Chewers' 165 Best Action Films Of The 00's

Let's get some foreign films in here pronto!

2. Battle Royale (2000) dir. Kinji Fukasaku

While it definitely has its foot in horror, Fukasaku's film is full of pure raw action.  Action that, as exaggerated as it is, feels real.  It's often clumsy.  It almost looks like it wasn't choreographed.  But that's what makes it feel so dangerous (in addition to the fact that it has a young cast engaging in such brutal violence).  And that's what makes it awesome.

3. Spider-Man 2  (2004) d. Sam Raimi

Simply the greatest super hero movie ever made. The battle(s) with Doc Ock, epic. The blending of Action with human emotion makes it achingly poignant at times, an alltime genre classic. Sam Raimi's masterpiece.

5. The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) dir. Paul Greengrass

While it was his 2004 entry into the Bourne franchise that made its mark on the way lesser action movies would be filmed for the rest of the decade, it was his 2007 follow-up in which Greengrass truly refined his style and showed all the lazy imitators how shakey-cam should be done.  

Almost an extended chase sequence for nearly its entire runtime, the film also cleverly doubles back and retcons the final moments of the 2nd film and leads Bourne to the source of everything that he's been fighting.  Himself.

6. MAN ON FIRE (2004, d. Tony Scott)

So much love for this film. Denzel is absolutely badass in it, and his interactions with Dakota Fanning while formulaic are still touching. Scott's still doing his jerky camera thing and saturation madness, but it all works and the action is never confusing. Creasy doesn't pull punches, and brutally takes out almost everyone involved the kidnapping. One of my go-to films when I'm in a "everyone sucks" mood.

7. "X2: X-Men United" (2003), Dir. Bryan Singer

I love me some "Spider-Man 2", but I think it goes just a little too over-the-top with Peter Parker's angst to be quite as satisfying to watch as this movie. I may be alone in this opinion, but this is the champion of superhero movies in my book. I think it has more memorable action set pieces than any other, yet at the same times it has enough poignancy in the personal dilemmas of several characters to keep it from being just an empty spectacle.

I enjoy it on several levels. The performances of Brian Cox and Ian Mckellan, playing villains who enunciate every word of fiendish dialog for maximum dramatic effect make me giddy. The emotional journeys of Iceman, Pyro, Jean Grey, Wolverine, and Nightcrawler give it enough heart to hit my sentimental sweet spot. And characters like Deathstrike and Mystique (while underdeveloped personality-wise) are just a blast to watch, all magnificent swagger and eye-popping physical prowess.

To this day, Hugh Jackman has never been better in the Wolverine role than he was here, and no other comic book movie has been rendered with such lean, unpretentious storytelling. I'll admit it drags a bit at the end, but the closing narration wraps things up nicely.

I felt so cheated three years later, after those final words set the stage for what would have undoubtedly been the greatest superhero epic ever. I could expect nothing less from a sequel in which the same director/writers top their work here. James Marsden, Halle Berry, and Anna Paquin were a bit stiff in their roles, but otherwise, this was just superbly cast across the board.

Sorry guys, its gotta be on here at some point, so lets just get it over with...

8. Bad Boys II (2003) d. Michael Bay

What else needs to be said?  Tasteless, bloated, juvenile, ultra-violent... you could hurl adjectives at Bad Boys II all day, but regardless, its probably the definitive Michael Bay experience.  Take that as you will.  

11. Taken (2008)

“I don’t know who you are. I don’t know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don’t have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills; skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you let my daughter go now, that’ll be the end of it. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don’t, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you.”

And with that monologue, Liam Neeson erases his father figure typecasting and becomes the unlikliest badasses of the 00's.   B-Action at its finest.

12.  Speed Racer (2008) dir. Wachowski Bros

This movie has cars that launches bee-hives at you.  Let that sink in.  A car that shoots bees.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcnooj82 

12.  Speed Racer (2008) dir. Wachowski Bros

 

 

This movie has cars that launches bee-hives at you.  Let that sink in.  A car that shoots bees.

Like "Land of the Lost", this is another movie that will take years for people to realize how brilliant it is.   Sometimes overwhelming to the senses, it never becomes incoherent.   Sad to see it still hasn't garnered the cult following it so richly deserves.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dynamotv 

11. Taken (2008)

And with that monologue, Liam Neeson erases his father figure typecasting and becomes the unlikliest badasses of the 00's.   B-Action at its finest.

 

B-Action with an A-list star!  Pure fist-pumping bliss.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcnooj82 

B-Action with an A-list star!  Pure fist-pumping bliss.

 

A Father Son action film starring Neeson and Stathom seems WAY overdue.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Naisu Baddi 

7. "X2: X-Men United" (2003), Dir. Bryan Singer

 

Deserves to be here if only for the Nightcrawler opening scene. Maybe my favorite action scene of the decade.

14. Kill Bill, Vol 1

Pure, undiluted Tarantino. Throws every pulpy genre film in a blender, adds a generous helping of blood, and the result is a glorious, unapologetic, violent and hilarious movie.

Also, is there a more iconic image from this decade than Uma in that yellow suit wielding a katana?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Judas Booth 

13. 'THE INCREDIBLES'

For my money, it's the best superhero film ever made. Great action sequences driven by heart and humor. It's flawless.

This.

My 3 year old son has gone through Cars and Cars 2 and out the other side, and now thinks The Incredibles is about the best thing ever. The other day I was listening to the Monty Norman Bond theme, and he asked if it was the soundtrack to The Incredibles.

Nice to know taste and intelligence are partly genetic.

I dare someone to come up with a live superhero film as good as this. I double dare them.

14) Punisher War Zone!  The...Best Punisher Movie, is my...2nd favorite Superhero film, at least until...The Avengers Assemble!  Ray Stevenson...IS, Frank Castle, as he...PUNISHes criminals in style!

Duke!  Your most PUNISHING pick should be #15!

Which makes mine...

16. Spaced: S02E05 - GONE (original air date: 3/30/2001) dir. Edgar Wright

An absolutely goofy premise that is set up so expertly that when shit finally gets real in the finale, you don't question the ridiculousness of it for a second.  If you did question it, SPACED was NOT for you!

The way Wright, Pegg, and Stevenson pull this off is legitimately thrilling.

16.  Black Hawk Down (2001)  dir. Ridley Scott

Harrowing, non-stop war film that manages to be neither a rah-rah pro-war pep rally nor a shrill anti-war screed.  Great cast (even Josh Hartnett is good!) and crackerjack filmmaking make this an incredible document of an incredibly fucked-up situation.   

16) G.I. Joe Rise Of Cobra!  Ray Park as Snake Eyes vs  as Byung-Hun Lee as Storm Shadow!  A James Bond Style Film with...Ninja, and a multinational Force of Good vs...EEEEEEEEvil!  YO JOE!

19. Crank (2006) Dir. Neveldine & Taylor

The first two Transporter flicks ably showcased Statham's athleticism and blunt Cockney charisma, but Crank gave him a perfect -and perfectly demented- star vehicle with the best action flick (high) concept since Speed.

20. Gladiator.

"Father to a murdered son. Husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance. In this life or the next."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Art Decade 

21.

2002/2005, created & directed by Joss Whedon

 

11 episodes & a movie, that's all there is. If you took all of the wit & character of Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid & poured it into a Star Wars mold you'd get Whedon's masterpiece of a series. Brilliant, brutal & funny as hell.

Great choice and absolutely agree.   And since we're doing TV....

22. "24" Seasons 1, 2,  and 7

While not every season of "24" was stellar, seasons 1, 2, and 7 stand as some of the best action cinema of the 00's.   The first two seasons are somewhat serious and tense while the 7th season is "24" at both its silliest and it's most awesome.   I mean how do you top having Tony Todd invade the White House and then after that having Jon Voight as your nemesis?   Also, is there anyone who was more bad ass than Jack Bauer?   Not many.   Not many at all.

24. Grindhouse (2007) d. Robert Rodriguez & Quentin Tarantino

PLANET TERROR is like early 80's John Carpenter making a European Sci-fi/ Horror flick, it feels like it could have come out between ESCAPE and THE THING, and DEATH PROOF is a 70's slasher/ Action movie with one of the most badass car chases ever, And then of course there's the trailer for MACHETE - talk about badasss!

25)

Set almost entirely in a hellish French slum, it utilizes the french Martial Art Parkour to beautiful and brutal effect

26) The Action Extravaganza Par Excellence...THE EXPENDABLES!  Another...STALLONE Classic,  Join Sly, Statham, Dolph, Terry, Jet and co, as they...Fight For Freedom of the people of Vilena against the...EEEEEEEEvil Eric Roberts, and his crony General Garza!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Art Decade 

21.

2002/2005, created & directed by Joss Whedon

 

11 episodes & a movie, that's all there is. If you took all of the wit & character of Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid & poured it into a Star Wars mold you'd get Whedon's masterpiece of a series. Brilliant, brutal & funny as hell.

If we hadn't realized that we'd already done 00s comedies, I was gonna post this in that thread, but it fits here just as well. Pardon me while I temporarily turn this into the "Malcolm Reynolds is a badass" thread:

"Come a day there won't be room for naughty men like us to slip about at all. This job goes south, there well may not be another. So here is us, on the raggedy edge. Don't push me, and I won't push you."

"You wanna meet the real me?"

"We're not gonna die. We can't die, Bendis. And you know why? Because we are so... very... pretty. We are just too pretty for God to let us die"

"I hear a word out of any of you that ain't helping me out or taking your leave, I will shoot you down. Get to work!"

"You don't know me, son, so let me explain this to you once: If I ever kill you, you'll be awake. You'll be facing me, and you'll be armed."

"Now you can luxuriate in a nice jail cell, but if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet I will end you."

"You turn on any of my crew, you turn on me! But since that's a concept you can't seem to wrap your head around then you got no place here! You did it to me, Jayne, and that's a fact."

And, of course:

"So no more runnin'. I aim to misbehave."

Expendables is a 2010 film.   Definitely up for the teens list though.   It does remind me of another Stallone vehicle.....

26. Rambo (2008)

"Killing's as easy as breathing"

Sylvester Stallone shows all the wannabe action stars of the 00's how it's done in this over the top revitalization of the John Rambo character.   The last 30 or so minutes of this film is just jaw dropping in its righteous violence.   I mean Stallone EXPLODES a poor Burmese soldier with a big ass gun.   Worth the wait.

dynamotv, Oops!  

27) Ninja Assassin!  An awesome action film that reveals Rain's...Stormy Relationship with his...Ninja Family, led by the...Legendary Ninja Himself...Sho Kosugi!

28. Hot Fuzz (2007)

Edgar Wright imagines what an Agatha Christie mystery would be like if it were filmed by Tony Scott.

Hilarious and endlessly quotable, the movie fires on all cylinders during the third act.

29. EXILED(2OO6)

Seemingly a distillation of every single one of Director Johnnie To's obsessions. Exiled is practically a modern day Western with gunfights and the violence they bring treated like zen poetry.

29. 300 (2007)

Say what you will about its politics, sexual subtexts, or cheesy lines. This movie delivers awesome action.

30. Chocolate (2008) d. Prachya Pinkaew

And a new martial arts hero is born. JeeJa Yanin is just amazing in this movie!

31.  'Apocalypto'

Gotta admit, Mel knows how to film violence.  The third act is one long action sequence, and I admire it for its intensity.

33. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) d. Peter Jackson

The most transcendent film since STAR WARS. It's exactly what we needed post-9/11.

34.  'The Bourne Supremacy'.

Ultimatum has the best action scene, but Supremacy is the most consistent of the trilogy.

35. The Dark Knight (Nolan, 2008)

Why so serious?

Incredible on every level; destroyed all my high expectations for not only the Batman movie I waited my entire life to see realized, but the way it ushers this universe into a gritty, real urban world akin to something Mann or Scorsese would applaud wildly at. It sounds like a broken record by now, but Heath Ledger's Joker is a radical, fearless interpretation that would have had the same impact had he lived, a nightmare of a criminal who plays like a punk-rock Charles Manson who worships al-Qaeda.

37 Hulk (2003) d. Ang Lee

Lee's ambitious, and radical comicbook movie is a fascinating flawed masterpiece. Didn't Dre call it Ang Lee's MARNIE? Banna is great as Banner, but Nolte is truly brilliant, giving one of the best performances I've ever seen in a comicbook movie.

38. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) d. Jonathan Mostow

Yeah, haters gonna hate. But I really like this movie. As a matter of fact, it's in my top 3 of Terminator movies! Kidding aside, the action scenes in this film are excellent: the hand-to-hand fight, the shootout in the cemetery, and of course the crane chase all kick ass.

39. Collateral (Mann, 2004)

You killed him?

No, I shot him. Bullets and the fall killed him.

Thief, Miami Vice (the TV show, silly!), Manhunter, Heat...Michael Mann is the neo-noir laureate; what Carpenter does for horror, he does for the crime and action genre with the way he sets atmosphere. Collateral is just that, an adrenaline-charged symphony of badassery and moodiness that has some of the best cinematography, music and sound design of the past generation and a pair of tour-de-force performances by Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx. The Koreatown nightclub shootout is one of Mann's greatest calling cards in the genre and one of the most taut action scenes of the decade.

It's also interesting to point out how that scene, in a way, shows its influence in my previous pick, The Dark Knight, when Batman crashes Maroni's party.

40. Quantum of Solace

Yes it's a let down after Casino Royale but it has some awesome sequences. The only caveat is that they are awesome when you can tell what's going on. In fact there is probably too much action, not enough story. 

41. Crank II: High Voltage (2009) dir. Neveldine & Taylor

This says it all....

I think I can safely predict that Crank III will end up on the 2010's list once that decade finishes out.

42. The Rundown

Can't believe it took so long to add the Rock's only great movie in the decade. Fun sequences, good banter, and Christopher Walken's Tooth Fairy monologue. Shoulda been in the top ten!