The Expendables 2 was without a doubt the biggest action star line up of all time. Of course that doesn’t mean it will be the greatest action movie of all time but there is a certain amount of anticipation this time around. Yes, half the cast could quite easily be breaking hips instead of breaking necks, but the film is the only time we’ll ever see Chuck Norris in the same movie as Van Damme, Arnie, Jet Li, Stallone and Bruce Willis.
To celebrate the reunion of Chuck Norris and an assault rifle earlier this year, What Culture has compiled the ultimate list of action movies. A list so expansive that you will no doubt bitch and moan at every turn. A list that ironically doesn’t feature The Expendables but does feature almost every guy in The Expendables 2.
Before you delve into the realms of guns, bangs, high kicks and car chases please note that only 1 film per franchise has been permitted. So stellar action movie franchises such as Die Hard and Lethal Weapon will be represented by what we deem the best in the series. That goes for reboots too, sorry.
Also, this list comprises of films that contain awesome action scenes, not just straight up action movies. Martial arts films, adventure movies and even kids movies feature here as there are moments of action film making at its finest. While the films in this list are ranked, the rankings should be considered loose at best.
As usual, the internet will disagree with our choices and our rankings. So please fill us in on how wrong we are in the comments section bellow.
Please note: The main core of this article was written by Ed Moorhouse but also has some additional writing from Stuart Bedford, who also finalised the order….
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18 Comments
Sahara? Scott Pilgrim? And you’re calling this a greatest action movies of all time list? Seriously you need to see more films. I don’t mind people having opinions, but when you write ‘Top 100…of All Time’ lists you’re expected to have seen as many action films as humanly possible. There’s a lot of films on this list that aren’t action in the strictest sense (Saving Private Ryan is a war film, High Noon a western). And there’s many great action films missing that should be here. Better Tomorrow I and II should be here, simple as that. Evidently you haven’t seen them. You couldn’t have done else they would be on this list.
I’ll come back with a fuller list of what’s missing later.
Missed out Terminator, Casino Royale, Wanted, Ong Bak. So many missed and so many in there that shouldn’t.
An entertaining read, spoilt by consistent spelling, grammar and typo errors! Get better proof readers, guys! Oh, and you totally broke your rules by featuring two films from the Batman franchise!
It’s Batman – what did you expect from a WhatCulture article? Of course it’s more deserving than another Rambo, Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, Predator, and so forth…
I’d argue that – Die Hard With A Vengeance! I have never understood why that film isn’t more highly regarded. The chemistry between Willis and Jackson is great, the action is top-notch, the dialogue funny but not at the expense of the film itself and McClane gets the absolute cr@p knocked out of him. Ticks the boxes for me!
Chris you are aware I was being sarcastic?
That was the guy who finished the article. I had to give it up before finishing it not to mention proof reading it so, yes sorry about that.
Kung Fu Hustle is fantastic on so many levels. Korean film The Brotherhood of War is phenomenal as well.
Chuck Norris is my favorite action star
Chuck Norris is a great martial artist but not at the top of the great actor’s list! How many movies can you see with him in it that he sounds like he is reading his lines from the script? TG by the time he made the move to Walker, Texas Ranger he could at least ACT like he is not reading his lines :)
Steven Seagal is a much better actor (but his martial arts skills are not up to par with Norris)! His main problem is that he has made bad choices in movies by preaching too much in them.
Dave
Some excellent choices (Fist of Legend !!!), but I think your definition of an “action film” is way too broad, making this list feel very random and unfocused. How is Sin City an action film, for example? Sure, it is gritty, cool and all, but it is just a more or less static illustration – I’ll be damned if it has any heart-pumping adrenaline-raising scene at all! Isn’t action supposed to be fast and dynamic? Also, just because a film has a few action scenes, however brilliant, doesn’t make it an action film in my opinion (Saving Private Ryan, etc.). What defines an action film, in my opinion, is that the WHOLE STORY is in service of the action, basically making excuses to showcase as much carnage as possible! Hard-boiled or Face-off, that is what I call a pure action ride (they are both way too low on the list, by the way)! Thanks at least for not putting Die hard on the No. 1 spot, which would be such a boring choice. I think that Wild Bunch is an awesome choice – it is not a pure action film according to what I just said, but it had such massive influence on the action genre that its place is well deserved.
Thanks. My initial intention was to focus on action scenes so I had a really broad scope but then it developed into movies but I had to stop writing it and let a coleague carry on as I had too many real world commitments. But yes, I totally agree I was too broad and my ranking was way off too. Still, think of this as more of a 100 films that have awesome action scenes regardless of genre and are worth watching. Apart from The Octogon, that was kind of a joke. Also, good to meet someone else who appreciates that Fist of Legend is one of the best martial arts movies ever. So over looked!
really enjoyed the list!! a few films im gona try and see :)
Stopped reading after seeing Commando listed at number 97
I think The Untouchables should have been on there, I love that movie. But that’s just me and its not my list. Great list I loved it, Robocop is a personal favorite of mine as well! I have actually decided to copy down this list and watch every movie in order from 100-1 ITS GOING TO BE EPIC!
Terminator 2 is the greatest R-rated action movie of all time; it is better than Die Hard!
Good list, some good movies for me to check out now. My list would be totally different of course, it’s down to personal opinion. I mean, on a list of the greatest action films ever made you do have Scott Pilgrim miles ahead of Commando and Predator.. But it’s just opinion. I’ll go watch some of these I’ve never heard of before.
An awesome List! Making the best action movies list is a hard task by any yard stick. The choice is rather relative in its very approach and very tough to generalise. However, you have managed to bring in a semblance of balance to the myriad lists that is circularized across the web.