50) John Wick (2014)
Directors: Chad Stahelski
Writer: Derek Kolstad
Stars: Keanu Reeves, Michael Nyqvist, Alfie Allen
Action Sub-genre: Revenge, Shoot ’em Up
Synopsis: “An ex-hit-man comes out of retirement to track down the gangsters that killed his dog and took everything from him.”
6 Ultimate Action Stars Who Should Have Starred in John Wick
49) Aliens (1986)
Director: James Cameron
Writers: James Cameron, David Giler, Dan O’Bannon, Walter Hill
Stars: Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Carrie Henn
Action Sub-genre: Sci-Fi, Thriller, War
Synopsis: “Ellen Ripley is rescued by a deep salvage team after being in hypersleep for 57 years. The moon that the Nostromo visited has been colonized, but contact is lost. This time, colonial marines have impressive firepower, but will that be enough?”
48) Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011)
Director: Brad Bird
Writers: Josh Appelbaum, André Nemec, Bruce Geller
Stars: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg
Action Sub-genre: Spy, Thriller, Adventure
Synopsis: “The IMF is shut down when it’s implicated in the bombing of the Kremlin, causing Ethan Hunt and his new team to go rogue to clear their organization’s name.”
47) Lionheart (1990)
Director: Sheldon Lettich
Writers: S.N. Warren (earlier screenplay), Jean-Claude Van Damme (story),Sheldon Lettich (screenplay), Jean-Claude Van Damme (screenplay)
Stars: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Harrison Page, Deborah Rennard
Action Sub-genre: Martial Arts, Tournament
Synopsis: “An Ex-French Soldier begins participating in underground street fights in order to make money for his brother’s family.”
46) The Expendables (2010)
Director: Sylvester Stallone
Writers: Dave Callaham, Sylvester Stallone
Stars: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li
Action Sub-genre: Special Forces, Shoot ’em Up, Comedy
Synopsis: “A CIA operative hires a team of mercenaries to eliminate a Latin dictator and a renegade CIA agent.
What The Expendables Series Got Right (and What it Got Wrong)
45) Above the Law (1988)
Director: Andrew Davis
Writers: Andrew Davis, Steven Seagal, Steven Pressfield, Ronald Shusett
Stars: Steven Seagal, Pam Grier, Henry Silva
Action Sub-genre: Cop, Martial Arts
Synopsis: “A former Special Operations Vietnam vet works as a Chicago cop, and uncovers C.I.A. wrongdoing.”
44) Hard Boiled (1992)
Director: John Woo
Writers: John Woo, Barry Wong
Stars: Yun-Fat Chow, Tony Chiu-Wai Leung, Teresa Mo
Action Sub-genre: Cop, Shoot ’em Up
Synopsis: “A tough-as-nails cop teams up with an undercover agent to shut down a sinister mobster and his crew.”
Why John Woo’s ‘Hard Boiled’ is Pure Modern Action Perfection
43) Goldeneye (1995)
Director: Martin Campbell
Writers: Michael France, Jeffrey Caine, Bruce Feirstein, Ian Fleming
Stars: Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean, Izabella Scorupco
Action Sub-genre: Spy, Thriller, Adventure
Synopsis: “James Bond teams up with the lone survivor of a destroyed Russian research center to stop the hijacking of a nuclear space weapon by a fellow Agent formerly believed to be dead.”
42) Sudden Death (1995)
Director: Peter Hyams
Writers: Karen Elise Baldwin, Gene Quintano
Stars: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Powers Boothe, Raymond J. Barry
Action Sub-genre: Cop, Die Hard, Thriller
Synopsis: “A former fireman takes on a group of terrorists holding the Vice President and others hostage during the seventh game of the NHL Stanley Cup finals.”
41) Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Director: Steven Spielberg
Writers: Lawrence Kasdan, George Lucas, Philip Kaufman
Stars: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman
Action Sub-genre: Adventure, Thriller
Synopsis: “In 1936, archaeologist and adventurer Indiana Jones is hired by the U.S. government to find the Ark of the Covenant before Adolf Hitler’s Nazis can obtain its awesome powers.”
5 Reasons ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ is Absolutely an Ultimate Action Movie
wow this is one screwed up list, cobra #1 really? this movie never even got a sequel because it was one of stallones worst ever, picking it over terminator and die hard, again WOW