In the age of memes, Chuck Norris is far more famous for satirical facts about his life than his career as an actor or a martial artist.
It’s amusing that these internet jokes have overshadowed the fact that Norris was a contemporary of Bruce Lee and also one of the top action stars in the 1980s. Forty years ago this month, Norris’ rise as a leading man was solidified by the release of Missing in Action.
Is Chuck Norris the poor man’s Sylvester Stallone? Rewatching Missing in Action serves as a reminder that acting isn’t necessarily Chuck Norris’ strong suit. Norris was a credible action star and a legitimate martial artist, but his performance as Colonel James Braddock is very wooden and stiff. He doesn’t show off many personality traits, and the contrast with Stallone’s Rambo is very clear.
The technical limitations of the ’80s are also readily apparent, especially late in the film when the fate of one of Braddock’s allies is so poorly shot and edited that it feels like the movie is missing critical scenes. There are plenty of practical explosions that look good on-screen, but the actual gun battles between Braddock and the Vietnamese army are almost laughable.
Victory in Vietnam … but only in fiction At the time that Missing in Action was released, there was a real issue about whether there were POW/MIA American soldiers who were still in Vietnam. This movie was released only nine years after the Vietnam War came to an end, which meant it was still very much at the forefront for families who lost loved ones in the conflict. Norris himself lost his brother, Wieland Norris, during the war, and later dedicated Missing in Action to his memory.
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