Almost every movie has a fight sequence of some kind, from the high-action brawls in The Raid series to the comedic chaos in Bridget Jones’ Diary. An editor with a feel of the rhythm of stylized violence and a good command of tension are essential for creating an excellent fight scene. Additionally, it is advantageous if the actors do their own stunts; if not, the director will have to make cuts around stunt duplicates.
The really well-directed combat sequences usually stand out from the crowd because of the many generic Epic Battle Scenes that viewers have had to endure. The greatest battle sequences in cinema history are these ones.
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Revision received on February 6, 2022 from Colin McCormick: Few things are more enjoyable than a well-made combat scene, even as CGI extravaganza in films continue to soar. The greatest fight sequences in movies include humor and thrills in addition to physical violence, whether they are large-scale brawls or one-on-one fights. There are certain incredible battle sequences in film history that absolutely stick out, whether they are in a large-scale blockbuster picture or a smaller, lesser-known treasure.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) – Elevator Fight
Some legitimately claim that MCU action scenes seem like noisy jumble with no actual consequences because of the overuse of computer generated imagery. But Captain America: The Winter Soldier gave the series some more realistic action with some entertaining outcomes.
The close-quarters fight between Captain America and a group of mercenaries is among the greatest illustrations of this. The moment, in which Cap finds himself surrounded by people he believed were his comrades, relates to the movie’s central subject. He takes them all out in the tense and chaotic combat, however, not backing down from the challenge.
Bathroom Fight – Fallout – Mission: Impossible (2018)
Thanks to Tom Cruise, the Mission: Impossible series is renowned for its death-defying exploits. It thus comes as a surprise that one of the greatest scenes in Mission: Impossible – Fallout is a vicious and violent hand-to-hand combat in a public restroom.
When Ethan Hunt and his partner Walker corner a suspect in a restroom, they find that he is much more combative than they had anticipated. It’s a flashy and amazing scene, with a pipe being yanked straight out of the wall and Henry Cavill cocking his fists.
The Matrix (Epic Battle Scenes): Neo vs. Agent Smith (1999)
Viewers were originally exposed to a world in The Matrix 1 where reality’s rules might be bent. That resulted in some very amazing action scenes and a tale that bent reality to pieces.
Neo is prepared to accept the absurdities of this universe in exchange for an exciting battle as he confronts the apparently unbeatable Agent Smith. It blends wire work into contemporary action films with the grounded and stylized choreography of kung-fu films.
Kill Bill Vol. 1 – The Bride vs. The Crazy 88 (2003)
For his Kill Bill films, Quentin Tarantino merged a wide range of genres, from spaghetti westerns to exploitation films. But the first film embraces the classic kung-fu films, which sets up the spectacular final fight.
With just a sword at her disposal, The Bride uses it to cut through the Crazy 88 gang with amazing bloodlust. Although it is undoubtedly extravagant, Tarantino’s action directing and the stunt performers’ abilities are quite remarkable.
The Legend of the Drunken Master from Market Fight (1994)
Jackie Chan is perhaps the greatest actor when it comes to performing fantastic on-screen fights. He is not only a master martial artist but also a gifted physical comedian, and he has fused these two skills to create a unique kind of action comedy.
The amusing market battle demonstrates why The Legend of the Drunken Master is among the greatest instances of this. As he battles a group of evil guys and becomes more inebriated in the process, Chan exhibits both fierce and goofy qualities.
The Manson Murderers vs. Cliff Booth & Brandy – Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)
Films directed by Quentin Tarantino are renowned for their extreme brutality. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, which has very little violence throughout, broke the trend. Subsequently, in the magnificent denouement, Tarantino unleashes an entire film’s worth of violence in one vicious fight scene. In Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Tarantino altered history in a manner akin to eliminating Hitler in Inglourious Basterds.
Upon arriving to Rick Dalton’s home, Cliff Booth and his pitbull Brandy administer fast vigilante justice set to Vanilla Fudge’s “You Keep Me Hangin’ On,” giving the Manson killers a taste of their own medicine instead of murdering Sharon Tate and her companions.
Hard Times: Chaney vs. Street (1975)
In Hard Times, Walter Hill’s directorial debut, Charles Bronson delivered a performance that would come to define his career. He portrays Chaney, a bare-knuckle fighter who draws the notice of a hustler called Speed with his incredible fighting skills and who takes him under his tutelage.
In the pivotal smackdown, Chaney finally takes on a rival who has a real chance of defeating him after winning fights left and right in New Orleans with ease. Street presents a distinct threat to Chaney’s physical strength as a svelte, agile fighter.
Rocky II: Rocky Balboa vs. Apollo Creed (1979)
Two of the most recognizable combat sequences in cinematic history include Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed. Rocky’s last battle defies conventions of the genre and establishes the film as a love tale above all else when Creed wins and Rocky accepts it since Adrian will always be at his side. When the two square off in a rematch in Rocky II, Stallone once again plays with the audience’s expectations. This time, Rocky prevails, but not with a spectacular slow-motion K.O. shot.
After a couple rounds of fighting, Apollo and Rocky are both worn out. Rocky only wins because he’s (barely) standing when Apollo collapses from weariness. His knockout triumph is the result of pure willpower and perseverance.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Yu Shu Lien vs. Jen Yu (2000)
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon became a global smash because to its martial arts scenes; the film’s protagonists’ acrobatic, ballet-inspired fighting technique set it apart.
The movie’s high point is the confrontation between Zhang Ziyi’s character Jen Yu and Michelle Yeoh’s character Yu Shu Lien. Lien continually swapping weapons in an attempt to match Yu’s Green Destiny sword’s accuracy. Throughout the brawl, the two delivered both physical and verbal punches to one another.
Raiders of the Lost Ark: Indiana Jones vs. The Mechanic (1981)
George Lucas cast Pat Roach as a number of tough side villains in the Indiana Jones films after rejecting him for the part of Darth Vader. He posed a humorous physical danger to Harrison Ford due to his massive wrestler’s body.
Roach performed the role of a mechanic aboard a Nazi aircraft in Raiders of the Lost Ark. On the airstrip, Indy battles the mechanic while Marion takes down the pilot. The archeologist who is for “fortune and glory” ends up being crushed. The technician swaggers up to strike the last blow, but Indy cowers when he sees the plane’s whirling propellers coming up from behind. The mechanic has been caught in the propellers and splattered over the plane’s wing, but it’s too late.
Eastern Promises – The Sauna Attack (2007)
Eastern Promises’ bathhouse battle is an amazing example of brutality. Semyon leads Nikolai to a bathhouse in the hopes that the Chechens would mistake him for Kirill and murder him since they don’t know what Kirill looks like.
But Nikolai fights back as the Chechens attack him with linoleum knives. After being stabbed a few times and coming extremely near to death each time, he kills them both and foils Semyon’s schemes.
Enter the Dragon: Lee vs. Han (1973)
In the last act of Enter the Dragon, Lee faces Han alone in his own museum after defeating Han’s army of goons on his own. The two get into a fantastic battle in the end.
Lee can’t determine which mirror is the actual one until he destroys them all, so Han runs away to a hall of mirrors. He then murders him.
Frank Armitage vs. John Nada – They Live (1988)
The alleyway battle in John Carpenter’s They Live is a well-known choice for one of the best combat sequences ever captured on camera and is masterfully orchestrated. Roddy Piper and Keith David were resolved not to give the reins to a stunt crew for the sequence between John Nada and Frank Armitage fighting for a set of sunglasses that enable users to view the planet for the brainwashed, alien-infested nightmare it truly is.
Although Piper and David had only planned a 20-second fight, they chose to go all out that day, and Carpenter was so thrilled that he decided to leave the full five-and-a-half minute battle intact in the movie.
Red Grant Faces Off Against James Bond in “From Russia With Love” (1963)
Halfway through the second Bond film, From Russia with Love, Sean Connery’s 007 is confronted on the Orient Express by Red Grant, a SPECTRE assassin portrayed by the wise-cracking antihero Robert Shaw from Jaws. He has Bond at gunpoint at first, but when Bond disarms him with one of Q’s devices, they enter into one of the most incredibly vicious fights in the whole series.
Connery’s believable depiction of a Bond who fears for his life despite his suit of narrative armor and director Terence Young’s mastery of suspense allow this horrifically violent episode to still surprise spectators more than fifty years later.
Oldboy’s Hallway Fight (2003)
Oldboy, Park Chan-wook’s masterwork of a vengeance thriller, has an absolutely amazing hallway fight sequence. Every time audiences witness Oh Dae-su, who is wrongfully imprisoned, confront a corridor full of goons in a violent opera, their jaws drop. It is not something that can be gotten used to.
With the exception of the moment when Oh Dae-su gets stabbed (Choi Min-sik was so devoted to the character that he didn’t really take a knife to his back), the team executed this sequence in 17 takes over the course of three days.
