Support NeoGAF

[inm8num2]

***VOTING CLOSED***

We've had a great run of action movies lately, and we're long overdue for a ranking of the best the genre has to offer!

Rules:

- List a minimum of five and maximum of ten choices for your top action movies of all time.
- Number lists in order starting with your top choice (lists without numbering won't be counted).

* 10 points go to your #1 choice, 9 points to #2, etc.
* You can add some comments with each entry if you'd like, but if you do that bold each movie title or otherwise make your rankings easily discernible (like this or this).
* Feel free to include honorable mentions or rankings beyond the top 10 (which don't count toward voting), but again make sure your top 10 stands out clearly (like this or this).

- Make only one top ten list. You can edit your list as long as voting is still open.
- Voting will end roughly on September 12, 10PM EDT (7PM PDT). I'll bump the thread with a warning a day or two in advance depending on when the rate of new ballots slows down significantly.
- After compiling the results I'll make a new thread and post the link here as well.

Please remember that everyone's rankings are subjective - the results thread will provide for some fun debates/discussions, but let's try to keep this thread focused on voting.

Have fun!

Some reference lists of greatest action movies of all time (thanks to BobbyRoberts):
http://www.timeout.com/newyork/film/best-action-movies
http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/01/10/the-top-25-action-movies
http://whatculture.com/gallery/50-greatest-action-movies-of-all-time
http://www.gamesradar.com/50-best-action-movies/
http://hiconsumption.com/2014/03/the-50-best-action-movies-of-all-time/
http://www.ranker.com/crowdranked-list/best-action-movies
http://digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/movie-pages/movie_action.html

What is an action film?
I don't think this should be an issue here, but just in case I like this definition from wikipedia:

Action film is a film genre in which one or more heroes are thrust into a series of challenges that typically include physical feats, extended fight scenes, violence, and frantic chases. Action films tend to feature a resourceful character struggling against incredible odds, which include life-threatening situations, a villain, or a pursuit which generally concludes in victory for the hero.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

Didn't even know this was coming.

1) Raiders of the Lost Ark

2) Die Hard

3) Mad Max: Fury Road

4) ALIENS

5) Predator

6) The Road Warrior

7) Drunken Master II

8) Terminator 2

9) The Raid

10) The Matrix

If you're going "man, I think I might be forgetting some classics, I need some reminders" feel free to check out this Time Out New York article listing the 100 best action films, as determined by people like John McTiernan, Danny Trejo, Luc Besson, Zoe Bell, and more.

 

[Sephzilla]

1) Terminator 2
2) Aliens
3) The Matrix
4) RoboCop
5) Mad Max: Fury Road
6) Die Hard
7) Indiana Jones & The Last Crusade
8) Commando
9) John Wick
10) Predator

Man, this is tough mostly because I could rearrange my top 5 into any order and still agree with it.

 

[George Oscar Bluth II]

1) Samurai Cop
2) Transformers: Age of Extinction
3) Alien vs Predator
4) A Good Day To Die Hard
5) Terminator Genesys

Spoiler

1) Mad Max: Fury Road
2) Raiders of the Lost Ark
3) Die Hard
4) Aliens
5) The Legend of Drunken Master
6) The Road Warrior
7) Terminator 2
8) Predator
9) Hard Boiled
10) Dredd

Oh you.

 

[Laputa_94]

1. Hard Boiled
2. The Matrix
3. Mad Max: Fury Road
4. IP Man
5. John Wick

 

[mxgt]

1. Die Hard
2. Raiders of the Lost Ark
3. The Terminator
4. Hard Boiled
5. Predator
6. The Matrix
7. Starship Troopers
8. Mad Max: Fury Road
9. Aliens
10. Speed

Honorable Mentions: Dredd, Terminator 2, Robocop

 

[True Savior]

What is an action movie ? There are many films with various action events which are not here because they tend to be labeled as something else.

1 - Hardboiled (it's not the best. It's the king of kings. No film is even comparable with it)

2 - Project A
3 - Drunken Master
4 - Zatoichi and The Chest of Gold
5 - Police Story
6 - Drunken Master 2
7 - Eight Diagram Pole Fighter
8 - The Killer
9 - Once Upon a Time in China 2
10 - Duel to the Death

I believe next year a film might be produced that goes to the top 3 (if its as good as i expect).

 

[Dalek]

1. Die Hard
2. Raiders of the Lost Ark
3. Mad Max: Fury Road
4. Terminator 2
5. Aliens
6. The Matrix
7. Predator
8. The Bourne Identity
9. Léon: The Professional
10. Captain America: The Winter Solider

Spoiler

Come at me

 

[ViewtifulJC]

1. Die Hard
2. Raiders of the Lost Ark
3. Mad Max: Fury Road
4. Terminator 2
5. Hard Boiled
6. The Road Warrior
7. Drunken Master 2
8. Predator
9. Speed
10. Robocop

this list would've been more interesting if I allowed myself to vote for something outside the canon...meh

 

[Anth0ny]

I'll have to think about this.

For now, enjoy the GOAT:

 

[Verdre]

1. Mad Max: Fury Road
2. Predator 2
3. Terminator
4. Predator
5. Crank 2
6. Drive Angry
7. Aliens
8. The Rock
9. Rambo: First Blood
10: Leon: The Professional

 

[Zeus Molecules]

1.Terminator 2
2. Conan
3. The Good, The Bad, The Ugly
4. The Matrix
5. Diehard
6. Leon The Professional
7. Heat
8. Yojimbo
9. Predator
10. Robocop

Honorable Mention
The Indiana Jones trilogy
Blade 1 & 2
Raid 1 & 2
Ronin
Kill Bill 1 & 2
Django
Gladiator

 

[Empty]

1. the general
2. the terminator
3. the castle of cagliostro
4. casino royale
5. north by northwest
6. the incredibles
7. seven samurai
8. rambo: first blood
9. the bourne identity
10. raiders of the lost ark

 

[Bobby Roberts]

I actually bumped Hard Boiled out of my top 10 on a recent rewatch of it. I was surprised by just how much it had in common with any given Michael Bay film.

The Raid bumped out Robocop (used to be in my top 10) on a recent rewatch, as well.

 

[Professor Renegade]

1. Mad Max: Fury Road
2. Terminator 2
3. Aliens
4. Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior
5. Terminator
6. Raiders of the Lost Ark
7. Predator
8. Kill Bill Vol. 1
9. The Matrix
10. Kung Pow: Enter the First

 

[Sephzilla]

I actually bumped Hard Boiled out of my top 10 on a recent rewatch of it. I was surprised by just how much it had in common with any given Michael Bay film.

The Raid bumped out Robocop (used to be in my top 10) on a recent rewatch, as well.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

The reasons I like Robocop have not much to do with the action at all. Overall I still like the movie more than I do The Raid, but as an action movie? Raid takes it.

I also left out animated fare because that really feels like cheating, almost.

 

[inm8num2]

If you're going "man, I think I might be forgetting some classics, I need some reminders" feel free to check out this Time Out New York article listing the 100 best action films, as determined by people like John McTiernan, Danny Trejo, Luc Besson, Zoe Bell, and more.

Thanks, added that plus a few other lists to the OP.

Oh you.

I hesitated putting that in there since it might scare some people away or give the impression this is a joke/troll thread!

.

Don't forget to number your lists (makes it easier for me to compile everything).

 

[Eidan]

1) Die Hard
2) Lethal Weapon
3) The Raid
4) Mad Max: Fury Road
5) The Matrix
6) The Killer
7) Police Story
8) Who Am I?
9) Die Hard With a Vengeance
10) A Better Tomorrow II

 

[cloud_sleep]

1. Die Hard
2. Aliens
3. Terminator 2
4. The Matrix
5. Mad Max Fury Road
6. True Lies
7. Predator
8. John Wick
9. Ronin
10. The Bourne Ultimatum

 

[guek]

Ranking these ten movies was quite a challenge. Do I rank them according to which films have the best action or by which action movie is the best film? I ended up going with a mixture of the two that I can't say I'm too satisfied with so my list might change after I give it more thought...

1. Die Hard
2. Aliens
3. Robocop
4. Terminator 2
5. The Matrix
6. Raiders of the Lost Ark
7. Predator
8. Princess Mononoke
9. The Legend of Drunken Master
10. Edge of Tomorrow

bah, this is gonna bug me all day!

 

[Glorious_Paradox]

1) Robocop
2) Terminator 2
3) Mad Max: Fury Road
4) Big Trouble in Little China
5) Hero
6) The Raid
7) The Matrix
8) Dredd
9) Raiders of the Lost Ark
10) Hardboiled

 

[RavenSan]

1. Mad Max Fury Road
2. John Wick
3. Commando
4. Die Hard
5. Predator
6. Aliens
7. Terminator 2
8. The Matrix
9. Crank
10. Ong Bak

 

[RangerX]

1.Mad Max:Fury road
2.Aliens
3.The raid two
4.The Bourne Ultimatum
5.The Matrix
6.Predator
7.Robocop
8.The Avengers
9.Terminator two
10.Captain America: The winter soldier

I'll probably kick myself for not including a few others later on.

 

[Kuroyume]

1. Terminator 2
2. Predator
3. Cobra
4. Terminator
5. The Matrix
6. Aliens
7. The Fifth Element
8. Fist of Legend
9. True Lies
10. Ip Man

Don't forget Cobra people!

Classic!

 

[Incendiary]

1. Con Air
2. The Matrix
3. Air Force One
4. Mad Max: Fury Road
5. The Rock
6. Hot Fuzz
7. Die Hard
8. Terminator 2
9. Captain America: Winter Soldier
10. Lethal Weapon 2

Honorable Mentions:
X. Speed
X. The Raid: Redemption
X. The World's End
X. I, Robot
X. Mr. And Mrs. Smith


This list is probably going to change dramatically once I sit down and think about it - this is just a hasty list to make sure I remember the thread exists.

EDIT: Alright did my first edit - added The Rock and Hot Fuzz to my top 10 and included a few honorable mentions that are some of my personal favorites but I wouldn't ever put in a top 10 list.

 

[Hari Seldon]

1. Predator
2. Conan
3. Mad Max Road Warrior
4. Terminator 1
5. Aliens
6. Mad Max Fury Road
7. Raiders of the Lost Ark
8. Terminator 2
9. Die Hard
10. Rambo: First Blood

Edit: I'm taking out Once Upon a Time, that is not really action and just a pure western IMO.

 

[Doomshroom]

1. Predator
2. Die hard
3. Mad Max: Fury Road
4. Dredd
5. Aliens
6. Terminator 2
7. Under siege
8. The Rock
9. Commando
10. The fifth element

This is hard....

 

[KevinCow]

This is hard. Subscribing to this thread so I can vote later.

 

[Tizoc]

Personally I won't vote but I'm glad to see that Die Hard 1 and Mad Max FR are being mentioned

 

[Arkos]

1. Die Hard
2. The Matrix
3. Aliens
4. T2
5. True Lies
6. Face/Off
7. Mission: Impossible
8. Independence Day
9. Air Force One
10. Predator

Subject to change. 90's ftw!

 

[Firemind]

1. Predator
2. Die Hard
3. Aliens
4. The Matrix
5. Once Upon a Time in China II
6. Who Am I?
7. Commando
8. Flash Point
9. John Wick
10. Starship Troopers

 

[manzoman96]

1. Raiders of the Lost Ark
2. Terminator 2
3. The Terminator
4. The Matrix
5. Die Hard
6. The Empire Strikes Back
7. Rush Hour
8. The Bourne Identity
9. Speed
10. John Wick

have yet to see some notables, so from what i've seen

 

[Jonm1010]

1.) Terminator 2
2.) Mad Max: Fury Road
3.) Die Hard
4.) Raiders of the Lost Ark.
5.) The Matrix
6.) Predator
7.) First Blood
8.) Dredd
9.) Kill Bill
10.)True Lies

Left off things that were more drama, adventure/epic or comedy then action like Oldboy, Gladiator, LoTR, Hot Fuzz. And left off Aliens because it has been a long time and I need to give it a better shake and still haven't got to see Robocop unfortunately.

And if you asked me this question an hour from now a lot of this would shuffle around.

 

[Secret Fawful]

1. Raiders of the Lost Ark
2. Police Story
3. Die Hard
4. Wheels on Meals
5. Ghost in the Shell
6. Police Story 3: Supercop
7. The Raid
8. Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' On Heaven's Door
9. The Killer
10. The Matrix

I don't really think of Sergio Leone movies as action flicks, otherwise they'd be topping the list.

Runners-up

Hot Fuzz
Temple of Doom
Kill Bill
Kill Bill Vol. 2
The Castle of Cagliostro
Predator
Rambo
The Raid 2: Berandal
Who Am I?
Sword of the Stranger
Mad Max: The Road Warrior
Mad Max: Fury Road
Once Upon a Time in China series
Dragons Forever
Project A
Dredd
Hard Boiled
Face/Off
Broken Arrow
Drunken Master
Drunken Master 2
Speed
Armour of God
Armour of God 2

 

[ApharmdX]

1. Mad Max Fury Road
2. Aliens
3. The Raid
4. Drunken Master 2
5. Terminator 2

 

[Akahige]

List was easier than I thought to make, last three were the hardest to figure out.

1. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
2. Drunken Master II (1994)
3. The Road Warrior (1981)
4. Aliens (1986)
5. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
6. The Raid 2: Berandal (2014)
7. Total Recall (1990)
8. Collateral (2004)
9. Hard Boiled (1992)
10. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)

Sword of the Stranger

Now this one didn't even cross my mind at all but I enjoyed it a lot, I have the blu ray so perhaps I need to watch it again.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

The Matrix would have been higher, but the sequels sour me on it. :/

Booo.

A lot of great action films have shitty sequels. It's not the first movie's fault. Those other films faults shouldn't be held against the original's quality. They didn't even exist when the original came out, yunno?

 

[inm8num2]

Personally I won't vote

 

[Sephzilla]

Booo.

A lot of great action films have shitty sequels.

I don't even think the Matrix sequels are that bad.

Spoiler

Come at me, bros

 

[RustyNails]

1. T2
2. Mad Max: Fury Road
3. Aliens
4. Predator
5. The Matrix
6. The Raid
7. Rambo: First Blood
8. RoboCop
9. A Police Story
10. John Wick

 

[boingball]

1. Kill Bill Vol. 1
2. The Killer
3. Die Hard
4. Leon: The Professional
5. Nikita
6. Crank
7. Raiders of the Lost Ark
8. The Matrix
9. Hard Boiled
10. The Rock

Difficult list. I don't see Raiders usually as an action movie (and movies like Aliens, Fifth Element, etc. even less so).

 

[Frankenstrat]

1) T2
2) Aliens
3) The Raid: Redemption
4) Heat
5) Mad Max: Fury Road
6) Redline
7) Kung Fu Hustle
8) Ong Bak
9) Robocop
10) Crank

 

[JimJamJones]

1. Die Hard
2. Raiders of the Lost Ark
3. Terminator 2
4. Aliens

 

[dofry]

I think this is incredibly difficult because defining action movie is a bit hard. There are loads of fantastic stuff but because I feel they did not really fit here as action, I came up with this list:


1. Die Hard

When I saw the movie for the first time I was floored but the sheer ingenuity of the movie. There are so many memorable characters and the situations inside a single building were creative. The action compared to current high level action coreographies still hold up extremely well because each fight is thought out well. No matter how well I remember the movie, it's still rewatchable every year.

2. The man from nowhere

The movie grips the viewer by having the damsell in distress be a small, helpless girl that does not deserve to be in the horrible situation. One could say it's like Commando, but the story is darker and the action is brutal. You root for the main character to beat each obstacle to a pulp which the movie does in great detail coreographed fantastically. Then you rewatch it again.

3. Mad Max Fury Road

80's action returned with such a bang that I was left breathless leaving the movie theatre. I thought this kind of moviemaking was long lost, but I was proved so, so wrong. And I'm glad they did. Visually striking, absolutely brutal action scenes, supportive deep audio tracks and characters that communicate more with glanses than words.

4. Robocop

In Detroit all you can eat means a buffet of blood, drugs and a spoonful of vengeance. Like any good movie, Robocop offers a wide range of evil villains and "the good guys". Mix that with some great dialogue, uberviolence and satirical political messages and you get the best man/robot movie of all time.

5. Predator

A jungle, an invisible enemy, a group of the best of the best of the best and guns. Lots of guns. Even though there's a bit less action due to mainly single enemy, the tension builds up incredibly well as not all solutions rely on bullets flying. The practical effects still work well even today.

 

[Rockandrollclown]

1. Die Hard
2. Aliens
3. Fury Road
4. Terminator 2
5. Dredd
6. The Killer
7. Drunken Master 2
8. Total Recall
9. The Matrix
10. The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

 

[AAK]

1) Legend of the Drunken Master (Drunken Master 2)
2) The Raid 2
3) Ong Bak
4) Police Story
5) The Raid
6) Terminator 2
7) Who am I?
8) The Matrix
9) The Protector (Tom Yum Goong)
10) Hard Boiled

Very surprised at the very few mentions of the Raid 2.

 

[Secret Fawful]

Booo.

A lot of great action films have shitty sequels. It's not the first movie's fault. Those other films faults shouldn't be held against the original's quality. They didn't even exist when the original came out, yunno?

Eh, you're completely right, but at the same time I can't pretend Reloaded and Revolutions don't exist. It's weird because I don't think any other sequels really have that effect on me. But really, it's more like this. On this list, the movies I could conceivably swap out are Cowboy Bebop maybe, and definitely Predator or Temple of Doom. In those slots, ANY of the runner-ups I listed could go equally. Since I can't pick between them, I went for the ones that fit me or that I like the most, so subjective picks I just WANT to be on the list. In reality, Cowboy Bebop and Temple of Doom don't really have the bang for your buck constant action that some of the runner-ups do, and Bebop especially has large lulls of exposition dedicated to character development and some pretty cheesy melodramatic dialogue, the literal opposite of something like Fury Road. It's entirely a style pick, but those slots and the runner-ups basically tie.

It's weird. The way I set up the list is weird, but I'm bad at picking one movie I love over another anyway. Eh, maybe I'll swap out Predator for the Matrix, but if I don't watch myself, I could end up swapping on those three slots all day and at some point I just have to settle for what I put down.

 

[Namikaze1]

1) Die Hard
2) Terminator 2 Judgement Day
3) Aliens
4) Drunken Master 2
5) Raiders of the Lost Ark
6) The Raid
7) Predator
8) Robocop
9) Rambo: First Blood
10) The Matrix

 

[BossLackey]

1) Terminator 2
2) Aliens
3) The Matrix
4) RoboCop
5) Mad Max: Fury Road
6) Die Hard
7) Indiana Jones & The Last Crusade
8) Commando
9) John Wick
10) Predator

Man, this is tough mostly because I could rearrange my top 5 into any order and still agree with it.

Mighty fine list ya got there.