Top 10 Best Revenge Movies of All Time

The film that popularized the Guy Fawkes mask again as a symbol of anti-establishment activism, V for Vendetta (2006) it makes to the 10th spot on our list of revenge movies.

An adaptation of the graphic novel of the same name, the film tells the story of a mysterious masked man who calls himself V and his plot to blow up the British parliament. Set in a near future London, the film presents a highly-surveillance society where people’s actions are heavily regulated.

As the story progresses, we learn of V’s origins as a survivor of a cruel experiment done by the government which left him physically deformed revealing his motives of revenge upon the administration.

You never mess with a father with a teenage daughter. And you sure as hell don’t kidnap her for sure.

Taken (2009) is a thrilling ride about a father played by Liam Neeson on the hunt to retrieve his daughter from a human trafficking syndicate who kidnapped her and a friend during a vacation in Europe.

The father, who is revealed to be a former government agent, must then put his training to good use as he scours Europe to find his daughter before she is auctioned off as a sex slave in the black market– the worst nightmare we’re sure every father has.

Some say that Django Unchained (2012) is Quentin Tarantino’s best revenge film to date. Whether you agree with the sentiment or not, you can’t deny that this film is an excellent movie about vengeance and revenge.

The film follows the story of a freed slave and a German bounty hunter called Django who are on a quest to rescue the slave’s wife from a Mississippi plantation. The film shows the lengths a man would go to for his wife including killing tons of people along the way. Django Unchained is one of the best revenge movies of all time.

Here’s another entry from filmmaker Quentin Tarantino. Kill Bill is considered one of the best revenge movies ever made.

Famous for featuring elements from Asian kung fu and wuxia films, Kill Bill also features Tarantino’s love for a good revenge plot.

In the film, we follow, The Bride, played by Uma Thurman, a woman hellbent on avenging the death of her child. The film follows her journey to kill the titular Bill and his team of assassins to finally exact her revenge.

We told you Quentin Tarantino has a knack for incorporating revenge plots in his films and his 2009 movie set during the second world war is no exception.

Inglourious Basterds (2009) is probably the most brutal revenge movie you’ll ever watch.

In the film, a group of Jewish American soldiers is helped by a young Jewish refugee who has witnessed the killing of her entire family at the hands of a Nazi Colonel Hans Landa. Together they hatch a plan to kill the Nazi officers as they attend a film premiere at a theater the refugee owns.

Based on a Swedish film and novel of the same name, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) is one of the best revenge and action movies released in the new millennia.

The film follows a journalist who’s investigating a disappearance involving a wealthy man’s niece four decades prior. To help with the case, he employs the services of a computer hacker Lisbeth Salander who’s on her own quest to take revenge on her rapist. She succeeds and begins torturing him on camera. A warning though, this film is not for the faint of heart (and stomach).

Of course, a list of the best revenge movies is not complete without mention of this crime film.

Keanu Reeves makes a comeback to the action movie genre with 2014’s John Wick.

Here, he plays a hitman on the hunt for the group of criminals that stole his car, killed his wife and, worst of all, murdered his dog which his wife left him. We can’t really blame him for wanting to go after those bastards.

Unfortunately, his mission is made difficult by the fact that the man responsible for his wife’s (and dog’s) death is protected by an even more powerful criminal. And SPOILER ALERT the film doesn’t end on a happy note.

Danny Trejo plays the lead in Machete (2010). Here he assumes the role of the titular Machete, a man who’s out to seek revenge on the boss who framed and betrayed him. And unlike in John Wick, Machete’s unforgiving nature got him his most wanted revenge.

In Leon: The Professional (1994), we follow the story of an odd pair of characters. A professional assassin takes a 12-year-old girl under his wing after the girl’s father and brother were murdered. In the film, we see the assassin impart his knowledge to the girl so that she can exact her own revenge on the people who killed her family.

The film is most notable (and controversial) for a young Natalie Portman’s performance as the orphaned girl Mathilda whose on-screen maturity and acting skills made the character come to life. Leon: The Professional is one of the 90’s best revenge films.

Film critics call this film the quintessential revenge movies and rightfully so.

The Crow (1994) follows the story of a man who returns back to life after he and his family were murdered. Rising on the anniversary of his own death, he goes on a journey to avenge he and his fiancee’s deaths.

The film is even made darker by the fact that its lead actor Brandon Lee actually died on set during the filming of the movie due to an accident.

The film is set to get a remake with Jason Momoa (yes, Khal Drogo from Game of Thrones) assuming the lead role.