Media
The main target audience for an action adventure film would be men in between the 23-35-age bracket. It is this age demographic, the majority of which are of the moneymaking fraternity and therefore if a movie can become a hit with this age group it has the possibilities of making a huge profit. This audience imagine them self as the protagonist, the action hero; saving the day, getting the girl, fighting off huge armies of men etc. The films themselves are an easy way of escaping reality and descending into a world of all that which is considered to appeal to men. Guns, fights, gore, women, all these things are stereotypically associated with men and all of these elements have their part to play in an action adventure film. There is a major escape from reality when it comes to action adventure films, most men have a regular nine to five job and a mid-card place in society and rarely come into contact with such things as terrorists and weapons of mass destruction. One of the things action adventure films try do is take a supposedly “ordinary man” and put him into extraordinary conditions (E.G. Bruce Willis in Die Hard as an common, everyday cop, visiting his family who is then thrust into the midst of a hostage situation). This suggests that he is just an ordinary policeman, that it could be anyone and therefore reinforces the idea that the men could see themselves on screen. Action adventure films rely on the power of the special effects and the possible fan-base of whatever action star they are employing and usually lay on no more than a wafer thin plot. It is this eye candy approach that makes it easy to enjoy an action adventure film without having to think too hard or concentrate on every little detail for fear of missing something vital. Also with an action adventure film, there is the comfort of a “happy ending” every time. No matter the odds, Schwarzenegger will always come out on top. The protagonist of the film will always overcome the antagonist and therefore the audience is left with a sense of enjoyment and the film finishes on a high rather than having the antagonist come out on top and making the film end on a downer. There is then obviously the chance to see some almost gravity defying stunt work which usually involve great heights or an explosion of some kind and are where the bulk of the movie’s budget is spent making it the main spectacle of the film ending more often than not with breathtaking results. Action films are mindless fun for the audience and often bring in huge amounts of box office revenue and the two of these features combined should see the continuance of the genre for many years.