Top 10 Best Action Movies of All Time

The top ten best action movies of all time make you want to grasp life by the balls and walk away from explosions in slow motion while holding two pistols in your hands and a cigarette in your mouth. These supercharged thrillers will do just that!

1. "Across The Pacific" This Humphrey Bogart-starring auctioneer is not only one of the best action movies of all time, but one of the first. Bogie separates himself from his other leading roles by engaging in such prototypical action movie behavior as mowing a bunch of poor bastards down with a machine gun. And Sydney Greenstreet should go down in history as one of the best action movie villains of all time.
2. "The Searchers" This classic western isn't just one of the best action movies but one of the best movies period. It stars John Wayne as Ethan Edwards, the man's man action hero we all can agree on. Provided you're OK with murdering your niece because she's been captured by Commanches. He's like a racist Terminator in a cowboy hat.
3.  "North by Northwest" Like many of the best action movies, "North by Northwest" has been copied a lot. If you've ever enjoyed a James Bond movie you should check this out and see where it came from. It stars Cary Grant as an accidental spy who chases and is chased across the country and ends up dangling from Mt. Rushmore. And it features one of the best action movie scenes in the "crop dusting" sequence. 'SPLOSION!
4. "Yojimbo" Samurais have missed out on the popularity of, say, ninjas, pirates, or zombies. Watch this classic from Akira Kurosawa and wonder why. It stars Toshiro Mifune as one of the best action movie badasses in movie history. This one has been copied several times resulting in some pretty good results, like "A Fistful of Dollars," "Django," and "Last Man Standing." And yet none of those manage to be as cool and fun as the original.
5. "The Getaway" This underseen gem from one of the masters of action Sam Peckinpah stars a never-badder Steve McQueen as a fresh ex-con looking to pull a heist and...er...get away. "The Getaway" has something that literally no other movie has - Sally Struthers getting punched in the face. It also has some of the best action movie sequences ever filmed. Take our advice: Skip the lame Alec Baldwin remake.
6. "The French Connection" Most of the best action movies have a scene in which one character pursues another in motorized vehicles. In the industry, these scenes are referred to as "car chases." And this has one of the best, with Gene Hackman's Popeye Doyle chasing in a car after a bad guy. Who's on a train.
7. "Enter The Dragon" This is the internet so you probably know all the stuff people say about Chuck Norris. Obviously, the jokes aren't true - they actually refer to Bruce Lee. And "Enter The Dragon" doesn't JUST feature Bruce Lee in his ass-kicking glory, but also the immortal Jim Kelly and John "The White Guy" Saxon! Watch it, or you will miss all that heavenly glory.
8. "Die Hard" This might win the prize for best action movie title. Just look at it - "Die" which is great, and then "Hard." It's like someone took the essence of why we like action movies and distilled it into two words. Ignore the Freudian implications of what was just said and instead concentrate on the fact that the movie is not only a relentless thrill ride but also features a hilarious star-making performance from Bruce "Mr. Falcon" Willis.
9. "Total Recall" The best action movies are the ones that amidst all the explosions and ass-kicking make you think. In the case of "Total Recall" you'll be thinking, "What the hell is going on?" It's no wonder - it was adapted from an even more mind-bending short story by Phillip K. Dick. But before things get too literary, Arnold Schwarzenegger is there to spout one-liners too. Something, as they say, for everyone.
10. "The Matrix" Remember the sequels? Don't. And then what you have left is the movie that more than ten years later they're still trying to top. Dodge this!