More than 200 action pros voted on the years wildest, nakedest, and base-jumpiest achievements.
The Action Edition
Lights, camera, roundhouse kick to the head.
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Vulture’s Stunt Awards
Stuntsbuilt Hollywood.
Barely any real movie stars existed; the close-up hadnt even been invented yet.
(Luckily, theyre good at fighting.)
This year, our second, saw a massive flurry of entries and participants.
The voting body doubled in size.
The submissions were broader and more international.
Understandable, perhaps, as 2023 was a big year for movies with big stunts.
(Shocker: That stunt won one of our awards.)
Jennifer Lawrence opened a can of unforgettable naked beach whup-ass inNo Hard Feelings.
One of the most fascinating trends of recent years has been a renewed interest in practical stunts.
We here at Vulture HQ are not anti-VFX; were antibadVFX.
(Were also antibad stunts.)
And mark our words: They will.
Reports are filtering out that progress is being made.
Meanwhile, more and more industry organizations have been recognizing stunts in recent years.
SAG has had a Best Stunt Ensemble award since 2007.
The Canadian Screen Awards announced a Best Stunt Coordination category that same year.
Here are this years many Vulture Stunt Awards winners.
.The Nominees:
.
A great stunt obviously requires a sense of scale.
Director Chad Stahelskitold Vulturehe and stunt coordinator Scott Rogers asked themselves, What would Buster Keaton do?
and, thanks to stunt performer Vincent Bouillon, we know.
The endless somersault is an amazing feat, but its surrounded by other exceptional details.
An accomplishment from 2023 that has less historical antecedent?
One of the most famous women in Hollywood stormed across a beach entirely nude to beat up some kids.
(One of our voters likened it to Viggos wang out melee inEastern Promises.)
Is this the best naked fight choreography in a non-Russian-themed film?
film critic Travis Johnson asked when he submitted his ballot.
The answer is yes, and not just because of the out-of-nowhere sensation theNo Hard Feelingsfight provides.
Its also an excellent example of combat as storytelling.
We know Lawrences character is rough around the edges.
We know shes got a hardness to her.
And no scene exemplifies Yens lightning-quick talents quite like the Kitchen Fight.
Yen can play comedy with the best of them.
BestShootout
Awarded to any sequence involving guns at relatively close range.
Fellow nomineesBallerina,The Channel,Guy Ritchies The Covenant, andSilent Nightall had their own passionate supporters.
TheDragonbreath sequence, however, feels different.
It was part video game, part anime, part cinematic experience, he told Vulture.
BestVehicularStunt
Awarded to any sequence involving motorized vehicles.
Theres an attack dog at one point.
A masterpiece of filmmaking that necessitated an international cadre of driving pros.
It came complete with two towers decked out in lights to replicate the iconic traffic circle.
The Arc sequence was shot over three weeks.
BestAerialStunt
Awarded to any sequence that takes place predominantly in the air.
As Jason DeMarco, senior vice-president of Action and Anime at Warner Bros.
The only person I can compare his commitment to is Jackie Chan.
In a series that plays with sleight of hand, the base jump is a genuine magic trick.
Then were at the climax.
Most of our primary players are aboard a train.
Tom Cruise, however, isnt.
A collective hush hits the theater as Tom Cruise, suspended in time, takes a leap of faith.
Every stunt has a plan, no matter how small.
BestPracticalExplosion
Awarded to any sequence that involves any reactive substance that amounts to an explosion.
Now, here was a close one.
The flaming fist of Tyler Rake fromExtraction 2almost took this category, and its not hard to see why.
A prime example of a cool-ass image that is just fundamentally badass, wrote one voter.
Another exclaimed: They legit lit Hemsworths arm on fire!
But it really is a staggering achievement.
It has to be.
To achieve the effect, Nolans effects teams set off seven different explosions.
distances from the blast so that Nolans cameras could capture their genuine reactions.
The silent explosion, remarked another voter.
The light overwhelming and swallowing the scene.
Benny Safdies overly sunscreened face.
BestOverallActionFilm
Awarded to the best film for stunt work overall.
film in a series that doesnt feel bloated …
The film was also a throwing of the gauntlet.
BestAchievementinStuntsOverall
Awarded to the best overall stunt professional (or duo) in 2023.
His doubling of Keanu is so seamless that many assumed it was Reeves himself tumbling down those stairs.
The slapstick brutality in his physical performance is as good as any leading male turn being celebrated this year.
Brandon Streussnig went long on Kingis contributions to a fascinating industry,here.
