Action flicks get us going. They ramp up our adrenaline as we bask in the glory of protagonists, or wallow in their defeats. Leaving the cinema after watching a good action movie has us ready to take on the day ahead. The kickass action scenes should also get us wanting for more, and might even inspire us to get our lazy asses into the nearest dojo.
You probably want to know what the best scenes are that could get your heart racing. Don’t worry; read on as we take a look at the best movie fight scenes of all time. Then, get your fix of even more action flicks with our top 10 list of the best martial arts movies of all-time.
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Rocky Balboa is everyone’s favorite fictional boxer. Why not? The Italian Stallion represents the everyday man as he has just about every sort of disadvantage you can think of. He’s illiterate, and he’s not even that good in boxing. All he has is a thunderous left hand. That’s why world heavyweight champion Apollo Creed handpicked him to pad his record.
Little did Creed know that Balboa would be a tough challenger. The two threw everything at each other, with both beaten to a bloody pulp. The final scorecard declared Creed as the winner, but Balboa won everyone’s hearts. Rocky would spur five more sequels, each with its own excellent final fight. It even spurred a modern spinoff recently, with Creed’s son being the protagonist in his very own movie.
9. Crane Kick – The Karate Kid
The crane kick from The Karate Kid provides one of the more lasting images from Western martial arts cinema. The climax of the movie sees the oft-bullied Daniel LaRusso going toe-to-toe with his chief tormentor, Johnny Lawrence; a skilled member of the Cobra Kai karate dojo.
LaRusso is injured and could no longer put weight on one of his legs due to a vicious, unethical move from his opponent. He then assumes the crane stance, something he saw his mentor Mr. Miyagi performing on the beach, before unleashing a front kick to Lawrence’s face to win the tournament. If done right, nobody can stop the iconic crane kick indeed.
8. Chen Zhen vs. Go Fujita – Fist of Legend
Everybody had their sights set on Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon when it comes to the gold standard of Chinese martial arts movies. However, long before that, Jet Li was already making historical martial arts films filled with dazzling fight choreography. Li is best known for his roles in Hero and Once Upon a Time in China, but Fist of Legend could be seen as his finest effort in fight choreography.
The final battle in Fist of Legend features some of the best flying kicks you’d ever see, lightning-quick punches and the destruction of surroundings that’s ever been shown on the silver screen.
7. Neo vs. Agent Smith – The Matrix
What happens when you blend Chinese-style martial arts flicks with a taste of Western action cinema? You get The Matrix as a result, which was one of the best action flicks of the new millennium. Neo, played by Keanu Reeves, is trapped in a subway by Agent Smith—an all-powerful entity that exists in “the Matrix”.
The two first engage in a Mexican standoff before getting into a gunfight while flying through the air. They both run out of bullets and resume in hand-to-hand combat. It’s an incredible scene filled with blocks and punches. Reeves even pulls off multiple flying kicks chained in succession. It’s one of the best scenes in one of the most unforgettable movies to watch. They don’t make flicks like The Matrix anymore.
6. The Bride vs. The Crazy 88 – Kill Bill Vol. 1
Quentin Tarantino is a genius when it comes to making aesthetic violence in his flicks, and he overdoes himself with Kill Bill Volumes 1 and 2. However, the subject of this particular entry centers on Volume 1, with The Bride (Uma Thurman) taking on O-Ren Ishii’s private army, the Crazy 88.
It starts off with a duel between The Bride in an all-yellow get-up (Bruce Lee homage, anyone?) going head-to-head with a chained mace-wielding school-girl whom she barely beats. After, The Bride takes on and either kills or mutilates 87 of the Crazy 88, only sparing the life of a young-unskilled member who she comically spanks and sends home. It’s a thrilling sword-fight filled with fountains of blood (literally) and gore—something you won’t easily forget in your lifetime of watching flicks.
5. Wong-Fei Hung vs. John – The Legend of the Drunken Master
You can’t have a list of the best fight scenes on the silver screen without featuring at least one Jackie Chan action sequence. It’s unimaginable to do so. Chan’s filmography is rich with potent fight scenes; from his classic films like Police Story to some of his Hollywood releases (The Tuxedo and Rush Hour come to mind), but his best effort ever would be in The Legend of the Drunken Master.
Chan plays the role of Chinese folk hero Wong-Fei Hung, who inexplicably becomes stronger whenever he gets drunk (hence the title). The final fight sequence first features Chan cartoonishly gulping down some alcohol before fighting the main villain, John. What comes next is a brilliant combination of dexterity and grace, blending together full-force punches and kicks with some hilarious physical comedy.
4. Yu Shu Lien vs. Jen Yu – Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon may be the best martial arts movie of all-time. It certainly ups the ante with high-flying acts throughout the movie, the most resounding of which is this duel between Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh) and Jen Yu (Zhang Ziyi). Lien may have been the more skilled of the two, but Yu’s possession of the Green Destiny sword almost equalizes their abilities.
The fight is a sight to behold with a ballet-like duel showcasing both Yeoh and Ziyi’s grace and poise. They get plus points for doing their own stunts—resulting in a truly remarkable scene.
3. Wong-Fei Hung vs. Iron Robe Yim – Once Upon a Time in China
Jet Li first reached superstar status with his role as Chinese folk hero Wong-Fei Hung in Once Upon a Time in China. Audiences were first wowed by the stunts from the likes of Crouching Tiger and The Matrix. Little did they know that these types of scenes were a norm in the Hong Kong action scene even way back before the aforementioned blockbuster hits.
Li was at his best in this action sequence involving Yee Kwan Yan, playing the villain named Iron Robe Yim. It’s one protracted duel with a small intermission, showing that fights can happen vertically as well as horizontally. The fight had the perfect combination of each actor’s physical prowess and newer wire methods melding into an eye-catching sequence.
2. Lee vs. Han – Enter the Dragon
Enter the Dragon is the holy grail of fighting movies, especially considering that it stars the master himself, Bruce Lee, in his final acting appearance before his death in 1973. Lee plays a skilled martial artist beyond his years, investigating a martial arts tournament hosted by a supposed opium trader.
Lee has plenty of note-worthy fight sequences in the movie, but his best has to be with the criminal mastermind Han (Shih Kien). Han attempted to trick Lee using a hall full of mirrors and a deadly claw for a hand. It spawned the classic quote, “Now, you must remember: the enemy has only images and illusions behind which he hides his true motives. Destroy the image and you will break the enemy.”
1. Colt vs. Tang – Way of the Dragon
Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris. Those two names should be enough to entice you to watch Way of the Dragon. Better yet, the two martial arts icons actually go toe-to-toe, but not before both fighters remove their shirts and give each other enough time to get loose. Where do you put this classic showdown? Nowhere else than the Colosseum in Rome. Both give each other everything they could offer, but Lee has the last laugh as the titular Dragon bested his foe.
Plenty of fights happen for real either in the mixed martial arts cage or the boxing ring. Create a betting account now and get the best lines for your fix of fisticuffs action.
