An examination of the importance of popular action films such as Rambo and Thelma and Louise in a cinematic and political context. This is an area that has previously been ignored by contemporary film criticism.

Yvonne Tasker is a freelance lecturer and writer in film and cultural studies.

Chapter 1 Women Warriors; Chapter 2 Black Buddies and White Heroes; Chapter 3 New Hollywood, Genre and the Action Cinema; Chapter 4 Tough Guys and Wise-Guys; Chapter 5 Masculinity, Politics and National Identity; Chapter 6 The Body in Crisis or The Body Triumphant?; Chapter 7 Action Heroines in the 1980s; Chapter 8 The Cinema as Experience;