An article that I wrote for Castle Co-Op, a online publication about Film, T.V., Music and Culture, published on Oct 12, 2011.

What you just witnessed was possibly the manliest handshake in the world.

The 80’s will always be remembered for its flashy fluro coloured fashion, synthetic pop music and its action movies. Each action film in this era had the three B’s: Big, Bad-Ass and Boys. Explosions were unnecessarily over the top, the villains were simply one dimensional and the heroes were unstoppable forces of righteousness. The action genre in the 80’s dominated with its flexing biceps – stories and characters were kept simple and there was no need to explain anything!

As a ten year old, I remember being amazed by the sheer power of awesomeness in those films. These films were clearly unworthy of any critical praise, but they did certainly satisfy our cravings for entertainment and since then have gone on to gain a loyal cult following – a status that is some ways better than winning any award.

Recent action cinema has followed the trail that Nolan’s Batman and Bourne series paved with an emphasis on grittiness, darkness and relatability. Although they are great qualities that appeal to a post 9/11 audience, it’s a bit of a shame in a way that the action hero of the 80′s has now become redundant and unnecessary. The action movies of the day were an escape from the dull clutches of reality. We would watch these movies and secretly fantasize about being those muscular protagonist holding their bullet spitting machine guns and going off on wild dangerous adventures to save the day.

The 2010 film The Expendables was a friendly reminder of what the past action movies were like – a manly testosterone filled nod to the past. It had a star studded cast of 80’s action stars and a relatively simple plot: a group of elite mercenaries (the good guys) are on a mission to overthrow a Latin American dictator (the bad guys). Sure, it wasn’t a greatest movie made but it was entertaining: explosions, guns, car chases and girls – everything that appeals to a manly action thirsty audience.

Apart from manly action, another aspect that we seem to sadly have lost is the witty one liner zingers. Remember those awesome one liners the hero would say after defeating an enemy?

Puns were casually being thrown around during the 80’s but now it seems that we have exhausted our resources for witty puns. The 80’s puns were instantly classics. They were by all means, cheesy and terrible but in a paradoxical way, that’s what made them so memorable and awesome.

The below youtube clips are examples of perfectly executed puns during the 80’s.

Okay, the James Bond one wasn’t made in the 80’s but it’s an example of some fine pun writing. Not only did these characters just kill someone, they had the wit to observe and comment on the scenario!

Recent films have unfortunately experienced a decline of quality pun writing. When the hero decapitates the enemy, witty and clever one liners have either become way too lame or completely nonexistent. A recent example of shitty pun writing is in the 2003 film Gigli, starring Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez. It was a forgettable film that was dubbed the worst movie of all time. Watch the following link to understand just how bad it was.

This attempt at making a sexy pun just failed for two major reasons: 1) it was poorly executed and 2) it was completely unnecessary and somehow made Jennifer Lopez unsexy for that split second.

It’s highly unlikely that we will see the likes of the testosterone pumped 80’ action genre in the future. The 80’s was a much more innocent time in filmmaking. Movies such as Commando or Cobra could never be made in this current era of cinema. Cinemagoers have evolved so much over the years that it’s harder to please and surprise them now than before. A modern audience want to relate to characters with real life issues and flaws rather than a shinning sweat glistening hero who shoots the enemy and saves the day.

Although the manly action hero genre is gone, it doesn’t mean that the art of pun writing has to face extinction as well. The acclaimed director Alfred Hitchcock once said in an interview on the Dick Cavett Show, ‘Puns are highest form of literature’; we should be continuing this art form and keeping it alive and fresh.

To inspire you, I leave you with the following youtube clip: 160 Greatest Arnold Schwarzenegger Quotes – pun writing at the height of its powers.