21 of the Best Action Movies on Netflix Right Now
Looking for a fast-paced car chase? Aerial acrobatics? How about a little fist fight? Or a tiger eating a dude? Look no further: Netflix has your number
There are films here that are sublime thrillers where the action emphasizes the plot, character and message. Others are very stylish and use cinematography and choreography to create an art of violence. Other? They just blow things up really well. No judgment! The only criterion for excellence here is that the film does what it sets out to do and delivers dynamic thrills.
The Woman King (2022)
While the film has deeper ambitions and succeeds on many levels, it’s fun to watch the wonderfully unbridled Viola Davis lead a team of nearly unstoppable African female warriors as they battle colonial invaders. The story takes place in West Africa in 1823 and is based on the real Agoja people (also known as the Dahomey Amazons). Davis is General Naniska, the leader of the country’s army, forced to navigate complex regional politics, although her skills and the film’s most thrilling scenes involve kicking a slave trader’s ass.
Rocky (1976)
The film, which launched one of the longest-running film franchises, began in a completely different era, when a low-budget boxing film starring an unknown actor could receive nine Academy Award nominations and win Best Picture. The film’s essence was a counterbalance to the ’70s-era cynicism (even with the controversial ending), while the potent mixture of blood, sweat and tears was – and remains – invigorating. Modern action films could learn a lesson from a film that gives the characters enough time to really make the spectacle work.
RRR (2022)
A fast-paced action film almost certainly shouldn’t be as long as RRR, but there’s not a dull moment in this nearly three-hour Bollywood film. Likewise, a historical drama that deals with the national trauma of the British Raj and depicts two real-life revolutionaries who died as martyrs for the cause of independence should not be such pure entertainment, but somehow the context only makes it more interesting. satisfactorily. Find a more exciting moment in a movie than when a truck full of wild animals is forcibly released during a quiet meeting on the grounds of a British politician, or when a meet-cute between two main characters involves wild acrobatics around a bridge. If American action epics insist on being this long, they could learn a thing or two from RRR’s refusal to ever sag.
Kill Boxun (2023)
Gil Bok Soon (Jung Do Yeon) is just a working single mother who is struggling to connect with her teenage daughter. Or at least that’s what it looks like. It turns out that the company she works for, MK Ent., is involved in assassinations, and Bok-soon is their top assassin, and she also has a slightly awkward relationship with one of her co-workers. It’s not a comedy, but the film has fun playing with the parallels between a typical corporate job and Bok-Soon’s, and offers impressively well-written characters. But what’s at least as important as all of this is the plethora of mesmerizing action sequences and brilliant fight choreography.
The Harder They Fall (2021)
The modern western tells the story of real-life black American cowboy Nat Love (played by Jonathan Majors), and is joined by several other characters from real-life American history, played by the likes of Idris Elba, Zazie Beetz, Regina King, and Delroy Lindo. This isn’t a history lesson, but Western films have never really bothered with the idea of turning true stories of the old American West into something like mythology. Here, young Nat Love’s parents are murdered by Elba’s criminal Rufus Buck, sending Love on a lifelong quest for revenge. This leads to a series of brilliantly exciting shootouts, stunts and chases that pay homage to classic Western films, but also nod to modern fight choreography and staging.
Crank (2006)
Many films that are often called “dumb” have brilliant, simple high concepts, and Crank is absolutely incomparable in this regard: after being injected with an incredibly potent poison, Los Angeles hitman Chev Chelios (Jason Statham, the king of these types of films) will die (die !), if it does not maintain the level of adrenaline. Wanting little more than to live long enough to take revenge on the mob boss who betrayed and tried to kill him, Chelios spends the rest of the film engaging in the most reckless behavior he can think of: picking fights, driving wildly, electrocuting himself. , very public sex – anything to get his blood pumping. In the sequel, also on Netflix, Chelios is missing a heart (literally) and is forced to constantly recharge an artificial replacement.
Safe (2012)
Before joining the Fast series, Jason Statham was perhaps best known for the Transporter series, several of which are on Netflix. They’re good and all, if a little disposable, but I prefer the Crank movies and this one. Safe is one of his best, especially if you’re looking for something a little more realistic. Stratham plays a trapped cage fighter who comes out of hiding to help a young girl captured by the same gangsters who killed his own family. The fighting here feels real, or at least like people actually get hurt.
Fast Five (2011)
Netflix doesn’t have a lot of Fast & Furious movies (they never seem to all stream in the same place, and unfortunately the movie where they go to space isn’t on Netflix), but it’s the director’s Fast Five Justin Lin found a streak that the series has been on ever since. Expanding slightly on the street racing from the previous films, the film is an action-oriented heist thriller in which cars don’t just go fast – they jump off cliffs and drag bank vaults down busy city streets. By becoming a little dumber and a lot more self-aware, the series has secured its future.
Raid (2011)
A surprisingly simple film, The Raid (also called The Raid: Redemption , which makes it feel like a sequel) remains a great reminder that a film doesn’t have to have a complex plot to be a work of art. Iko Uwais plays rookie cop Rama, who is forced into action when the arrest of a crime lord gets out of hand: the boss forces every criminal in his high-rise building to stand between him and the cops. Rama has to shoot, punch and kick to get to the roof of the building, where his prey awaits. Welsh director Gareth Evans also directed a very good sequel , The Raid 2 , also on Netflix.
The night comes for us (2018)
A successor of sorts to the Raid series (which stars many of the same actors), this film by Indonesian writer-director Timo Tjahjanto ( May the Devil Take You is an excellent horror film, also available on Netflix) tells the story of a Triad member forced to get out of the organization. This film is at the bloodiest end of its genre; the action is brilliant and stylized, but there’s a lot more realism in terms of the blood and gore. The final fight scene is an all-time great if you have the guts for it.
Kate (2021)
Although it’s helmed by a French director and an American actor (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), “Kate” stands out for its anime-inspired, neon, new Tokyo aesthetic. The plot here is nothing new, but that’s not the main thing. Tasked with killing a Yakuza assassin by her handler (Woody Harrelson), the lead assassin discovers that she has been poisoned and has only 24 hours to live (that is, 24 hours to get her revenge). Imagine if the 1940s noir classic DOA was a martial arts action film.
Gunpowder Milkshake (2021)
An appearance by Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh doesn’t necessarily guarantee “action” (the Everywhere at Once and Crazy Rich Asians star can do it all)—but Yeoh’s appearance is guaranteed to be the cherry on top of any action. movie cake. A modern take on the classic gong fu, this film further embellishes that lily by adding Lena Headey, Karen Gillan, Carla Gugino and Angela Bassett (!) Cast aside, the film follows two rival groups of assassins as they battle over the fate of a kidnapped man. child.
Baahubali (2015)
The two Baahubali films may not have the rousing political appeal of RRR (all made by the same director, S.S. Rajamouli) – honestly, it’s hard to beat the thrill of watching snotty colonists get eaten by tigers – but , if anything, these films are even bigger, grander and more operatic to their advantage. Inspired by the ancient Indian stories of the Mahabharata and featuring endless sweaty, shirtless men (and quite a few women, though mostly clothed) fighting men and animals, the first film includes a 45-minute fight scene that ends with the sequel. There’s just enough plot and romance to get the action going, but these are the films that know exactly what we’re here for and aren’t afraid to show it to you. Baahubali: The Beginning and Baahubali: The Conclusion are available on Netflix with English dubbing and subtitles.
Cliffhanger (1993)
I’m not sure there’s any social value here or anything that makes much sense, and it makes the whole movie better. Cliffhanger stars Sylvester Stallone and John Lithgow, who plays the villain so brilliantly that it’s shocking he doesn’t play more roles like this. The film opens with a wild mid-air heist (featuring one of cinema’s greatest stunts ) that goes awry, at which point Lithgow and co. sends out a distress call, which Stallone and Michael Rooker respond to, setting off a series of funny scenes, most of which involve rocks of one kind or another. Because this is a film that delivers on its promises.
Enola Holmes (2020)
Her brother Sherlock wasn’t above fighting from time to time, but it was his sister Enola (Millie Bobby Brown), as we learn here, who really had to mix it all up – with some help and coaching from their mother, Eudoria. (Helena Bonham Carter). Enola uses this combat training throughout the film in fights involving fists, guns, knives, explosives and a moving train or two as Enola searches for her missing mom while staying a step or two ahead of her older brother (Henry Cavill). The continuation is no less interesting.
Bullet Train (2022)
Some of the best action movies have the most ridiculous synopses, and Bullet Train is smart enough to recognize its inherent silliness and develop a sense of humor about things, freeing us to enjoy the fun. In Tokyo, a revenge-seeking father (Andrew Koji) boards the titular train; two British assassins (Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Brian Tyree Henry) transport a briefcase to a yakuza leader; and a troubled American assassin (Brad Pitt) and his handler (Sandra Bullock) are on the hunt for the briefcase. Naturally, plenty of ultra-stylish displays of violence follow.
Non-stop (2014)
Where would a modern action movie list be without little Liam Neeson? Here he plays an alcoholic former NYPD officer who switches careers and is now a US Air Marshal. Shortly after boarding a transatlantic flight from New York to London, he receives a text message saying that a passenger will die every 20 minutes until $150 million is transferred to a certain bank account. Luckily for the other passengers on the plane, Neeson has a very specific set of skills.
King of Outlaws (2018)
Chris Pine plays Robert the Bruce in this film, which, unsurprisingly, takes a lot of liberties with the Scottish Wars of Independence of the 14th century. No matter. In the film, outsider Robert leads a guerrilla campaign against the future King Edward II of England in a series of exceptionally (though plausible) bloody medieval battles. Spears and swords collide in a series of extended and expensive-looking scenes that make it feel like a real (well, sort of) Game of Thrones .
Unknown (2022)
We’re a long way from the adventure film heyday of the 1980s, when something like Raiders of the Lost Ark could be impressive while still delivering plenty of action thrills. This adaptation of the treasure-hunt video game series seems a little more forgettable than this, but Tom Holland is a charming, likable protagonist, and the film has some cool set pieces (including a well-done mid-air chase scene). It may disappear soon after viewing, but it’s fun while it lasts.
Beckett (2021)
The film aspires to the paranoid conspiracy style of films like Parallax , The Bourne Identity or Enemy of the State , but the plot is too thin to work on that level. What Beckett excels at, however, is creating a simple action film about a man on the run. John David Washington plays the main character, who, for reasons unknown to him, is being pursued throughout Greece after a car accident. Washington is interesting to watch as he runs and gets shot at; the scenery is stunning; And the film does a good job of making Greece feel incredibly sinister, especially for a main character who doesn’t know the language.
Da 5 Bloods (2020)
It seems odd to include Spike Lee’s thoughtful history of the Vietnam War, which explores the experiences of black American soldiers during that conflict, as few (if any) films have done. However, part of the reason it works so well is that Lee’s film does all of this while also offering plenty of impressively shot and choreographed action scenes. In the film, starring Delroy Lindo, Jonathan Majors and Clark Peters, four aging Vietnam veterans return to this country to retrieve the remains of a fallen squad leader and dig up the gold bars they left behind. The film takes place in two time frames. It plays out like a war film in the past and often like a thriller in the characters’ present time as they are hunted by mercenaries while they hunt for lost treasure.