Traces the evolution of action movies from their origins to their heyday in the 80s and explores why today's blockbusters just don't compare.

The history of the American action film reveals a glorious past of cinematic high points ranging from The General to The Wild Bunch to The French Connection. These, and many more landmark movies, demonstrate how the genre can be a vibrant and ambitious form of cinematic expression. Yet, even as action films reign supreme at the box office, they are repeatedly dismissed and disparaged as lacking artistic merit.

In The Rise and Fall of the American Action Film, Philip M. Napoli gives the genre its due, exploring how the action movie came to dominate the American film industry and the global box office, as well as critiquing how recent films have lost their way, diminished in quality, and became ever more focused on spectacle over substance. Drawing from a range of examples across the history of American action cinema, from well-known masterpieces like Terminator and The Matrix to forgotten gems and abject failures, Napoli charts the definitive evolution from the action movie's origins to today.

This is the tale of how the definitive American film genre reached its peak in the 1980s before ultimately falling victim to its own spotlight, losing its defining qualities in favor of CGI and superheroes. Despite their massive budgets and elaborate special effects, Napoli argues today's action films are a shadow of what they once were at their artistic peak. Whether reminiscing on a favorite or discovering a new classic, cinephiles will appreciate this insightful and passionate tribute to an iconic genre.