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Gifted Shijiazhuang, Hebei-born Qin Peng Fei was a Wushu athlete before entering the world of cinema. After transitioning into the industry, he worked as a stuntman and action choreographer on productions such as John Woo‘s “Red Cliff” and Gordon Chan’s “God of War.” Qin directed his first movie, “Run Amuck” (2019), but it was “Fight Against Evil” (2021) that truly established him as an action director to watch. Since then, he has been remarkably prolific, directing four action features in 2024 alone—each for local streaming platforms.

The wuxia action title “Blade of Fury” follows bounty hunter Pei Xing, nicknamed the Jackal. He is an emotionless loner who travels the land wherever there’s a bounty to claim. However, a recent case involving a fugitive mother and her baby unexpectedly stirs his sense of justice. He decides to stand against the powerful and wicked forces who prey on the weak. Now,...

“An Eye for an Eye 2: Blind Vengeance” is, as the title clearly suggests, the sequel to a film from 2022. The Chinese action superstar Xie Miao played “the blind swordsman”, a fighter named Cheng Xiazi who earns his money as a bounty hunter. He meets a young woman named Yan Ni (Gao Weiman), whose entire family has fallen victim to a brutal attack. Cheng is only reluctantly persuaded to help her with her mission, which is of course revenge. The film lasts 77 minutes and is a flagship product of the bustling Chinese streaming service iQIYI. iQIYI, it seems, produces new films and series practically around the clock. These are now also finding fans in the West. As different as the quality of these products might be – the output of iQIYI alone is impressive.

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Illustrations by Stephanie Lane Gage.As one year draws to a close and a new one begins, we reflect on the releases, restorations, soundtracks, posters, criticism, and more of 2024.Fantasy Double Features of 2024In our seventeenth annual contributors poll, something old and something new.Essential Reads of 2024Highlights from the year’s publishing on Notebook.Fire of Wind.The Best Films of 2024 by Leonardo GoiThis is not a year-end list.A Traveler’s Needs poster by Brian Hung.The Best Movie Posters of 2024 by Adrian CurryOur columnist unveils his favorite designs of the year.Clockwise from top left: Boy Kills World, Life After Fighting, Blade of Fury, Black Storm.The Best Action Scenes of 2024 by Jonah JengA survey ranging from dystopian melees to period set pieces, Qin Pengfei to Bren Foster, France to Japan.Aggro Dr1ft.The Soundtracks of 2024 by Robert BarryIn Aggro Dr1ft, Longlegs, Challengers, and others,...

The Action Scene explores the form, history, and visceral power of action cinema through its set pieces.Clockwise from top left: Boy Kills World, Life After Fighting, Blade of Fury, Black Storm.This past year may have been the decade’s strongest yet for action scenes. Half of the honorable mentions could’ve held their own against most main-list entries from previous years, and some of this year’s scenes rank among the best I’ve ever seen within their respective set-piece categories.The following list rounds up my fifteen favorite action scenes of 2024. As usual, I’ve limited myself to one scene per film, and to films that made their US theatrical or streaming debut in 2024. Scenes have been organized by theme to highlight patterns and enhance ease of perusal.On Home TURFTop and bottom: Fury 12 Hours.A testament to the exceptional work being done in low-budget, direct-to-streaming Chinese...