Martin Campbell’s Casino Royale. I’d love to add Daniel Craig’s Bond because he’s based more in reality, he strangles people, he can be poisoned and shot. But I don’t want to omit movies from a character either (okay, I’d like to but I won’t). So Bond has to be left off here, sorry.
So here’s my list for the most heroic humans in cinema.
Jason Bourne (The Bourne Identity)
Our favorite assassin turned amnesia patient, Bourne will kill you with a pen. That’s one of the first big action sequences we see of Mr. Bourne and we absolutely love it. Or how ‘bout a magazine? You can’t sit in a waiting room with this guy and feel safe. Seriously, if he can kill you with a pen he can kill you with anything. But my favorite moment in the Bourne Identity is a small scene when he sits down in a coffee shop and realizes he knows every visible attribute about the diner and those in it, more importantly though he doesn’t know why. He’s a man simply searching for himself, and killing anyone who disrupts that.
Bryan Mills (Taken)
I wouldn’t be surprised if some people gripe about this choice ahead of Bourne, but Mills only takes one film to get his revenge, so he gets points for that (sure, Bourne is working on a larger scale, but that’d ruin my reasoning). But also he’s the centerpiece for a film that walks a dark line but never crosses it. And of course Mills is a total bad ass, whether it’s electrocuting people or shooting anyone who stands between him and his daughter, friends included. That’s what makes him one of the most interesting people on this list… that and if I’d kept him off he’d torture me until I put him on here.
Ellen Ripley (Alien)
Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley was not only a mark of change in gender roles for modern cinema, but a mark in narratives in general. She’s strong and plays the mother of her ship, battling crazed aliens and their queen for control. It’s a clash of different worlds and Ripley is the centerpiece, looking to protect and defend her kin at all costs. (I know eventually she turns into an Alien or something… but this is basically for the first two films). I’d have her higher on the list, but since the film takes place in space she’s got more technology at her disposal than, say…
John McClain (Die Hard)
One of the most likable and American characters in modern cinema, McClane is basically a schlub that just gets caught up in a bad spot. But in the hairiest of situations, McClane is clever, bold, and everything you could ever want in an action hero. He’s the staple for dozens of movies that tried to be everything Die Hard was but always fell short. In fact, there’s only one man I’d say is more American and bold then Mr. John McClane…
Indiana Jones (Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark)
I tried really hard to talk myself into someone else, to find another character that embodied heroism more than Indy. Mainly it was because I knew I led this article with him and knew it would make the ending anti-climactic. But lo, it can’t be anyone else. The man that found the Lost Ark and the Cup of Christ to kept it from the Nazi’s. The bold, borderline reckless man who when he’s tired of fighting street thugs pulls out his gun and shoots them. Never mind the fourth installment that lacked logic and hoped to disguise itself behind the likability of old Indy; this isn’t the forum to complain about that. We can only hope that if or, as some have said, when a fifth movie comes around, the trend of quality continues and Mr. Lucas allows him to finally ride off into the sunset (for good this time).
Anyone you don’t think should be on here? Or notable omissions? Post them below!
