The 1980s were an era where absurd action movies reigned supreme, and looking back, there are plenty of movies that get wilder with every rewatch. From over-the-top releases from major stars like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone to less well-known B-movie triumphs, there are so many bizarre and off-the-wall movies from this time to look back on fondly. While not all these films were box office hits at the time, with the power of hindsight, it’s clear they had a lot to offer.

Some of the best action movies of the 1980s were totally absurd, as this was a decade that embraced the outrageous potential of over-the-top crime stories. These include cult classics that never fully get their due as well as all-time great movies that have achieved a special kind of reverence within mainstream popular culture. This was a decade of pure action-packed spectacle, and it’s incredibly enjoyable to revisit these absurd releases.

10

Gymkata (1985)

Directed by Robert Clouse

Gymkata was truly one of the most absurd martial arts action movies ever made. With former Olympian Kurt Thomas in the starring role, this outrageous story saw an American athlete traveling to take part in a compeтιтion not won by a foreigner for 900 years. As a film widely derided at the time of its release for its dubious premise, poor production quality, and strange foreign setting, looking back, it’s clear why Thomas’s wild involvement in a ᴅᴇᴀᴅly compeтιтion in the fictional country of Parmistan has become a cult classic.

With Thomas receiving a Razzie nomination for Worst Actor, Gymkata definitely falls into the category of a so-bad-it’s-good movie. Gymkata boasted a unique sense of humor that appears mostly intentional, as its truly bizarre premise lends itself to several outrageous situations. While Thomas’s film career floundered after the failure of this film, Gymkata remains a cult classic for fans of ridiculous movies.

9

ᴅᴇᴀᴅly Prey (1987)

Directed by David A. Prior

The premise of ᴅᴇᴀᴅly Prey alone was enough to categorize it as one of the most absurd action movies of the 1980s. Telling the story of a group of sadistic mercenaries who kidnap innocent people off the street and set them loose in their secret camp, their goal was to train students to learn how to track down and kill their unsuspecting prey. However, these mercenaries bite off more than they can chew when they accidentally abduct a Vietnam veteran who starts to pick off the troops one by one.

As just one of many films inspired by Richard Connell’s short story “The Most Dangerous Game,” ᴅᴇᴀᴅly Prey borrowed the core details from the story and imbued it with all the frantic energy of the most outrageous 1980s action tropes and cliches. While it’s easy to dismiss ᴅᴇᴀᴅly Prey as a campy, disposable B-movie, the sheer ridiculousness of its action-packed narrative made for wildly entertaining viewing.

8

Hard Ticket To Hawaii (1987)

Directed by Andy Sidaris

The cult classic Hard Ticket to Hawaii was a fast-paced action movie that was packed with one absurd sequence after another. Packed with over-the-top violence and plenty of unintentional humor, this story of an undercover DEA agent stumbling upon a drug trafficking operation while vacationing in Hawaii was a prime example of fun-filled, low-budget carnage. While you’d be forgiven for thinking the film’s primary goal was to give as much screentime as possible to the female co-stars Dona Speir and Hope Marie Carlton in scantily clad clothing, there was also plenty of opportunity for cheesy dialogue throughout.

Hard Ticket to Hawaii is the perfect movie to put on with a crowd of friends to hoot and holler at the sheer absurdity of it all. With an exotic location, corny dialogue, and plenty of eye candy, Hard Ticket to Hawaii embodied the best of 1980s action cheese and was even named the best B-movie of all time by Paste magazine.

7

Miami Connection (1987)

Directed by Woo-sang Park and Y.K. Kim

As a forgotten classic that remained unseen for decades, Miami Connection was unavailable for years until it was restored and finally properly released in 2012. Set in a world where rock stars want to be ninjas and ninjas long to be rock stars, this truly bizarre story featured a martial arts rock band going up against a group of motorcycle ninjas in the outlandish criminal underworld of Florida’s drug trade. With a cast of uniquely ridiculous characters, Miami Connection starred co-director Y.K. Kim, who played Mark, the Taekwondo instructor and rhythm guitarist of the band Dragon Sound.

While Miami Connection was poorly received upon release and did not fare well at the box office, with the power of hindsight, it’s possible to appreciate it as a prime example of 1980s action movie filmmaking at its best. Part of the appeal of Miami Connection was that it wore its goofy energy on its sleeve and was unabashedly cheesy in its execution. Following the film’s re-release in 2012, it underwent a period of reappraisal and is now rightfully lauded as a forgotten gem of its era.

6

Action Jackson (1988)

Directed by Craig R. Baxley

Carl Weathers was involved in some of the best action movies of the 1980s, as he excelled as Apollo Creed in Rocky and was a major contributor to the success of Predator. However, the critically panned action comedy Action Jackson stood as perhaps his most underrated project during this decade. With Weathers as a cop so tough his superiors won’t even let him carry a weapon, it was impossible not to be won over by the self-aware absurdity of Action Jackson.

While Weathers was often relegated to a sidekick role during the 1980s, Action Jackson perfectly showcased his leading man potential, and it’s unfortunate it did not connect with viewers at the time. With an impressive supporting cast including Craig T. Nelson and Sharon Stone, there was also a serious amount of talent involved in this unfairly maligned film. With Blaxploitation influences, Action Jackson could be best described as Shaft meets Commando.

5

Cobra (1986)

Directed by George P. Cosmatos

While the over-the-top, action-packed characterization of Sylvester Stallone as John Rambo was already absurd enough, it was in Cobra that he truly took things into hyperdrive. By taking the tropes and cliches of 1980s action movies and pushing them even further, Cobra starred Stallone as a gun-blazing, sunglᴀsses-wearing, no-nonsense cop who sets out to stop the criminals responsible for a string of violent crimes.

Hooking audiences in right from its thrilling supermarket hostage scene, Stallone never looked cooler than he did as Lieutenant Cobra. Portraying a hero who is more than willing to step outside the law in the pursuit of justice, there was a frantic energy to Cobra that set it apart from other cop-centric action movies of its time. While many might criticize Cobra as substanceless, mindless entertainment, the way it distilled the central ingredients of action movies down to their barest essentials was admirable.

4

Bloodsport (1988)

Directed by Newt Arnold

The martial arts classic Bloodsport was action movie legend Jean-Claude Van Damme’s breakout role and remains one of his defining roles. Telling the story of Frank Dux, a United States Army captain and ninjutsu pracтιтioner participating in an illegal full-contact martial arts tournament named Kumite in Hong Kong, although the film was said to be based on a true story, the validity of the real Dux’s claims has been called into question. With extreme fight sequences and blood battles, Bloodsport definitely lived up to its тιтle.

While Bloodsport co-writer Sheldon Lettich based his script on stories he heard from the real Dux, they were creative enough to spark his imagination and lead to one of the wildest martial arts films ever made. Bloodsport was a hit at the box office, and Van Damme used this success as a springboard for his Hollywood career as a leading man, although he never quite reached the heights of stars like Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Looking back on Bloodsport today, it was a truly absurd film that remains insanely watchable.

3

Commando (1985)

Directed by Mark L. Lester

Arnold Schwarzenegger was truly one of the biggest movie stars of the 1980s, whose roles in Conan the Barbarian, Predator, and The Terminator have become mainstays of pop culture. However, if you took everything great about Schwarzenegger during this decade and condensed it down into one absurd movie, you’d get Commando. With plenty of over-the-top action sequences, cheesy one-liners, and a sentimental story about a father who’ll stop at nothing to protect his daughter, Commando delivered on all fronts.

With Schwarzenegger as Colonel John Matrix, a former Special Forces colonel being blackmailed into carrying out a political ᴀssᴀssination by his former subordinate, Commando was a fast-paced movie whose paper-thin narrative served as the perfect template for 90 minutes of balls-to-the-wall action. As the inspiration for countless ripoff movies in later years, Commando was a prime influence on releases like Strike Commando, Commando Squad, and When Eagles Strike.

2

Road House (1989)

Directed by Rowdy Herrington

While many will immediately think of Dirty Dancing or Ghost when they hear the name Patrick Swayze, the minds of absurd action movie lovers will quickly turn to Road House. With Swayze as the professional bouncer James Dalton, this bizarre and violent story depicts his attempts to protect a newly refurbished small-town roadside bar from a corrupt businessman. While Road House was widely panned by critics at the time as needlessly violent, it’s since become a cult classic for its brazen, outrageous nature.

No one is trying to recontextualize Road House as a cinematic masterpiece, but it does manage what all action movies should set out to achieve: it’s thoroughly entertaining. With almost cartoonish dialogue and plenty of testosterone-driven mayhem, Road House’s popularity led to a direct-to-video sequel in 2006 as well as a 2024 remake starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Conor McGregor. With a surprising legacy that’s endured throughout the decades, audiences shouldn’t dismiss the appeal of Road House.

1

Big Trouble In Little China (1986)

Directed by John Carpenter

Director John Carpenter and star Kurt Russell have had several acclaimed collaborations that have since gone on to become cult classics. While projects like Escape from New York hilariously blended action, comedy, and sci-fi, it was Big Trouble in Little China that represented the pair at their most absurd, chaotic, and tongue-in-cheek. As a martial arts fantasy that becomes more convoluted the more you think about it, the convoluted plot about ancient curses, green-eyed women, and ritual curses quickly unraveled into pure nonsense.

While Big Trouble in Little China was one of the wildest action movies of the 1980s, the way the film blended action and humor made it also one of the most entertaining and woefully underrated releases of its era. Despite its unique nature, Big Trouble in Little China was a financial failure and a major contribution to Carpenter’s decision to return to independent filmmaking after becoming disillusioned with big-budget Hollywood productions.

Source: Paste