The Best Action Movies to Stream Now

Whether it’s playing catch with cars, running from robots or mastering martial arts, few things can get your adrenaline pumping as much as a good action movie.

Of course, there are plenty of action movies to choose from. There are the classics like Face/Off and Top Gun, superhero films such as Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and Shazam! Fury of the Gods and postapocalyptic movies like Zombieland — which all promise thrilling story lines, intense fight scenes and nonstop excitement.

Looking for something a little more mind-altering? Tune into The Matrix. How about a flick that’s just as comedic as it is action-packed? Leave it to David Harbour in Violent Night.

Whether it is explosions, muscle cars and mayhem or treasure hunts you are after, you’re sure to find an action movie you love. Here are the best action movies you can stream right now.

Rebel Moon — Part One: A Child of Fire

Sofia Boutella in Rebel Moon — Part One: A Child of Fire, 2023.

Clay Enos/Netflix 

Renowned for helming films like 300 (2007), Man of Steel (2013) and Army of the Dead (2021), Zack Snyder is unleashing his signature visual flair on Netflix with a two-part epic space opera. The first installment — which debuts on Dec. 22 — orbits around the enigmatic Kora (Sofia Boutella) as she assembles a coalition of warriors from various planets to fight against the Motherworld’s corrupt government, the Imperium. (Rebel Moon — Part Two: The Scargiver follows in April 2024.)

Watch Rebel Moon — Part One: A Child of Fire on Netflix on Dec. 22

Blue Beetle

Blue Beetle, 2023.

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures/DC Comics

When law school graduate Jaime Reyes (Xolo Maridueña) stumbles upon the Scarab, an ancient relic of alien biotechnology, he becomes its chosen symbiotic host. Equipped with a suit of armor possessing remarkable yet unpredictable powers, Jaime has to learn how to master his new abilities as the Blue Beetle while being pursued by the ruthless Carapax (Raoul Max Trujillo) and Victoria Kord (Susan Sarandon).

Watch Blue Beetle on Max

Taken

Liam Neeson in Taken, 2008.
Moviestore/Shutterstock

Released in 2008, Taken is a thriller brought to life by Liam Neeson and his “particular set of skills.” The film, which follows Bryan Mills (Neeson) on a mission to rescue his kidnapped daughter, launched a full-blown franchise, making the Irish actor an action star in his golden years. “I like doing it,” Neeson said of being an action hero. “The scripts are good. I’m kind of like a kid in a candy store.”

Watch Taken on Netflix

John Wick: Chapter 4

Keanu Reeves in John Wick: Chapter 4.
Lionsgate

In the fourth installment of the John Wick saga, the legendary hitman extraordinaire (Keanu Reeves) remains resolute in his mission for revenge against the High Table. But in his pursuit of freedom, he must face a new enemy (Bill Skarsgård) backed by powerful alliances worldwide. 

Watch John Wick: Chapter 4 on Starz

The Machine

Bert Anderson and Mark Hamill in The Machine.

Shaken Not Stirred/Album/Alamy

Inspired by Bert Kreischer’s 2016 stand-up routine, this 2023 action comedy is a fictionalized version of events, in which he finds himself and his estranged father (Mark Hamill) abducted by a vengeful Russian Mobster (Iva Babić), whose motives stem from a drunken incident in 1999 when Bert stole her father’s (Oleg Taktarov) antique pocket watch.

Watch The Machine on Netflix

Fast X

Jason Momoa in Fast X.

Peter Mountain/Universal Pictures/Courtesy Everett

In the adrenaline-pumping 10th installment of the Fast & Furious saga, the repercussions of Hernan Reyes’ (Joaquim de Almeida) death in Fast Five (2011) resurfaces to torment Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his crew. Dante (Jason Momoa), Hernan’s son, witnessed his father’s death and the loss of his family’s fortune, harboring a decade-long vendetta. Directed by Louis Leterrier, Fast X accelerates with a star-studded ensemble, featuring Charlize Theron, Brie Larson, Rita Moreno, John Cena, Jason Statham, Helen Mirren, Michelle Rodriguez and more.

Watch Fast X on Peacock

Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves

Michelle Rodriguez and Chris Pine in Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, 2023.

PARAMOUNT PICTURES/Moviestore/Shutterstock

Inspired by the tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, this fantasy heist comedy helmed by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley follows the escapades of Edgin Darvis (Chris Pine), a lute-strumming bard, and his barbarian BFF, Holga (Michelle Rodriguez). After their prison break, the two comrades assemble an oddball crew of misfits on a quest to recover a stolen relic from a now-mighty swindler (Hugh Grant) and cross paths with dangerous enemies along the way.

Watch Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves on Amazon Prime Video

Blade

New Line/Kobal/Shutterstock

Before Black Panther and the MCU, there was Blade. The 1998 film was the first Marvel movie with a Black lead and the first Marvel comic adaptation to be a box-office success. Wesley Snipes’ martial arts mastery is on display as the vampire-slaying daywalker, utilizing everything from garlic, syringes and roundhouse kicks to beat the bloodsuckers. Come for the seamless fight scenes and stay for the iconic one-liners and killer late-’90s fashion.

Watch Blade on Max

Terminator 2: Judgement Day

Terminator 2: Judgment Day, 1991.

StudioCanal/Shutterstock

All of the Terminator movies have killer action scenes, but Judgment Day is a nonstop ride with high stakes and state-of-the-art special effects that blew its 1991 audience away and still holds up today. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton and a young Edward Furlong deliver stellar performances, and James Cameron’s sci-fi flair will keep you on the edge of your seat for the entire 136-minute runtime.

Watch Terminator 2: Judgement Day on Paramount+

Plane

Plane, 2023.

Lionsgate/Moviestore/Shutterstock

When a lightning storm forces pilot Brodie Torrance (Gerard Butler) to make an emergency landing on an island in the Philippines, the surviving passengers find themselves confronted by the hostile rebels who claim it as their domain. Teaming up with passenger Louis Gaspare (Mike Colter), a fugitive homicide suspect, Brodie undertakes a high-stakes mission to ensure the safe return of himself and his passengers.

Watch Plane on Starz

John Wick

Keanu Reeves in John Wick, 2014.

David Lee/Thunder Road/Lionsgate/Mjw/Summit/Kobal/Shutterstock

This 2014 action thriller and franchise starter shows what happens when “you stab the devil in his back.” After his wife and cherished possessions are taken away, the illustrious assassin John Wick (Keanu Reeves) returns to old habits and unleashes his murderous instincts on those who’ve wronged him … while also being hunted by a former colleague.

Watch John Wick on Peacock

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, 2010.
Big Talk Productions/Kobal/Shutterstock

When idling musician Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) meets the woman of his dreams (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), he has to defeat seven of her evil exes through arcade-style battles in order to be her boyfriend. Packing punches left and right, this 2010 action-filled adventure features an ensemble cast including Kieran Culkin, Chris Evans, Brie Larson, Anna Kendrick, Aubrey Plaza and more.

Watch Scott Pilgrim vs the World on Netflix

Face/Off

Nicolas Cage and John Travolta in Face/Off.
Moviestore/Shutterstock

Face/Off has a premise that’s so bizarre that it might just be perfect: FBI agent Sean Archer (John Travolta) is determined to avenge the murder of his son, who was killed in an assassination attempt meant for Archer. When assassin Castor Troy (Nicolas Cage) is presumed dead after a plane crash, Archer has his own face surgically removed and replaced with Troy’s to gather intel from Troy’s twin brother. But Troy wakes up from his coma and has surgery to replace his own face with Archer’s. In almost anyone else’s hands, Face/Off wouldn’t work, but Travolta and Cage lean into their roles with full intensity, and John Woo’s direction keeps it from becoming unintentionally campy.

Watch Face/Off on AMC+

First Blood

Sylvester Stallone in First Blood.
Sunset Boulevard/Corbis

When John Rambo, a Vietnam War veteran, searches for an old military friend, he faces relentless harassment, abuse and cruelty … until he snaps. First Blood, released in 1981, was the world’s introduction to Sylvester Stallone’s iconic Green Beret. The film was a massive success and spawned four explosive sequels, but the original movie’s themes of action, survivalism and compassion, enhanced by Stallone’s nuanced performance, make First Blood the first choice in Rambo flicks.

Watch First Blood on Showtime

Point Break

Patrick Swayze and Keanu Reeves in Point Break, 1991.
Moviestore/Shutterstock

Point Break stars Keanu Reeves as federal agent Johnny Utah as he tracks a string of bank robberies by a gang of surfers, led by Patrick Swayze’s Bodhi. The investigation gets complicated when Johnny finds himself smitten with surfer Tyler (Lori Petty) and a little too friendly with her group.

One of Kathryn Bigelow’s first blockbusters, Point Break had a successful theatrical run, making $80 million globally, but it grew even more popular on home video and TV. A lackluster remake of the film was released in 2015.

Watch Point Break on Peacock

Road House

Road House, 1989.

MGM/UA/Kobal/Shutterstock

Road House might not have been an immediate hit with critics or audiences at its theatrical release, but it developed a cult following in the cable TV and streaming eras and is getting a remake with Jake Gyllenhaal. The 1989 film has absolutely no frills — but with Patrick Swayze serving roundhouse kicks to curb corruption, do you really need any?

Watch Road House on MGM+

Zombieland

Jesse Eisenberg and Woody Harrelson in Zombieland, 2009.

Pariah/Kobal/Shutterstock

This 2009 postapocalyptic action comedy follows a group of surviving humans — played by Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin — who have to avoid becoming “human Happy Meals” for bloodthirsty zombies while making their way to an alleged safe haven.

Watch Zombieland on Peacock

Wanted

James McAvoy and Angelina Jolie in Wanted, 2008.

Relativity/Spyglass/Universal/Kobal/Shutterstock 

James McAvoy and Angelina Jolie team up with Morgan Freeman in Wanted. Wesley Gibson (McAvoy) is inducted into a group of assassins — but quickly learns a lot is looming under the surface of their already shady activities. The 2008 action film makes great use of The Matrix‘s “bullet time” and tongue-in-cheek comic relief.

Watch Wanted on Netflix

The Bourne Ultimatum

Matt Damon in The Bourne Ultimatum.
Universal

In the heady third installment of the Jason Bourne film series, Matt Damon returns as the titular former CIA hitman grappling with psychogenic amnesia. As he faces the danger of a new assassin program, Operation Blackbriar, Jason plunges into a globe-trotting quest to outsmart formidable enemies and unlock memories from his past. 

Watch The Bourne Ultimatum on Max

Nobody

Bob Odenkirk in Nobody, 2021.

Universal Pictures/Moviestore/Shutterstock 

Bob Odenkirk — best known as self-sabotaging attorney Saul Goodman on Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad — may seem like an unlikely action hero, but he makes it clear in Nobody that even an Everyman has his limits.

Odenkirk revealed that the film was partially inspired by his personal experience. “I think most people watching this movie will not realize the level of autobiography there is in it,” he told Jimmy Kimmel in 2021. “I had two home break-ins in Los Angeles… Nobody is very related to my actual experience of having someone in the house, threatening my family, trying to keep the damage to a minimum.”

Watch Nobody on Amazon Prime Video

V for Vendetta

Moviestore/Shutterstock

Based on Alan Moore, David Lloyd and Tony Weare’s graphic novel of the same name, V for Vendetta stars Hugo Weaving as V, an anarchist vigilante who rescues Evey (Natalie Portman) and enlists her in his chaos. The themes of fascism and authoritarianism are both timely and timeless, and the action is nonstop. As dark as the film can get, its ultimate message is one of hope.

Watch V for Vendetta on Max

Medellín

Amazon Studios/Courtesy Everett

In a high-stakes mission, boxing gym manager Réda (Ramzy Bedia) recruits his friends, Stan (Franck Gastambide) and Chafik (Anouar Toubali), to rescue his kidnapped brother from a dangerous narcos cartel in the titular city. With a simple and reckless plan, Réda brings his team on an action-filled adventure — involving conflict with drug ring leader El Diablo (Raymond Cruz) — that none of them could have anticipated.

Watch Medellín on Amazon Prime Video

Avatar: The Way of Water

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Courtesy Everett

Dive into the phantasmagorical depths of James Cameron’s Avatar universe with this 2022 sequel. Following a decade after the first film’s events, Way of Water sees the Sully family fleeing their home to reside with the oceanic Metkayina clan, where they have to defend themselves and their hosts against brutal aggressors through a flood of action-packed battles.

Watch Avatar: The Way of Water on Disney+

Shazam! Fury of the Gods

Warner Bros./Courtesy Everett 

Directed by David F. Sandberg, this 2023 DCEU sequel to Shazam! (2019) finds teenager Billy Batson (Asher Angel) and members of his “Shazamily”  — who all can transform into their superhero alter egos just by saying “Shazam!” out loud — fighting against a trio of ancient gods who’ve come to earth with a vengeance for those who stole their magic powers. Fury of the Gods stars Zachary Levi, Jack Dylan Grazer, Rachel Zegler, Adam Brody, Ross Butler, Meagan Good, Lucy Liu and Helen Mirren. 

Watch Shazam! Fury of the Gods on Max

Gangs of Lagos

Amazon Studios

Being Amazon Prime Video’s first original movie from Africa, this 2023 Nigerian action-thriller is worth a watch. Jade Osiberu’s Gangs of Lagos follows a group of three best friends who witness their father figure’s murder, and join the gang led by his cold-hearted partner Kazeem (Olarotimi Fakunle). The film stars Tobi Bakre, Iyabo Ojo, Adesua Etomi, Chioma Akpotha and Demi Banwo, among others.

Watch Gangs of Lagos on Amazon Prime Video

Furies

Netflix

This 2023 Vietnamese action thriller — and prequel to 2019’s Furie — follows three women who bond over shared traumas and are trained to defeat a ’90s Saigon gang that traffics and assaults other women. Filled with rip-roaring violence and dynamic fight sequences, this film is a tough yet heady watch.

Watch Furies on Netflix

Violent Night

David Harbour and John Leguizamo in Violent Night, 2022.

Allen Fraser /Universal Pictures/Courtesy Everett 

You better watch out, you better not cry! Stranger Things‘ David Harbour ditches his Hawkins police uniform and slips on Saint Nick’s suit in this 2022 holiday action thriller. When Santa Claus comes to town, delivering presents to a Connecticut mansion, he discovers that mercenaries are holding the residing family hostage and comes to their rescue with brutal force.

Watch Violent Night on Amazon Prime Video

Black Panther

Lupita Nyong’o, Chadwick Boseman and Danai Gurira in Black Panther.
Marvel

Black Panther brought much-needed Black representation to the superhero genre. Chadwick Boseman’s indelible mark on cinema as T’Challa cannot be overstated, and Michael B. Jordan’s Killmonger is as sympathetic and complicated a villain as they come. The supporting cast’s performances, especially Angela Bassett and Sterling K. Brown, are just as moving.

Enhanced by its stunning actors, the movie’s action is a blast to watch. Whether you’re watching Okoye (Danai Gurira) tossing her wig in a fight scene, Shuri (Letitia Wright) showing off her genius or a mixed martial arts battle, every element works.

Watch Black Panther on Disney+

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

Eli Ade/Marvel/Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Courtesy Everett

Securing Marvel its first Oscar win (three, in fact) with the first Black Panther film, this 2022 sequel earned another for Best Costume Design — yet there is so much more to take in, including the feature’s eye-catching thrills. Following King T’Challa’s (Chadwick Boseman) death, the mourning Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), Princess/scientist Shuri (Letitia Wright), fellow Wakandans and allies strive to protect the kingdom from outside (and underwater) forces. Former War Dog Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) and CIA agent Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) are back to help ensure the continuing legacy of the Black Panther.

Watch Black Panther: Wakanda Forever on Disney+

Die Hard

Bruce Willis in Die Hard, 1988.

Moviestore/Shutterstock

Welcome to the party, pal! Whether or not you think Die Hard is a Christmas movie, the 1988 thriller is easily one of the best action movies of all time. Bruce Willis’ introductory jaunt as John McClane has all the makings of a classic: a working-class hero, a hard-to-get love interest (Bonnie Bedelia), a dangerously charismatic villain (Alan Rickman), earnest sidekicks Alan (Reginald VelJohnson) and Argyle (De’voreaux White) and some of the best catchphrases in the game. Did we mention McClane saves the day while barefoot?

Watch Die Hard on Hulu

Godzilla vs. Kong

Godzilla vs. Kong, 2021.

HBO Max / Courtesy Everett

What do you do when one monster attacks? Unleash another one, of course. In Godzilla vs. Kong, the real monsters aren’t Godzilla or Kong — they’re conspiracy theorists and technology. While the action is stellar when the larger-than-life creatures go after each other, the excitement is unstoppable once they team up.

Watch Godzilla vs. Kong on Max

Devotion

Eli Ade/Sony Pictures Entertainment/Courtesy Everett

Based on Adam Makos’ book — Devotion: An Epic Story of Heroism, Friendship, and Sacrifice — this aerial war drama revolves around the real-life friendship between U.S. Navy fighter pilots Jesse Brown (Creed III‘s Jonathan Majors) and Tom Hudner (Top Gun: Maverick‘s Glen Powell, who’s also an actual licensed pilot) and their time served together during the Korean War. With a supporting cast including Serinda Swan, Joe Jonas and more, Devotion honors the bond of a brotherhood forged in the early 1950s among racial and global tension.

Watch Devotion on Paramount+

All Quiet on the Western Front

All Quiet on the Western Front, 2022.

Reiner Bajo/Netflix

Premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2022, this German anti-war drama — adapted from Erich Maria Remarque’s 1929 eponymous novel — tells the timeless story of a young man named Paul Bäumer (Felix Kammerer) who eagerly joins the German Army to fight in World War I. But when he and his comrades find themselves amid unforgiving and inhumane violence, their once-patriotic notions of war are shattered as they make every effort to survive.

Watch All Quiet on the Western Front on Netflix

The Woman King

The Woman King.
Sony Pictures

Inspired by real events, this AAFCA-winning historical action flick centers on the Agojie, an all-woman army of the West African kingdom of Dahomey. In a dazzling performance, Viola Davis stars as highly-trained General Nanisca, who has to prepare a new generation of warriors to fight a foreign invader threatening their civilization.

Watch The Woman King on Netflix

Top Gun

Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock

If you feel the need for speed, Tony Scott’s fighter pilot action flick should be your first choice. In 1986’s Top Gun, Tom Cruise soars as smug hotshot Lt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell,” who strives to be the top naval pilot in his class — causing friction between him and rivaling classmates such as Iceman (Val Kilmer) — and swoop the flight instructor (Kelly McGillis) off her feet. From its classic soundtrack to its iconic beach volleyball scene to its fast-paced thrills, this blockbuster will “take you right into the danger zone.”

Watch Top Gun on Paramount+

Top Gun: Maverick

Top Gun: Maverick.

Scott Garfield/Paramount Pictures/Courtesy Everett

Thirty-six years after Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise) graduated the TOPGUN Naval aviation program, he’s invited back as an instructor for a new generation of fliers, including Miles Teller’s Bradley (“Rooster”) and Glen Powell’s Jake (“Hangman”). Earning over $1 billion dollars at the global box office, 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick is not only a triumphant sequel to its iconic predecessor, but is also a “love letter to aviation,” as it impressively cranked up the action without VFX and filmed stunts with real U.S. Navy pilots flying top-quality fighter jets.

Watch Top Gun: Maverick on Paramount+

Free Guy

20TH CENTURY STUDIOS/Moviestore/Shutterstock

From Deadpool to Red Notice, Ryan Reynolds is a bona fide action star who never fails to bring the laughs. Also starring Jodie Comer, Taika Waititi and more, the 2021 action comedy follows a bank teller named Guy (Reynolds), who discovers he’s a trivial background character in a violent multiplayer video game and strives to be a winning hero when faced with conflict.

Watch Free Guy on Disney+

Black Adam

Warner Bros. Pictures

He kneels before no one. In this 2022 Shazam! spin-off Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson stars as the eponymous DC Comics character, who’s freed from imprisonment and uses his almighty powers “born out of rage” for revenge, but is intercepted by heroes from the Justice Society, such as Atom Smasher (Noah Centineo), Doctor Fate (Pierce Brosnan), Hawkman (Aldis Hodge) and Cyclone (Quintessa Swindell).

Watch Black Adam on Max

The Maze Runner

Ben Rothstein/20th Century Fox/Kobal/Shutterstock

Based on the first book in a YA dystopian series, The Maze Runner follows 16-year-old Thomas (Dylan O’Brien), who wakes up in an elevator with zero recollection of his past and finds himself among a group of boys (and one girl) trying to form a community on an area of land they call the Glade. And if they want to escape, they have to run through a constantly-shifting maze that’s patrolled by killer cyborg creatures.

Watch The Maze Runner on Max

Bullet Train

Sony Pictures Entertainment/Moviestore/Shutterstock

Famous faces like Brad Pitt, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Sandra Bullock and Bad Bunny were all on board for this off-the-rails action comedy. Based on Kōtarō Isaka 2010’s novel, Maria Beetle, 2022’s Bullet Train follows five cutthroat assassins, who are all assigned individual missions that are somehow connected, on a Japanese high-speed train.

Watch Bullet Train on Netflix

Shadow in the Cloud

Vertical Entertainment/Moviestore/Shutterstock

In this 2022 war fantasy, Chloë Grace Moretz stars as a WWII flight officer who battles with an evil creature on her mission. Also starring Taylor John Smith and Nick Robinson, Shadow in the Cloud is a bumpy ride with several jump-scares lurking in its shadows, and tells a wildly complex story about female strength.

Watch Shadow in the Cloud on Hulu

Pearl Harbor

Andrew Cooper/Touchstone/Jerry Bruckheimer Inc/Kobal/Shutterstock

From quintessential action movie director Michael Bay comes a romantic war drama that fictionalizes the historical Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. This 2001 feature follows two childhood best friends (Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett), who enlist in the military as pilots during WWII and a love triangle unfolds between them and a nurse (Kate Beckinsale).

Watch Pearl Harbor on Max

Captain America: Civil War

Everett

Marvel movies always have a ton of great action sequences, but Captain America: Civil War brings together major characters in conflict with each other in exciting ways — and the questions raised about surveillance and the police state continue to resonate. Chris Evans’ fight as Captain America with Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark was instantly meme-able, and the introduction of Chadwick Boseman’s Black Panther and Tom Holland’s Spider-Man make Civil War a fan favorite.

Watch Captain America: Civil War on Disney+

Avengers: Endgame

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Marvel Studios/Courtesy Everett

Avengers, we love you 3000. Bringing back fan-favorite characters and ending several beloved MCU story lines, the epic conclusion to the Avengers saga chronicles the titular superhero group’s final battle with Thanos, the demigod who destroyed the universe in Infinity War. Shattering box-office records, the 2019 superhero film became the second highest-grossing film of all time (at the time) next to 2009’s Avatar.

Watch Avengers: Endgame on Disney+

The Matrix

Carrie-Anne Moss and Keanu Reeves in The Matrix.
Ronald Siemoneit/Sygma

In addition to its prescient themes of machines distracting, subjugating and feeding off of human energy, The Matrix revolutionized action movies thanks to two words: “bullet time.” Keanu Reeves dodging bullets became an iconic image, and the visual effect has been used in countless action and superhero movies since.

Watch The Matrix on Max

Prey

David Bukach/Hulu/Courtesy Everett Collection

A prequel to the original Predator, Prey follows Naru (Amber Midthunder), a fledgling fighter trying to protect the Comanche Nation from the extraterrestrial hunter. Set 300 years before the events of the 1987 classic, the film features an almost entirely Native and First Nation cast and is available to stream entirely in Comanche. At its debut, Prey became Hulu’s biggest streaming premiere ever.

Watch Prey on Hulu

The Northman

Focus Features

With a cast that includes Alexander Skarsgård (who gained 20 pounds of muscle for the role), Nicole Kidman, Willem Dafoe, Ethan Hawke, Anya Taylor-Joy and Björk, The Northman is a take on the Norse folk tale of Amleth — the very legend that inspired Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

When King Aurvandill (Hawke) is murdered by his own brother (Claes Bang), Prince Amleth (Skarsgård) vows to avenge his father’s death — but there’s far more to the treasonous slaying than meets the eye. With elements of Norse mythology and killer battle scenes, The Northman is a must-see.

Watch The Northman on Peacock

Sin City

Dimension Films/Kobal/Shutterstock

The 2005 action anthology Sin City is as much an adaptation of Frank Miller’s graphic novels as it is a love letter to classic film noir. Visually stunning thanks to its mostly monochromatic palette, director Robert Rodriguez deliberately stayed as close to the source material as possible. With standout performances from Mickey Rourke and Elijah Wood, Sin City paved the way for the later comic book movie revival as a whole.

Watch Sin City on Max

The Dark Knight

Warner Bros/Dc Comics/Kobal/Shutterstock

Christian Bale is a great Bruce Wayne, but it was Heath Ledger’s final completed performance as the Joker that brought The Dark Knight its critical acclaim and commercial blockbuster status. From the opening bank heist to the impossible choices the Joker thrusts upon both Batman and Gotham City, Christopher Nolan’s sophomore outing for the caped crusader raises resonant questions about the nature of man.

Watch The Dark Knight on Max

The Batman

Robert Pattinson in The Batman, 2022.
Jonathan Olley/Warner Bros.

Matt Reeves’ The Batman, released in 2022, is less like a superhero epic and more of a detective thriller. Robert Pattinson plays a tortured Bruce Wayne and a brooding Batman equally well, while Zoë Kravitz brings Selina Kyle to life as a sensual, cynical Catwoman. Paul Dano is chilling as the Zodiac Killer-inspired Riddler, and he worked very hard to get there: He was such a perfectionist that Reeves said Dano filmed 200 takes of a single scene.

Watch The Batman on Max

The Old Guard

Kiki Layne and Charlize Theron in The Old Guard, 2020.

AIMEE SPINKS/NETFLIX 

The Old Guard examines a power granted to many superheroes that often goes unquestioned: the loneliness and boredom associated with immortality. Charlize Theron and the rest of the cast kill it in hand-to-hand combat scenes, and it brought some long overdue LGBTQ representation to the superhero genre.

Watch The Old Guard on Netflix

Uncharted

Columbia Pictures

Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg make an unlikely but delightful pair in Uncharted, based on the video game of the same name. Nathan “Nate” Drake (Holland), a bartender-turned-pickpocket, sets off on an adventure to find his lost brother. (Holland worked as a bartender in real life to prepare for the role.) Victor “Sully” Sullivan (Wahlberg) takes Nate under his wing to find a treasure left by Ferdinand Magellan, and it turns out that Sully and Nate are connected in more ways than they realize — and even when their friendship gets tenuous, they need each other to survive.

Watch Uncharted on Netflix

The Gray Man

Ryan Gosling in The Gray Man, 2022.

Stanislav Honzik/Netflix

Oscar winner Ryan Gosling stars as the titular Gray Man, an assassin on the run — with the help of some chewing gum, a precocious child and Ana de Armas — from a former CIA colleague.

After nearly a decade as Captain America, Chris Evans takes a villainous turn — but it’s a role he plays so well. Evans chews the scenery as the bad guy in The Gray Man, brothers Anthony and Joe Russo’s first Netflix project (they previously directed Evans in four Marvel movies). The film was successful enough to greenlight both a spin-off and a sequel.

Watch The Gray Man on Netflix

The Kid Who Would Be King

K Brown/20th Century Fox/Kobal/Shutterstock

A kid-friendly option, The Kid Who Would Be King is as heartwarming as it is adrenaline-pumping. Patrick Stewart is a delight as Merlin (perhaps taking notes from his real-life bestie, Ian McKellen, and his turn as Gandalf) and Rebecca Ferguson is enchanting as wicked sorceress Morgana.

Watch The Kid Who Would Be King on Disney+

Zack Snyder’s Justice League

DC Entertainment/Warner Bros

While 2017’s Justice League — taken on by Joss Whedon partway through production — had an obviously similar story, the stakes immediately feel higher in Zack Snyder’s lengthy rendition of the superhero team-up. In the Snyder cut, villain Steppenwolf’s motives are clearer, and his defeat of the Amazons proves that he is a force to be reckoned with. Ben Affleck’s Bruce Wayne is perfectly pensive, Ray Fisher’s star turn as Cyborg is fully realized, Jason Momoa’s Aquaman makes a splash and Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman shows her tougher side.

Watch Zack Snyder’s Justice League on Max

Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education