The latest film from the directing duo Daniels (Swiss Army Man), Everything Everywhere All At Once is currently exploding in popularity across the film community. Acclaimed by critics and general audiences, the film is sitting amongst the highest rated of all time on Letterboxd.
Anchored by a career-defining performance by Michelle Yeoh, the cast is rounded out by old favorites Ke Huy Quan, James Hong, and Jamie Lee Curtis. It can be hard for action films to find the right balance between fights and emotional beats, but that is something Everything Everywhere nails to perfection. While most of the films below don’t possess the same heart as Everything Everywhere, they still provide all the necessary punches and kicks to keep you entertained.
1. Ip Man(2008)
Based on the real-life teacher of Bruce Lee, Ip Man is a fictionalized version of his life. While the film wishes to pay tribute to the legendary martial artist, it also inserts an abundance of fight scenes that may or may not have happened to spruce up its action movie credentials. Action legend Donnie Yen portrays the title character and perfectly captures the essence of a peaceful man who has an unbreakable strength residing within him. The film was a massive success and led to three sequels, with the most recent, Ip Man 4, being released in 2019.
2. Blood and Bone(2009)
Starring the underrated Michael Jai White, Blood and Bone follows an ex-con who finds himself competing in the underground fight scene in LA. The first half of the film takes the structure of a “tournament” as protagonist Isaiah Bone (yep) fights through every challenger thrown at him. However, the movie becomes more of a revenge plot in the second half when Bone’s true motivations are revealed. While the film isn’t going to win any awards, it is a good showcase of White’s talents, both of the acting and head-kicking variety, and is an enjoyable way to kill 90 minutes.RELATED:
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3. Headshot (2016)
An unconscious man washes ashore on a beach, waking to discover he is suffering from amnesia. All he knows is that he has a talent for beating the crap out of people. No, this is not The Bourne Identity, this is the setup for the Indonesian martial arts flick Headshot. Featuring The Raid favorite Iko Uwais as the ass-kicking amnesiac, the movie is full of well-choreographed fight scenes as the lead searches for his true identity, and why he is being hunted. Headshot is for anyone who thought the Bourne series was lacking in blood and broken bones.
4. Triple Threat(2019)
Featuring an all-star cast of recent action stars, Triple Threat pits a team of mercenaries (Iko Uwais, Tony Jaa, and Tiger Chen) against a team of assassins (Michael Jai White, Scott Adkins, and Michael Bisping). Caught in the middle is the innocent daughter of a billionaire, who the mercenaries are attempting to save from the assassins. Choosing not to think too hard about the plot or the development of its characters, Triple Threat instead leans into the physical talents of its cast, jumping from fight scene to fight scene until it reaches its thrilling conclusion.
5. BuyBust (2018)
Presented as the Philippines version of The Raid, BuyBust centers on a police squad on a mission to perform a drug bust in a Manila slum. When the bust goes wrong and the residents of the area take up arms against the invaders, the unit is forced to fight their way out. Borrowing The Raid’s concept of a small squad trapped in one location with enemies on all sides, BuyBust swaps a high rise for an oppressive slum. Working also as a criticism of the Philippines’ real-life war on drugs, BuyBust offers something to ponder in-between the claustrophobic action.
6. Revenger (2018)
After the unjust murder of his family, a detective purposely gets himself sent to a prison island. The prison is just a facade, however, and the island is instead used to stage fights to the death between the inmates, and the detective believes he will find his revenge there. The idea of a deadly fighting tournament on an island calls Mortal Kombat to mind, and Revenger almost resembles a videogame more than a film. Trading away all pretenses of plot and character, the South Korean film instead focuses on the fight scenes and the blood they inevitably produce.RELATED:
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7. The One(2001)
Tackling the idea of a multiverse twenty years before Everything Everywhere, The One stars Jet Li as a police officer who discovers an alternate version of himself is trying to kill him. Already having murdered the other 123 versions of himself across the multiverse, one more kill will cause him to absorb all of their power and become the mythical “The One”. Jason Statham and Delroy Lindo also star as a pair of “multiverse agents” who are chasing the murderer in an effort to foil his plan. The One is schlocky fun, with its dumb Sci-Fi plot elevated by Li’s presence and martial arts prowess.
8. Wira(2019)
This little-seen martial arts film from Malaysia was choreographed by Yayan Ruhian, who played the scene-stealing Mad Dog in The Raid. When a soldier returns home, he discovers that his sister is in debt to a local crime boss. The only way to settle this debt of course is by trading blows with his best fighters. With such an accomplished martial artist behind the choreography, the highlight of Wira is of course the fight scenes. While the plot is fairly clichéd for the genre, it hits all the right beats as it transports the audience to each fight.
9 Avengement(2019)
With a title like Avengement, you would be forgiven for thinking of it as typical straight-to-streaming fare. However, the film has more to offer beyond just its brutal fight scenes. When a simple bag theft results in the death of an innocent woman, a small-time criminal is sent to prison, where he is forced to fight for survival after a bounty is placed on his head. Scott Adkins is terrific as the lead, shining in a role that allows him to showcase more than his action chops. The fight scenes are grizzly, with one involving curb-stomping being particularly brutal. Avengement devotes enough time to its plot and main character to set it apart from most other B-grade action movies.