Advertise with us

Feature

Top 50 Movie Gunfights

Movie Feature


24th September 2008

10. LEONE THREE-WAY
THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY (1966)
The three gunslingers in this climactic scene might be Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach and Lee Van Cleef, but it's composer Ennio Morricone who holds all the power here. The three-way Mexican standoff is one of cinema's most enduring showdowns, thanks to Morricone's legendary score. Okay, and Clint's itchy trigger finger.



9. TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS
COMMANDO (1985)
Utter lunacy from Arnie here - only in the '80s could you get away with so much wanton carnage. Like a videogame character rocking Quad Damage and an Infinite Ammo cheat, Schwarzenegger mows his way through row after row of henchmen without breaking a sweat. Extra lives? Arnie shits 'em.



8. BURMA BLOODBATH
RAMBO (2008)
Stallone's Rambo rebirth masqueraded as political powerhouse (sombre news footage, topical location, black and white footage etc.) but its Grand Guignol gore was exposed come the final scene. JR rocks a mounted gun and wipes out the remains of Burma's army, cutting through over a hundred soldiers like they were coming from a goddamn spawn point.



7. "I'LL BE BACK..."
THE TERMINATOR (1984)
"It can't be bargained with. It can't be reasoned with. It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are dead." That's Arnie's Terminator, as described by fellow time-traveller Kyle Reese, and that pretty much covers it. How do you halt an unstoppable killing machine?



6. THE HORRORS OF WAR
SAVING PRIVATE RYAN (1998)
Steven Spielberg's harrowing Normandy Landing sequence can hardly be called entertainment, but it's a scarily realistic portrayal of war and a chilling reminder of what mankind is capable of. The visuals are disturbing (head shots, missing limbs) but it's the sound that really hits home: an ungodly din of gunfire and panicked screams.



5. "SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE FRIEND!"
SCARFACE (1983)
It's the scene memorable for that quote - you know, the one repeated ad nauseum by rappers and students - but the sequence it precedes is one of the most explosive gun battles in cinematic history. What's more, the good guy is essentially the bad guy - why the hell are we rooting for a coked-up drug dealer again?



4. TEA-HOUSE TAKEDOWN
HARD BOILED (1992)
Poor old Chow Yun-Fat. He was just enjoying a simple cup of tea, then all hell breaks loose. This gunfight looks sloppy as all hell - bullets fly, limbs flail, birds flap and flutter - but there's order in the chaos with John Woo bringing his A-game. Brutal, bloody and balletic.



3. THE REAL WILD WEST
THE WILD BUNCH (1969)
Wait... Westerns are supposed to be measured and exacting and elegiac, right? Sam Peckinpah put paid to that stereotype with the rootin'est, tootin'est gunfight ever staged in the Wild West of America. Try and count the bullets, the corpses and the acrobatic spills over balconies: you can't. Incalculable carnage.



2. "GUNS... LOTS OF GUNS..."
THE MATRIX (1999)
Neo wasn't kidding: in order to save humanity, the saviour of mankind and his revolutionary buddies would need to stock up on enough firepower to arm a small nation. The resulting showdown is one of modern cinema's most enthralling gun-battles: violence has rarely looked this good on screen. Love that perfectly timed pillar crumble.



1. THE BANK JOB
HEAT (1995)
Admit it, you knew this was coming. The moment De Niro's crew of criminals opened fire on Pacino's cops, it became apparent that this exchange of gunfire was going to top some movie lists in its time. What makes it great? The mechanics of battle? The ear-shattering sound? The quintessential battle between good and evil? Our vote goes to Val Kilmer's wry smile before the chaos ensues. He knew. Ali



Digg this article

More:  Top10  Violence  Guns  Action
Follow us on Twitter @The_Shiznit for more fun features, film reviews and occasional commentary on what the best type of crisps are.
We are using Patreon to cover our hosting fees. So please consider chucking a few digital pennies our way by clicking on this link. Thanks!
« Previous Page

Share This

Possibly Related

Support Us

We are now using Patreon to cover some of our hosting fees. So if you like our brand of "content" and would like to see us do more, please consider chucking a few digital pennies our way by clicking on the link below. Thanks!

Patreon logo

Follow Us

Recent Highlights

Advertisement

Advertise with us

And The Rest

Quick Links

Jurassic Park Star Wars Marvel DC Superheroes and that Batman Nicolas Cage Posters John Travolta Mission: Impossible Horror Movies Netflix Reviews Cine-CHAT-ic Universe Truthful Posters
Advertise with us