Netflix Movie Night: 20 Popcorn-Munching Action Movies That Are So Bad They’re Good

We subscribe to Netflix to enjoy movies. Why not treat yourself to some of the best and most mindless fun on offer? Here are 20 of the most ridiculous, tacky, corny or just silly action movies that are no less fun despite their flaws. We have your weekend’s cinematic viewing sorted right here.


Gizmodo’s weekly Netflix movie night is presented by the new HP Spectre x360. Any way you bend it, the Spectre x360 delivers. With four modes, lightning-fast performance, and impressive battery life, this convertible PC has the best of all worlds and the shortcomings of none.

And, yes, all of these movies are available on Netflix Australia. Enjoy!


The Expendables

The Expendablean s is B movie excellence. Honestly, if there is one movie in this already-amazing list that you have to watch, this is it. Sly Stallone, Dolph Lundgren, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Mickey Rourke, Steve Austin, Terry Crews. That’s a star-studded cast that no-one can say anything bad about. The plot is even better than the sum of its parts. Just watch. It’s worth it. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: A mercenary leads a ragtag band of hired guns charged with overthrowing a South American despot, a job no official military unit is willing to touch.

IMDb: A CIA operative hires a team of mercenaries to eliminate a Latin dictator and a renegade CIA agent.


Underworld

Underworld takes that age-old story of vampires versus werewolves in a centuries-long crusade, and adds guns. Lots of guns. And ninja sort of people, I guess. Kate Beckinsale’s acting muscle (as Selene the death dealer) is flexed in a demonstration of theatrical brilliance unlike the world has ever seen. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: A vampire suspects that her mortal enemies, werewolves known as Lycans, are targeting a human. As she shadows him, she finds herself falling in love.

IMDb: Selene, a beautiful vampire warrior, entrenched in a war between the vampire and werewolf races. Although she is aligned with the vampires, she falls in love with Michael, a human who is sought by werewolves for unknown reasons.


Eraser

Eraser is Arnold Schwarzenegger’s best work, like every other movie that he has ever done. C’mon, his character’s name is John Kruger, and he’s a US marshal hunting down enemies of the government working within a secretive high-tech weapons manufacturer. Plus, James Caan is the baddie. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: A U.S. Marshal is assigned to protect a woman who has uncovered evidence that a weapons manufacturer has been selling to terrorist groups.

IMDb: A Witness Protection specialist becomes suspicious of his co-workers when dealing with a case involving high-tech weapons.


Armageddon

Armageddon. I could stay awake just to hear you breathing, watch you smile while you are sleeping. While you’re far away and dreaming, I could spend my life in this sweet surrender. I could stay lost in this moment forever. Every moment spent with you is a moment I treasure. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: As a massive asteroid hurtles toward Earth, NASA’s head honcho hatches a plan to split the deadly rock in two before it annihilates the entire planet.

IMDb: After discovering that an asteroid the size of Texas is going to impact Earth in less than a month, N.A.S.A. recruits a misfit team of deep core drillers to save the planet.


300

300 is an historical documentary. In it, well-known and storied historical figure Gerard Butler battles against the world-conquering Persian forces of Xerxes, taking his small force of hardened soldiers to head off an invasion at Thermopylae. Watch this, learn about your past, and show your respect for the heroes of days gone by. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: In 480 B.C., Spartan King Leonidas leads his small band of 300 soldiers against an army of more than 1 million during the Battle of Thermopylae.

IMDb: King Leonidas and a force of 300 men fight the Persians at Thermopylae in 480 B.C.


RoboCop

RoboCop is a reboot of the 1987 cinematic masterpiece, but falls squarely into the so-bad-it’s-good category purely because of one scene. Relatively early on in the piece, Joel Kinneman’s titular RoboCop — policeman Alex Murphy, blown to bits and reassembled by scientists — looks down upon the robotic monstrosity he has become and screams. Give that man an Oscar. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: Critically injured in the line of duty, a cop is transformed into an experimental crime-fighting cyborg in this reboot of the 1980s sci-fi classic.

IMDb: In 2028 Detroit, when Alex Murphy — a loving husband, father and good cop — is critically injured in the line of duty, the multinational conglomerate OmniCorp sees their chance for a part-man, part-robot police officer.


Hitman

Hitman is a video game movie, putting it in competition with Tomb Raider, Prince Of Persia and Street Fighter (the vintage Van Damme version). It’s in good company; the unnamed Hitman works for The Organisation running covert assassinations, and travels Russia and Europe whilst fighting the military and the police, but falls for the wiles of a beautiful stranger. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: When a gun for hire gets tangled in a political takeover, he tries to uncover who set him up while battling newfound feelings for a beautiful woman.

IMDb: A gun-for-hire known only as Agent 47 hired by a group known only as ‘The Organization’ is ensnared in a political conspiracy, which finds him pursued by both Interpol and the Russian military as he treks across Russia and Eastern Europe.


Gamer

Gamer is another video game movie; this one is about a game, though, a futuristic MMO where players can control other humans and battle for supremacy. This movie is literally non-stop action. Non. Stop. Action. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: In this futuristic thriller, all hell breaks loose when the star combatant of an online game escapes, intent on taking out its evil architect.

IMDb: In a future mind-controlling game, death row convicts are forced to battle in a ‘Doom’-type environment. Convict Kable, controlled by Simon, a skilled teenage gamer, must survive thirty sessions in order to be set free. Or won’t he?


The Italian Job

The Italian Job is a remake of the 1969 Michael Caine classic, and brings Marky Mark into action as a master thief tasked with his team to steal $35 million of gold bars from Venice. Just about the best part of this movie is a car chase with new Mini Coopers around the city’s winding turns and streets. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: A clever thief masterminds a major heist amid the waterways of Venice, Italy — but a betrayal by one of his own spells disaster.

IMDb: After being betrayed and left for dead in Italy, Charlie Croker and his team plan an elaborate gold heist against their former ally.


Elektra

Elektra follows Jennifer Garner’s character, first introduced in that Ben Affleck masterpiece Daredevil, just in case you didn’t get enough of there and then. Here, she’s a secretive assassin with a bunch of knives fighting other secretive asssassins. The best review I’ve read of this movie: “In short, “Elektra” was worse than “Catwoman,” and that’s no small feat.” Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: Jennifer Garner reprises a role she originated in Daredevil. Now an assassin for the shadowy Order of the Hand, Elektra is assigned to off a widower.

IMDb: Elektra the warrior survives a near-death experience, becomes an assassin-for-hire, and tries to protect her two latest targets, a single father and his young daughter, from a group of supernatural assassins.


The Punisher

The Punisher is a genuinely good movie, but that’s because it commits to being all-out blockbuster action. This isn’t exactly a movie for kids, by the way — it’s dark and brutal and sees ex-special agent Frank Castle delivering some hardcore street justice to the criminals that have done him wrong — but it’s worth watching nonetheless. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: When an FBI agent’s wife and children are murdered after witnessing a mob hit, he becomes “the Punisher” — a one-man judge, jury and executioner.

IMDb: An undercover FBI agent becomes a vigilante assassin and sets out to unleash vengeance upon the corrupt businessman who slew his family.


Charlie’s Angels

Charlie’s Angels. Lucy Liu with my girl Drew, Cameron D and Destiny. Charlie’s Angels, come on. Uh uh uh. Question: tell me what you think about me, I buy my own diamonds and I buy my own rings. Only ring your cell-y when I’m feelin’ lonely, when it’s all over please get up and leave. Question: Tell me how you feel about this? Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: Three beauties use their looks, charm and martial-arts training to kick butt on the trail of stolen software in this reboot of the classic TV series.

IMDb: Three women, detectives with a mysterious boss, retrieve stolen voice-ID software, using martial arts, tech skills, and sex appeal.


Hulk

Hulk — the 2003 version is undoubtedly the best for B-action fans, directed by auteur Ang Lee — casts Australian hero Eric Bana as Bruce Banner, a brilliant scientist who suffers a gamma ray accident and proceeds to turn green and massive whenever he gets angry. Plus, he fights the US government that wants to control him. Godzilla

Godzilla is classic monster movie fare seen through the lens of disaster porn provocateur Roland Emmerich; he’s the mind behind 2012, another B-movie masterpiece worth finding and consuming as quickly and voraciously as is humanly possible. Matthew Broderick carries this rollicking good-times adventure which sees cities razed to the ground. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: A team of experts — including a biologist and two scientists — must stop an oversized lizard from destroying all of Manhattan.

IMDb: An enormous, radioactively mutated lizard runs rampant in Manhattan.


Rocky III

Rocky III is a great B-movie, facing Sly Stallone up against Mr T in a match to remember. In its own way it’s inspiring, it makes boxing actually not look incredibly painful, it’s good watching to bone up for Mayweather-Pacquiao on Sunday, and Stallone’s acting chops are more than made for by the raw authenticity he brings to the role. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: After taking a pounding from a powerful young fighter, humbled world champ Rocky Balboa turns to ex-rival Apollo Creed for help in regaining his form.

IMDb: Rocky has been holding the title as the heavyweight champion until he is defeated by a brutal challenger, and now must regain his fighting spirit through a big rematch, trained by an unlikely ally: his old nemesis Apollo Creed.


xXx

xXx showcases Vin Diesel as the undisputed best action actor of our generation; in xXx extreme sports hero and outlaw Xander Cage corralled by the government to fight Russian organised crime bad guys that also want to blow up the entire world. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: A notorious underground rush-seeker deemed untouchable by the law is coerced into cooperating with the government to infiltrate a Russian crime ring.

IMDb: An extreme sports athlete, Xander Cage, is recruited by the government on a special mission.


Death Race

Death Race is a sobering tale of what happens when you go to prison in the future: you are forced to compete in a post-apocalyptic race to win your freedom, replete with violence and speed and gore — with unreasonably pretty girls along for the ride. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: An ex-con turned speedway champion is framed for a grisly murder and forced to compete in a grueling three-day race against his fellow inmates.

IMDb: Ex-con Jensen Ames is forced by the warden of a notorious prison to compete in our post-industrial world’s most popular sport: a car race in which inmates must brutalize and kill one another on the road to victory.


Rush Hour

Rush Hour is a genuinely fun film, and I don’t want you all to think it’s bad. But it’s a Hollywood take on chop-socky at its finest; Brett Ratner’s take on a buddy cop flick spawned two more after it and Rush Hour 4 is in the works. Watch this to see martial arts master Jackie Chan team up with comic relief Chris Tucker and to watch the fireworks that ensue. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: When a Hong Kong inspector is summoned to Los Angeles to investigate a kidnapping, the FBI assigns a cocky LAPD cop to distract him from the case.

IMDb: Two cops team up to get back a kidnapped daughter.


Escape From New York

Escape From New York introduced the world to Snake Plissken, Kurt Russell’s anti-hero lone wolf, and placed him in a New York City turned into a mega-city prison — into which the US president’s plane has unfortunately crashed. An escape from New York is understandably necessary. After this, track down Escape From LA and enjoy it even more. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: In the near future, criminal and war hero Snake must rescue the President from New York City — which has been turned into a maximum-security prison.

IMDb: In 1997, when the US President crashes into Manhattan, now a giant maximum security prison, a convicted bank robber is sent in for a rescue.


The Matrix Reloaded

The Matrix Reloaded is the most fun of all three Matrix films; it combines that futuristic we’re-all-living-in-a-computer world and takes that idea even further. Neo knows kung fu, has superpowers, and makes it his job to liberate as many humans from the machines as he can. It also has one of the best car chase scenes of all time. Watch it now on Netflix.

Netflix: The crew must protect Zion, the last outpost still under human control, after it is pinpointed by the machines responsible for the Matrix.

IMDb: Neo and the rebel leaders estimate that they have 72 hours until 250,000 probes discover Zion and destroy it and its inhabitants. During this, Neo must decide how he can save Trinity from a dark fate in his dreams.


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