Here are Cinephile Corner’s 10 recommendations for action movies like The Wrecking Crew:
Novocaine
Novocaine works best as an entertaining genre exercise. It’s competently made, sometimes clever, and visually sharp. But it never quite reaches the heights it’s aiming for. It doesn’t reimagine the action-comedy or elevate its characters beyond the surface. Still, it’s a watchable 90 minutes, and for fans of Jack Quaid or high-concept thrillers with a soft edge, it’s worth a casual look.
The Fall Guy
The Fall Guy is a mixed bag of ideas and execution, but the overall experience of seeing the movie is worth considering because of the sheer star power at play – notably Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt. The film is humming best as it moves along, thanks to lengthened action sequences where director David Leitch squeezes every ounce of juice from the movie.
The Instigators
The Instigators features an occasionally entertaining set piece and an ensemble cast of industry mainstays (headlined by Matt Damon and Casey Affleck), but this Apple TV+ streamer has all the common tropes and vibes of streaming content, best enjoyed passively and without thinking critically.
G20
G20 is not just a misfire, it’s a symptom of a larger streaming trend: high-concept projects stretched thin by weak scripts, formulaic direction, and over-reliance on big names to carry the weight. Viola Davis has led action movies far superior to G20.
Fight or Flight
Fight or Flight feels like it’s trying to play in the big leagues of modern action but without the distinctive characters, choreography, or creative spark to back it up. It’s neither grounded enough to be gritty nor wild enough to be fun. While Josh Hartnett remains an intriguing actor in the right roles, this isn’t one of them. It’s a forgettable detour in a genre full of better, more fully realized flights.
Heads of State
There’s no shortage of international action movies each year, and Heads of State barely meets the bar to even be called one. It’s the kind of movie you might click on out of curiosity, watch for 20 minutes, and then forget existed by the next morning. For a film trying to make world leaders into action stars, it can’t even lead itself.
Play Dirty
Play Dirty is the latest in Prime Video’s conveyor belt of glossy but weightless action titles. You can feel the intentions are different this time, since Shane Black aims for a straighter crime caper rather than the snarky crackle of The Nice Guys or Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. On paper, the package looks sturdy. Mark Wahlberg plays Parker, LaKeith Stanfield plays Grofield, and Rosa Salazar plays Zen, a trio of professional thieves drawn into a job that pits them against the New York mob and the president of Zen’s South American home country. In practice the movie is mostly table setting that never pays off.
The Running Man
The Running Man is a lot of movie, and my disappointment in it is not subtle. On paper, Edgar Wright and Glen Powell should be an easy match for a slick, propulsive studio thriller. Instead, this reimagining of the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle leans into a gritty, self-serious dystopia that drains most of what makes Wright and Powell such reliable fun.
The Pickup
I’ll admit I had more fun with The Pickup (2025) than I expected. Prime Video has been churning out a steady stream of C-tier action comedies, and most of them vanish from memory the moment the credits roll. I figured this would be another one of those forgettable titles, but to my surprise, it has just enough charm and comedic energy to make for a breezy, if uneven, watch.
Wolfs
The appeal of Jon Watts’ Wolfs is obvious. The film serves as the long-awaited reunion between George Clooney and Brad Pitt. The two mega movie stars have shared the screen for a handful of projects over the years, most notably the Ocean’s franchise and Burn After Reading.
READ MORE: The Wrecking Crew (2026), Movies Like G20, Movies Like The Fall Guy
