10 Underrated Action Masterpieces You Need To Watch

There are great action movies that sit among the best of all time, but there are many hidden gem masterpieces that few people talk about that deserve more love. It’s easy to hear about movies like Die Hard, John Wick, The Matrix, and all the various superhero movies. However, it is great to find smaller movies to latch onto.

It’s more than just about having a big movie shootout and a car chase to make a great action movie. The best action movies are also about the chemistry between the actors and the director, whih often keep viewers on the edge of their seats. From non-stop action movies to sci-fi dystopian thrillers, and more, these hidden gems are masterpieces.

The Last Boy Scout (1991)

When looking at Bruce Willis in the 1980s and 90s, most of the discussion goes to action movies like Die Hard and more prestige films like Pulp Fiction, 12 Monkeys, and Unbreakable. However, while Die Hard was his biggest action movie role, no one talks about The Last Boy Scout, which was a fantastic action flick.

Willis stars as Joe Hallenbeck, a disgraced former Secret Service agent who once saved the President of the United States and now works as a private investigator. He is hired to work as a bodyguard for an exotic dancer named Cory (Halle Berry). Cory’s boyfriend is a disgraced former football star named Jimmy Dix (Damon Wayans).

Dix was kicked out of the league over gambling charges, and he doesn’t want Joe watching out for Cory. The movie sees the two men clashing while trying to keep her alive. With great one-liners and fantastic chemistry between Willis and Wayans, the film remains an underappreciated masterpiece.

Shoot ‘Em Up (2007)

A Former Black Ops Soldier Protects A Baby

Shoot ‘Em Up

9/10

Release Date

September 7, 2007

Runtime

86 Minutes

Director

Michael Davis

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Clive Owen stars in the 2007 action movie Shoot ‘Em Up. The film is way over-the-top and critics have described it as a live-action Looney Tunes movie when it comes to the gun fights, action scenes, and chaos on display. Along with Owen, Paul Giamatti and Monica Bellucci co-star in the Michael Davis-directed film.

Owen plays Mr. Smith, a former black-ops soldier whose first kill in the movie is stabbing an assassin in the head with a carrot (a Bugs Bunny reference, starting the Looney Tunes comparisons). When a woman delivers a baby during the shootout, Mr. Smith takes the baby and goes on the run, as the assassins want the baby dead too.

Shoot ‘Em Up received mixed reviews and was a box office disappointment, but it is a film that has everything fans want from a cult classic action masterpiece. The movie never takes itself seriously and is an action flick that is meant to be watched for fun, and it exceeds those expectations.

Mayhem (2017)

Office Workers Are Pitted Against Each Other To The Death

Mayhem

Release Date

November 10, 2017

Runtime

87 Minutes

Director

Joe Lynch

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  Samara Weaving

  Melanie Cross

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  Caroline Chikezie

  Kara Powell

Joe Lynch directed the underrated action masterpiece Mayhem in 2017. The movie was a shocking action thriller that added dark humor to the proceedings, and it ended up as a critically praised film that was mostly ignored thanks to it ending up released in a limited capacity and then onto VOD.

The movie features a world under attack by a virus that doesn’t kill its victims, but causes them to remove their inhibitions and act out their darkest impulses. Steven Yeun (The Walking Dead) is Derek, a lawyer who gets the first person to murder someone under the influence found not guilty, leading to him getting a corner office job.

However, when someone leaks the virus into the office building, Derek and a co-worker named Melanie head up to make their bosses pay for damaging their careers. This is a satirical action movie that is the action-horror version of Office Space, and it works magnificently in that design.

Smokin’ Aces (2006)

A Legion Of Assassins Arrives In Vegas For One Hit

Smokin’ Aces

Release Date

January 26, 2007

Runtime

108 Minutes

Director

Joe Carnahan

Joe Carnahan has become one of the go-to names for great action movies, with crime thrillers like Narc, big-budget blockbusters like The A-Team, and more cerebral survival dramas like The Grey. However, one of his best movies is the underrated Smokin’ Aces, which arrived in theaters in 2006.

The movie received mixed reviews, but its cast was all-in and the entire film was a non-stop thrill ride, with various assassins converging on Las Vegas to win a contract by killing a magician named Aces (Jeremy Piven), who has agreed to testify against a mafia boss.

Smokin’ Aces lives and dies with its all-star cast, with names like Ben Affleck, Ryan Reynolds, Andy Garcia, Chris Pine, Common, Ray Liotta, Alicia Keys, Taraji P. Henson, and more. Despite its low Rotten Tomatoes score, the film has become a cult classic masterpiece in the action genre, a movie that wears its influences on its sleeves.

Equilibrium (2002)

A Dystopian Future Where Feelings Are Outlawed

Equilibrium

Release Date

December 6, 2002

Runtime

107 minutes

Director

Kurt Wimmer

Equilibrium is often overlooked thanks to it coming out while The Matrix was in the middle of its original trilogy. Both films are futuristic sci-fi action movies that rely on groundbreaking action sequences, combining a mixture of gunplay and kung-fu action choreography.

Directed by Kurt Wimmer (The Beekeeper), Equilibrium sees the world living in a totalitarian society where emotions are illegal and people have to take medications to keep their emotions numbed. Meanwhile, things like art, movies, and more are also illegal since they stimulate emotions.

Christian Bale and Taye Diggs lead the cast as two officers who destroy art and take down people who break the law by refusing to take their suppressants. However, when Bale’s officer realizes what is happening around him, he becomes the target. Despite low reviews, Equilibrium is an incredibly choreographed action movie with a lot to love.

Hanna (2011)

A Young Girl Is Trained To Be A Killer

Hanna

8/10

Release Date

April 7, 2011

Runtime

111 Minutes

Director

Joe Wright

Joe Wright made his name with historical prestige pictures, making the brilliant Pride & Prejudice, the Oscar-nominated Atonement, and the creatively groundbreaking Anna Karenina. However, he also proved his action chops when he directed Hanna in 2011, the story of a young woman trained to keep herself alive.

Hanna stars Saoirse Ronan as a teenage soldier who was rescued from a secret organization that was training her to be a weapon. Raised by a former CIA operative (Eric Bana) in all forms of fighting skills, he morphs her into a weapon with the goal of protecting herself.

The film received high praise when released, with Ronan praised, along with Cate Blanchett, who played the villain in the film. However, Hanna received a Prime Video series that has overshadowed the original movie, which remains the superior telling of the story.

The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)

A Hitwoman Fights For Her Life

Shane Black has a huge list of movies to his credit, writing Lethal Weapon, while writing and directing movies like Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, The Nice Guys, and Iron Man 3. However, one of his best scripts is the criminally underrated masterpiece, The Long Kiss Goodnight, starring Geena Davis and Samuel L. Jackson.

Davis plays Samantha Caine, a schoolteacher who was found washed ashore in New Jersey pregnant and with complete amnesia eight years earlier. It sounds a lot like a movie like The Bourne Identity, and it has the same plotline, as Samantha soon learns she is a former CIA assassin, and is now on the run for her life.

While everyone knows about The Bourne Identity, this Shane Black movie did the same thing, and it is just as entertaining as an action thriller. Jackson is a little tamer than usual, but Davis is fantastic as the lead action star, delivering some great fight scenes.

Dog Soldiers (2002)

Soldiers Battle A Pack Of Werewolves

Dog Soldiers

Release Date

May 10, 2002

Runtime

105 minutes

Director

Neil Marshall

Dog Soldiers is an obscure action movie that is also one of the best werewolf horror movies of the last 25 years. The film takes place in the Scottish Highlands, where a group of soldiers is airdropped for a training exercise. However, as the soldiers are training, unseen assailants attack them and start killing them one by one.

These killers are werewolves, and when the soldiers find a place to hide, they don’t realize that the house they found is the werewolves’ home. The movie uses practical effects for the werewolves rather than CGI, and it remains a beloved horror movie for fans of that genre. However, it also has plenty for action movie fans to love.

Neil Marshall directed the movie, and he has gone on to prove that he can deliver big action scenes, both in movies (The Descent) and on television (Game of Thrones‘ episodes such as “Blackwater” and “The Watchers on the Wall”).

Monkey Man (2024)

A Martial Arts Master Seeks Revenge

Monkey Man

8/10

Release Date

April 5, 2024

Runtime

121 Minutes

Monkey Man is a newer movie, but it is one that slipped by many fans and deserves much more recognition. It’s Dev Patel’s directorial debut, as well as a movie where he takes on the lead role as a martial arts star. This is not a part fans are used to seeing from Patel, but he delivered in spades.

Patel stars as Kid, a young man who saw his mother be murdered when he was a child. He grows up and gets a job at a private club where he knows that the corrupt police officer who killed her frequents. When his assassination attempt fails, he begins training in martial arts and prepares for his next attempt at revenge.

The movie is a fantastic modern-day martial arts film that has non-stop action, and Patel is able to deliver in the action scenes, proving he has the chops to continue on in the genre, fitting in well in an era where Keanu Reeves dominates in John Wick.

Upgrade (2018)

A Man Gets Superhuman Upgrades

Upgrade

8/10

Release Date

June 1, 2018

Runtime

100 minutes

Director

Leigh Whannell

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Upgrade is a movie that is very similar to Marvel’s Venom. In Upgrade, Logan Marshall-Green stars as Grey Trace, a mechanic in a dystopian future who is involved in a self-driving car accident. When he goes out with his wife, assassins show up, murder her and gun him down, leaving him a quadriplegic.

Soon, a brilliant scientist offers him a chance to walk again using an AI STEM implant. The implant gives Grey superhuman strength, agility, and power, but it must take over his body to make it work to his full potential. As with any movie like this, the scientist’s ulterior motives play into the twist.

The fight scenes are very similar to those in Venom, with the AI taking control of Grey’s body to do things that are impossible for regular humans. What results is a Leigh Whannell (Saw)-directed movie that delivers action scenes that are better than most action movies made over the last decade.