HIT LIST

To me, just about EVERY Action Movie is a hit. It's not often I think I could have done without seeing that or wish I had those 2 hours back. Most of what I write is an appreciation of the genre. A fawning over and drooling on all the best bits.  A love of all things Action Movie!  This list isn't limited to true Action Movies (fulfilling the Action Movie Essentials), there are many on here that are more 'movies with Action in them' but I still enjoyed them. If you don't see a movie on here, I might have forgotten, but more likely it's a movie I would not watch again (the ultimate test). The best Action Movies are the ones you can't wait to buy and watch over and over again, and love to quote.

DISCLAIMER: The site is a hobby and a work in progress.  I add things live, and I know I have a long way to go.  Go easy on me, I'm programming from scratch (tables and links: tah-dah!), and am about two-thirds of the way through this massive subgenre project. Also working on Blue for male-dominated movies, and pink for female-led movies.

The 'BAD'
Action Movies
Just disappointing :-(

300: Rise of an Empire
 A Good Day to Die Hard
Alien³
(just didn't want them to be dead)
Assault on Precinct 13
B v S: Dawn of Justice
Crank: High Voltage
District 13: Ultimatum
(what?! no explosion!)
Escape Plan
Fantastic Four:
Rise of the Silver Surfer
Gamer
Jupiter Ascending
Kick Ass
The Marine
Prometheus
Red Heat
Resident Evil: Afterlife 3D
Robocop (2014)
Starship Troopers 2
(it might as well have been a play)
Sucker Punch
(so close and yet so far)
A Walk Among the Tombstones
Tron Legacy
Zombieland 
(the romance killed it for me)
_________________________

The 'UGLY'
Action Movies
No Excuses!

Predator 2
Shoot 'Em Up
(wildly creative action
but somebody hates women)
The Street Fighter (1974) 
(not for the squeamish)
_________________________

The GOOD
Action Movies
Oorah!

2 Fast 2 Furious
2 Guns
3 Days to Kill
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi
16 Blocks
21 Jump Street
22 Jump Street
48 Hours
300
3,000 Miles to Graceland
Above The Law
Action Jackson
Act of Valor
A Force of One
Alex Cross
Alien (1979 horror/sci-fi not "Action")
Aliens
Alien Resurrection
Avengers: Age of Ultron
A View to a Kill
Bad Boys
Bad Boys II
Batman
Batman Returns
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Battleship
Beverly Hills Cop
Big Trouble in Little China
Black Belt Jones
Black Dog
Black Hawk Down
Black Samurai
Blade
Blade II
Blade:Trinity
Blade Runner (not "Action")
Black Samurai
Blood and Bone
Bloodsport
Blue Steel
Born To Fight
Braddock: Missing in Action III
Braveheart
Broken Arrow
Bullet to the Head
Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Captain Marvel (2019)
Casino Royale
Centurion
Charity Hurts
Charlie's Angels
Chinese Zodiac (aka CZ 12)
Chocolate (2008)
City of Industry
Clash of the Titans
Clear and Present Danger
Cliffhanger
Cobra
Code of Silence
Collateral Damage
COLOMBiANA (Dir. Olivier Megaton)
Commando
Con Air
Conan the Barbarian (1982)
Conan the Barbarian (2011)
Cop Out
Criminal
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Dir. Ang Lee)
Cyborg
Dark Angel
Deadpool
Death Race 2000
Death Warrant
Demolition Man
Diamonds Are Forever
Dick Tracy
Die Another Day
Die Hard
Die Hard 2
Die Hard With a Vengeance
Dirty Harry
District B13
Domino  (Dir. Tony Scott)
Dragon Eyes
Dr. No
Edge of Tomorrow
El Gringo
End of Days
Enter The Dragon
Escape From New York
Escape From L.A.
Every Which Way But Loose
Excalibur (not "Action")
Executive Decision
Exit Wounds
 Face/Off
Fantastic Four (2005)
Fast & Furious
Fast Five
Fast 6
Faster
Fight Club (Drama not "Action")
Final Destination 2
First Blood
For Your Eyes Only
From Russia with Love
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra
G.I. Joe: Retaliation
Gladiator
GoldenEye
Goldfinger
Gone in 60 Seconds
Good Guys Wear Black
Guardians of the Galaxy
Hard To Kill
Hardcore Henry
Heat (1986)
Heat (1995)
Hellboy
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Hercules
Hero
Hobo With A Shotgun
Hollywood Homicide
Homefront
Hot Fuzz
Hulk (2003 Eric Bana)
Hunter Killer
I'm Gonna Get You Sucka
Inception
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Inside Out (2011)
I, Robot
Iron Man
Iron Man 2
Iron Man 3
Jackie Chan's First Strike
Jack Reacher
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit
Jason and The Argonauts
John Carter
John Wick
John Wick: Chapter 2
Judge Dredd
Jurassic Park
The Lost World: Jurassic Park (II)
Jurassic Park III
Jurassic World
Kalifornia (crime/drama/thriller not "Action")
Kill Bill Vol. 1
Killtro
King Kong (1976)
King Kong (2005)
Kingsman: The Secret Service
Kiss of the Dragon
Knight & Day
Kung Fu Hustle
Lethal Weapon
Lethal Weapon 2
Lethal Weapon 3
Lethal Weapon 4
Let the Bullets Fly
Licence to Kill
Lionheart
Live and Let Die
Live Free or Die Hard
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
Logan
London Has Fallen
Lone Survivor
Lucy
Machete
Mad Max
Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior
Mad Max: Fury Road
Mandrill
Man On Fire
Man of Steel
Marked For Death
Men In Black
Men in Black II
Men In Black 3
Merantau
Midnight Run
Minority Report
Mirageman
Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible II
Mission: Impossible III
Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol
Money Train
Montana
Moonraker
Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Natural Born Killers (crime/drama not "Action")
Need for Speed
Never Back Down
Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown
Ninja (2009)
Ninja Assassin
Non-Stop
Octopussy
Olympus Has Fallen
On Deadly Ground
Ong-bak
Ong bak 2
Ong Bak 3
On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Out For Justice
Pain & Gain
Parker
Patriot Games
Passenger 57
Pitch Black
Point Blank
Point Break
Point of No Return
Predator
Predators
Quantum of Solace
Raging Phoenix
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Rambo: First Blood Part II
Rambo III
Rambo
Resident Evil
Return of the Dragon
Ride Along
Robocop
Rocky (1976 Drama/Sport not "Action")
Rocky II (1979 Drama/Sport not "Action")
Rocky III (1982 Drama/Sport not "Action")
Rocky IV (1985 Drama/Sport not "Action")
Rocky V  (1990 Drama/Sport not "Action")
Rocky Balboa (2006 Drama/Sport not "Action")
Rogue One
Romancing The Stone
Romeo Must Die
Rumble in The Bronx
Runaway
Rush Hour
Rush Hour 2
Rush Hour 3
Sinners and Saints
Sharky's Machine
Skyfall
Smokey and the Bandit
Snitch
Snowpiercer
Soldier
Solomon Kane
Spawn
Spider-Man
Speed
Stander
Starship Troopers
Star Trek
Star Trek Beyond
Star Trek Into Darkness
Star Trek: The Motion Picture
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
Star Trek: The Voyage Home
Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope
Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of The Jedi
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)
Star Wars: Episode IX (2019)
Stick
Superman
Superman Returns
Takers
Tango & Cash
Taxi
Taxi 2
Taxi 3
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
Terminator Salvation
The 6th Day
The A-Team
The Amazing Spider-Man
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
The Avengers
The Bourne Identity
The Bourne Supremacy
The Bourne Ultimatum
The Chronicles of Riddick
The Dark Knight Rises
The Count of Monte Cristo
The Equalizer
The Expendables
The Expendables 2
The Expendables 3
The Fast and The Furious
The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift
The French Connection
The Fugutive
The Gauntlet
The Gray Man
The Great Wall
The Heat
The Hurt Locker
The Incredible Hulk (2008 Edward Norton)
The Italian Job
The Karate Kid (1984)
The Karate [Kung Fu] Kid (2010)
The Last Boy Scout
The Last Stand
The Legend of Drunken Master
The Living Daylights
The Long Kiss Goodnight
The Man with the Iron Fists
The Man with the Golden Gun
The Matrix
The Matrix Reloaded
The Matrix Revolutions
The Mummy (2017)
The Mummy
The Mummy Returns
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
The Octagon
The Other Guys
The Peacemaker (Dir. Mimi Leder)
The Predator
The Professional
The Punisher (1989 Dolph Lundgren)
The Punisher (2004 Thomas Jane)
The Punisher (2017 Jon Bernthal)
The Rock
The Rundown
The Running Man
The Scorpion King
The Spy Who Loved Me
The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
The Tattoo Connection aka Black Belt Jones 2
The Terminator
The Transporter
The Warrior's Way
The Wolverine
The World Is Not Enough
They Live
Thor
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Thor: The Dark World
Three Kings
Three The Hard Way
Thunderball
Time Cop
To Live and Die in L.A.
Tomorrow Never Dies
Top Gun
Total Recall (1990)
Transformers
Transformers: Age of Extinction
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Transformers: The Last Knight (2017)
Transporter 2
Transporter 3
Triple 9
Tron
True Lies
True Romance
Ultraviolet
Under Siege
Under Siege 2: Dark Territory
Undisputed
Undisputed II: Last Man Standing
Undisputed III: Redemption
Universal Soldier
Universal Soldier: The Return
Universal Soldier: Regeneration
Walking Tall
Wanted
Warcraft
Warrior
White House Down
World War Z
Wu Xia
X-Men
X-Men 2: X-Men United
X-Men: Days of Future Past
X-Men: First Class
X-Men: The Last Stand
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
You Only Live Twice
Zero Dark Thirty  (Dir. Kathryn Bigelow)

Action Movie
SUB-GENRES
(under construction)

ADVENTURE
Jason and the Argonauts
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Tron
Jurassic Park
IJ and The Temple of Doom
The Lost World: Jurassic Park
Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade
The Mummy
The Mummy Returns
Jurassic Park III
LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring
The Count of Monte Cristo
The Scorpion King
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
King Kong (2005)
IJ and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
TM: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Clash of the Titans
Predators
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
John Carter
Star Trek Into Darkness
World War Z

ALL FOR LOVE
Sharky's Machine
Romancing The Stone
Mission: Impossbile 2
Gone in 60 Seconds
Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Mission: Impossible III
Casino Royale
Knight & Day
Fast 6
3 Days to Kill
The Equalizer
Jupiter Ascending
Deadpool

plus . . . not technically "Action"
Kalifornia
Natural Born Killers
True Romance

 

ARNOLD MOVIES

BOND
Dr. No
From Russia with Love
Goldfinger
Thunderball
You Only Live Twice
On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Diamonds Are Forever
Live and Let Die
The Man with the Golden Gun
The Spy Who Loved Me
Moonraker
For Your Eyes Only
Octopussy
A View to a Kill
The Living Daylights
Licence to Kill
GoldenEye
Tomorrow Never Dies
The World Is Not Enough
Die Another Day
Casino Royale
Quantum of Solace
Skyfall
Kingsman: The Secret Service
 

BUDDY
48 Hrs.
Beverly Hills Cop
Top Gun
Heat (1986)
Lethal Weapon
Midnight Run
Lethal Weapon 2
Tango & Cash
The Last Boy Scout
Lethal Weapon 3
True Lies
Die Hard With A Vengeance
Broken Arrow
Lethal Weapon 4
Rush Hour
Bad Boys
Rush Hour 2
Hollywood Homicide
The Rundown
Hot Fuzz
Rush Hour 3
Cop Out
Undisputed III: Redemption
The Other Guys
21 Jump Street
The Heat
2 Guns
 

CHASE

Death Race 2000
Smokey and the Bandit
The Gauntlet
Blade Runner
The Terminator
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Cliffhanger
The Fugutive
Face/Off
Taxi
Taxi 2
The Transporter
Taxi 3
The Chronicles of Riddick
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
Transporter 2
Transporter 3
Centurion
Hardcore Henry
Jurassic World
 

FIGHT

Rocky (not "Action")
Every Which Way But Loose
Rocky II (not "Action")
Rocky III (not "Action")
The Karate Kid (1984)
Rocky IV (not "Action")
Bloodsport
Rocky V (not "Action")
Lionheart
Fight Club (not "Action")
Gladiator
Undisputed
Rocky Balboa
Undisputed II: Last Man Standing
Never Back Down
Blood and Bone
The Karate Kid (2010)
Undisputed III: Redemption
(see Buddy movies)
Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown
Warrior
Homefront

GRRRL POWER

Alien
Blue Steel
Point of No Return
The Long Kiss Goodnight
Charlie's Angels
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Resident Evil
Kill Bill: Vol. 1
Ultraviolet
Chocolate
Raging Phoenix
Lucy
Mad Max: Fury Road
SW: Episode VII - The Force Awakens

HEIST
Under Siege
Heat (1995)
Executive Decision
Three Kings
Mission: Impossible II
3,000 Miles to Graceland
The Fast and The Furious
The Italian Job
The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
Stander
Inception
Takers
Parker
Rogue One

(not "Action")
Lock, Stock and
Two Smoking Barrels
 

MARTIAL ARTS
Black Samurai
Enter The Dragon
Kung Fu Hustle

 REVENGE
Conan the Barbarian (1982)
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
Commando
Robocop
The Count of Monte Cristo
Kill Bill Vol. 1
The Punisher (2004)
Quantum of Solace
Machete
Conan the Barbarian (2011)
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
Need for Speed
Bullet to the Head
John Wick
John Wick: Chapter 2

SUPER COP
The French Connection
Dirty Harry
Code of Silence
To Live and Die in L.A.
Cobra
Robocop
Die Hard
Die Hard 2
Death Warrant
Dark Angel
Hard To Kill
Marked For Death
Out For Justice
Under Siege
On Deadly Ground
Patriot Games
Clear and Present Danger
Face/Off
Passenger 57
Demolition Man
Time Cop
Speed
Die Hard With a Vengeance
Judge Dredd
Walking Tall
Live Free or Die Hard
Sinners & Saints
The Gray Man

SUPERHERO
Superman
Batman
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Dick Tracy
Batman Returns
Spawn
Blade
Blade
X-Men
Blade II
Spider-Man
X-Men 2: X-Men United
Hulk
Hellboy
The Punisher
Blade:Trinity
Fantastic Four
Iron Man
The Incredible Hulk
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Iron Man 2
Thor
X-Men: First Class
Captain America: The First Avenger
The Avengers
The Amazing Spider-man
Iron Man 3
Man of Steel
The Wolverine

SUPER SOLDIER
First Blood
Rambo: First Blood Part II
Commando
Aliens
Predator
Rambo III
Cyborg
Universal Soldier
Under Siege
Soldier
Black Hawk Down
300
Rambo
The Hurt Locker
Universal Solider: Regeneration
The A-Team
The Expendables
Act of Valor
The Expendables 2
G.I. Joe Retaliation
Lone Survivor
The Expendables 3
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers
of Benghazi
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back
Wolf Warrior II
The Predator