It’s the genre that never goes out of fashion —actionin cinema started out with the earliest days of the art form and pretty much defined cinematic spectacle before landmark films likeCitizen Kanecame up with the modern film language. Action cinema has taken a turn for the better in the past two decades with the reinvention of what brawls and firefights look like on the screen. Gone are the days of big guns, massive explosions, and one-dimensional machismo. Good action these days is all about gritty, tactical realism, utilizing the best of what actors and modern film technology have to offer.
Updated July 18, 2025: In honor of the release ofExtraction 2, this article has been updated byGaurav Krishnanwith additional content and titles.
Filmmakers who appreciate good, tactical action on-screen have invented an entire sub-genre of their own, one that is becoming more and more popular with audiences. you’re able to’t get a major action movie these days that doesn’t incorporate at least some amount of realism in their fight scenes. The best movies in the tactical action genre, however, utilize action sequences to do a great deal of their storytelling. The combination of gritty, tactical action, along with good storytelling, is what makes these movies stand out. Here are 20 movies in the tactical action genre that are literally perfect.
20The Bourne Trilogy
The originalBournetrilogy single-handedlyreinvented action cinema, foregoing grand action set pieces for a more intimate style of cinematic action that was much more visceral and realistic. Based on the eponymous book series by Robert Ludlum, the series introduced Matt Damon as an unlikely CIA assassin who is dealing with amnesia. Director Doug Liman directed the first film, and Paul Greengrass stepped in to helm the two follow-ups.
The quick, frenetic, hand-held action filmmaking with quick cuts redefined the genre. It became the inspiration for many action films and even inspired the shift in the James Bond series in the 2000s. When it comes to action franchises, it is hard to argue that the original Bourne trilogy is not one of the most influential of all time. The two follow-ups, 2012’sThe Bourne Legacyand 2016’sJason Bourne, could not quite capture the magic of those first three films.
19John Wick Franchise
If the Bourne movies were the defining action franchise of the 2000s, then theJohn Wickfranchise is defining action franchise of the 2010s. Its creator, Chad Stahelsky, envisioned a unique new style of action for the screen and combined a variety of martial arts styles with real-world firearms practices to bring it to fruition. Keanu Reeves was the perfect vessel to bring this brand of action to life, committing himself to a grueling few months of martial arts and firearms training.
The formula worked: he brought a whole new level of fluency to his fighting sequences inJohn Wick. The John Wick franchise has grown more popular with each entry, with the most recent additionJohn Wick: Chapter 4,grossing $432 million worldwide. A spin-off film, a television mini-series, and apotential fifth film are all planned.
18Black Hawk Down
A collaboration of two Hollywood heavy hitters, director Ridley Scott and producer Jerry Bruckheimer, 2001’sBlack Hawk Downexplores military tactics and strategic warfare and portrays the story of the US Army’s 1993 raid of Mogadishu, Somalia, during the Somalian Civil War wherein a US Black Hawk helicopter crashed into the heart of enemy territory.
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Considering it’s a Bruckheimer production, the film is duly extravagant, as it retells the story of how the US Army deployed rescue teams behind enemy lines to save the team whose helicopter was shot down while they are stuck in the middle of a deadly warzone with Somalian rebels converging. Although the film is a dramatized depiction of the true event, it still is a hard-hitting tactical action film comprising an ensemble cast with riveting action sequences that explores the military strategy and the valiant efforts of the US Army amidst the dangers and perils that their rescue mission entails.
Released in 2015,Sicariois a one-of-a-kind movie that holds up as a powerful work of cinema even outside the action genre tag. Two illustrious names are behind this movie — it was written by Taylor Sheridan, who has garnered acclaim for his work in themodern Western genre, and directed by Denis Villeneuve, who has become one of the most influential modern filmmakers with films likeArrival,Blade Runner 2049andDune.
Sicariois an intensely thrilling movie with an unforgettable action style. The highway firefight scene is perhaps one of the most thrilling shootouts ever. The movie spends no time in unnecessary motions and takes a set of well-written characters on a journey that explores the workings of the CIA and Mexican drug cartels.
16Phone Booth
In what is one of the most cerebral and inventive screenplays written in the tactical action genre, that’s also a suspense and thriller flick,Phone Boothstarring Colin Farrell is right up there in terms of plot line and execution. The story follows Stu (Farrell), a New York publicist who is having an affair away from his marriage and is then held hostage in a phone booth by a killer sniper, played by Kiefer Sutherland, who is strategically positioned somewhere in the surrounding buildings.
The sniper, armed with a 30-caliber bolt-action 700 sniper rifle with a state-of-the-art Hensoldt tactical scope, begins to shoot and take out people on the street unless Stu does exactly as he says while the NYPD led by Ed Ramey (Forest Whittaker) try to decode the situation and use their police intelligence and investigation tactics to locate and nullify the sniper. The film is shot from the perspectives of both the sniper and the protagonist and their ongoing conversation as it cuts to shots of the sniper’s tactical scope and visuals of the on-street drama from several angles, using innovative filming techniques while the unique and compelling plot unfolds.
15S.W.A.T.
Colin Farrell also stars in 2003’sS.W.A.T., which is a tactical action film including the likes of Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Renner, Michelle Rodriguez, and LL Cool J that plays out the story of an LAPD S.W.A.T. team who are tasked with escorting a French fugitive drug lord named Alexander Montel to prison. Montel goes on live TV after his arrest declaring an offer of a sum of $100 million for anybody who can free him from police custody which leads to a plethora of mercenaries attempting to free him.
The film centers around how Sergeant Hondo (Samuel L. Jackson) assembles his S.W.A.T. team and their tactical, grueling, and intense training process, apart from a few missions they are called into action for before they have to escort Montel to prison and the plot twists that follow. The film is all-action and explores how S.W.A.T. teams function, along with some drama and subplots that keep it rather interesting.
14Mission Of Honor
Also on our listof Best Aerial War Films,Mission Of Honor, also calledHurricane,is a take on aerial warfare and air-force tactics along with a storyline that echoes camaraderie. The film retells the story of RAF Squadron No. 303, a starkly different squadron in its conception comprising Polish, Canadian and British pilots, who were one of the deadliest air-force units to take to the skies during WWII.
The film explores aerial tactics and aircraft battles and has elaborate action sequences and dogfights that make for an enthralling watch. It’s a definitive account of the heroic squadron, a unit of the Allied airforce resistance that isn’t very well-known in the broader context of WWII.
A riveting and engrossing tactical action film,Furystarring Brad Pitt and Shia LaBeouf, tells the fictional story of the members of an M4 Sherman tank called “Fury” and their journey through the battlefields and towns of German territory during the April 1945 Western Allied invasion of Germany.
The movie portrays how Fury’s crew evade the dangers of Panzerfausts(anti-tank guns) and afflict heavy casualties to the Nazis in their journey deep into German territory while also losing some of their crew members before they are rescued by American soldiers and are celebrated for their exploits. Shot from the perspective of the tank and its crew, the film is a rare account of how tanks operate in the scheme of on-the-ground warfare, particularly during WWII, and is an inspiring story that has expertly conceived action sequences.
12The Hurt Locker
2008’sThe Hurt Lockeris a modern tactical marvel and a film that sheds light on modern warfare and the psychological effects of war. Directed by Kathryn Bigelow and written by Mark Boal, the film depicts the story of a bomb diffuser unit of the US Army that is stationed in Iraq during the war. Jeremy Renner stars as Sergeant First Class William James, a bomb diffuser who is at odds with his superiors and team members because of his maverick way of diffusing bombs by hand. The story explores the team’s exploits in Iraq as they are targeted by Iraqi insurgents as they go about their bomb-disarming missions.
The film has some exquisite and ground-breaking cinematography, especially of the bomb-diffusing sequences, which is complemented by exemplary acting by Renner and a driving score by Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders. The movie won six Oscars at the 82nd Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay, and is an exhilarating and intense film that keeps audiences gripped and quite rightly swept up several accolades and awards after its release.
11Extraction
The 2020 movieExtractionis one of Chris Hemsworth’s memorable recent performances outside the MCU. It was directed by Sam Hargrave and written by Joe Russo, presenting an international cast in much the same way asThe Gray Man. Most notably, the movie featured Bollywood actor Randeep Hooda and Iranian-French actress Golshifteh Farahani in key roles. The movie takes place in Bangladesh and features Hemsworth as a mercenary who is contracted to rescue the kidnapped son of a crime lord.
Extractionwas praised for its elaborate fighting sequences that focused on real-world tactics. The movie pulled viewers right into the actionwith long takes, minimal cutting, and a lot of practical effects. Released during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic,Extractionprovided the big summer action at home that audiences were missing from theaters.Extraction 2is set for release on Netflix on July 19, 2025, just in time for Father’s Day weekend.
