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186 films

Action

Action films are built from movement: chases, fights and stunts staged for maximum clarity and thrill. The roots lie in silent serials and slapstick, in Douglas Fairbanks's swashbucklers and in Kurosawa's samurai pictures; later came Hong Kong's martial-arts and gunplay choreography, Hollywood's 1980s muscle heroes and the digitally enhanced blockbusters of today. Craft, not just scale, separates the great from the merely loud.

Where
The United States, Hong Kong, Japan, India, France
When
From the 1910s; peak popularity from the 1980s
Key figures
Douglas Fairbanks, Akira Kurosawa, Sam Peckinpah, Bruce Lee, John Woo, James Cameron, George Miller
Landmark films
Seven Samurai (1954), Enter the Dragon (1973), Die Hard (1988), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
Legacy
Defined the modern blockbuster and the art of staging physical spectacle

What to look for

  • Clear geography in chases and fights
  • Stunts performed for the camera
  • Editing rhythm tied to movement
  • Heroes defined by what they do
  • Set pieces that escalate

Directors with the most films in this genre

John Woo9 filmsJohnnie To6 filmsAkira Kurosawa5 filmsHiroshi Inagaki5 filmsSeijun Suzuki5 filmsTakeshi Kitano5 filmsBuster Keaton4 filmsGuy Ritchie4 filmsJames Cameron4 filmsMichael Cimino4 filmsMichael Curtiz4 filmsRaoul Walsh4 filmsSam Peckinpah4 filmsVishal Bhardwaj4 filmsZhang Yimou4 filmsAnurag Kashyap3 filmsHarold Lloyd3 filmsJosé Padilha3 filmsNeill Blomkamp3 filmsPaul Greengrass3 filmsPeter Jackson3 filmsTakashi Miike3 filmsBong Joon-ho2 filmsChristopher Nolan2 films
See all 109 directors
Damián Szifron2 filmsDenis Villeneuve2 filmsDon Siegel2 filmsEdwin S. Porter2 filmsGeorge A. Romero2 filmsGeorge Lucas2 filmsGoran Marković2 filmsHoward Hawks2 filmsJean-Pierre Jeunet2 filmsJohn Carpenter2 filmsKathryn Bigelow2 filmsKatsuhiro Otomo2 filmsMario Bava2 filmsMasahiro Shinoda2 filmsMehboob Khan2 filmsPark Chan-wook2 filmsQuentin Tarantino2 filmsRichard Lester2 filmsRidley Scott2 filmsWilliam Friedkin2 filmsWong Kar-wai2 filmsAlejandro G. Iñárritu1 filmAlfred Hitchcock1 filmAndrei Konchalovsky1 filmAng Lee1 filmArthur Penn1 filmAtıf Yılmaz1 filmBertrand Tavernier1 filmBo Widerberg1 filmBrian De Palma1 filmCecil B. DeMille1 filmChen Kaige1 filmChetan Anand1 filmChloé Zhao1 filmDavid Cronenberg1 filmDavid Fincher1 filmDavid Lynch1 filmDouglas Sirk1 filmEdward Dmytryk1 filmGeorges Méliès1 filmGillo Pontecorvo1 filmGiuseppe De Santis1 filmGlauber Rocha1 filmGovind Nihalani1 filmGuillermo del Toro1 filmHal Ashby1 filmHal Hartley1 filmHou Hsiao-hsien1 filmJerzy Skolimowski1 filmJim Jarmusch1 filmJohn Huston1 filmJoseph Cedar1 filmJoseph Losey1 filmKeisuke Kinoshita1 filmKenneth Branagh1 filmKon Ichikawa1 filmLawrence Kasdan1 filmLouis Feuillade1 filmLütfi Ömer Akad1 filmMani Ratnam1 filmMasaki Kobayashi1 filmMichel Hazanavicius1 filmNicholas Ray1 filmOnur Ünlü1 filmRadu Muntean1 filmRobert Siodmak1 filmSam Mendes1 filmSamuel Fuller1 filmSerdar Akar1 filmSergei Eisenstein1 filmSergio Corbucci1 filmShohei Imamura1 filmSteve McQueen1 filmSteven Soderbergh1 filmSteven Spielberg1 filmTadashi Imai1 filmTed Kotcheff1 filmTeinosuke Kinugasa1 filmTerrence Malick1 filmThomas Vinterberg1 filmTobe Hooper1 filmWalter Salles1 filmWerner Herzog1 filmWes Anderson1 filmWim Wenders1 film

Often combined with

Drama Crime Adventure Comedy Thriller Sci-Fi

Top 100 rated films

  1. The Fellowship of the Ring 2001 · Peter Jackson · IMDb 8.9
  2. Seven Samurai 1954 · Akira Kurosawa · IMDb 8.6
  3. Star Wars 1977 · George Lucas · IMDb 8.6
  4. Terminator 2: Judgment Day 1991 · James Cameron · IMDb 8.6
  5. Gladiator 2000 · Ridley Scott · IMDb 8.5
  6. Aliens 1986 · James Cameron · IMDb 8.4
  7. Oldboy 2003 · Park Chan-wook · IMDb 8.3
  8. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 2003 · Quentin Tarantino · IMDb 8.2
  9. North by Northwest 1959 · Alfred Hitchcock · IMDb 8.2
  10. Ran 1985 · Akira Kurosawa · IMDb 8.2
  11. Yojimbo 1961 · Akira Kurosawa · IMDb 8.2
  12. Blade Runner 1982 · Ridley Scott · IMDb 8.1
  13. Safety Last! 1923 · Harold Lloyd · IMDb 8.1
  14. Sherlock Jr. 1924 · Buster Keaton · IMDb 8.1
  15. The General 1926 · Buster Keaton · IMDb 8.1
  16. The Terminator 1984 · James Cameron · IMDb 8.1
  17. White Heat 1949 · Raoul Walsh · IMDb 8.1
  18. Akira 1988 · Katsuhiro Otomo · IMDb 8.0
  19. Blade Runner 2049 2017 · Denis Villeneuve · IMDb 8.0
  20. Dune 2021 · Denis Villeneuve · IMDb 8.0
  21. Elite Squad 2007 · José Padilha · IMDb 8.0
  22. Kill Bill: Vol. 2 2004 · Quentin Tarantino · IMDb 8.0
  23. Sanjuro 1962 · Akira Kurosawa · IMDb 8.0
  24. The Revenant 2015 · Alejandro G. Iñárritu · IMDb 8.0
  25. Avatar 2009 · James Cameron · IMDb 7.9
  26. District 9 2009 · Neill Blomkamp · IMDb 7.9
  27. Hero 2002 · Zhang Yimou · IMDb 7.9
  28. The Adventures of Robin Hood 1938 · Michael Curtiz · IMDb 7.9
  29. The Wild Bunch 1969 · Sam Peckinpah · IMDb 7.9
  30. Aguirre, the Wrath of God 1972 · Werner Herzog · IMDb 7.8
  31. Captain Phillips 2013 · Paul Greengrass · IMDb 7.8
  32. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon 2000 · Ang Lee · IMDb 7.8
  33. Dunkirk 2017 · Christopher Nolan · IMDb 7.8
  34. Skyfall 2012 · Sam Mendes · IMDb 7.8
  35. Steamboat Bill, Jr. 1928 · Buster Keaton · IMDb 7.8
  36. The Gentlemen 2019 · Guy Ritchie · IMDb 7.8
  37. Badlands 1973 · Terrence Malick · IMDb 7.7
  38. Bonnie and Clyde 1967 · Arthur Penn · IMDb 7.7
  39. Captain Blood 1935 · Michael Curtiz · IMDb 7.7
  40. Dirty Harry 1971 · Don Siegel · IMDb 7.7
  41. First Blood 1982 · Ted Kotcheff · IMDb 7.7
  42. Hard Boiled 1992 · John Woo · IMDb 7.7
  43. Joint Security Area 2000 · Park Chan-wook · IMDb 7.7
  44. Key Largo 1948 · John Huston · IMDb 7.7
  45. Scarface 1932 · Howard Hawks · IMDb 7.7
  46. The Bourne Supremacy 2004 · Paul Greengrass · IMDb 7.7
  47. The Killer 1989 · John Woo · IMDb 7.7
  48. Duel 1971 · Steven Spielberg · IMDb 7.6
  49. Speedy 1928 · Harold Lloyd · IMDb 7.6
  50. The French Connection 1971 · William Friedkin · IMDb 7.6
  51. The Paper Will Be Blue 2006 · Radu Muntean · IMDb 7.6
  52. The Sea Hawk 1940 · Michael Curtiz · IMDb 7.6
  53. United 93 2006 · Paul Greengrass · IMDb 7.6
  54. 13 Assassins 2010 · Takashi Miike · IMDb 7.5
  55. Bullet in the Head 1990 · John Woo · IMDb 7.5
  56. Chushingura 1962 · Hiroshi Inagaki · IMDb 7.5
  57. For Heaven's Sake 1926 · Harold Lloyd · IMDb 7.5
  58. High Sierra 1941 · Raoul Walsh · IMDb 7.5
  59. House of Flying Daggers 2004 · Zhang Yimou · IMDb 7.5
  60. Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island 1956 · Hiroshi Inagaki · IMDb 7.5
  61. Sherlock Holmes 2009 · Guy Ritchie · IMDb 7.5
  62. The Mission 1999 · Johnnie To · IMDb 7.5
  63. The Navigator 1924 · Buster Keaton · IMDb 7.5
  64. Tiempo de valientes 2005 · Damián Szifron · IMDb 7.5
  65. A Better Tomorrow 1986 · John Woo · IMDb 7.4
  66. A History of Violence 2005 · David Cronenberg · IMDb 7.4
  67. Alexander Nevsky 1938 · Sergei Eisenstein · IMDb 7.4
  68. Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia 1974 · Sam Peckinpah · IMDb 7.4
  69. Bushido, Samurai Saga 1963 · Tadashi Imai · IMDb 7.4
  70. Foreign Land 1995 · Walter Salles · IMDb 7.4
  71. Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto 1954 · Hiroshi Inagaki · IMDb 7.4
  72. Sonatine 1993 · Takeshi Kitano · IMDb 7.4
  73. The Impossible Voyage 1904 · Georges Méliès · IMDb 7.4
  74. The Steel Helmet 1951 · Samuel Fuller · IMDb 7.4
  75. Zatoichi 2003 · Takeshi Kitano · IMDb 7.4
  76. An Actor's Revenge 1963 · Kon Ichikawa · IMDb 7.3
  77. Face/Off 1997 · John Woo · IMDb 7.3
  78. Les Vampires 1915 · Louis Feuillade · IMDb 7.3
  79. Objective, Burma! 1945 · Raoul Walsh · IMDb 7.3
  80. Okja 2017 · Bong Joon-ho · IMDb 7.3
  81. Point Break 1991 · Kathryn Bigelow · IMDb 7.3
  82. Red Cliff 2008 · John Woo · IMDb 7.3
  83. Running Out of Time 1999 · Johnnie To · IMDb 7.3
  84. Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple 1955 · Hiroshi Inagaki · IMDb 7.3
  85. Tenet 2020 · Christopher Nolan · IMDb 7.3
  86. The Getaway 1972 · Sam Peckinpah · IMDb 7.3
  87. The Lusty Men 1952 · Nicholas Ray · IMDb 7.3
  88. The Tour 2008 · Goran Marković · IMDb 7.3
  89. To Live and Die in L.A. 1985 · William Friedkin · IMDb 7.3
  90. Youth of the Beast 1963 · Seijun Suzuki · IMDb 7.3
  91. Black River 1957 · Masaki Kobayashi · IMDb 7.2
  92. Branded to Kill 1967 · Seijun Suzuki · IMDb 7.2
  93. Django 1966 · Sergio Corbucci · IMDb 7.2
  94. Exiled 2006 · Johnnie To · IMDb 7.2
  95. King Kong (2005) 2005 · Peter Jackson · IMDb 7.2
  96. RocknRolla 2008 · Guy Ritchie · IMDb 7.2
  97. Runaway Train 1985 · Andrei Konchalovsky · IMDb 7.2
  98. Silverado 1985 · Lawrence Kasdan · IMDb 7.2
  99. The Great Train Robbery 1903 · Edwin S. Porter · IMDb 7.2
  100. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou 2004 · Wes Anderson · IMDb 7.2