What we need is a return to the style of 70s and 80s action, blowing stuff up for real not using CGI, Big men with big guns and proper fights not this quick edit chaos cam that is so prominently used in action films today, where you can't really make out who's hitting who. The best example of the worst use of this type of screen punch up is Quantum Of Solace which tried to replicate the Bourne style of fights but ended up giving people a head ache. Now take a film like Jackie Chan's Gorgeous, there is a simple one on one fight between Jackie and Bradley James Allan which is expertly shot and you can see every punch and kick and it doesn't give you a head ache. As for shoot outs, i think modern day action directors need to take a leaf out of Walter Hill's book, make them a centre piece, make them loud and make them watchable. There have been so many hollywood gun battles that have been unwatchable due to fast paced frantic editing that takes away the enjoyment of seeing people get shot (in a movie of course). Michael Mann's Heat was the last film to truly have a straight up centre piece gun battle and it's never been matched since and that was in 1995. Tony Scott is the worst offender when it comes to action movie editing, the best action scenes in Man On Fire are ruined by jittery editing and his film Domino is almost unwatchable as almost every scene is badly edited or is too dark. Hollywood needs to go back to the old style of action movie making, where we can see what's happening. It worked for the studios in the 70s and 80s and they didn't have any gimmicks back then.
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