Mexico certainly has produced movies that glorify national heroes, e.g. the Zapata film about 25 years ago. It starred a singer who is the son of Vicente Fernandez, a kind of Frank Sinatra figure whose songs also embody Mexico’s patriotic pride.
I just looked it up and the trailer is amazing(ly gory).
I’d not heard of that one.
Bolding mine.
Patriotic, sure, to the extent that it takes place during WWII and the Germans are the bad guys…
But an action movie ? It’s a comedy, and a rather harmless one at that.
Is a movie about
A ragtag group of British Grenadiers stationed in Upper Canada during the War of 1812 are recruited to escort a Spanish dignitary to safety while being persude by American forces.
a patriotic Canadian action movie?
Agreed. I remember seeing it years ago, and finding it amusing, but also having the eye opening realization that France is in the business of mythmaking about its war history as much as the US or anyone else. (This was long before I moved to Europe and expanded my horizons.) Every single French civilian the British pilots encounter hates the Nazis and is happy to aid their flight, even at the risk of their own safety; they never come across anyone Vichy affiliated who might identify or report them. Evidently the Germans are occupying France entirely on their own power without any kind of support or assistance from French sympathizers.
Yes, it’s a comedy, and therefore not the place for complex morality or difficult history. But its massive popularity in France suggests a desire to embrace a simpler view of the past, in which all our friends and relatives were heroes and the crimes were entirely committed by outsiders. Just like how Americans want to believe none of their ancestors owned slaves, or any of a dozen other examples of historical blurring to salve the modern conscience.
Sorry, didn’t mean this to be so long. I agree that this is a silly comedy. Patriotic, no question (to an extreme). But not an action movie.
(My other takeaway from the movie was wondering who ever thought Terry-Thomas was funny, but that’s another thread.)
Because we can’t handle the truth?
Is A Few Good Men patriotic in the rah-rah sense being discussed? I certainly wouldn’t say so.
Well, it was set in a time when Canadians still considered themselves British, and it has the Yanks as the bad guys. IMHO, it’s close enough.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
You left out the best line!
MAD HEIDI is an action-adventure exploitation extravaganza based on the popular children‘s book character Heidi and the world’s first Swissploitation film.
If it’s disqualified because there was no Canada, then The Patriot should also be disqualified.
It’s patriotic in the Aaron Sorkin sense - “the American system is fundamentally good and this is how it’s supposed to work.” See also the West Wing.
I haven’t seen. Thought I wanted to see it until now. Alexander Nevsky is visually stunning at times, but has plenty of failings as a movie.
Allhough A Few Good Men is hardly an “action movie”, in the same way, would some of the movies about the Royal Canadian Mounted Police count as patriotic action films?
Except most of them were made in Hollywood.
English Canadians at that time, yes; French-Canadians, not so much.
But I’m asking if at the time it was made, would it have been considered a patriotic action movie by Canadians?
Given that a lot of Americans are probably unaware of the French resistance (at least that’s the impression I’ve gotten from acquaintances) I can’t fully blame them for a little ego-buffing. As long as they don’t try to whitewash the whole thing.
Those sorts of Americans aren’t aware of the Vichy French, either. They’re probably barely aware of WW2.
Some of the movies mentioned must have a weird definition of patriotic.
When I was in the Middle East one of my living arrangements had a form of cable tv and I was able to watch some movies I couldn’t normally have watched. One Russian movie stuck with me. Apparently it was called Countdown for international audiences and Lichnyy nomer in Russia. It was Die Hard style action movie where the hero is up against Muslim (possibly Chetchen I can’t remember) terrorists. Its quality was up to Hollywood standards. The use of genuine Russian military equipment showed they had government cooperation. I do remember laughing because John Amos had a cameo and he was obviously using the same Navy uniform he wore on West Wing. I wonder if he got permission to use their wardrobe while he was moonlighting?
A couple of other patriotic Russian movies I can remember: T-34 was made in 2019. It has a group of POWs breaking out with a seemingly invincible tank and taking on all the Nazis. It contains over the top ultra slo-mo action and lots of Nazi killing.
Panfilov’s 28 seemed to attempt to be Russia’s Saving Private Ryan. I’ve only seen clips but it looked pretty good. I can’t get around the fact that the “true” story it’s based on was clearly proven to be made up Soviet propaganda from WWII.
It’s definitely played for laughs, but the Johnny English franchise does contain some British patriotism, albeit in a very subtle, very indirect, very British way. If I recall correctly; it has been 20 years since I saw it.
Also, this movie stretches the definitions of both “patriotic” and “action movie,” but for your consideration: The Man From Snowy River. It’s Australian to its very core (but for the cast that included American, Canadian and British actors among its Australian ones), being based on the work of a beloved Australian bush poet, and showcasing the stunning natural beauty of Australia. As for action: I mean, there are scenes of peril and danger, and a fantastic sequence involving a horse and its rider riding for their lives.
It aired in 1984. You tell me.