NICS: The Matrix

Narrative:
The protagonist - Neo - is plunged into a surreal world when Morpheus recognizes him as 'the One', and discovers that he has been living his life inside the 'matrix', a complex program uses by the increasingly sentient computers to subdue the human race in a false life of ignorance and tranquillity. Neo must take on the 'agents' - super-powerful computer programs that seek to extinguish him and the entire human rebellion.

Iconography:
The Matrix is often recognized by its iconic special effects - to name a few: the falling green numbers/codes which can be seen when Neo realises his powers as 'the One', and which have characterised the series since its release; and Neo's focus ability which allows him to slow time and bend the matrix to his will.

Characters:
Neo embodies the role of the hero, and shows attributes typical to action/adventure films - namely bravery, generosity, et cetera. Morpheus, the 'donor', turns Neo from a computer programmer/hacker into a martial-arts specialist, giving him much-needed potential.

Settings:
The contrast between the realistic yet fake world of the matrix and the surreal yet real world outside of it set a strange, unreal mood to the film and also inspire some interesting philosophy in the viewers' minds.

List of Action-Adventure Films

Spiderman; Batman; Superman; Die Hard; Avatar; Indiana Jones; Crank; The Expendables; The Incredibles; Pulp Fiction; Star Wars; Terminator; The Mechanic; The Matrix; 300; Troy; Gladiator; Saving Private Ryan; Alvin and the Chipmunks; Pokemon; Big Momma's House; The Pacifier; Toy Story; X:Men; Scooby Doo; Tron; The Fantastic Four; Narnia; Harry Potter; James Bond; The Bourne Ultimatum; The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen; The Book of Eli; Hancock; Zombieland; I:Robot; Spykids; Sky-High; The Holy Grail; Chicken Run; Kung-Fu Panda; Karate Kid; Taxi; Charlie's Angels; Rush Hour; The A-Team; Ghostbusters; Ice Age; Madagascar; Over the Hedge; Aladdin; Prince of Persia; Shrek...

Boy, there sure are a lot of films out there that can be classed as 'Action/Adventure'!

Homework1:Genre + Narrative Structure (Propp&Todorov)

The western genre is mainly emphasised by the protagonist's clothing - Clint Eastwood wears a sheriff badge, cowboy boots (with which he lights a match), and a wide-brimmed cowboy hat as well as many other stereotypical cowboy clothes.
The mise-en-scene links into the genre very well too - it follows the constant theme of quickly-built wooden establishments that the majority of cowboy films adopt, a horse is seen and thus the main method of transport for cowboys is introduced, and finally, the end of the clip takes place in a bar/saloon, which is another common occurrence in westerns.
There are also other events that take place which follow the strong conventions set for the western genre, such as the gunfight and the casual attitude toward the stranger's death.

Clint obviously plays the role of the hero in this clip, but there isn't a princess role involved (although it could be represented by Clint's goal of revenge). The villain roles are clearly played by Clint's earlier attackers, and the other roles are played by the civilians and the policemen, and the horse could represent the donor, as it helped Clint discover the villain.
The equilibrium is shown at the beginning of the clip - when Clint is wandering through town; the disruption is his discovery of the horse with 'JED' inscribed on its saddle; and the restoration follows the shoot-out in the bar, when Clint gets the witnesses to put what they saw into writing.