Time Out's The 101 Best Action Movies Ever Made

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An official iCheckMovies list (adopted from senorroboto).

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"They get a bad rap from snobs, but don’t mess with action movies—they’re pumped up, loaded with ammo and in your face like Arnold Schwarzenegger on a bad day. Truth be told, no one can live solely on Woody Allen movies or animation alone. We need explosions periodically. Big ones. Preferably accompanied by catchphrases and squealing electric guitars. With crucial contributions from Hong Kong and France, the genre has a global richness that sneaks up on you like a swarthy henchman with a knife clenched between his teeth. And when we arrived at action’s ’80s movies heyday, when Hollywood stars ruled the roost, our research was euphoric. We’ve polled over 50 experts in the field, from essential directors like Die Hard’s John McTiernan to the actual folks in the line of fire, such as Machete himself, Danny Trejo. Critics and experts have weighed in, too."

The list has 102 titles because Kill Bill was counted as one entry.
List was last updated August 14 2020

Modnote about list order: When Timeout changed the web formatting of the list from its previous pagination the ordering of each group of 10 got reversed. The list here is in it's original correct ordering.
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  1. 4 +3

    Lat sau san taam

    1992 — a.k.a. Hard Boiled, in 12 top lists Check
  2. 6 -1

    Enter the Dragon

    1973, in 14 top lists Check
  3. 12 +8

    RoboCop

    1987, in 15 top lists Check
  4. 19 -6

    Face/Off

    1997, in 7 top lists Check
  5. 20 -9

    Kill Bill: Vol. 1

    2003, in 18 top lists Check
  6. 21 -9

    Kill Bill: Vol. 2

    2004, in 9 top lists Check
  7. 23 +7

    Serbuan maut

    2011 — a.k.a. The Raid: Redemption, in 2 top lists Check
  8. 25 +3

    Dip huet seung hung

    1989 — a.k.a. The Killer, in 16 top lists Check
  9. 29 -5

    Heat

    1995, in 23 top lists Check
  10. 32 +9

    Point Break

    1991, in 9 top lists Check
  11. 33 +7

    Ying hung boon sik

    1986 — a.k.a. A Better Tomorrow, in 10 top lists Check
  12. 41 -9

    The French Connection

    1971, in 23 top lists Check
  13. 43 +7

    Léon

    1994 — a.k.a. Léon: The Professional, in 23 top lists Check
  14. 47 -1

    Saat po long

    2005 — a.k.a. Kill Zone, in 3 top lists Check
  15. 51 -9

    Kung fu

    2004 — a.k.a. Kung Fu Hustle, in 11 top lists Check
  16. 54 +6

    Fai caan che

    1984 — a.k.a. Wheels on Meals, in 3 top lists Check
  17. 63 +9

    Ging chaat goo si juk jaap

    1988 — a.k.a. Police Story 2, in 6 top lists Check
  18. 65 +5

    North by Northwest

    1959, in 30 top lists Check
  19. 67 +1

    Zatôichi

    2003 — a.k.a. The Blind Swordsman: Zatoichi, in 6 top lists Check
  20. 70 -5

    Unleashed

    2005, in 1 top list Check
  21. 74 +7

    Ronin

    1998, in 1 top list Check
  22. 75 +5

    Thunderball

    1965, in 4 top lists Check
  23. 77 +1

    Ging chaat goo si III: Chiu kup ging chaat

    1992 — a.k.a. Police Story 3, in 4 top lists Check
  24. 80 -5

    Dirty Harry

    1971, in 17 top lists Check
  25. 82 -9

    The Dark Knight

    2008, in 27 top lists Check
  26. 84 +7

    The Long Kiss Goodnight

    1996, in 2 top lists Check
  27. 87 +1

    Machete

    2010, in 1 top list Check
  28. 88 -1

    Cheung foh

    1999 — a.k.a. The Mission, in 5 top lists Check
  29. 89 -3

    Scarface

    1983, in 19 top lists Check
  30. 91 -7

    Hap do Ko Fei

    1992 — a.k.a. Full Contact, in 2 top lists Check
  31. 92 -9

    Breakdown

    1997, in 1 top list Check
  32. 95 +5

    Dip huet gai tau

    1990 — a.k.a. Bullet in the Head, in 2 top lists Check
  33. 97 +1

    Miami Vice

    2006, in 4 top lists Check
  34. 98 -1

    Swiri

    1999 — a.k.a. Shiri, in 3 top lists Check
  35. 101 -7

    War

    2007, in 1 top list Check
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Last updated on Jun 4, 2021 by PeacefulAnarchy; source