BIG FUCKING EXPLOSIONS

Casino Royale (2006) - Dir: Martin Campbell

This is the best action scene in an American-produced film in the 2000s. What? Huh? Are you serious? Yes, I’m serious. You know why? Because this scene, this jaw-dropping, frenetically-paced jewel of an action scene, is comprised of honest-to-god stunts. Reality. There’s hardly any noticeable cgi, and what little there is is mostly used to remove the appearance of safety equipment necessary to perform the previously mentioned stunt. How many action films can say that? Plus, unlike the Bourne action scenes, which are a bit too loose and handheld-headache-inducing for me, all of the shots in this sequence are composed. They’re artfully and expertly chosen. Some of the best of them go by so quickly you need to watch it a few times in a row just to notice them. And in this whole sequence, the from you see above stands out above the rest. I’m going to postulate that that shot is the single most awe-inspiring action shot of the decade. All the sweeping cgi-crane shots of computer generated armies can’t hold a candle to this simple helo shot of a practical stunt. Let that be a lesson to you if you ever want to make an action film, kiddos. There’s nothing like the real thing. Click to watch the full scene.