Aging Action Stars – The Ry Perspective

Aging Action Stars

Reliving the glory days.  As we age, we all try to find ways to stay true to what we were in some way, shape or form.  Through hobbies, we try to invigorate that passion by listening or playing music, tackling a story with writing or giving a view through radio or podcast.  No matter the medium, we try to find a catalyst where we can show the world that we still have what it takes, and feel good about it.  This feeling is no exception to our favorite action stars.

It has been reported that Stallone will be returning and start working on another chapter in the Rambo franchise (ScreenRant).  With the likes of an aging action star coming back to a previously well renown role, it brings a pretext of anyone trying to relieve those fun times.  Through a kind of ‘renaissance’, the movie going audience have been mildly receptive to these aging action stars returning to these kinds of roles on the big screen.  With that kind of appeal and some monetary gain, it brings an innate feeling for these actors to continue to make action movies in the twilight of their careers.  From the success of franchises like Taken and The Expendables, the idea of ‘old school’ action stars still duking it out creates that adrenaline rush that crosses over age demographics and genders.  With the use of new age technology, stunt doubles (for some) and camera techniques to create over-the-top action, it is something that intrigues the movie audience.  From my perspective, what creates this perplexing success are:

Use of the ‘age’ trope

The enthusiasm of the actors in their roles

The idea of using the ‘old age’ trope helps infuse an ironic possibility of success. By purposefully going against disbelief, these films throw out acceptable grounded appeal to create an unorthodox sandbox that works.  Through old franchises (Rambo, Rocky), reinvention (The Foreigner, John Wick) and well renowned series (James Bond, Mission Impossible) you see how age and enthusiasm become entangled in plot, marketing with hopes of an eventual high returns.  For these highly successful returns, there are duds that happen (Terminator: Genisys and New Die Hard Sequels).  There are always a rehashing of predictable plot points and convenient set pieces, but the reasons these films exist is that innate thought to see if they can still do it.  The clichés and archetypes will have a redundancy of 80s/ 90s tropes, but if we can see Rocky be a mentor in Creed and Ethan Hunt finding inventive ways to survive in MI: Rogue Nation, there is enough ways to make these actors relevant as those amazing action stars once again.