Theatrical release poster art (fair use)
(10) THE FURIOUS (2026)
“The Furious detonates into a relentless, blood-soaked spectacle of breathtakingly inventive martial arts choreography, with director Kenji Tanigaki delivering a brutal, balletic action extravaganza” – Rotten Tomatoes.
Yeah, I have to agree with the Rotten Tomatoes consensus on this one, although I’d add frenetic to the adjectives.
“The Furious is a 2025 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Kenji Tanigaki starring Xie Miao, Joe Taslim, Joey Iwanaga, Brian Le, Yayan Ruhian, and Yanin Vismitananda.”
And it has all the martial arts, reflecting its pan-Asian cast – kung fu (by the Chinese protagonist whose character is mute in the film), judo, pencak silat, karate, muay Thai…
I’m also counting it as a 2026 film for my wildcard tenth place entry because it was theatrically released in that year.
In an undisclosed country within Southeast Asia, a mute tradesman named Wang Wei…just kidding, we’re not here for the plot, except to connect the awesome martial arts scenes, and indeed some critics were caustic about the “clunky” dialogue and “goofy” plot.
That undisclosed country within Southeast Asia is recognizably Bangkok where it was filmed (with some overhead footage I assume is from drones). The villains are cartoonishly evil and all the better for it, coming up against their kung fu nemesis when their goons kidnap his daughter as part of their trafficking business. You never do find out the protagonist’s mysterious background – I’m assuming it involves some supernatural ability for kung fu. Speaking of which, I always like seeing Yayan Ruhian in martial arts film. I have my own head canon that he’s always his Mad Dog character, returning from his death in each film like those eerie Japanese stringy-haired ghost girls (despite being Indonesian).
FANTASY & SF
No, except to the extent that the intense fighting skill and survival of characters borders on supernatural, as in a few other films in this top ten.
COMEDY
Again, not really any comedic elements, except occasionally verging on martial arts slapstick or black comedy.