Going out with a bang

Well folks, it's that time again. Summer's almost here, and you know what that means: Blockbuster season. Unfortunately, The Beacon won't be able to serve your movie needs until it returns in the fall. So, until then, you're on your own. However, as one final offering, The Beacon would like to offer a countdown of some of the best action sequences of all time, sure to whet your appetite for action and get you ready for all the big budget blockbusters we're going to miss this summer. So, without further ado, this reviewer, as well as The Beacon, is….going out with a bang.

They Live- Back alley brawl When out of luck drifter Nada ("Rowdy" Roddy Piper) finds a pair of sunglasses that allow him to see that the world is actually being quietly invaded by bug eyed aliens disguised as humans, he is left with two options, "Kick a** and chew bubble gum." And he's all out of bubble gum. Still, violently exterminating spacemen can be a tiresome and lonely job, so when Piper tries to force a skeptical friend (Keith David) to try on the shades and join his crusade, the two throw down in what is probably the greatest fist fight ever captured on film. Dirty, gritty, mean and, luckily for viewers, over seven minutes long, this one is absolutely unforgettable.

Heat - The heist In the film that makes every red blooded male think, at least for a little while, "Damn, I really want to rob something," a group of professional thieves looking for one big final score, plan a heist on a busy LA bank. Unfortunately, the LAPD have different plans. After an intense robbery scene, the suit-clad, automatic rifle carrying bank robbers move into the streets only to be met by an army of cops. What ensues is a crash-bang, run and gun shoot out that will have audiences on the edge of their seat

Desperado - Getting the band back together Vigilante El Mariachi, Antonio Banderas wages war on the drug cartel responsible for his girlfriend's death. However, when it comes to the final showdown with the entire cartel, our hero realizes that he needs more fire power than his trademark guitar case full of guns can hold. One phone call later, and the band is ready to play, and what beautiful music they make, as El's band-mates show up to even up the odds with their tricked out, rapid firing, rocket launching guitar cases in tow.

Escape From L.A. - Gunfight at the Happy Palace Kurt Russell. Convicts. Hang-gliders. Machine-guns. Disneyland. 'Nuff said.

The Way Of The Gun - The drop off When two small-time crooks (Ryan Phillippe and Benicio Del Toro) decide to abduct the surrogate mother of a corrupt millionaire, the kidnappers find themselves in over their heads, as their captive goes into labor during a high stakes shoot out over their ransom in a filthy Mexican brothel.

Kill Bill - Crazy 88 fight After waking up from a bullet induced four year coma The Bride (Uma Thurman), is looking forward to catching up with her old co-worker, O-Ren Ishii. But before these two can have a go, The Bride must go through Ishii's bodyguards The Crazy 88 (not really 88 of them, it just sounds cool), in a flurry of sword swingin', black and white bloodshed, all culminating in an epic samurai cat fight between The Bride and her rival.

The Punisher - The Russian comes a'knockin' When The Punisher (Thomas Jane) takes a much deserved evening off from his busy schedule of killing bad guys, all is going well until he gets an unexpected visit from the 7 ft. tall pain machine The Russian (Kevin Nash), which throws his quiet night at home out the window, and our hero through a wall, as the Russian doles out one of film's greatest smackdowns, using everything but the kitchen sink (he prefers to use the bathroom toilet.)

The Wild Bunch - The final showdown Action fans everywhere can thank director Sam Peckinpah, and this film, for ushering in a new era of action and violence with this 1969 western, in which a gang of aging outlaws take on a crooked Mexican general and his men in a bloody shoot out in which 90,000 rounds were fired, more than were discharged during Mexican Revolution .

3000 Miles To Graceland - Murphy's last stand What could be better than Kurt Russell and Kevin Costner robbing a casino dressed as Elvis impersonators? Watching Costner's villain taking on a swat team single handedly set to the soundtrack of Elvis's "My Way" and automatic gunfire. Dressed like an Elvis impersonator. Awesome!

Commando - Matrix vs. Bennett Before Arnold Schwarzenegger ran CA, he entertained us by killing people on film. In what may be his greatest scene ever, the Governator defeats his rival by running him through with a length of pipe, pinning him to a boiler, and as vapor pours from the pipe jutting from his slain enemy's chest, Arnie quips, "let off some steam, Bennett." God bless America.