I was watching the special features of Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol this weekend and holy heck…Tom Cruise is crazy! I don’t mean crazy in the way most people meant after his Oprah couch jumping incident. I mean the hanging from a skyscraper hundreds of stories in the air crazy! He actually runs down the side of a skyscraper! A lot of actors pride themselves on doing their own stunts but Tommy turns the notch up to 11. Regardless of what you think of the star and his personal life, you have to give him credit for his insane stunts. Here are a few of his better, and sometimes crazier, action films.

Mission Impossibles – All of the films in this franchise are “non-stop thrill rides” (a favorite cliché quote of mine and one that appears on an alarming amount of DVD covers). I recommend watching or re-watching the two most recent as they’re undeniably the best. Though Mission Impossibles 1 and 2 are suitable action fare, number 3 and 4 (Ghost Protocol) are the epitome of modern action films and are sure to keep you on the edge of your seat!

Minority Report – As you’ll come to know about me, I’m a sucker for sci-fi. Great sci-fi flicks like this one are even better. Using psychic prediction to stop all crimes before they happen? What could go wrong there? Jet packs, futuristic guns, and plot twists galore? Sign me up!

Knight and Day – While not the most original of films, Knight and Day is a more than satisfactory romantic action adventure. Tom does his usual super spy thing including some impressive motorcycle scenes.

Collateral – I read that Tom trained extensively with a military instructor so he could fire his gun like a highly efficient cold blooded killer. His cold blood certainly comes through as his villainous take on a hitman is one of his most interesting roles. He doesn’t often play a bad guy but has my vote to do so more often.

Though it’s not going to be out until April, I’m already getting excited for Cruise’s next film, Oblivion. Here’s hoping he can strike sci-fi gold again and do justice to the impressive trailer. I’ve no doubt that Tom will once again be sending his stunt doubles out on coffee runs while he jumps off cliffs and crashes cars.

Back in my Halloween post a mere 6 weeks ago I mentioned Abe Lincoln Vampire Hunter and how much I enjoyed it at the theatre. Well, it's available now so get your hold on. Once you accept that Abe wasn't just the 16th president of the United States, but a very accomplished vampire hunter, you're in for a fun two hours. I watched it again this past weekend and enjoyed it just as much as the first time. The cinematography is stunning. and the axe-work is pretty excellent as well. Abe sure can make those heads fly when his blade swings!

Expendables 2 -- didn't I just post about this one too when it first hit the theatres? Well, nothing says Christmas like a bunch of testosterone-fuelled mayhem with every action star of the last 30 years. Ditto The Dark Night Rises. The last in the Christopher Nolan trilogy, we see Batman battle against the latest threat to Gotham, the terrorist Bane, played to perfection by the very versatile Tom Hardy. If you've read my posts before, you know Batman is my least fave Superhero, but having said that, this latest is pretty good.

Tom Hardy's had a busy year. He is also in another new release, Lawless, with Shia Lebouef.

Men in Black 3 --much lighter than Batman and Lawless and nowhere near as bloody as Abe or Expendables, this is another fun way to spend two hours. I enjoyed this much more than MIB 2, and thought that Josh Brolin was brilliant playing a young Agent K. He absolutely nailed his impersonation of Tommy Lee Jones. I actually thought that they might have been dubbing his voice, but no, that is all Brolin.

On a much much lighter note, try Tommy Lee Jones and Meryl Streep in Hope Springs.

And for the kids we have Paranorman, a misunderstood boy who takes on ghosts, zombies and grown-ups, to save his town from a centuries-old curse. This was surprisingly intense so if you take it home take the PG rating seriously. There is also the rather quirky Disney offering, The odd life of Timothy Green.

I almost went to see The Expendables 2 then changed my mind at the last minute and decided to wait for the DVD. The main appeal is all these big action stars and even bigger egos in one pic. And that got me thinking about action stars/movies and how much $$$ they generate for studios. The amount is staggering- actually it is rather surreal. Collectively the actors in this film have made a lot of movies over the years, some good, some bad, and some better than average that showcase their actual acting chops and not just their pecs. So I have pulled out some of my fave movies featuring some but not all of the stars.

Sylvester Stallone- Rocky of course, but only the first and possibly the 2nd. It tends to gets dismissed too easily because the series got steadily worse as it progressed from 1 through 5, but there is no denying how really good the original is. Especially given that Stallone wrote, directed and starred in it all because he needed work and was having trouble finding anything so decided to write himself a part.

Jason Statham- The Italian Job is a very solid heist movie, as is The Bank Job.

Jet Li- I'll go with Hero and Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

Dolph Lundgren- sorry Dolph, just couldn't find one

Chuck Norris-his hugely popular Walker Texas Ranger television series

Jean-Claude Van Damme is another tough one. I know this is a cheat but the Muscles from Brussels is at his best as a voice in Kung Fu Panda 2

Arnold Schwarzenegger-what to write about Arnold that hasn't already been written? We all know The Terminator franchise, but I think True Lies is his best. He also has a new autobiography modestly titled Total recall : my unbelievably true life story

Bruce Willis- now Bruce I can really get into. Of all of these guys he is easily the most talented and versatile. I remain a big fan of his and recommend any of these---Die Hard 1 2 3 4, 16 Blocks, The Sixth Sense, Hart's War, and my fave-12 Monkeys.

Now that surreal $ amount I mentioned at the beginning? A quick calculation based on IMDB's Box Office figures, not including DVD sales, not adjusted for inflation, and only for the movies I have linked above---almost $4 billion. Would you believe The Die Hard Franchise alone has generated world wide---$1,126,935,581.00!

And incidentally, Expendables 2 is doing well at the Box office and getting some decent reviews. On an estimated budget of $100 million, as of Sept 23rd it has made $264 million. We have the original Expendables, which has gross worldwide sales of $274,470.00. I smell another sequel.

Like a lot of rabid fans I am counting the days to the release of Prometheus on June 8^th. This is Ridley Scott’s—SIR Ridley’s that is—highly anticipated latest movie and it looks epic. It may or may not be a prequel to his iconic film Alien---they---as in the actors, the Studio, and almost anyone associated with it are playing it pretty close to the chest. Alien was the first instalment of the Aliens quadrilogy and the movie that launched Sigourney Weaver’s career, made kick butt heroines acceptable, and upped the ante for filmmakers for years to come.

Scott got his start 35 years ago working as a high powered ad-man. He then tried his hand at movies and had just finished making a feature film called The Duellist (actually pretty good) that hardly anybody saw because they were all lined up to go see another new release – Star Wars. Scott’s next release was to be a retelling of Tristan and Isolde, but after he himself saw Star Wars, he is quoted as saying “this changes everything – it’s time to get down to business”.

6 weeks later he signed on to direct Alien—he was actually 20^th Century Fox’s fifth choice. With its wonderful tag line 'in space no one can hear you scream' it was a phenomenal success. The franchise had a total run of 4, with the first sequel, Aliens (directed by another developing heavy weight – James Cameron) being even slightly better than the original. Unfortunately 3 and 4 ran out of steam. Out of all his movies since, Scott says that Alien is the one that has called to him over the years as unfinished business.

He has had a hugely successful career and any movie with him at the helm is an event. Here are some of his titles which are available at CPL: Thelma and Louise; Gladiator; Kingdom of Heaven; Robin Hood; Body of Lies; American Gangster; Blade Runner.

Prometheus features an excellent cast including Michael Fassbender (X-Men First Class); Noomi Rapace (Dragon Tattoo trilogy – original Swedish version); Charlize Theron – currently having quite a resurgence in her career with another big draw having just opened – Snow White and the Huntsman (here's the trailer). Check out this excellent teen zone post from earlier; Idris Alba (Luther) and Guy Pearce (Mildred Pierce).

Next on Scott’s plate – a prequel --- or maybe a sequel --- again, he is not saying, to his other cult classic—Blade Runner.

Whenever I think 'quirky', two actors come to mind. One is Johnny Depp and the other is John Cusack. Both have been around for a lot of years, both are highly versatile and both can be counted on to give solid performances---especially in very offbeat films. It's interesting to see that both also have new releases in the theatres at the moment. The Raven is loosely based on Edgar Allan Poe's poem of the same name and features Cusask. Dark Shadows is a re-imagining of the 1966 TV cult classic and features Depp as an imprisoned vampire, Barnabas Collins. Truth be told, I will give both of these a pass until they come out on DVD, but we have lots of other Depp and Cusack titles that showcase their talents.

Forget the mainstream Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, we've all seen and enjoyed them, and try these from Depp: Edward Scissorhands, Rango, Don Juan DeMarco, Benny and Joon and the wonderful and truly strange Ed Wood. We also have the original tv series that launched his career and made him the heartthrob of most North American teens---21 Jump Street. I recently watched The Rum Diary and although not a great film it did qualify as mildly quirky, is well acted, and had more than enough to keep me with it.

Cusack has never really been main stream, or at least not since his days as a member of the brat pack in the 80's. Try him out in what is likely one of the most bizarre movies ever---Being John Malcovich. Also Grosse Pointe Blank and the same roll reprised in War Inc ---written by Cusack---and yes that is him doing his own stunts-he has a black belt in kick boxing.

Now to end this post, let me say that the two Johns have in their filmography to my mind several VERY scary movies. 1408 with Cusack just scares the milk and cookies out of me every time I watch it- and I can't stop watching it. And Depp is often at his best when he plays the 'in over his head' protagonist like in Sleepy Hollow. Also, From Hell (a Jack the Ripper retelling-very bloody and dark) and Secret Window.

We know Guest Blogger Trevor like his movies gritty, so on offer is his review of an upcoming theatrical release. If you like martial arts movies they are very well represented at CPL- in fact, too well represented to name them all. So to find all the titles just go to either our new catalogue or the classic catalogue and use Martial Arts DVD as your search term and you pull up a list of over 75 titles! In the new catalogue you have the further advantage of being able to use 'limitors' to select for language, audience, pub date, etc. Have some fun and play around with the new catalogue to find exactly what you are looking for. With over 70 titles, there is something for everyone.

The Raid: Redemption

I had the chance to see the advanced screening of the upcoming action flick The Raid: Redemption. It was without a doubt the best choreographed, most exciting martial arts movie I've ever seen (and this is coming from a lifelong fan of the Matrix). Though the screening I saw was unfinished and lacked subtitles, and though I had next to no idea what was going on plot-wise, the action was so intense and gratifying that it easily leapt to the top of my favorite action movie list (yes, I have a list for every genre). It's about a swat team that invades a slumlord's 30 story apartment complex. Things inevitably go bad and the cops (mainly just one incredibly skilled cop) have to fight through hordes of gun and machete wielding thugs to escape the building. Like many foreign language films, this movie may only see a limited release. If you even slightly consider yourself an action fan, you owe it to yourself to see this one. Just be warned, the violence is brutal, visceral and pulls no punches.

For many years when looking for a sure fire hit, film makers turned to the Bible. As a result a lot of truly classic films were born, with great casting, wonderous sets and stunning live action sequences. There were also some epic mistakes- serious miscasting and barely recognizable interpretations. Now I know you can find these perennial favourites on t.v. espcially as Easter approaches but why not watch them commercial free, and at a time of your choosing. And if you have a large screen with surround sound you're in for a treat.

Grand daddy of them all - Ben Hur. This is one of my favourite movies of all time and I would not be exaggerating if I said I have seen it 30 times (at 3 hours and 32 minutes that's a lot of Ben!). And I've had the joy of seeing it on the big screen. The sets are real- no CGI's here and the chariot race really is Chuck and Stephen Boyd tearing around the track. Still considered one of the greatest action sequences ever captured, the race took 3 months to film and used 15000 extras on the largest set ever built (see the picture- that's a set - with real people- and I can't get the whole thing to fit!). It won 11 Oscars, equaled only by Titanic and The Lord of the Rings Trilogy- and think of all the CGI in those films. It is a brilliant movie.

Spartacus- Kirk Douglas, Jean Simmons (not the lead singer of Kiss- the other Jean Simmons!). This was made the year after Ben Hur as compensation to Douglas for being turned down in favour of Heston for Ben Hur (Kirk was offered Messala in Ben Hur but did not want to play second banana). Again a cast of 1000's (10,000 plus for the battle scene). Co-produced by Douglas, he got so many great actors to appear in smaller roles by showing them each a different script that emphasized their character over the others.

 The 10 Commandments- again with Charlton Heston- this time playing Moses, and Yul Bryner as Ramses. This is a movie that has so many truly epic scenes-parting of the Red Sea/erecting the giant obelisk- it is hard to count. This is also one of the most financially successful movies ever made- adjusting for inflation its North American box office revenue is around $977 million. It is grandiose. We have over 20 new copies coming shortly.

We also have a good animated offering of the Moses story. From 1998- Prince of Egypt. And while we are on animated stories there is also 2000's Joseph, King of Dreams. Also the charming Veggie Tales, which convey moral themes based on Christianity.

The Robe- Richard Burton and Jean Simmons again, in the imagined tale of the Roman centurion who comes into posession of Christ's robe after His crucifixion.

Quo Vadis- Robert Taylor, Deborah Kerr and Peter Ustinov doing a wonderfully mad Nero.

The Passion of The Christ- this is Mel Gibson's bloody, violent and to my mind over the top re-telling of the crucifixion. Of course crucifixion was bloody and violent and most movies do sanitize it, but Gibson seems to relish it. I recommend it with reservations and mostly because it was so popular and controversial at the time of its release. Heads up- for authenticity Gibson has everyone speaking Latin, Aramaic and Hebrew with English sub-titles. Completly financed by Gibson (at around $30 million) it made him a fortune-best estimations are around $580,000,000.00.

Greatest Story ever Told- anyone who was anyone in 1965 seems to have been in this movie. Not the best retelling, but worth a look.

Jesus Christ Superstar---is one of the very first rock operas by the wonderful team of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. First staged on Broadway in 1971 it too was highly controversial. A musical about the crucifixion-what were they thinking? I think it works.

Jesus of Montreal- by Canadian director Denys Arcand and on Mel's must have list when stranded on a desert island.

by Moe

Guest Blogger Trevor promised us more great television recommendations and here they are. FX is a specialty network that features original programming and depending on how much cable you have you may or may not get this channel. But not to worry-CPL has your back.

Just like HBO, many of FX’s shows are of a different caliber than regular cable. With less stringent censorship, shows are able to push the boundaries of what you’d expect from television. Here are a few of the notable series we have in our collection.

Sons of Anarchy tells the tale of an outlaw motorcycle club in small town California. They kill, steal, and smuggle guns all while maintaining a moral compass that fans can get behind (the people they kill really do need killing). It’s been described as The Sopranos on Harleys and after watching two seasons, I can confirm that’s an apt description.

Justified - The excellent Timothy Olyphant stars as the unflappable US Marshal Raylan Givens, sent back to rural Kentucky after shooting a Miami gangster. Justified is a modern western, right down to the quick drawing lawman who might be just a little too quick to draw. Superb acting and deceptively simple plots make Justified an addicting pleasure.

Damages - A legal thriller unlike anything else on TV. Glenn Close plays the possibly good/possibly wicked super-litigator Patty Hewes. She’s out to possibly mentor/possibly corrupt fresh out of law school Ellen Parsons (played by Rose Byrne) while they try to settle a class action lawsuit that rises into the hundred millions. There are certainly a lot of possibilities in this taut and well written thriller. We have 3 seasons.

The Shield is a series that is constantly examining the concept of “The Greater Good”. It surrounds a special task force helmed by award winning Michael Chiklis who stops at nothing to see justice done. Extremely violent and gritty, The Shield pulls no punches in portraying a corrupt police force. We have 7 seasons of this excellent drama.

And check out his Part 1-HBO, for more excellent selections. Thanks Trevor.

Thanks to our Guest Blogger Alex for the following post. She also writes for the TEEN ZONE blog where she recently posted a great Snow White- Redux. Follow this link and take a look- you wont be disappointed. And don't you think her graphics are great!

Oh Patrick Wilson... you paradigm of manliness... you most excellent of studmuffins... I could just... oh, hello there. What's that you say? You don't know who Patrick Wilson is? Ha ha ha, very funny. No wait, you're serious? PATRICK WILSON? Oh for shame! Very well, let me begin your education.

I'll start this way: I KNOW you know who Patrick is, you just don't know you know him. Know how I know? Because this man is cast with THE BIGGEST NAMES IN HOLLYWOOD on a regular basis. He has been the right-hand man of just about every A-lister out there. And to some, his star might shine a little dimmer in comparison to theirs... but not to me. This guy is Grade-A awesome. Just watch this!

Patrick with Gerard Butler in Phantom of the Opera (he sings!)

Patrick with Billy Bob and Jason Patric in The Alamo (he does accents! He can use a sword and a gun! OR A BAYONET!)

Patrick with Bradley Cooper and LIAM-FREAKING-NEESON in The A-Team (hot bad guy!)

Patrick with Samuel L Jackson in Lakeview Terrace (he can hold his own against Mace Windu!)

Still not impressed? Well... Ridley Scott also chose him for his blisteringly-bright, star-studded new Sci-Fi, Prometheus, opposite heavy hitters like Michael Fassbender, Noomi Rapace and Guy Pearce...

Wow! Nothing?!?!? Tough crowd, tough crowd. Okay then... take it from the ladies:

Kate Winslet in Little Children

Rose Byrne in Insidious

Liv Tyler in The Ledge

Claire Danes in Evening

Charlize Theron in Young Adult

Malin Akermen in Watchmen

Rachel McAdams in Morning Glory

Yeah. I knew that would do it. Now you know Patrick Wilson. Now click on all the links to borrow these flicks so you can KNOW Patrick Wilson.

Moe is on holidays right now, so she's asked a few other Movie Maniacs to step in and write some guest blogs for her while she's away. I was totally fine with this prospect until she revealed exactly where it was that she'll be vacationing.

Hint: It's New Zealand.

Now! This is a pretty excellent destination to choose at any given time, but it just so happens to be the BEST destination at THIS given time.

Don't know what I'm talking about? Clearly you're not as big of a fan-girl as I am (neener neener)...

The reason why New Zealand is the place for any Movie Maniac to be right now is because Peter Jackson is currently working on the second leg of his new Tolkien epic, "The Hobbit" in that glorious country as I type.

Now what you have to understand, is that we're still AGES away from the release of this movie. The first phase of it JUST got into post-production, and they've still got loads of editing and tweaking and awesome-ifying to do yet, and everything else is in pre-production. This is ALSO only the first half of the journey -- they're splitting the novel into two films, like any smart adapter does these days.

Which means, my friends, that they are filming RIGHT NOW, in all their dwarvish make-up glory, in beautiful locations all across the land of the Kiwis. And I couldn't be more jealous of Moe for getting to be there.

If the set production vlogs are anything to go by (which I'm hoping they are, even though Jackson is not releasing them NEARLY as often as he should be...) this second leg of shooting will carry on well into December. And even though the sites and sets are a very closely guarded secret, this makes me hopeful that Moe might just stumble across a hobbit or an elf or a dragon here and there. She has told me they love drivng down back roads just to see where they come out, so with a little luck... At any rate, I've told her it's probably best to bring her lady-dwarf costume (beard and all) and some speedy running shoes for dodging the security guards.

As a tribute to the epicness that is Jackson's work in New Zealand, I've decided to include a couple of OTHER movies shot in this locale. Click on the titles for links to the Calgary Public Library catalogue!

Whale Rider, possibly the biggest film to actually focus on Kiwi culture and life, revolves around a young Maori girl and her search to fulfill her destiny. Beautifully filmed, beautifully acted, this one was up for an Oscar and 28 other awards. It won most of them.

King Kong and Lovely Bones (both directed by Jackson) are not set in NZ, but do use its gorgeous locations as backdrops. Both are written by Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, two collaborators of Jackson's on LOTR. Both also have all-star casts, and one of them has Jack Black. What more can I say?

If you're into horror, 30 Days of Night (originally a graphic novel series) is a terrifying, and R-rated, Vampire flick... I promise these blood-suckers don't sparkle. Almost half of the cast is either Kiwi or Aussie, but you can't tell, because they're all pretending to be from Alaska.

I swear, New Zealand must have the most diverse climates and landscapes of any country... where else could pass for Pennsylvania, Alaska, Middle Earth... or Pandora?

That's right, James Cameron's epic Avatar was shot there too. Wanna know why? Check out this article from "Film New Zealand".

Other epic NZ-based movies include The Chronicles of Narnia,The Bridge to Terabithia (starring The Hunger Games' Josh Hutcherson), and Spielberg's highly anticapted Tintin movie, out this Christmas.