Netflix's January 2024 Lineup Added 5 Underrated Action Movies
3, 2, 1, action. Don't miss these thrilling new additions to Netflix in the New Year.
From violent assassins to the vine-swinging legend of the jungle, Netflix has added a variety of new action movies for your edge-of-your-seat enjoyment.
The Good Shepherd (2006)
6.7/10 on iMDb
This star-studded spy drama takes us back in time to the founding of the elusive CIA, told through Matt Damon's character as his life becomes intertwined with covert missions and a struggle between duty to his country and duty to his family.
Damon stars alongside A-listers including Angelina Jolie, Alec Baldwin and Robert De Niro in a slow-burn historical account with flashbacks that detail his harrowing past and current mission to uncover a leak within the CIA.
Despite a 55% rating on RottenTomatoes, fans seemed to love the movie, calling it entertaining and enlightening, having them hooked within the first 5 minutes and a must-see for any spy movie enthusiast.
The Legend of Tarzan (2016)
6.2/10 on iMDb
Over the years, we've seen plenty of movies featuring the tree-swinging King of the Jungle, and The Legend of Tarzan is yet another glimpse into the untouched wilderness, but this time with a modern twist.
The 2016 action adventure stars Alexander Skarsgård as Tarzan, who has settled into life in London with Jane (played by Margot Robbie ). However, Tarzan's new life is disrupted when he is forced to return to Africa after hearing of a tribe being enslaved, and Jane is taken hostage by the same captors who are intent on destroying the jungle and everything in it in pursuit of an elusive diamond fortune.
The Legend of Tarzan delivered the brilliant fights, fast-paced action sequences, and animal interactions that one would expect from any Tarzan movie, along with excellent graphics and some valuable commentary on real social and environmental issues woven into the story.
Those Who Wish Me Dead (2021)
6.0/10 on iMDb
Angelina Jolie brings this thriller to life in a story involving a murder witness, assassins, and a fiery twist.
Jolie plays a lone smokejumper whose survival skills are put to the ultimate test when she meets 12-year-old Connor, on the run from a pair of relentless killers after witnessing his father's murder. Alone in the wilderness, she must protect Connor not only from the assassins, but also from a deadly forest fire that threatens to kill them all.
Can they outrun the killers and the killer fire? You'll have to wait and see. So far, fans have praised the movie for its gorgeous cinematography and exciting story, but found the characters lacking in depth and the overall movie dangerously close to being mediocre.
Escape Plan 2: Hades (2018)
3.9/10 on iMDb
The original Escape Plan is currently available on Netflix, but in 2024, the second and third films in the franchise will finally be added to the action-packed mix.
Five years after the first film, the sequel finds the crew on a near-impossible mission to rescue one of their team members from an ever-evolving, high-tech prison designed to be truly inescapable. Did we mention the prisoners are forced into hand-to-hand combat?
While we all love an action-packed rescue mission, complete with elaborate plans, brutal fights and shootouts, the lead character was not a fan. On his social media accounts, Sylvester Stallone described the movie as 'truly the most horribly produced film I have ever had the misfortune to be in.'
Escape Plan: The Extractors (2019)
4.4/10 on iMDb
Despite his disdain for the previous film, Stallone reprised his starring role for the final installment of Escape Plan, along with Dave Bautista and 50 Cent.
Their final mission is to rescue the kidnapped daughter of a Hong Kong tech giant. However, the job turns out to be far more than they bargained for, with the kidnapping of Ray's (Stallone) girlfriend and the revelation of the deranged mastermind behind their prison captivity, who turns out to be far more familiar than they could have imagined.
The final Escape Plan movie certainly delivers on the action and thrills, while many fans felt that the franchise just went downhill after the second installment, but if you're looking for some decent action and entertainment, you'll find it here.