15 Best Action Movies Of The Last 10 Years

If you’re in the mood for an action movie but can’t decide which giant of the genre you wish to see, then why not watch a film that features all of them? The Expendables set out to create a blockbusting behemoth featuring every action star (those they missed were mopped up in the sequels), and for the most part, they succeeded.

With characters named things like “Lee Christmas” and (regrettably) “Yin Yang”, director Sylvester Stallone had one aim: to make an action movie that would encapsulate everything you need to know about the genre.

The plot is pretty basic: you’ve got a group of mercenaries, all with specialised skills. They’re tasked with an incredibly dangerous mission, they quip, fight, and blow stuff up. Roll credits. But the basic nature of the set up is sort of the point. You don’t watch The Expendables for subtlety and nuance, you watch it to see Jason Statham and Dolph Lundgren seethe at one another and fire unwieldy weapons.

The Expendables sets out its stall early, and if you go in knowing you’ll be getting a big, daft, noisy spectacle, you’re going to have a good time. If you’re expecting something else, then you probably didn’t read the credits closely enough.