Action movies have the potential to combine their thrills with moments of comedy, which means that a fun action movie can be extremely replayable. There will always be a place for darker action films, but sometimes people prefer something light and fun. Fortunately, the action genre is diverse enough to have hard-hitting dramas and light-hearted comedies. Not all big action movies have to be as serious as Aliens, cooked or John Wick.
Action comedies include everything from sci-fi parodies to crime films, and they’re often worth a lot of review. These films can become great comfort films because they are proudly silly, which means their entire focus can be on entertainment. Of course, it’s still important that the characters and plot are convincing, but what’s most important are the jokes and exciting action sequences.
10
Rush Hour (1998)
Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker make an unlikely duo
- Director
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Brett Ratner
- Release date
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September 18, 1998
- Cast
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Ken Leung, Chris Tucker, Tzi Ma, Tom Wilkinson, Jackie Chan, Mark Rolston, Rex Linn, Elizabeth Peña
Most of Jackie Chan’s action films have a lot of humor. He excels at the rare kind of physical comedy that comes from watching someone do something difficult and impressive rather than falling. Chan constantly tries to outdo himself with his creative stunts and fight scenes. Its characters often get hurt during fights, but they’re always worth rooting for and tend to find ingenious ways to get out of trouble.
After a string of successes in Hong Kong Rush hour proved that Chan could be equally popular in the United States. The crime comedy pairs him with Chris Tucker, a decidedly worse fit for the action hero mold. Tucker and Chan develop a hilarious culture clash dynamic between action scenes. Tucker plays a brash and arrogant American, while Chan plays a more reserved and calculated police officer. Rush hourThe script gives the two actors a lot of good jokes.
9
Last Action Hero (1993)
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s self-parody is an underrated gem
- Release date
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June 18, 1993
- Cast
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Arnold Schwarzenegger, F. Murray Abraham, Art Carney, Charles Dance, Frank McRae, Tom Noonan, Robert Prosky, Anthony Quinn
Ultimate Action Hero makes fun of campy, over-the-top action movies; the types of action films that Arnold Schwarzenegger built his career on. Having Schwarzenegger in the lead role therefore becomes Ultimate Action Hero in hilarious self-parody. The script jumps from one explosive, trope-laden action sequence to the next, poking holes in the genre’s bizarre physics, cheesy one-liners, and expendable henchmen as it goes.
While Ultimate Action Hero is a laughable parody of action films, the presence of Schwarzenegger and Die Hard director John McTiernan means it’s also as thrilling as many action classics. Ultimate Action Hero can satirize the genre because it makes its love of excess and violence clear from the start. Using a child’s perspective reflects the way this action can regress anyone to a state of childlike joy if done well.
8
The Other Guys (2010)
Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg Join as Improvised Action Heroes
- Release date
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August 5, 2010
Will Ferrell and Adam McKay have done some great comedies together. In The other guys, Ferrell shares the spotlight with Mark Wahlberg as the two actors play a pair of cops who are suddenly thrust into the spotlight. The other guys begins with a hilarious sequence featuring Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne Johnson as two hero cops. These are the real action heroes that Wahlberg and Ferrell’s characters are forced to replace.
The other guys There’s a lot of fun banter between the two leads, but it’s more creative than most crime films. There are plenty of great jokes that have nothing to do with the genre’s old reliable tropes.like the fact that Michael Keaton’s character keeps inadvertently referencing TLC lyrics, or that the idiot at Ferrell’s table is married to Eva Mendes, and that he seems to loathe her for some reason.
7
Game Night (2018)
There have been few comedies like Game Night in recent years
- Director
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Jonathan Goldstein, John Francis Daley, Billy Magnussen
- Release date
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February 23, 2018
Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams lead a fun cast in Game night, an action comedy about a group of friends who believe they are in a gripping game of murder mystery until one of them is kidnapped. It’s got the kind of wrong-man’s-man premise that’s been pretty much worn out by the action-comedy genre, but Game night continually finds new ways to make it feel new.
One thing that helps Game night Shine is the impeccable chemistry shared between Bateman and McAdams. Their fun back and forth is part of the reason there are so many requests for a sequel. Jesse Plemons is the best of the rest as a socially awkward cop who doesn’t seem to understand the basics of human interaction. Game night Bolsters its comedic core with some surprising actionincluding some exciting car chases. Its style is reminiscent of an earlier generation of comedy films that prioritized humor above all else.
6
The Nice Guys (2016)
Shane Black’s comedy deserved a sequel
- Director
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Shane Black
- Release date
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May 20, 2016
The cool guys was a notorious box office failure, but has since steadily grown a dedicated fan base. Although eight years have passed, there are still some calls for a Nice guys sequence. The ending seems to tease another film, with Holland March and Jackson Healy deciding to go into business together. Unfortunately, it seems unlikely that Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe will get the chance to rekindle their surprisingly likable dynamic.
The cool guys is imbued with retro charmwith a shaggy dog detective story set in 1970s Los Angeles. Director Shane Black previously worked on Lethal weapon films and Kiss Kiss Bang Bangand he brings his distinct flair for the buddy cop genre to The cool guys. Gosling and Crowe pair off wonderfully, and their characters are tailor-made to get under each other’s skin in the funniest ways possible.
5
Men in Black (1997)
Men In Black is an endlessly fun cocktail of different genres
- Director
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Barry Sonnenfeld
- Release date
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July 2, 1997
Men in black is one of the best science fiction comedies ever made. It’s a crime film of sorts, but Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones star as two agents for an organization tasked with keeping New York City’s extraterrestrial population under control. In addition to this science fiction premise, Men in black uses some buddy cop archetypes. Agent J is the younger of the two, a brash newbie with a whole galaxy of experience he’s yet to try, while his partner is the grizzled old man who must show him what to do.
Smith and Jones are delightful company as the two stars. Smith is often funniest when he has a deadpan partner to counter his expressive antics, and few actors are as deadpan as Jones. Men in black builds its dynamics around an exciting apocalyptic narrative. The race to find the Bug and prevent Earth’s annihilation plays like an effective clockwork and provides the basis for some action sequences, like the final showdown beneath the towers of the New York State Pavilion.
4
Hot Fuzz (2008)
Edgar Wright is a master of genre parodies
- Release date
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February 14, 2007
Edgar Wright’s Cornetto trilogy parodies three different genres. Shaun of the Dead zombie horror parody, The end of the world is a comedic version of an alien invasion movie, and Hot fuzz mocks the action genre. The name drops Bad Boys II and Breaking point, but there are also allusions to films like Lethal weapon, it’s hard to die and True Lies. All of these references work because Wright is clearly a fan, and they’re meant to be loving homages without being too distracting.
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost star as two police officers who uncover a murderous conspiracy in a small town. Just like the other films in the Cornetto trilogy, their chemistry is a joy to watch. Hot fuzz it also offers enough action to stand out alongside the action classics it so often references. Much of the film’s humor derives from the contrast between these high-octane actors and the mundane setting of an English pedestrian village, but when it matters, Hot fuzz It’s genuinely exciting.
3
The Incredibles (2004)
The Pixar classic is always worth watching
- Release date
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November 5, 2004
- Cast
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Sarah Vowell, Samuel L. Jackson, Craig T. Nelson, Spencer Fox, Holly Hunter, Jason Lee
Animated action films often lack the intensity of their live-action counterparts, but the best ones can make up for this discrepancy in a number of ways. The Incredibles It has a sense of style, an intriguing mystery and endlessly creative action sequences. At its heart, it’s a family comedy about fatherhood aimed at a younger audience. Superheroes may be the perfect costume for kids, but the story’s emotional core focuses on Bob’s reluctance to let go of his old life.
The Incredibles is one of the few Pixar films that become even more rewarding when rewatched at an older age. Brad Bird’s eye for cinematic action and the clever jokes sprinkled throughout the dialogue can please audiences of any age, but the characters are complex and realistic enough to entertain more mature audiences. Above all, The Incredibles stands out for its confident vision. The design of the heroes and the world in general seems to take inspiration from old comic books and Saturday morning cartoons.
2
Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
Matthew Vaughn’s Spy Thriller Is a Lighter Bond
- Director
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Matthew Vaughn
- Release date
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February 13, 2015
The franchise may have faltered a bit with its two subsequent entries, but the first Kingsman the film remains a fun spy parody with lots of inventive action. It’s impressive to see the sheer number of creative action sequences Matthew Vaughn can include Kingsman: The Secret Service. There’s a reverse car chase, a fight with a woman with blades for her feet, and a scene where Eggsy and his fellow interns have to escape a locked room as it fills with water.
Kingsman It’s a more working class James Bond parody. At a time when James Bond became braver and more serious, Kingsman presents a happier alternative. However, it’s also designed with enough original ideas to stand on its own, broadening its appeal beyond fans of 007. THE Kingsman The franchise seems to be in limbo these days, but Taron Egerton and Colin Firth’s super spies definitely have at least one more adventure coming up.
1
Tropical Thunder (2008)
Ben Stiller directs and leads a great cast
- Release date
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August 13, 2008
Tropical Thunder It parodies war films, but it’s also a broader satire of the Hollywood machine. The joke isn’t about the soldiers or the war itself, but rather about the way movie studios sensationalize real life to maximize their entertainment value. Each of the spoiled actors in the film-within-a-film cast have their own massive egos to contend with. What they lack is any kind of understanding of the subject.
Ben Stiller is Tropical Thunderdirector and star. He is supported by a great cast that includes Jack Black, Steve Coogan and a satirically blackened Robert Downey Jr. The real surprise in the cast is Tom Cruise, however. In a film filled with thrilling action scenes, the world’s biggest action star is confined to a boardroom. His foul-mouthed studio executive is a reminder that Cruise is an underrated comedic actor.