12 Badass Action Movies You Need To See Before You Die

5. Kill Bill Vols I & 2 (2003-4)

Funny story: while in production on Kill Bill, Quentin Tarantino knew the action choreography had to be first rate because there was a bigger-budgeted competitor that looked set to steal his thunder, but when he watched The Matrix Reloaded, Tarantino laughed it off and thought, €œI was worried about THAT?!€ A movie of 2 halves €“ one a frantic martial arts movie, the other a thoughtfully-paced modern-day Western €“ Kill Bill has everything and then some. There€™s the dialogue, colourful characters and manic invention that you€™d expect from Tarantino, all brought to life by a terrific ensemble cast, plus enough references to exploitation cinema to keep pedants working overtime. Highlights include Uma Thurman€™s fight with Daryl Hannah and Gordon Liu€™s extended cameo as Pai Mei, whose tutelage gives our heroine the means to escape after being buried alive, though special mention must be made of the showdown at the House Of Blue Leaves. As The Bride carves her way through the Crazy 88, limbs are hacked off and an inordinate amount of crimson sprays everywhere. Eat your heart out, Lone Wolf And Cub.