It’s time for another best-of list, courtesy again of the current Rolling Stone mag (see my earlier post on the RS 50 Best Sitcoms). I’m not a huge action movie fan. My favorite movies tend to be dramas and suspenseful thrillers. I can only handle so many explosions. But action movies are a huge part of the movie experience. Their special effects and mass appeal make action movies the ones we often end up talking about. The RS list contains lots of good movies, some I’m unfamiliar with and want to check out, and some I just can’t get behind. In other words, it’s a perfect best-of list.
#25 – The Villainess (2017, South Korea).
#24 – Fast Five (2011). I haven’t seen any of the Fast & Furious movies and now they’re on #9.
#23 – Kill Bill Vols. 1 and 2 (2003/2004). These movies were made as one and divided into two so it makes sense to list as a single film. Vol. 2 fills in the epic story and develops the characters launched in the first part of the movie. Too many iconic action scenes, great performances, and Quentin Tarantino lines to mention.
#22 – Logan (2017). I haven’t seen any of the Wolverine movies.
#21 – Snowpiercer (2013). Before Parasite, South Korean Bong Joon Ho directed this post-apocalyptic sci-fi action thriller. The surviving inhabitants of a second Ice Age are confined to a train circling the globe and a revolution is coming from the class-divided cars. I liked this, and if you did too, check out the TNT show. It recently completed its second season and got signed on for two more. The first two seasons have limited streaming opportunities right now; HBO Max and TNT On Demand seem like the best bets.
#20 – Mission Impossible – Fallout (2018). In the 6th MI film Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) performs more amazing stunts. RS highlights the skydive from 25,000 feet. I’d go with the scene at Dubai’s Burj Khalifa in MI: Ghost Protocol.
#19 – Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000). Ang Lee directed this breathtaking and groundbreaking film. The RS article highlights the sword-fighting scene in the forest. I was mesmerized by the opening scenes of bodies flying and dancing across rooftops.
#18 – Casino Royale (2006). This first movie with Daniel Craig as the lead man is the only Bond film on the list. I’ve seen every Bond movie (I think) and am having a hard time coming up with my favorite. Goldfinger seems to be the consensus #1 as it introduced us to many of Bond’s traits and gadgets that would define the franchise (“A martini. Shaken, not stirred.”) The shark pool of Thunderball is quite an unforgettable scene. I recently watched You Only Live Twice which aired as part of a Bond marathon. The villain (Blofield) is revealed for the first time and Bond finds himself strapped into a plane seat while the pilot bails out. The pilot later gets dropped into a pool of piranhas. Good stuff.
#17 – Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991). One of the best sequels with Arnold back and Robert Patrick as the new model T-1000 Terminator. His metallic shape-shifting face reforming after being blown to bits was awesome 30 years ago. It still looks pretty good.
#16 – The Dirty Dozen (1967). A WWII action film starring “Lee Marvin at his flintiest.” I’m going to check this one out.
#15 – The Dark Knight (2008). Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy is the gold standard of superhero movies to me. This second of the trilogy has Heath Ledger’s out-of-body performance as Joker.
#14 – The Bourne Identity (2002). The Bourne movies based on Robert Ludlum’s novels made a great addition to the action movie genre. In this first one, Matt Damon’s fight in the Paris apartment under the watchful eye of Marie (Franka Potente, Run Lola Run) is one for the ages.
#13 – Midnight Run (1988). I’m not familiar with this Robert DeNiro, Charles Grodin cross-country mission to escape pursuit from a bunch of bad guys. Sounds pretty good.
#12 – Police Story (1985). Jackie Chan
#11 – Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). With the fifth of these movies due in 2022, maybe it’s time to revisit the rollicking, fun first one. The extended opening scene was a memorable introduction to Indiana Jones as he explores the temple cave with its rolling boulder and tarantulas.
#10 – Aliens (1986). This sequel to Alien was intense and unrelenting. I’d go with the first one where Sigourney Weaver goes at a more subtle pace, one with quiet moments and chilling discoveries.
#9 – Black Panther (2018). One of the best of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
#8 – Seven Samurai (1954). The oldest movie on the list.
#7 – Hard-Boiled (1992). John Woo
#6 – The Matrix (1999). Another film that entered new visual territory, bending our world’s planes of existence by dodging bullets and slicing time.
#5 – Enter the Dragon (1973). Bruce Lee
#4 – The Raid: Redemption (2011). The SWAT team has to storm a drug kingpin’s well-protected penthouse suite. I don’t know this one – could be entertaining.
#3 – Die Hard (1988). This is an action film and a Christmas movie. The first of a franchise that spawned many imitations.
#2 – John Wick (2014). I have never seen a John Wick movie. Should I? Now there’s a fourth and fifth film on the way.
#1 – Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). Love it! I watched this one again which I rarely do (too many new movies to keep up with). The fourth Mad Max movie introduced Tom Hardy as Max (Mel Gibson in the first three) and Charlize Theron as Imperator Furiosa. Creator/director George Miller creates a post-apocalyptic desert wasteland; water and fuel almost nonexistent and competition for the scarce resources is brutal. The crazy, chaotic road battle scenes with the pole-pogoing warriors in pursuit are like nothing you have ever seen. The ultimate, “How the hell did they do that?”