That’s a decent top three, but Top Gun: Maverick needs to be much, much higher
Off the back of the 35th anniversary of the release of Die Hard, Variety has announced its comprehensive 50 best action movies of all time list.
The movies and entertainment bible got together its’ crack, testosterone-heavy team of Owen Gleiberman, Peter Debruge, William Earl, Todd Gilchrist to propose movies for the Top 50 and, ultimately, decide on what made it and what did not.
Interestingly, it explains that the likes of Dirty Harry and the Marvel movies fall outside of their strict ‘action movie’ definition.
There are three James Bond movies in there, two starring Sean Connery and one with Daniel Craig, a sprinkling of war films, martial arts and westerns.
And only two movies from the 21st century make it into the list’s Top 20 – Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) and Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003).
Meanwhile, there are two movies in the top four from 1981, a vintage action movie year.
Harrison Ford’s Raiders of the Lost Ark makes the best action movies Top 50. (Photo by Paramount/Getty Images)
Some big movies that missed the cut include Lethal Weapon, Leon, True Lies, Predator, The Rock, Terminator, Con-Air and any of the Jon Wick movies.
Top spot goes to The Road Warrior, the follow-up to 1979’s George Miller cult classic, Mad Max. Author Owen Gleiberman writes: “One of the great dystopian spectacles, ‘The Road Warrior’ presents the vision of a civilisation reduced to patched-together cars and cutthroat survival.”
So, here it is, the Top 50 list in full.
Variety’s 50 best action movies of all time
50. The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)
49. Top Gun: Maverick (2022)
48. The Fugitive (1993)
47. Vanishing Point (1971)
46. Hero (2002)
45. Rambo: First Blood, Part II (1985)
44. The Day of the Jackal (1973)
43. The Bourne Identity (2002)
42. Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (1965)
41. The Warriors (1979)
40. The Raid (2011)
39. Duel (1971)
38. Inception (2010)
37. Once Upon a Time in China, Part II (1992)
36. Casino Royale (2006)
35. The Black Pirate (1926)
34. Fast Five (2011)
33. Run Lola Run (1998)
32. Commando (1985)
31. Dirty Dozen (1967)
30. Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011)
29. Foxy Brown (1974)
28. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
27. Police Story (1985)
26. Point Break (1991)
25. United 93 (2006)
24. Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)
23. Gladiator (2000)
22. The Wages of Fear (1953)
21. Heat (1995)
20. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
19. The Wild Bunch (1969)
18. Ben Hur (1959)
17. Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991)
16. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (1966)
15. Hard Boiled (1992)
14. The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
13. Kill Bill: Volume 1 (2003)
12. Goldfinger (1964)
11. Speed (1994)
10. Bullitt (1968)
9. The Seven Samurai (1954)
8. Aliens (1986)
7. The Matrix (1999)
6. The French Connection (1971)
5. Enter The Dragon (1973)
4. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
3. North By Northwest (1959)
2. Die Hard (1988)
1. The Road Warrior [Mad Max] (1981)
You can read the full Variety piece, with the reasonings and movie descriptions from the four writers, over here.
