This is a tough one since 2019 wasn’t shy about rolling out action movies that were intense and pulse-pounding nearly all the way through. Some of those on this list won’t come as a huge surprise since they were so universally loved, but a couple of them might seem like highly subjective choices since like anything, action movies do tend to differ in how they’re viewed by many people. Some people like the intense, visceral movies while others like those that are more cerebral in nature. Then there are those that incorporate both and are just masterstrokes of genius that some enjoy and some don’t. It’s hard to please everyone and in many cases director’s don’t really try since they know the target audience they’re going for and that’s who they try to please. When it comes to action though the average audience member wants a good story and plenty of movement that allows them to enjoy and get into the movie in a variety of ways.
Here are the five best action movies of 2019.
5. Captain Marvel
Some of these are great just looking at them from an action standpoint since if I really had to go into full detail Captain Marvel would likely suffer just a bit and possibly get knocked off the list if only because of Brie Larson’s attitude towards men, who make up a good part of the Marvel fan base. It’s not always wise to alienate those that are making it possible to make these kinds of movies, but it is nice to see more female heroes making their way to the screen since there’s a lot of them in the Marvel universe that are nothing less than impressive. Hopefully the sequel will tone it down on the ‘girl power’ rhetoric and just be a great movie, as this one could have been if not for that same quality.
4. Hobbs & Shaw
A lot of people weren’t expecting much from this movie and that was wise since it didn’t deliver on much more than the action, but that alone kind of made it worth seeing. Watching Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham take on a small army is kind of fun but it makes for a lot of eye rolling since some of the feats they manage to accomplish are more attributable to jacked-up superheroes than even the most skilled and powerful human beings. Still, as its own movie, without being related to the Fast and Furious, it was a great thrill ride from start to finish with a lot of cool but unrealistic moments that would have left most people visiting the ICU for an extended stay.
3. Godzilla: King of the Monsters
This one is part nostalgia and part WTF since only a few of the titans came out in a big way, but thankfully they were the ones that a lot of people remembered. Ghidorah was insanely powerful, Rodan was kind of an opportunist and yes-man, and Mothra was without a doubt much more than she seemed initially. Godzilla delivered in a big way since his battles with Ghidorah were always pretty tense, but when Godzilla hits that critical point it’s best to be miles and miles away since the fallout is something that should have vaporized everyone within his sight line. Still, as an action movie it was entertaining.
2. John Wick 3: Parabellum
It didn’t take John Wick long to hit cult classic status and then move beyond since the assassin has built up a reputation that nearly puts him on par with Chuck Norris, who everyone has looked up to and thought of as the toughest guy in the world for a long time. At this point it’s hard to say just who would be tougher, Norris or Wick, but a lot of people would probably be willing to chime in. There was even more action and even more ass-kicking in this movie and personally the knife-throwing scene early on was kind of hilarious as well as the kind of scene that makes you go ‘damn!’ since it’s just brutal without apology.
1. Avengers: Endgame
This is the ultimate ten-year challenge, as the internet will understand it, since when the MCU was first created Iron Man was THE man and the catalyst for everything that finally ended up happening in Endgame. The fact that he died at the end was kind of sad, but it also makes Tony Stark’s arc close with a finality that makes sense. Chances are his personality and intelligence is now bound up within an AI program, but the likelihood that we’ll see such a thing moving forward is hard to say since his contract with the MCU is up and he’s a pricey individual to get back, if he ever wanted to come back in some capacity.
2019 didn’t skimp on the action, and the only reason I didn’t add in the next Star Wars movie is because we have yet to see if it’s worth the mention.
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