The patriot

Job description: Patriotism is the last refuge of scoundrels ... and film directors. When you're fresh out of ideas, whip up a bit of patriotic fervour in your audience, add a good pinch of xenophobia and jingoism, and stir well. Most movies that appeal to film-goers' sense of patriotism don't stand up to a great deal of intellectual or historical scrutiny ... so put your brain in neutral, say a few 'rah-rahs' for the good guys, and, er, enjoy.

Recently seen in: Ronny Yu's Fearless (not to be confused with the mediocre 1993 Jeff Bridges film). Yu returns from Hollywood triumphs such as Freddy vs Jason to direct the latest Jet Li Lianjie (right) vehicle, which tells the story of Chinese martial arts master Huo Yuanjia, who develops a new form called the Missing Fist, which supposedly emphasises sportsmanship over blatant aggression. He also becomes a high-kicking beacon of rectitude in a stinking sea of corruption, and a patriot of unstinting fervour who breaks bones and smashes skulls in the name of the nation.

Most likely to say: For my country ... aaaiiiyyyyyy EEEEAAAHH!!!

Classics of the genre: He might be an American posing as an Australian in Hollywood, but it's hard to beat Mel Gibson when it comes to putting patriots on screen. In Braveheart (1995), he dons a kilt and blue facepaint to star as William Wallace, a 13th-century arse-kicker of the first order who does a number on the conniving English. Five years later, he's back booting Brit butts in The Patriot, which is as light on historical accuracy as it is heavy on blood and guts - a 158-minute extravaganza that one reviewer described as: 'They kill people. Mel kills people. They kill people. Mel kills people.'

For more patriotism with Chinese characteristics, you might check out Hero (2002), Zhang Yimou's gorgeous epic of a swordsman (Jet Li again) with assassination on his mind when he goes to the brutal Qin Shihuang. For a kinder, gentler patriotism, there's Jim Carrey in Frank Darabont's The Majestic (2001), a proud and witty, Capra-esque hymn to more innocent times in America. And, of course, there are those crazy funsters behind South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut (1999), who gave us the unforgettable anthem Blame Canada.

Ultimate avatar: America might have lost the Vietnam war, but Sylvester Stallone single-handedly makes things right in Rambo: First Blood Part II. This ultra-violent paean to revenge and unfinished business became synonymous with the Reagan years and unleashed a torrent of patriotism. Stallone's character, all ripped muscles, headband and swinging bandoleers, became a cultural phenomenon, despite - or perhaps because of - the cartoon villains and wooden performances. A favourite is his doe-eyed supposedly native guide, who speaks in phrases such as, 'I go America, Rambo', in perfectly fluent California-inflected tones.