There are only a handful of action masterpieces that are worthy of being considered the gold standard of the genre, and John McTiernan‘s Die Hard is way up there. This Christmas classic is far more than just an obligatory holiday watch: It’s one of the most thrilling and entertaining action movies in history, one so well-crafted, well-acted, and flawlessly shot and edited that only very few action films can even compare.
Of course, it’s much harder to compare apples to oranges. That’s why, for the purposes of this list, only movies that are primarily action movies will be considered. Amazing though masterpieces like The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Empire Strikes Back may be, they’re playing in a different ballpark. But when it comes to action classics like Raiders of the Lost Ark and contemporary landmarks like Everything Everywhere All At Once, it’s practically undeniable that they’re every bit as good as—if not even better than—Die Hard.
10
‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ (2022)
Everything Everywhere All At Once is surprisingly action-packed for a 2-and-a-half-hour film with a 5-minute segment of two rocks on a cliff. Part family drama about generational trauma, part martial arts comedy packed with physics-defying set pieces, part existentialist treatise full of existential dread that would break the mind of a Victorian child, it’s one of the most wildly creative and over-the-top films of the 21st century so far.
Those who love the excessive set pieces and the emotional core at the heart of Die Hard should have a blast with Everything Everywhere All at Once, one of the best hopecore movies ever made. Its gags and slapstick are genuinely hilarious, its characters are marvelously written and even more marvelously performed, and the action is an absolute blast. Movies like this one aren’t made often at all.
9
‘Kill Bill: Vol. 1’ (2003)
If there’s anything that Quentin Tarantino undeniably knows how to do well, it’s borrowing elements from the films and filmmakers who have inspired them and turning them into something entirely fresh and original. For Tarantino-esque pastiche at its most entertaining, look no further than Kill Bill: Vol. 1, a fusion of so many cinematic influences that it’s admirable it turned out as tonally concise as it did.
While Kill Bill: Vol. 2 is far more dialogue- and character-driven, Vol. 1 is a pure action flick through and through—one of the best of the 2000s, in fact. The Bride and John McClane are on the exact same playing field when it comes to badassery. And though Tarantino’s way of shooting and editing action may be different from McTiernan’s, both films have some of the most iconic and fun combat set pieces of their respective subgenres.
8
‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ (1981)
The action-adventure movie genre has a name, and it’s Indiana Jones. Arguably Harrison Ford‘s most iconic role, the archaeologist/explorer is one of the most endearing action heroes in film history, and it all started with this seminal masterpiece. Raiders of the Lost Ark is still one of the greatest treasure-hunting movies of all time, a delightfully pulpy Steven Spielberg classic inspired by the early 20th-century serials that the director used to love as a kid.
This masterwork is the kind of action flick that makes people go, “They don’t make ’em like this anymore.” Packed with white-knuckle action balanced with a witty sense of humor and some romantic edge, Raiders of the Lost Ark is just as much of a complete package as Die Hard is. It’s one of the most deliriously entertaining films of all time, a nostalgic blast from the past that still feels modern today.
7
‘The Dark Knight’ (2008)
Image via Warner Bros. Pictures
Nowadays, it tends to be a widely accepted fact among cinephiles that Christopher Nolan‘s Dark Knight is the greatest superhero movie trilogy of all time. It also tends to be agreed that the series peaked with The Dark Knight, one of the most perfect movies of the 21st century, a masterful action thriller that just so happens to be about the Caped Crusader fighting the Clown Prince of Crime.
Even those unfamiliar with the Batman mythos should be able to be delighted by The Dark Knight, a film so impeccably directed, so well-written, and so full of great performances (Heath Ledger‘s iconic Joker in particular) that it’s virtually impossible to resist. It has a setup and framing far more expansive than Die Hard‘s single-location premise, and the things it does with that epic scope are a spectacle to behold.
6
‘Oldboy’ (2003)
No one does thrillers like the South Koreans, no South Korean does thrillers like Park Chan-wook, and no Park Chan-wook film is better than Oldboy. Loosely based on the Japanese manga Old Boy by Garon Tsuchiya and Nobuaki Minegishi, it’s one of the bleakest and most disturbing films of the 21st century, but all of that darkness is fully worth it.
Indeed, Oldboy is one of the most visceral action movies ever made, full of scenes that could make even the most hardcore action fan squirm, but the action isn’t even the key source of its perturbing nature. It lays bare the deepest, darkest pits of human nature in ways impossible to look away from, and while that may not quite be similar to Die Hard‘s tone, it sure makes for an action film that’s every bit as unforgettable.
5
‘Terminator 2: Judgment Day’ (1991)
James Cameron‘s The Terminator is a sci-fi thriller so relentless that some may reasonably consider it a horror flick of the slasher persuasion, but for its sequel, the director went for something far more action-oriented. One of the most satisfying movie sequels ever made, Terminator 2: Judgment Day is a blast from start to finish, led by Arnold Schwarzenegger at his best.
Terminator 2 offers a level of spectacle hard to find in any other action film.
Whereas Die Hard provides a tighter, more bombastic and quintessentially ’80s action experience, Terminator 2 offers a level of spectacle hard to find in any other action film. It was the most expensive movie ever at the time it came out, after all, and every penny is on the screen. Explosive, adrenaline-pumping, and yet also surprisingly emotional and poignant in its conclusion, T2 is one of the greatest action films of all time.
4
‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ (1995)
After the franchise had been lying dormant for a whopping three decades, George Miller came out with Mad Max: Fury Road. This wasn’t just a new, modern take on the myth of Max Rockatansky: It was a from-the-ground-up reinvention of the world Miller had created all the way back in 1979, and what a reinvention it was. Fury Road is far and away one of the most wildly creative action films ever made.
There is some exceptional character work, plenty of great performances, and a few effectively emotional moments. But, much like in the case of Die Hard, those things are just the cherry on top of a high-octane, adrenaline-filled cake. Mad Max: Fury Road is one of the best post-apocalyptic thrillers of all time, full of inventive world-building and some of the most thrilling set pieces of any action film in history.
3
‘Seven Samurai’ (1954)
There are some who would refer to Akira Kurosawa as the single greatest filmmaker in history, and many who would call Seven Samurai his magnum opus. Both takes are ice-cold. Kurosawa was, indeed, one of the most talented artists who ever picked up a film camera, with an attention to detail unlike anyone else’s; and Seven Samurai is, indeed, an absolute masterpiece with the perfect balance between character work and combat scenes.
Seven Samurai is, all in all, one of the best foreign arthouse movies of all time. Its art-first intentions are admittedly quite different from McTiernan’s entertainment-first intentions with Die Hard, but the two results aren’t too dissimilar. These movies are two of the best examples of the action genre in history, full of memorable moments and compelling characters. Seven Samurai is a must-see for those who love Die Hard.
2
‘Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade’ (1989)
Raiders of the Lost Ark is undeniably one of the best and most iconic action-adventure films in history, but if there has ever been a sequel in this genre superior to its predecessor, it has to be Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The most essential movie of 1989, this classic is the definitive action-adventure masterpiece, and it might even be Spielberg’s most entertaining outing.
Taking everything that made Raiders of the Lost Ark great and amping it up to 11, Spielberg creates one of the most truly flawless action films anyone’s ever put on celluloid. The action and chase scenes are enthralling, the globetrotting plot is a delight at all times, and the chemistry between both Ford and Sean Connery and the characters they’re playing is off the charts. Not only is this every bit as good as Die Hard, but it might be even better.
1
‘Harakiri’ (1962)
If Letterboxd is to be believed (and it usually is), Masaki Kobayashi‘s Harakiri is not only the best action film ever made, but the single best movie in history. Whether that’s true or an exaggeration is irrelevant here: The fact of the matter is that Kobayashi’s magnum opus is the samurai flick par excellence, with one of the most perfectly written screenplays in cinema’s history.
What’s not to love here? The framing device is super creative and makes the story pack all the more of an emotional punch; Tatsuya Nakadai‘s performance is a tour de force; and Kobayashi’s direction is as exhilarating as it is atmospheric. Harakiri is about as close as the action film genre can come to perfection, and that alone should be enough to call it the best in the genre. Die Hard is incredible, but it’s hard to compare any film to this one.
Harakiri
- Runtime
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133 Minutes
- Director
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Masaki Kobayashi
- Writers
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Yasuhiko Takiguchi, Shinobu Hashimoto
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