The 30 best Action movies of the 1980s

1. 1

   The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

   directed by Irvin Kershner · 124 min · 8.4 18,807 votes

2. 2

   Scarface (1983)

   directed by Brian De Palma · 166 min · 8.2 13,380 votes

3. 3

   Aliens (1986)

   directed by James Cameron · 154 min · 8.0 11,150 votes

4. 4

   Return of the Jedi (1983)

   directed by Richard Marquand · 131 min · 7.9 17,263 votes

5. 5

   Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

   directed by Steven Spielberg · 115 min · 7.9 13,957 votes

6. 6

   Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)

   directed by Steven Spielberg · 127 min · 7.9 11,323 votes

7. 7

   Castle in the Sky (1986)

   directed by Hayao Miyazaki · 124 min · 8.0 4,783 votes

8. 8

   Die Hard (1988)

   directed by John McTiernan · 132 min · 7.8 12,602 votes

9. 9

   Akira (1988)

   directed by Katsuhiro Otomo · 124 min · 7.9 4,963 votes

10. 10

    The Terminator (1984)

    directed by James Cameron · 107 min · 7.7 15,062 votes

11. 11

    Platoon (1986)

    directed by Oliver Stone · 120 min · 7.7 5,259 votes

12. 12

    Ran (1985)

    directed by Akira Kurosawa · 162 min · 8.0 1,900 votes

13. 13

    Predator (1987)

    directed by John McTiernan · 107 min · 7.6 9,463 votes

14. 14

    First Blood (1982)

    directed by Ted Kotcheff · 94 min · 7.5 7,070 votes

15. 15

    RoboCop (1987)

    directed by Paul Verhoeven · 102 min · 7.4 5,933 votes

16. 16

    Mad Max 2 (1981)

    directed by George Miller · 95 min · 7.4 4,295 votes

17. 17

    Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)

    directed by Steven Spielberg · 118 min · 7.3 10,348 votes

18. 18

    Lethal Weapon (1987)

    directed by Richard Donner · 110 min · 7.3 5,194 votes

19. 19

    Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

    directed by Nicholas Meyer · 113 min · 7.4 2,204 votes

20. 20

    They Live (1988)

    directed by John Carpenter · 93 min · 7.3 3,613 votes

21. 21

    Batman (1989)

    directed by Tim Burton · 126 min · 7.2 8,763 votes

22. 22

    Kagemusha (1980)

    directed by Akira Kurosawa · 160 min · 7.8 764 votes

23. 23

    Police Story (1985)

    directed by Jackie Chan · 101 min · 7.6 1,093 votes

24. 24

    The Mission (1986)

    directed by Roland Joffé · 126 min · 7.4 1,595 votes

25. 25

    The Karate Kid (1984)

    directed by John G. Avildsen · 126 min · 7.2 4,857 votes

26. 26

    The Killer (1989)

    directed by John Woo · 111 min · 7.6 935 votes

27. 27

    Beverly Hills Cop (1984)

    directed by Martin Brest · 105 min · 7.2 4,719 votes

28. 28

    Big Trouble in Little China (1986)

    directed by John Carpenter · 100 min · 7.2 3,484 votes

29. 29

    Top Gun (1986)

    directed by Tony Scott · 109 min · 7.1 9,878 votes

30. 30

    Rocky IV (1985)

    directed by Sylvester Stallone · 91 min · 7.1 4,950 votes

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Method: TMDb audience rating weighted by vote count, with a vote floor per list. No position is editorial opinion; it is the catalogue, ordered.

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