101 Action Movies

**101 Action Movies You Must See Before You Die** was published in 2010 and has films ranging from 1903 to 2009. There are actually 102 movies on it because Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 listed as a single entry in the book. Twenty-four cross over with the 1001 Movies list, while 78 are unique.

Action movies can be called the purest form of cinema because they tell their stories visually, rather than through dialogue. Summarized in this entertaining book are 101 of the most famous action films of all time, from the early swashbucklers starring Douglas Fairbanks, to sci-fi panoramas like *Star Wars*and the *Terminator* series that was made famous by Arnold Schwarzenneger. With insights from critics, film historians, and academics, *101 Action Films You Must See Before You Die*discusses the movies that made actors like Bruce Willis, Sylvester Stallone, and Sean Connery into household names. This intensely readable book chronicles the history of action films by dividing them into separate chapters for each decade, starting in 1900 and concluding with films like *The Bourne Identity* with Matt Damon, and other major releases of the present decade.

## The List

1 - The Great Train Robbery (1903)
2 - The Perils of Pauline (1914)
3 - Safety Last! (1923)
4 - The Thief of Bagdad (1924)
5 - Captain Blood (1935)
6 - The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935)
7 - The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
8 - The Mark of Zorro (1940)
9 - The Three Musketeers (1948)
10 - The Wages of Fear (1953)
11 - North by Northwest (1959)
12 - From Russia with Love (1963)
13 - Goldfinger (1964)
14 - Thunderball (1965)
15 - Come Drink with Me (1966)
16 - Our Man Flint (1966)
17 - On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)
18 - Airport (1970)
19 - The Anderson Tapes (1971)
20 - Diamonds Are Forever (1971)
21 - Dirty Harry (1971)
22 - Five Fingers of Death (1972)
23 - Getaway (1972)
24 - The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
25 - Slaughter (1972)
26 - Enter the Dragon (1973)
27 - Foxy Brown (1974)
28 - The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)
29 - Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974)
30 - The Towering Inferno (1974)
31 - Death Race 2000 (1975)
32 - Rollerball (1975)
33 - Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)
34 - Cannonball (1976)
35 - The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)
36 - Driver (1978)
37 - Drunken Master (1978)
38 - Five Deadly Venoms (1978)
39 - Superman (1978)
40 - For Your Eyes Only (1981)
41 - Knightriders (1981)
42 - Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
43 - 48 Hrs. (1982)
44 - First Blood (1982)
45 - The Shaolin Temple (1982)
46 - Commando (1985)
47 - Police Story (1985)
48 - Top Gun (1986)
49 - Lethal Weapon (1987)
50 - Bloodsport (1988)
51 - Die Hard (1988)
52 - Batman (1989)
53 - Killer (1989)
54 - La Femme Nikita (1990)
55 - The Hunt for Red October (1990)
56 - Point Break (1991)
57 - Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
58 - Patriot Games (1992)
59 - Under Siege (1992)
60 - The Fugitive (1993)
61 - The Heroic Trio (1993)
62 - In the Line of Fire (1993)
63 - Iron Monkey (1993)
64 - Clear and Present Danger (1994)
65 - Crow (1994)
66 - Fist of Legend (1994)
67 - Léon: The Professional (1994)
68 - Speed (1994)
69 - True Lies (1994)
70 - Bad Boys (1995)
71 - Desperado (1995)
72 - GoldenEye (1995)
73 - Mission: Impossible (1996)
74 - Rock (1996)
75 - Air Force One (1997)
76 - Con Air (1997)
77 - Face/Off (1997)
78 - Armageddon (1998)
79 - Blade (1998)
80 - Ronin (1998)
81 - Taxi (1998)
82 - Crouching Tiger (2000)
83 - Gladiator (2000)
84 - X-Men (2000)
85 - The Fast and the Furious (2001)
86 - Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001)
87 - Spider-Man (2002)
88 - The Transporter (2002)
89 - Kill Bill: Vol. Duology (2003)
90 - Lord of the Rings (2003)
91 - Ong-Bak (2003)
92 - The Bourne Supremacy (2004)
93 - District B13 (2004)
94 - 300 (2006)
95 - Casino Royale (2006)
96 - The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
97 - Hot Fuzz (2007)
98 - Dark Knight (2008)
99 - Iron Man (2008)
100 - Taken (2008)
101 - Avatar (2009)