Best Romantic Action Movie?

Philip Guest (@MediaTwin) asked what my “favourite romantic/action movie” was. My pick:

@actionchick: Crank: High Voltage (a.k.a. Crank 2)

@actionchick then solicited your thoughts on the matter. As usual, a wide variety of answers emerged, including some that are not action movies (e.g., Shaun of the Dead – having some action does not make it an action movie), some where the “romantic” element is difficult to see (e.g. Alien), and some that even the people who suggested them weren’t certain about (e.g., the #1 choice). In fact, half the people nominating the #1 choice commented that they weren’t sure it was action-packed enough to count, and yet it kept getting mentioned by an awful lot of people. The oldest film suggested came from 30 Days of Night author Steve Niles: John Huston’s The African Queen (1951) starring Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn.

These were YOUR top five choices with some sample comments.

#4-5 tie:
Romancing the Stone (1984)
starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner

True Lies (1994)
starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jamie Lee Curtis

Phil (@pipboy2009): Surely the best romantic action movie is True Lies? Spy who has to blow stuff up to save his wife/marriage.

Ultimate Car Wash (@ultimatecarwash): Anybody mention Romancing the Stone? Action, romance and comedy.

#3: The Fifth Element (1997)
starring Milla Jovovich & Bruce Willis

Caine Dorr (@BlaqueSaber): there’s a lot of super green romance in the 5th Element, particularly if one has a mul tee pass

#2: Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005)
starring Angelina Jolie & Brad Pitt

Kanwardyal singh (@kdkhanna1): i’d pick “mr and mrs smith”….i love Brangelina in that flick ni love the action ,n its romantic too!!!:D:D

TweeterFlix (@TweeterFlix): Re: Favorite romantic/action movie. “Mr & Mrs Smith” Trailer & my review: http://bit.ly/VhBLg

#1: True Romance (1993)
writer: Quentin Tarantino
director: Tony Scott
cast: Christian Slater, Patricia Arquette, Dennis Hopper, Val Kilmer, Christopher Walken, Gary Oldman, Brad Pitt, Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher Walken

Kevin McCarthy (@bdkreviews): True Romance is my favorite film of all time…Walken/Hopper scene bring tears to my eyes…Brilliant script!

Bling Daddy (@theblingdaddy): Walken RULES

Honorable Mentions

Multiple mentions:

Blade Runner; Crank: High Voltage; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; Desperado; Gross Pointe Blank; Gone in 60 Seconds; La Femme Nikita; The Long Kiss Goodnight; Memento; Point Break; The Princess Bride; Speed; Total Recall; Terminator; The Thomas Crown Affair; Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (a.k.a. Transformers 2).

Marvel SmartAss (@MarvelSmartAss): Long Kiss Goodnight. Come on! You know Charlie B. and Mitch are falling for each other! 10:09 AM Dec 18th from web in reply to actionchick

Caine Dorr (@BlaqueSaber): Gone in 60 Seconds – how can all those cars NOT romantic? Particularly Elinore 🙂
Katrina Hill (@actionchick):  The long unrequited love. (Gone in 60 Sec)
Rachelle (@Stellar143):  Ohhh Fave romantic action… I loved GONE/60SECS too. I’m such a girl sometimes, I swear lol <3 Action @seanaltes @SlickRiptide

Randall (@Quixote74): @justgilbert Last Boy Scout, romantic? I didn’t realize Bruce & Damon got that close.
Katrina Hill (@actionchick): They really love football.

Jason T. (@PotatoFilm): The Thomas Crown Affair is like Red Shoe Diaries meets Goldeneye meets The Italian Job. A fave romantic actioner.
Marvel SmartAss (@MarvelSmartAss): Oh! The original Getaway! Nice. But, the chess scene with Faye Dunaway and McQueen in the original Thomas Crown…wow-ee!

Josh de Lioncourt (@Lioncourt): The 1st Terminator if that qualifies. It does, IMO. Sarah/Kyle aspect and all.
Katrina Hill (@actionchick):  Somebody complained today it’s a chick flick, so yes.

Clara Mathews (@Clarabela): CT/HD always makes me cry & there are 2 luv stories RT @actionchick: their fave romantic action movies: @swiv Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

Single mentions:

12:01; 300; African Queen; Alien; Against All Odds; Assassins; The Big Hit; Conan the Barbarian; The Crow; The Empire Strikes Back; The Getaway (original); Heathers; Zhang Yimou’s Hero; House of Flying Daggers; The Incredible Hulk; Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom; Legends of the Fall; Kiss Kiss Bang Bang; The Last Boy Scout; Last of the Mohicans; The Matrix; Mission: Impossible 2; Natural Born Killers; Ninja Scroll; Open Range; Raiders of the Lost Ark; Road House; Romeo and Juliet; Shaun of the Dead; Smokey and the Bandit 3; The Specialist; Team America: World Police; Terminator 2: Judgment Day (T2);  Tiga: Final Odyssey.

Wildride Robert Roy (@wyldride): Fave romantic action: T2–Arnie totally travels back in time to spend eternity in a vat of molten metal w/ Robert Patrick=Love.
Kevin McCarthy (@bdkreviews): is it ok that I cry at the end of T2…it’s so sad…one of the best films of all time
Rick Bman (@stopthepota): How much the pussified The Terminator at the end of T2 makes me cry. I kid, I kid… Awesome flick. Seriously. Arnold was bad ass as the Terminator in the movie and most of T2 but by the end he “knows why you cry.”

Cameron McCasland (@CamMcCasland): also Speed is good until they get off the bus
Randall (@Quixote74): I agree on Speed… Keanu really had a hard-on for that bus.

Johnny Williams (@johnny_williams): i’m going 80’s on this one…Top Gun

|Jessica| (@J3551C4): Conan – his love for Valeria was epic.

Amanda Bladon (@amandarbladon): Team America: World Police. Tons of action and we all remember that love scene. It’s the definition of romance.
Katrina Hill (@actionchick): You have an interesting dictionary.
Amanda Bladon (@amandarbladon): A spam bot instantly followed me as I wrote that. Maybe she liked the “love” scene in Team America a little too much.

Further observations:

Miss Nina Beretta (@redridinghood83): lol those are my favorite romance/action but you haven’t starred in one yet lmao

Related posts:
* Kevin Pereira Can’t Read: What Is an ‘Action Chick Flick’?

Other discussion participants: @AyeQue, @cafurloughed, @CamMcCasland, @carlwatkins, @CLNFRQHR, @damana, @droidguy1119, @G_reg, @GenDraftComic, @J3551C4, @jayess69, @JerryBFlory, @JimmyMiz, @JohnVFerrigno, @jpage, @JRothC, @justgilbert, @KanUDig_It, @kdkhanna1, @Lioncourt, @Marshy00, @MattOfAllMedia, @OnyxSparrow, @psylentmike, @RainnSong, @seanaltes, @Shadowbat, @skygirl1435, @Slickriptide, @Stellar143, @Stellar143, @sultryminxzoe, @swiv, @theblingdaddy, @TONYBINATL, @Trader_Bob, @TweeterFlix, @twstdview, @Ultraman_Tiga