The 100 best action movies: film critics and experts, M-Z
The world’s leading action stars, directors and critics pick the best action movies ever, including martial-arts movies, explosive stunts and the best action thrillers
How did we choose the 100 best action movies of all time? We went straight to the experts and polled people who have created some of the greatest action films ever made. We asked each of them for their ten favorite action movies. From there we calculated the top 100 overall best action movies. Here, you'll find the personal selections of film critics and experts including Outlaw Vern and Matt Singer.
Marc Walkow
Marc Walkow is a film programmer and producer. He has worked for the Criterion Collection and written for Film Comment and Fangoria.
- Eight Diagram Pole Fighter (1984)
- Hard Boiled (1992)
- Lone Wolf & Cub 2: Baby Cart at the River Styx (a.k.a. most of Shogun Assassin) (1972)
- Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)
- The Wild Bunch (1969)
- Eastern Condors (1987)
- Dragons Forever (1988)
- Zulu (1964)
- Crazy Thunder Road (1980)
- A Bittersweet Life (2005)
Matt Prigge
Matt Prigge is the film and tech editor at Metro, as well as a foolish grad student at NYU.
- Die Hard (1988)
- Hard Boiled (1992)
- Kung Fu Hustle (2004)
- Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)
- On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969)
- Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
- Seven Chances (1925)
- The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
- The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978)
- Where Eagles Dare (1968)
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Matt Singer
Matt Singer is the news editor of the film website the Dissolve and the co-host of the Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit podcast.
- Die Hard (1988)
- Drunken Master II (1994)
- Hard Boiled (1992)
- Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
- Seven Samurai (1954)
- Star Wars (1977)
- Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
- The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
- The Driver (1978)
- The General (1926)
Ross Chen
The self-described "outlaw film critic," Vern is a longtime and esteemed reviewer of movies, with a primary interest in "Badass Cinema."
- Police Story (1985)
- Hard Boiled (1992)
- Pedicab Driver (1989)
- The Blade (1995)
- Peking Opera Blues (1986)
- The Mission (1999)
- Dragons Forever (1988)
- The Killer (1989)
- Yes Madam! (1985)
- The Big Heat (1987)
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Tim Arthur
Tim Arthur is the CEO of the Time Out Grou
- Die Hard (1988)
- 300 (2006)
- Enter the Dragon (1973)
- Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
- Oldboy (2003)
- The Raid: Redemption (2011)
- Police Story (1985)
- First Blood (1982)
- Mad Max (1979)
- The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
Tim Dirks
Tim Dirks is the senior editor and film historian for AMC Networks. His website is filmsite.org.
- Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
- Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)
- Aliens (1986)
- Die Hard (1988)
- Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
- Speed (1994)
- True Lies (1994)
- Face/Off (1997)
- The Matrix (1999)
- The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
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Tom Huddleston
Tom Huddleston is a film writer at Time Out London and the author of fantasy adventure novel The Waking World.
- Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)
- Raiders of the Lost Ark (1980)
- 13 Assassins (2010)
- Point Break (1991)
- Harakiri (1962)
- The Wages of Fear (1953)
- Escape from New York (1981)
- Death Race 2000 (1975)
- The Warriors (1979)
- Predator 2 (1990)
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