The 11 Most Violent Action Movies of All Time, According to Reddit

11. ‘Punisher: War Zone’ (2008)

Although ignored by critics and mainstream audiences, Punisher: War Zone remains the best big-screen adaptation of a Marvel character. Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson) is a machine as he takes down criminals and literally leaves them in pieces in one of the R-rated superhero movies. Punisher: War Zone isn’t the deepest superhero movie out there, but it makes up for it with a steady stream of violence. One Reddit user says it’s “incredibly violent and equally entertaining,” and it’s hard to argue with that, as viewers with strong stomachs will find themselves laughing as Castle takes out parkour thugs with a rocket launcher.

10. ‘VFW’ (2019)

Set in a rundown city rife with violence teenager Lizard (Sierra McCormick) steals the supply of the drug kingpin who killed her sister. A throwback to the violent movies of the 70s and 80s, VFW is stacked with badass actors from that era like Stephen Lang, Fred Williamson, and William Sadler. Canadianmicrowave describes it as “super gory and fun” and it is hard to argue as the senior citizens mutilate their attackers with axes, spears, and other sharp objects.

9. ‘The Night Comes for Us’ (2018)

One of the most brutal action movies, The Night Comes for Us is filled with non-stop violence as Ito (Joe Taslim) fights to protect a young girl from a vicious Triad gang. As gang members swarm Ito and his allies, they use anything they can find to beat down the never-ending army of henchmen. Bluecannon1 says it is “definitely one of my favorite movies” and any action fan will share in their enthusiasm for this modern classic from Indonesia.

8. ‘Rambo’ (2008)

Beginning as a contemplative look at the mistreatment of war veterans, the Rambo series swiftly became a showcase for Sylvest er Stallone to mow down an army of goons. After the missionaries are captured by the brutal Burmese army, Rambo is called back into action as he decimates the soldiers with guns, arrows, and his trusty knife. One Redditor labels it “easily the most violent mainstream Hollywood film ever produced” as people are literally turned to mush by machine gun fire.

7. ‘Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky’ (1991)

Combining martial arts action with splatter films, Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky is set in a brutal, futuristic prison. As the prisoners are routinely tortured and killed by the warden’s corrupt lieutenants, new arrival Ricky (Louis Fan) fights back the only way he knows how: by dismembering, disemboweling, and decapitating them with his fists. Riki-Oh leaves realism at the door as its characters are capable of destroying the human body with each blow.

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6. ‘Dredd’ (2012)

An adaptation of the beloved comic book series, Dredd stars Karl Urban as the titular law enforcement officer. Working in a futuristic city that is overrun with crime, Judge Dredd is partnered with rookie Judge Anderson (Olivia Thirlby) as the pair find themselves trapped in a high-rise brimming with violent criminals who want their heads. Despite failing at the box office, Dredd has garnered a cult following since release, with fatty-fletcher saying “I absolutely love this film.”

5. ‘Upgrade’ (2018)

When Grey (Logan Marshall-Green) is left paralyzed after a mugging that also results in his wife’s death, he is implanted with a computer chip that allows him to walk again. As the AI in the chip begins to talk to Grey and allows him to accomplish almost super-human feats, he sets out to get revenge on those who destroyed his life. Directed by genre king Leigh Whannell, Upgrade feels like a throwback to the revenge movies of the 1980s as it combines gory action with dark comedy.

4. ‘RoboCop’ (1987)

One of the best violent movies, RoboCop stars Peter Weller as the titular law enforcement machine. When police officer Alex Murphy is brutally murdered, he is brought back as RoboCop, a corporation funded robot designed to police the violence-ridden streets and strike fear in the hearts of criminals. RoboCop starts graphically as Murphy is literally shot apart by his tormentors, before he turns the tables on the city’s scum by blowing them away in brutal gun battles.

3. ‘The Raid’ (2011)

When a squad of Indonesian police raids the hideout of an infamous crime boss, they find themselves trapped inside an apartment building. With countless goons out for their blood, the officers must fight through the onslaught as they make their way to the boss waiting at the top. While The Raid features shootouts, it excels when its characters are forced to fight hand-to-hand, engaging in brutal encounters that will have you wincing more than once.

2. ‘Hard Boiled’ (1992)

John Woo is one of the most influential directors in the action genre, and Hard Boiled is his masterpiece. Chow Yun-fat plays Inspector Tequila, a renegade cop out to avenge the death of his partner. Preferring bullets to handcuffs, Tequila takes the law into his own hands, executing the guilty. While the violence is not over the top (there are no dismemberments), the sheer number of henchmen that Tequila and his friends kill ranks among the movies with the highest body counts.

1. ‘Kill Bill: Vol. 1’ (2003)

Left for dead by her old crew on her wedding day, the Bride (Uma Thurman) awakens from a coma and swears revenge, utilizing her skills as a former assassin to hunt them down. The highlight of the movie comes when the Bride reaches the clubhouse of O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu), forced to face off with the Yakuza boss’s Crazy 88. As the Bride and her katana slice through each new foe, it creates one of the goriest non-horror scenes ever, causing psadler to claim “the Kill Bill movies are some of the bloodiest and goriest I’ve seen.”