Action

Since the dawn of the movie industry, action movies have been gracing our screens. A hundred years ago, we may not have had the explosions and huge CGI effects that we get today, but that doesn't mean there wasn't plenty of action happening. When we think of silent movies we tend to think of slapstick and chaotic comedy. But there was plenty of stunts and daredevil exercises which shocked the viewing audience. From the 1920s, these movies evolved into more Western based action flicks before being taking over by the War genre in the 1950s. James Bond first hit our screens in the 1960s and this is where Action Movies really took off.

The best action movies always have a formula. They almost always have a resourceful hero struggling against all the odds, often in life-threatening circumstances. Of course no action movie would be complete with an evil villain and if you can throw in plenty of explosions, shoots outs and the very best car chases then you are on to a winner. And let's not forget a well earned victory at the end, with our hero walking off into the sunset, a little bruised and battered, but ready to fight another day.

The Great Train Robbery from 1903 is widely considered to be the very first action movie, though it is also a Western. But things have come a long way since and it's often movies such as Mission Impossible that go on to break box office records and make hundreds of millions for studios around the globe.

In terms of box office success, the highest-earning action movie is listed as Avatar. Now, I know what you are thinking, Avatar doesn't necessarily fit the traditional Die Hard style action flick we are familiar with. However, it still managed to rake in $2,845,899,541 at the box office!

Next to have us heading to the cinema in our millions is the Avengers. Earning a staggering $2,797,800,564, Avengers: Endgame (2019) is the second most successful action movie of all time. That is quickly followed by Avengers: Infinity War which hauled in a hefty $2,044,540,523.

But again they could be considered SuperHero movies which has its own genre so we have to head further down the list to find a truly authentic Action Movie. And so we come to the fifth most successful box office action film with Furious 7. As part of the Fast & Furious franchise, it was the seventh instalment that rocked the box office.

Largely the highest-earning action flicks come from the Marvel and DC Universes but they are packed with characters we love. With incredible CGI and plenty of camera tricks, what they lack in originality they more than make up for with the big budget effects.

If you are looking for more traditional action movies these days you either need to go back to the classics or check out the various streaming platforms that are pumping millions into the genre. It is unbeatable value for money, leaving you hungry for more.