Action Scenes in Movies: A Quick Analysis

Classic Techniques:

Modern Enhancements:

Trends:

More "realism" over time — moving away from obvious CGI where possible
Tighter choreography — martial arts precision mixed with dirty street fighting
Immersive camerawork — cameras "inside" fights (e.g., handheld, GoPro attached to actor)

How to Take Action to a Whole New Level (Without Breaking Physics)

Fighting styles that involve high-speed environmental manipulation (e.g., using collapsing debris as temporary weapons or shields).
Advanced grappling with body physics simulations to make throws, chokes, and collisions painfully real.

Fighting multiple enemies in three dimensions — enemies attack from below, above, walls, water, and air in a layered environment (think of a multi-level spiraling staircase, rotating).
AI could dynamically model crowd behavior so fights with 20+ people feel chaotic yet real.

Action integrated with shifting environments — moving trains, tilting buildings, rotating ships, or variable-gravity chambers (no anti-gravity, but rotating physics).
The environment is not just backdrop — it actively fights back (think tides, mechanical arms, falling ice, sudden fires).

AI to simulate progressive injury effects — a broken arm mid-fight actually alters choreography immediately.
Fighters adjust tactics realistically as they get hurt.

Incorporate sports like wingsuit flying, underwater free-diving, cave spelunking, or extreme motocross mid-combat.
Imagine a dogfight where the pilots jump into wingsuits when their planes are destroyed.

Characters building ad-hoc weapons or traps during the fight using only available materials (John Wick meets MacGyver).
AI-generated scenarios ensure dozens of possible environmental combinations.

Extreme high-speed cameras combined with animation to show microscopic consequences of hits — bones flexing, shockwaves traveling through muscles, objects crumbling at the molecular level on contact.

Simulate realistic crowd dynamics where hundreds of background actors (digitally enhanced) have semi-autonomous AI scripts.
No "frozen extras" — everything moves, reacts, creates dynamic blockages and opportunities.

Wall Tap Grapple — fighter taps a wall mid-air for a momentum reversal to choke an opponent from behind.
Slipstream Punch — using wind dynamics created by moving vehicles to amplify strikes or throws.
Chain Reaction Destruction — an explosion starts a timed mechanical collapse (e.g., falling scaffolding triggers a domino effect into the main fight zone).
Ricochet Combat — bouncing objects (throwing knives, bullets, debris) deliberately off surfaces to strike hidden enemies.
Hydraulic Boost Combat — short, physics-respecting hydraulic boosts in mech suits or exo-frames to dodge or crush obstacles.
Spinning Floor Duel — fighters locked in combat on a giant spinning platform, requiring constant balance adaptation.
Reverse Gravity Flow — action in a steeply rising elevator shaft (not anti-gravity) requiring jumping down to stay safe.
Precision Breakfalls — using precisely timed impacts (like breaking a glass canopy) to cushion or redirect otherwise fatal falls.
Underwater Melee — fights that include using buoyancy, water resistance, and limited oxygen strategically.
Vehicle Takedowns — climbing onto moving drones, motorcycles, or cars without wires, enhanced by AI for precision.

AI-assisted, physics-accurate slow motion (instead of exaggerated "bullet time")
Dynamic shifting perspectives (e.g., inside a falling car rotating during a fistfight)
Simulated AI-piloted drones as in-universe cinematographers following action at impossible angles.