Puritanical types like to scapegoat movie violence as a cause of social breakdown, but the truth is that the world has always been a violent place, and the movies merely reflect that fact. Even more to the point, while real-world violence is rarely worthy of celebration, in film, it can often be beautiful. Think the grace of Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan’s blur of motion. In cinema, interpersonal combat is an artform unto itself, one that has made careers and provides the foundation for whole genres.
On this list of the greatest movie scenes ever filmed, though, the selections run the gamut, from action sequences so balletic they nearly count as dancing to brutal, sloppy brawls that nonetheless nudge us to the edge of our seats. A few caveats, though. First off, no gunplay allowed, at least not where a firearm is the primary weapon; well-orchestrated shootouts are a whole other category, and probably deserve a list of their own. For similar reasons, we’ve also omitted boxing matches, wrestling bouts or MMA fights. But that still leaves us with plenty of hard-hitting dust-ups, elegant martial arts mastery and the occasional goofy grapple that puts the slap in ‘slapstick’. All we are saying is: give violence a chance.
RECOMMENDED:
🥋 The 25 best martials arts movies ever made.
🧨 The 101 greatest action movies ever made.
🪂 The 18 greatest stunts in cinema (picked by the greatest stunt professionals)
