Best Action Movies of 2003

1.

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

7.5

8.9/10

Aragorn is revealed as the heir to the ancient kings as he, Gandalf and the other members of the broken fellowship struggle to save Gondor from Sauron's forces. Meanwhile, Frodo and Sam bring the ring closer to the heart of Mordor, the dark lord's realm.

2.

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

6.7

8.0/10

Jack Sparrow, a freewheeling 18th-century pirate, quarrels with a rival pirate bent on pillaging Port Royal. When the governor's daughter is kidnapped, Sparrow decides to help the girl's love save her.

3.

Kill Bill: Vol. 1

6.6

8.1/10

An assassin is shot by her ruthless employer, Bill, and other members of their assassination circle – but she lives to plot her vengeance.

4.

The Matrix Reloaded

6.2

7.2/10

Six months after the events depicted in The Matrix, Neo has proved to be a good omen for the free humans, as more and more humans are being freed from the matrix and brought to Zion, the one and only stronghold of the Resistance. Neo himself has discovered his superpowers including super speed, ability to see the codes of the things inside the matrix and a certain degree of pre-cognition. But a nasty piece of news hits the human resistance: 250,000 machine sentinels are digging to Zion and would reach them in 72 hours. As Zion prepares for the ultimate war, Neo, Morpheus and Trinity are advised by the Oracle to find the Keymaker who would help them reach the Source. Meanwhile Neo's recurrent dreams depicting Trinity's death have got him worried and as if it was not enough, Agent Smith has somehow escaped deletion, has become more powerful than before and has fixed Neo as his next target.

5.

X2

6.1

7.4/10

Professor Charles Xavier and his team of genetically gifted superheroes face a rising tide of anti-mutant sentiment led by Col. William Stryker. Storm, Wolverine and Jean Grey must join their usual nemeses—Magneto and Mystique—to unhinge Stryker's scheme to exterminate all mutants.

7.

The Matrix Revolutions

5.7

6.7/10

The human city of Zion defends itself against the massive invasion of the machines as Neo fights to end the war at another front while also opposing the rogue Agent Smith.

8.

Touching the Void

5.7

8.0/10

A documentary based on the book of the same name by Joe Simpson about Simpson's and Simon Yates' disastrous and near-fatal attempt to climb 6,344m Siula Grande in the Cordillera Huayhuash in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.

9.

The Italian Job

5.7

7.0/10

Charlie Croker pulled off the crime of a lifetime. The one thing that he didn't plan on was being double-crossed. Along with a drop-dead gorgeous safecracker, Croker and his team take off to re-steal the loot and end up in a pulse-pounding, pedal-to-the-metal chase that careens up, down, above and below the streets of Los Angeles.

10.

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines

5.3

6.3/10

It's been 10 years since John Connor saved Earth from Judgment Day, and he's now living under the radar, steering clear of using anything Skynet can trace. That is, until he encounters T-X, a robotic assassin ordered to finish what T-1000 started. Good thing Connor's former nemesis, the Terminator, is back to aid the now-adult Connor … just like he promised.

11.

2 Fast 2 Furious

5.2

5.9/10

It's a major double-cross when former police officer Brian O'Conner teams up with his ex-con buddy Roman Pearce to transport a shipment of "dirty" money for shady Miami-based import-export dealer Carter Verone. But the guys are actually working with undercover agent Monica Fuentes to bring Verone down.

12.

Shanghai Knights

5.1

6.2/10

The dynamic duo of Chon Wang and Roy O'Bannon return for another crazy adventure. This time, they're in London to avenge the murder of Chon's father, but end up on an even bigger case. Chon's sister is there to do the same, but instead unearths a plot to kill the royal family. No one believes her, though, and it's up to Chon and Roy (who has romance on his mind) to prove her right.

13.

The Rundown

4.9

6.7/10

When Travis, the mouthy son of a criminal, disappears in the Amazon in search of a treasured artifact, his father sends in Beck, who becomes Travis's rival for the affections of Mariana, a mysterious Brazilian woman. With his steely disposition, Beck is a man of few words -- but it takes him all the discipline he can muster to work with Travis to nab a tyrant who's after the same treasure.

14.

Basic

4.9

6.5/10

A DEA agent investigates the disappearance of a legendary Army ranger drill sergeant and several of his cadets during a training exercise gone severely awry.

15.

Confidence

4.8

6.7/10

What Jake Vig doesn't know just might get him killed. A sharp and polished grifter, Jake has just swindled thousands of dollars from the unsuspecting Lionel Dolby with the help of his crew. It becomes clear that Lionel wasn't just any mark, he was an accountant for eccentric crime boss Winston King. Jake and his crew will have to stay one step ahead of both the criminals and the cops to finally settle their debt.

16.

The Recruit

4.7

6.6/10

A brilliant CIA trainee must prove his worth at the Farm, the agency's secret training grounds, where he learns to watch his back and trust no one.

17.

Hulk

4.7

5.6/10

Bruce Banner, a genetics researcher with a tragic past, suffers massive radiation exposure in his laboratory that causes him to transform into a raging green monster when he gets angry.

18.

Ned Kelly

4.6

6.5/10

After getting threatened by Kelly's friends and family, Constable Fitzpatrick places the blame on Ned Kelly and exaggerates what happened. With the biggest ever award available, Kelly and his gang set into the wild, to remain hidden from everyone who seeks them. Even if it means having his family arrested, the members of the Kelly Gang stay hidden and plan a way to get their names cleared.

20.

The Hunted

4.5

6.1/10

In the wilderness of British Columbia, two hunters are tracked and viciously murdered by Aaron Hallum. A former Special Operations instructor is approached and asked to apprehend Hallum—his former student—who has 'gone rogue' after suffering severe battle stress from his time in Kosovo.