The Problems With Action Films Today
Remember the days when action films felt like they involved real people, real physics, and real drama? Believe it or not, there was actually a time in movies when cars could not fly, somersault, or skip across the water like a stone. The heroes of these old fashioned films would engage in fisticuffs with the bad guy and actually be injured like a normal human being. Fire could burn them. They could actually drown if underwater more than a few minutes. Back then, the hero didn't suddenly download karate lessons Matrix-style and subdue armies of enemies by himself as they do today. Action films have become silly to the point of ruination. Sure, it looks "cool." But when reality is removed from action films, it also removes the sense of danger and harm that make the best action films really move. Here are some of the more annoying trends destroying the genre:
By super hero, I don't necessarily mean guys running around in tights and capes. In today's action films, EVERYONE is a superhero. Ordinary people are suddenly able to punch through brick walls, sense impending danger telepathically, and leap from building to building. Remember how Indiana Jones was once dragged behind a truck and had to fight his way onto the truck, get shot, and then beat the truck driver in order to win? Today we'd have Indiana defeating the Nazis while flying through the air in a refrigerator - oops, bad example. 
Action films used to be the realm of adult entertainment. The people in these films had real jobs, wore normal clothes, and dealt with understandable difficulties. Now, comic book films have taken over, influencing all action films to follow their bad example. Not only do today's action films feature unbelievable, comic-styled action, but they also follow the same damned comic book story arc. A hero can't simply be a good guy; now he needs to have a troubled, angsty past and some bizarre choices in evening wear. 
We all know that women cannot and should not be action stars. It looks funny. It's not particularly sexy. If a woman is saving the planet, there is simply no way for her to have dinner ready by the time the man gets home from work, not to mention watch the kids. It was interesting when James Cameron made Ripley into a Rambo-esque action hero because it was unusual. Now we see this every day, and it's getting fairly ridiculous. Action films today want us to believe that a woman can conquer any adversary, even though they can't even conquer their own ragged and volatile emotional states. Here is a handy chart describing what a woman would need to defeat various adversaries: 
And there you have it ... my take on what is wrong with action films today. It's time to get back to something more realistic and less cartoony. I want action heroes that I can understand and relate to, not someone made of pixels and superpowers. Action films might hit harder these days, but they certainly make less of an impact.