Showdown In Little MoFo: A List Of My Favorite Action Movies!

Anyone who knows me knows that action is pretty much my favourite genre of film, so here's a thread dedicated to my love for the often critically underlooked genre, a genre often written for it's mindlessness and lack of complexity. In this thread, the aim is to celebrate the mindlessness, the lack of complexity and most importantly, the fun of this often entertaining genre.

This will be a list of 50 movies that I think highly of when I think of action films, within a certain criteria. I don't label films like Terminator 2, Heat, The Matrix or Seven Samurai simply as action films, so they won't be making an appearance. There will also be some "out there" choices and a few that will seem too low, but that will certainly be for good reason.

Also, consider this an encouragement to post some recommendations for me. I'm always trying to see new films and you're certainly welcome to give some feedback to each choice.

So, without further ado, I give you my fifty favorite action films.

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"George, this is a little too much for me. Escaped convicts, fugitive sex... I've got a cockfight to focus on."

50. Lethal Weapon 3 (1992)



While this is the weakest of the series, in my opinion, this is still a solid actioner coasting off Gibson and Glover's immaculate chemistry, as they hunt down a former cop turned cold arms dealer. What I like most about this one is every action sequence is exciting, it never drags and always remains in a fast pace.

49. Red Dawn (1984)



There is still a lot I don't like about this film, especially it's clumsy message, but as an action film, it's superb. The wilderness combat aspect has always been appealing to me, and a few of the performances, from Powers Boothe and Patrick Swayze, are solid. Flawed, but undeniably entertaining and surprisingly more relevant over the past few years.

As a fellow lover of the action genre I'm looking forward to your list Tyler. And if any films come to me you don't list (and so perhaps haven't seen) I will certainly recommend them to you.

Anyway I love the whole Lethal Weapon series, but still never got round to Red Dawn.

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+ rep for not counting films like Seven Samurai or Heat as action films and more rep for Red Dawn. Though it's a shame it's teamed with LW3.

JD, watch Red Dawn!

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5-time MoFo Award winner.

48. Beverly Hills Cop III (1994)



This is probably a bit of a weird one, but the truth is I love all of the Beverly Hills Cop films, and this one is definitely no exception. It's definitely a strange film, one injected with a lot of directorial style (the opening with the two mechanics singing The Supremes is wonderfully random and completely John Landis) and much more focus on it's story than the others (though the story in it is still as thin as a piece of paper).

47. Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)



For a long, long time, this was my favourite of the series, action-wise. Along with the second one, it's probably the funniest of the series and Donner really knows how to stage an action sequence, evidenced by the freeway chase halfway through this movie. Jet Li also makes a great villian, but again, it's the chemistry between Gibson and Glover that has me coming back again and again to Lethal Weapon 4.

46. Death Warrant (1990)



The first Van Damme film on the list, and most definitely not the last. Plot-wise, this is probably one of his most engaging films, as an undercover cop tries to deduce who's killing inmates at a maximum security prison. It's also a lot of fun, with JCVD showing off his cool style of martial arts and a really funny villian in The Sandman. If you're a Van Damme fan, don't give this one a miss.

45. Hard To Kill (1990)



As the case was with Van Damme and Death Warrant, Hard To Kill is the first Seagal film on the list and certainly not the only one to make it. This is a favourite amongst Seagal fans, and while I don't like it as much as some of his other work, I have a soft spot for it as well. Seagal plays a cop who falls into a coma, after being attacked by a group of thugs, ordered by a corrupt senator. After waking from his coma and finding that his wife was killed in the attack, Mason Storm swears revenge and goes after the corrupt senator and his goons. Seagal and his then-wife Kelly LeBrock share absolutely no chemistry, but that doesn't matter, as Seagal spouts off awesome one-liners and breaks bones. And boy, he breaks 'em good.

I like Red Dawn. The others, dodgy stuff...

44. True Lies (1994)



Outside of their Terminator films, this is the only other Arnie and Jim Cameron collaboration, and a very fun film in it's own right. I believe this movie features Schwarzenegger's best performance, as Cameron uses his wooden acting abilities to an advantage, by making him the straight man in an action-comedy. Definitely check this one out if you're into action movies with a lot of humour as well.

43. The Delta Force (1986)



I'm not much of a Chuck Norris fan, and this is one of the only two on this list. What I like most about this movie is just how bad it is. There is a wonderfully horrible '80's theme tune, and the acting is delightfully unconvincing. But one thing they did get right with this movie is how fun it is. The 130 minutes (!) fly by when I watch The Delta Force, which is one of the many reasons why it's my favourite Chuck Norris film.

This list is going to have A LOT of fun movies!

42. Fist Of Fury (1971)



I grew up with Bruce Lee movies (my dad is a huge fan), and this one, to me, is his very best. Enter The Dragon fans will tell you otherwise, but this is Lee in his prime. The film's story is very cheesy itself, but the martial arts sequences are top notch, especially when Bruce takes out a whole room full of students with his bare hands and a set of nunchuks. '70's martial arts flicks don't get much better than this.

41. Air Force One (1997)



Some bad CGI aside, this is a very good action thriller, with a different action hero than we're used to; The President Of The United States. Harrison Ford is his reliable self as the President, with Gary Oldman making a great villian.

Also, watch for a cameo by Tim Allen as a Russian prison warden.

You're right. We will.

I'm not much of a fan of action films, but still... Beverley Hills Cop III?!?!?

I liked Beverly Hills Cop III a lot, I found it entertaining in the action area, which is why it's on the list.

You don't like Fist Of Fury?

I'm not much of an action movie fan either, but Red Dawn I love.

:thumbs up: Air Force One and Beverly Hills Cops movies!! woo

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Very funny about the Tim Allen cameo. 9/10

speaking of Tim Allen, what is that space movie he's in called?

Galaxy Quest, or if we're thinking outside the box, Toy Story?

Not too much. I'm not a martial arts fan. Of the genre, Lee's films are, mostly, bearable, but I love Enter The Dragon.

40. The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)



This is my mum's favourite movie and I certainly love it as well. A great Shane Black script and a memorable pair in Geena Davis as the amnesiac assassin and Samuel L. Jackson as the put-upon private detective hired to help her complement the great action directing from Renny Harlin, who mounts one impressive set-piece after another.

39. Top Gun (1986)



I was a bit iffy about including this one on the list, considering it's not generally considered among the best action films, but one has to remember the entertaining flight sequences, and then the unbearably awesome cheese factor. Add the supercool soundtrack and an ultra-charismatic Tom Cruise to the equation, the feeling of iffiness is gone and the feeling of awesome begins.

I still say Top Gun's the best popcorn movie of all time.