When it comes to making movie magic, nothing is more impressive than people pulling off practical stunts in an attempt to emulate real action. Stunts are not only often incredibly dangerous, but also feats of problem solving and engineering. But somehow the violent, high-speed stunt scenes happen, and to help us understand how, here’s a stunt performer breaking down a bunch of stunts from a handful of stellar blockbuster films.
In the video, which comes via Geek Tyrant, stunt performer Eric Linden talks about a handful of stunts from some great action-packed flicks like The Raid, The Dark Knight Rises, and John Wick: Chapter 2. Linden describes how a few stunts from each movie were performed (except for The Matrix, there’s only one scene broken down for that one), analyzing everything from car crashes to fistfights to lightsaber battles. If you want to jump to a specific movie, here are some time stamps:
The Raid :21; The Last Jedi 1:49; The Dark Knight Rises 2:15; John Wick: Chapter 2 4:46; The Matrix (only one scene) 8:14; Fast Five 9:12
While most of the stunts analyzed seem quite dangerous and difficult to pull off, it is pretty hilarious to realize that often times, background stunt performers are basically falling down for no reason. They’ll also apparently fight air, as evidenced in the lightsaber battle with Rey and Kylo in The Last Jedi.
The most impressive standout from all of the stunt clips? Keanu. Brother-lovin’. Reeves. He may not be Tom Cruise, but the stunts he’s pulled off in movies like John Wick: Chapter 2 still look like they’d be devastating if handled improperly. Good thing he knows kung fu.
What do you think of these insane, practical stunts? Do you have a favorite stunt from the wonderful world of cinema? Let us know in the comments!
Feature image: Lionsgate