We 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 Tarantino favorite Zoë Bell (the fearless stuntwoman behind Uma Thurman in the Kill Bill movies). The result: The 100 best action movies, a definitive look at the genre from the earliest silent classic short film of 1896's “Arrival of Train at La Ciotat” to Marvel's big-screen fighting force of 2012's The Avengers.
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Captain Louis Renault from Casablanca
Name and rank
Captain Louis Renault from Casablanca (1942), police chief of the Vichy-controlled Moroccan capital, played with urbane charm by Claude Rains.
Worst offense
He shamelessly cosies up to the Nazis, inveigles young immigrants into his bed, takes bribes and deports political refugees back to near-certain death in Europe. It was unusual in those days for Hollywood to depict an officer of the law in such unforgiving light, but then again, he was French.
Mitigating behavior
Turning a blind eye to the shooting of a top Nazi and showing impeccable taste by initiating a “beautiful friendship” with Humphrey Bogart.
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