The best action movies on NEON

Let the fists, bullets, and blades fly: Daniel Rutledge has picked the very best of the adrenaline-pumping action category on NEON, guaranteeing you all the fatal one-liners and car chases you could ever dream of.

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* Best new movies & TV series on NEON
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The Beekeeper

Jason Statham taps nicely into his stoic and savage mode, despite director David Ayer cranking the absurdity way, way up. This film follows a former super soldier turned humble beekeeper turned avenging mass murderer after an old lady he’s fond of gets screwed over by cyber scammers. A brutal knife and knuckleduster hallway fight against a bleached-blonde brute is the peak. But it’s so ridiculous it’s basically a comedy, so there’s plenty of laughs too.

Birds of Prey (2020)

A gleefully chaotic post-breakup spiral sees Harley Quinn violently reclaim her independence in this kinetic Gotham adventure. One of the better DCEU films (which isn’t saying much), it works mainly thanks to Margot Robbie owning the lead role with a devilishly deranged charm. It peaks with her raid on a police station, wielding a non-lethal grenade launcher packed with coloured smoke. It’s a delicious visual sugar rush: violent, silly, and very Harley.

Collateral (2004)

One of Michael Mann’s many beloved cult favourites, this neo-noir action thriller features Tom Cruise at the top of his game. Notable for being one of the first major Hollywood films shot on digital, it delivers loads of slick, atmospheric thrills, including one of the best LA nightclub shootout scenes ever put to screen. Jamie Foxx is excellent too, grounding the mayhem with vulnerability and rising desperation.

The Dark Knight (2008)

Christopher Nolan’s best Batman film is one of the finest action films of the 2000s, working as both a fantastic superhero movie as well as a great, dark crime saga. The opening bank heist sets the tone brilliantly, creating awesome tension and hammering home how different this is from the campy Batman your dad enjoyed in the old days. It never lets up, with Heath Ledger delivering one of the all-time great performances.

Edge of Tomorrow (2014)

It feels like one of the best video game movies ever made—even though it’s based on a novel, not a game. This underrated action sci-fi has great comedic beats; Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt are highly enjoyable together; and it features one of the late, great Bill Paxton’s final roles. It’s smart, sharp and very rewatchable.

The Equalizer

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: an extremely skilled killer who has retired for the simple life must once again dish out some righteous mass murder after being messed with by an evil gang. It’s a simple formula that always satisfies when done right. Here, Denzel Washington’s charisma and Antoine Fuqua’s inventive set pieces make it work. I enjoy thinking of the awesome finale during every trip to Mitre 10, too.

Fast & Furious 7 (2015)

The last great Fast & Furious movie before the franchise switched gears from silly fun to silly shit, this one also served as a gorgeous farewell to Paul Walker. Before all that emotional goodbye stuff, we get to enjoy our two main boys in dapper suits pilot an ultra-luxurious Lykan HyperSport and fly it between the opulent Etihad Towers in Abu Dhabi. The final chase and battle sequence through LA is also pretty sweet.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024)

Less of a triumph than Fury Road but still a worthy sequel, Furiosa sees George Miller once again prove himself a master of the genre, this time with a streak of melancholy beneath the glorious mayhem. This origin story barrels through the Wasteland—a petrol-soaked odyssey packed with trademark Miller spectacle. Anya Taylor-Joy and Alyla Browne both shine in the title role, while Chris Hemsworth gleefully chews scenery in full ocker mode.

Last Man Standing (1996)

Walter Hill fuses film noir stylism with classic western tropes in this remake of Yojimbo, with awesomely over-the-top gunplay clearly influenced by John Woo. It’s also a great Bruce Willis vehicle for when he was in his absolute prime, rolling into town and blowing away untold waves of mobsters. An underrated ’90s gem.

Lethal Weapon (1987)

This is one of those giddily great classics in which all the right elements came together. There’s Richard Donner’s rousing direction; Shane Black’s dynamite script; Eric Clapton and Michael Kamen’s super cool score; and Mel Gibson and Danny Glover’s amazing chemistry as the leads.

Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)

Almost Terminator 2 levels of near-perfect action movie sequel, this improves on the set pieces of the original, throws Joe Pesci into the mix, has a guy get a surfboard through his head, and throws in the best toilet explosion ever.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

Of all Peter Jackson’s Middle Earth spectacles, the Battle of Helm’s Deep is the greatest action sequence. That’s what I love about this film the most, but it’s also got the benefit of being the middle film in a trilogy—unburdened by all the setup of the first, nor the ultimate wrapping up of the third.

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation (2015)

The first Christopher McQuarrie-directed Mission Impossible movie is one of the franchise’s highlights, getting the tone just right with its combination of comedy, drama, and awesome stunts. Highlights include an amazing car chase in Morocco, the crazy underwater breath-holding bit, and of course Tom Cruise hanging from a plane as it takes off.

Monkey Man (2024)

Dev Patel’s directorial debut is a gritty, ultraviolent revenge thriller that blends Indian folklore with western action sensibilities. Set in Mumbai, Monkey Man crackles with raw intensity and social fury. Patel is fantastic in the lead, and while the action isn’t perfect, it goes for the jugular and savagely gets it.

Nowhere to Run (1993)

Few things are cooler than Jean Claude Van Damme in his prime. As an escaped convict who comes to the aid of rural single mother being victimized by evil property developers, he stars as a Clint Eastwood sort of guy carrying out righteous justice. Nowhere to Run is sexy in ways films these days aren’t, delivering solid violence with a classically American, almost fairytale-like vibe.

Sin City (2005)

Groundbreaking on release for its stunning visual effects, which faithfully recreated the look of Frank Miller’s comics, this Robert Rodriguez gem is super pulpy neo-noir fun. It’s loaded with wickedly dark humour, striking aesthetics, great use of anthology storytelling, and an enjoyably bleak outlook on humanity. Throw in some raw of-the-era sexiness, stylised brutality, plus a dream cast of hardboiled misfits, and you’ve got a very cool comic book adaptation.

The Terminator (1984)

Few films have had as big an impact on the action genre as this 1984 classic. But regardless of its legacy and what it did for Arnold Schwarzenegger and James Cameron’s careers, it’s also just a bloody good movie—and great to rewatch. Darker and more sinister than you might remember, it absolutely rules.

This guide is regularly updated to reflect changes in NEON’s catalogue. For a list of capsule reviews that have been removed from this page because they are no longer available on the platform, visit here.