In honor of today's release of Sucker Punch, my top five cinematic punches.
5. Conan the Barbarian takes out that danged camel.
4. Mace knocks that crazy blond chick OUT. (It happens about two thirds of the way through the trailer).
3. Lee Marvin’s nightclub beatdown in Point Blank. You’ll know the exact punch I’m talking about, though the smashed glass is fantastic. Enjoy the John Boorman madness in this clip, which features the punch.
2. Zombie Void punches a hysterical party-goer through the back of the head (not for the weak of stomach) in this early Peter Jackson classic.
1. Cleon "Slammin'" Salmon doesn’t quite pull his punch, dropping Guy. (This is a whole compilation of awesome, with more than one good punch, but the winning punch is just past the 6 minute mark).
The big movie this weekend is definitely Zack Snyder's chicks & guns fantasy, Sucker Punch. To celebrate, this week's Fistful Fridays will focus on the great Movie Punches Heard 'Round The World.
5. Phil Clocks Ned (Groundhog Day): Probably the biggest laugh in the movie, Bill Murray's Phil has been reliving the same day over and over and over again. And he's finally cracked. The audience is right there with him, Stephen Toblowsky's Ned is just a doof and we're happy to see him whirlspin to the camera.
4. The Collector Puts A Whole In Sheriff Tupper's Face (Tales From The Crypt: Demon Knight): I love Ernest Dickerson's Demon Knight. It perfectly capture the grotesque humor of the HBO series and nothing sums that up better than when Billy Zane's fed up demon punches through the Sheriff's face, gets stuck, rips the head off, and tosses it towards the impotent deputy. Brilliant.
3. Wesley Cracks Keyboard Across Barry's Face (Wanted): James McAvoy's non-existent Wesley is going nowhere in life until Angelina's deadly assassin unleashes the violence in his blood. Not gonna live the cubicle lifestyle anymore, he cusses out his horribly beastly boss, unplugs his orthopedic keyboard, walks out the door...but not before cracking that keyboard across the co-worker sleeping with his lady. F U indeed.
2. U.S.A Balloon Fist vs. U.S.S.R Balloon Fist (Rocky IV): In one corner, we have Freedom and America. In the other corner, we have Communism and Giant Apollo Creed Killing Dolph Lundgren. The movie hasn't even finished its "As Seen Last Rocky" intro and we're already pumped up to witness the good vs. evil match between America and Nuke Lovin' Russia cuz we just saw two badass balloons explode!!! The fate of the world rested on Rocky IV and thankfully it took down the wall.
1. George McFly Clobbers Biff Tannen (Back To The Future): Really, can there be any other choice? The whole film rests on whether or not Crispen Glover's George can stand up to Thomas Wilson's villainous bully Biff. Can he save the Future and knock this jackhole on his ass? YES! And when he finally mans up and clobbers Biff it gets the whole theater on their feet; a glorious moment punctuated by Alan Silvestri's momentous score.
Bonus Fight Scenes:
Here are three of my all time favorite fight sequences. Lots of punches thrown, but no single punch could really make my list.
