Best action film series of the last 20 years

[Mercurius]

While I prefer Bond and Bourne at their best, and appreciate the style of John Wick, I voted for Mission Impossible because the question was "series," and in my mind, MI--as a series--is the most consistently good. Also, unlike just about any other franchise I can think of, the films get better and better. The last one felt like the pinnacle of action films - some incredible sequences that I just hadn't seen before.

The Bond films, on the other hand, are uneven. You have two great ones (Casino Royale, Skyfall) and three that range from "meh" (Quantum) and to "OK, I guess" (Spectre) to "pretty good but not great" (the most recent one). I've watched all of the Craig Bond films at least twice (except for No Time to Die), and for the life of me I still can't remember what QoS was about, or what happened other than I think there was a boat.

 

[MarkB]

The Bond films, on the other hand, are uneven. You have two great ones (Casino Royale, Skyfall) and three that range from "meh" (Quantum) and to "OK, I guess" (Spectre) to "pretty good but not great" (the most recent one). I've watched all of the Craig Bond films at least two or three times, and for the life of me I still can't remember what QoS was about, or what happened other than I think there was a boat.

I like QoS more than most, though it suffered from them really, really wanting to be all "it's Spectre! Spectre's back in the Bond franchise!", but then failing to secure the rights, so they had to rename it and came up with a meh name for both the organisation and the film.

The actual plot is pretty solid, about clandestinely buying up most of the fresh water resources in impoverished nations under the guise of futilely looking for oil, and then exploiting their monopoly on that essential resource for both money and influence. Of any of the CraigBond movies, that one still feels more relevant to real-world issues than most.

 

[J.Quondam]

Glancing at the poll results so far, I now don't feel so bad that I've never actually seen a Fast & Furious movie.

edit: btw, I voted Ip Man. Choreography on Bourne and John Wick are amazing, but they leave me feeling completely burned out for some reason.

 

[MarkB]

Glancing at the poll results so far, I now don't feel so bad that I've never actually seen a Fast & Furious movie.

Eh, they're fun enough in their own way, but they basically occupy a parallel universe where physics work quite differently than our own (moreso than even most 80s action movies).

 

[Paul Farquhar]

As alluded to earlier, F&F movies are highly variable, both in quality and tone. Individual moves are okay, but as a franchise, it's pants.

 

[Ryujin]

Eh, they're fun enough in their own way, but they basically occupy a parallel universe where physics work quite differently than our own (moreso than even most 80s action movies).

Basically doing a live action remake of the opening credits scene from "Heavy Metal" is much more than a bridge too far. The "Sharknado" series is as believable, but didn't try to be serious about it.

 

[trappedslider]

I voted Bourne, you can see the ripples from its gritty take in Craig and Wick. It also has IMO some of the best-written lines and reaction shots.

• During the NYC chase:
  "Sir, he drove off the roof."
  "What?"
  "He drove off the roof!"

• Bourne: Where are you now?
  Vosen: I'm sitting in my office.
  Bourne: I doubt that.
  Vosen: And why would you doubt that?
  Bourne: If you were in your office right now, we'd be having this conversation face-to-face. (hangs up)
  Vosen: (Oh, Crap! look)

Landy: No, see, that's the mistake people keep making. A) he's really good at staying alive, and B) trying to kill him and failing just pisses him off.

 

[thullgrim]

The Athens riots scenes in the last Bourne film where the just about the tensest I've been watching a movie that wasn't the first Sicario. Bourne. Wick. Mission Impossible.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

You have missed Fury Road. Which wins, hands down, for non-stop edge-of-your-seat action.

 

[Ryujin]

You have missed Fury Road. Which wins, hands down, for non-stop edge-of-your-seat action.

But isn't a series.