Few genres benefit from the art form of film as much as the action genre does. More grounded, less explosive genres (like crime, mystery, or drama stories) sometimes work just as well in novel form or as stage plays, for example, as they would in the form of a movie. Yet while there might be some good action-heavy books out there, there's an argument to be made that action just hits harder when it's visual, audible, and presented on the big screen.

Let's be honest: the best action movies are often better - or at least more entertaining - than the best movies from any other genre. Good action movies are worth celebrating, and that's what the following list of titles aims to do: show the action genre at its very best. Adrenaline junkies and action fans should make it a priority to check out all the following, as they comprise what can be definitively declared the best action movies of all time. In celebration of what could be the most cinematic genre out there, here's an overview of the action genre throughout the decades, and the movies that represent it best. With a mix of classics and newer films, the following is an attempt to rank some of the greatest action-packed movies of all time, with all being essential viewing for fans of the action genre.

45 'Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One' (2023)

Director: Christopher McQuarrie

It’s not the easiest thing in the world to label one of the Mission: Impossible movies as the best, as they all have different things to offer while having generally consistent action and sequences of impressive stunt work. The ever-committed Tom Cruise sought to outdo what had been done in previous installments with 2023’s Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, and the results were largely successful and genuinely thrilling.

Like any Mission: Impossible movie, the plot of Dead Reckoning Part One is a bit all over the shop and not too important, ultimately benefitting from an interesting AI villain and using what it has narratively to showcase some truly impressive sequences. It’s a movie that’s worth watching for the final act on board a train alone, but everything up until that point is also great, ensuring Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is a top-tier action/adventure/thriller movie.

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44 'Why Don’t You Play in Hell?' (2013)

Director: Sion Sono

Yakuza movies tend to get pretty violent, but at the same time, few can hold up to the level of carnage and bloodshed on display in the over-the-top Why Don’t You Play in Hell? (a movie that also might have one of the best titles in recent memory). It’s about a film crew going to great lengths to capture authenticity in the movie they’re making, which leads to them finding themselves in the middle of a genuine yakuza gang war.

It's not the most serious of looks at the infamous Japanese criminal organization, but the yakuza movie is certainly one of the most entertaining and darkly funny. Balancing the bloody violence and comedy with some occasional drama and simple but compelling characters, Why Don’t You Play in Hell? is a winner overall, so long as you’re not too squeamish a viewer.

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43 'Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind' (1980)

Director: Tsui Hark

Speaking of violent, dark, and fairly wild movies, Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind is genuinely unlike anything else out there, and serves as one of the most uncompromising and cynical action/crime/thriller movies of all time. The lead characters comprise a trio of social outcasts who one day begin setting off explosives in public places, seemingly for a laugh, which catches the attention of a much more violent and ruthless young woman who wants to use them for her own violent means.

Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind (not to be mixed up with a certain Steven Spielberg movie) looks at social isolation, the tedium of life in the 20th century, terrorism, misanthropy, and the cruel nature of fate. It’s the sort of thing that’s unpredictable from scene to scene, and it moves at a good pace, all the while having brief bursts of uneasy violence and tense action. It’s not for everyone, but it deserves credit for how out there it’s willing to get.

Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind is currently unavailable to stream, rent, or purchase in the U.S.

42 'Magnificent Warriors' (1987)

Director: David Chung

Michelle Yeoh is best known for starring in movies like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Everything Everywhere All At Once (winning a well-deserved Oscar for the latter), but her filmography goes back surprisingly far. Something like Magnificent Warriors isn’t as well known as those aforementioned later films she starred in, but is amazing and underrated nonetheless, and certainly deserving of more love.

It delivers so much action within a relatively short runtime, and is one of those excellently paced movies belonging to this genre that somehow keeps on one-upping itself with every big scene. It takes place during a time of war, but focuses more on explosive action and entertaining spectacle than being a traditional war movie. There are also key places in Magnificent Warriors where one can see other films that may have influenced it, but that’s okay when such influences are remixed and reimagined the way they are during this entertaining ride of a film.

Watch on Criterion

41 'Revenge' (2017)

Director: Coralie Fargeat

When a movie has a simple title, it can be a relatively safe sign that it will also have a simple premise, and that’s definitely the case for Revenge, which is about revenge. Specifically, the individual seeking vengeance is a young woman who’s horrifically mistreated and then left to die in the desert by a trio of men. When she miraculously (and perhaps even supernaturally) survives, she goes about getting back at them in an exciting, cathartic, and sometimes stomach-churning fashion.

Revenge gets extremely brutal at times, and even those who are okay with 99% of violent/gory scenes may find a couple of points in this film to be too much (the self-surgery scenes look way too convincing; that’s all that needs to be said). Still, by committing to this simple premise and tackling it in such a visceral and stylish way, Revenge is a hard movie to forget or shake, and instantly established its director, Coralie Fargeat, as someone to keep an eye on going forward (especially considering this was only her feature film debut).

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40 'Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart in Peril' (1972)

Director: Buichi Saitō

Not to be mixed up with the similarly named Chuck Norris film Lone Wolf McQuade, Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart in Peril is instead an installment in the legendary Lone Wolf and Cub samurai movie series. This is the fourth film that was made within that series, and somehow came out the same year that the first three did: 1972. It’s remarkable how quickly they were all churned out, considering how good they are.

Baby Cart in Peril continues the adventures of the revenge-seeking former executioner Ogami Itto and his young son, here being assigned with killing a notorious assassin while clashing with a feared clan of fighters. The plot isn’t always super necessary, with this Lone Wolf and Cub movie – like most of them – being most concerned with delivering bloody, over-the-top action and taking no prisoners in the process. In that sense, it’s a rousing success, and a blast to watch.

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39 'Last Hurrah for Chivalry' (1979)

Director: John Woo

Any discussion about great on-screen action is inevitably going to involve name-dropping John Woo one or several times. Few directors have delivered explosive shootouts quite as well as he has, but less well-celebrated are his efforts within the martial arts genre, and it’s one of his earliest movies – Last Hurrah for Chivalry – that shows his surprising knack for staging elaborate combat sequences that don’t contain firearms.

Last Hurrah for Chivalry is one of the most underrated action movies of its era, and an essential martial arts film for those who like this brand of action. Its plot can be convoluted, throwing together a group of skilled fighters and giving them all intense reasons to dislike each other and clash, but it never loses the plot entirely, and even if it did, most wouldn’t mind when the fight scenes are as good as they happen to be here.

Watch on Criterion

38 'Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade' (1989)

Director: Steven Spielberg

While it’s not the only Indiana Jones movie worth bringing up when discussing great action movies, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is usually considered a series highlight, and likely to be either the second-favorite or favorite for most people. It retreads some familiar territory during this third time around for the titular roguish hero, but The Last Crusade does have an ace up its sleeve in the form of Sean Connery.

He's paired expertly here with Harrison Ford’s protagonist, portraying Indy’s father, Dr. Henry Jones Sr., with their dynamic injecting a healthy dose of comedy into the proceedings and making this action/adventure film also feel like a buddy movie. That coupled with typically great action sensibilities from the ever-versatile Steven Spielberg ensures The Last Crusade is a great time, and one movie that manages to blend action with suitable amounts of humor and heart very well.

37 'The Good, The Bad, The Weird' (2008)

Director: Kim Jee-woon

Anyone who’s a fan of both action cinema and the classic Western The Good, the Bad and the Ugly owes it to themselves to stop whatever they’re doing and watch The Good, The Bad, The Weird. It’s a Korean film that takes a similar premise to Sergio Leone’s legendary 1966 film and injects it with broader comedy and more over-the-top action, making for a relentless and dizzying viewing experience.

The characters of The Good, The Bad, The Weird inhabit a cruel world and are similarly hard-edged for survival’s sake, all the while scheming and competing to get to a hidden stash of treasure before anyone else. It’s a film that shows how you don’t, by any means, need to come up with a brand-new plot for a movie to have a reason to exist, as the presentation, emphasis on action, and style of The Good, the Bad, the Weird prove to be more than enough to make it feel fresh and unique.

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36 'Mad Max 2' (1981)

Director: George Miller

Though it feels, in hindsight, a bit like a feature-length warm-up for a certain 2015 film within the same series, Mad Max 2 is still an excellent action/sci-fi movie in its own right. Sometimes called The Road Warrior, Mad Max 2 takes the character and world of the first movie and does something radical with them, as while the original from 1979 was more of a revenge thriller that was surprisingly light on action, Mad Max 2 goes for broke and feels a great deal bigger.

And sure, the Mad Max series as a whole would wage into even more grand territory further down the road, but Mad Max 2 was pretty unreal for its time. The titular character clashes in a post-apocalyptic landscape with a foe known as Lord Humungus, who lives up to his name and becomes a great source of conflict, leading to a ton of action crammed into a runtime that’s only a little over an hour-and-a-half long.

35 'A Touch of Zen' (1971)

Director: King Hu

A Touch of Zen could well be definable as a fantasy movie, as it gets pretty mystical in parts and has an overall strange and otherworldly atmosphere. While it does eventually reveal itself to be a rather fantastic martial arts movie, it's a patient film that takes some time to get to the action, so to speak. For the first hour or so of the fantasy-action movie's mammoth three-hour runtime, there's little to no action to be found.

Instead, A Touch of Zen is all about atmosphere and is dedicated to being a slow-burn, though once the action does start, it's spellbinding to watch. The plot is fairly straightforward overall, being about a woman on the run and how she joins forces with a group of monks to eventually stand up to those pursuing her, but it's the execution that makes the film special, and an undeniably essential watch for any and all martial arts fans.

Watch on Criterion

34 'The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter' (1984)

Director: Lau Kar-leung

Like the aforementioned Touch of Zen, The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter is another absolutely essential martial arts movie classic that's lost none of its impact in the decades since its original release. The plot is minimal, all things considered, with The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter's narrative essentially boiling down to an elongated and bloody quest for revenge on the part of one inexperienced martial artist (who soon becomes very experienced) after a violent and bloody betrayal.

It might be a little unclear what all the hype is about surrounding The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter at first, but viewers should stick with this one for the long haul. The final 15 to 20 minutes delivers some of the best and most brutal action sequences in the history of the action genre, and it's all a sight to behold (so long as one isn't looking away from the screen, owing to all the surprisingly gruesome violence that still feels a little hard to watch to this day).

Watch on Mubi

33 'To Live and Die in L.A.' (1985)

Director: William Friedkin

When it comes to the filmography of the legendary William Friedkin, you can’t really go wrong with much of what’s there. And sure, his best efforts were probably from the 1970s (looking at you, The French Connection and The Exorcist), but beyond that decade, his best single film might well be that of To Live and Die in L.A., which is a gritty blend of crime/action/thriller genres that feels of its time, yet also somehow timeless.

Like a great many action movies, the plot here never gets too complex, more or less being focused on one man’s quest for revenge against an elusive criminal after his Secret Service agent partner is killed in cold blood. To Live and Die in L.A. is relentless, violent, and unpredictable, and delivers some seriously impressive action within its runtime, including an all-time great car chase sequence.

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32 'Hero' (2002)

Director: Zhang Yimou

For a movie that’s got a title as simple as Hero, this 2002 martial arts epic does have a surprisingly complex and intricate structure, even if the plot itself isn’t too convoluted, at the end of the day. Things revolve around one hugely talented warrior detailing how he took down three assassins in rapid succession, each playing out through a series of gorgeously filmed and quite stunning flashbacks.

Once the stories are over, other things transpire that aren’t worth spoiling, but the overall structure and slow-burn narrative building in the film’s present does somewhat mimic the storytelling found in Masaki Kobayashi’s Harakiri. Hero is a good deal more action-centered than that iconic samurai drama movie, though, and is worth a watch for just how visually beautiful it is alone (that the action is also very good honestly just feels like icing on the cake).

31 'Drunken Master II' (1994)

Director: Lau Kar-leung

It’s impossible to talk about great action movies without bringing up the legendary Jackie Chan, who’s been in so much (and many of those titles get underrated/overlooked). One of his earlier starring roles was in Drunken Master, and while that film was a more than a solid piece of martial arts entertainment, its eventual sequel, 1994’s Drunken Master II (sometimes known as Legend of the Drunken Master) was a significant improvement in almost every regard.

This 1994 flick is funnier and far more bombastic when it comes to action, delivering some huge sequences where Chan’s character and an ally take on dozens of foes, as well as a climactic fight where Jackie Chan fights another skilled martial artist in a scene that feels like it never ends, all the while continually escalating. Those who aren’t familiar with martial arts outside American cinema ought to make watching the martial arts classic Drunken Master II a priority, because it does undoubtedly represent this genre at its best.

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30 'Top Gun: Maverick' (2022)

Director: Joseph Kosinski

The original Top Gun is a solid enough movie, but not one that holds up particularly well. It's probably liked for nostalgic reasons, rather than for being a genuinely great movie, but thankfully, Top Gun: Maverick was able to build upon it and spin the familiar into something great, in turn feeling like one of the very best movies released during the 2020s so far. It's also no secret at this stage that it's one of the highest-grossing in recent memory, too.

It was far better as a movie than just about anyone was expecting, and arguably stands as one of the greatest sequels of all time, given how much of an improvement it is on the first. Tom Cruise's dedication to the role makes it shine, and all the scenes of aerial training and combat are genuinely thrilling to watch.

29 'Predator' (1987)

Director: John McTiernan

Even if Predator isn't the very best Arnold Schwarzenegger movie out there, it has to be a contender. Predator is a fantastic blend of action, sci-fi, and even a little horror, given it pits a fearsome team of commandos up against a rarely-seen alien enemy who hunts them for sport, and with ruthless efficiency, deep in a Central American jungle.

It's at its best in the final act, when Schwarzenegger's character is essentially alone against the titular monster/alien, with the extended one-on-one battle of wits playing out with minimal dialogue, and plenty of suspense. It's a well-polished movie that's far less schlocky than its reputation might have one believe, and deservedly stands as a 1980s action classic, with the film perfectly combining action and sci-fi to stunning effect.

28 'The Killer' (1989)

Director: John Woo

A John Woo movie that was clearly influential on the action movies that followed in its wake, The Killer is an overall excellent and action-packed film. It follows a remorseful assassin who wants to atone for a hit that went wrong with unintended consequences, only for his personal quest to land him in even deeper trouble.

It's both a tragedy and an explosive, gunfight-heavy spectacle, and the way it balances its somber story with very over-the-top action is something of a filmmaking miracle. Later John Woo movies might deliver even more wild action set pieces, but few action movies hit as hard as The Killer does when it comes to the emotional content of the stories they tell. For that main reason, it's pretty much an action movie masterpiece.

27 'Heat' (1995)

Director: Michael Mann

Heat might not have as frequent action scenes as most action movies, but here, it's all about the quality, rather than the quantity. Its legacy as a great piece of action cinema is cemented by its bank robbery/shootout sequence alone, which is a perfectly executed - and ferociously intense - scene that's lost none of its power in the years since Heat was first released.

Also helping Heat is the fact that it has a fantastic cast led by Robert De Niro and Al Pacino, and a solidly told story that unfolds steadily over an almost three-hour-long runtime. It earns that length and feels suitably epic, making it among the best action movies of its decade. It's also a film that could well rank as the greatest achievement within Michael Mann's career, which is certainly saying something, considering how many high-quality movies he's made.

26 'Speed' (1994)

Director: Jan de Bont

There's a wonderful simplicity and silliness to Speed's premise that makes it instantly hook the viewer in. The characters are stuck on a bus that is set to explode if the bus drops below a certain speed, and so things are always moving forward and feeling tense, given that the danger inherent from such a premise; danger that never fully goes away.

It helps make Speed one of the best movies of 1994, with its cast - including Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock, and Dennis Hopper - enhancing things further. Speed is a constantly thrilling action movie, and it delivers something that's consistently fast-paced and never boring, making it easy to recommend for fans of cinematic excitement.