"Best Hand to Hand Combat Scene in a Film?" Topic

The recent Poll on "Best War Movie" got me to thinking. What is my favorite part of a war movie? The Hand to Hand Combat scenes of course. A few of my all time favorites:
#1) The final scene of Last of the Mohicans,(the newest version).
#2) When the Emperor gets his due in Gladiator,(actually all of the H to H scenes were pretty good in that one.
#3) 3 is for 300. When the first wave of Persians hit was my favorite.
#4) The storming of Fort Wagner in Glory.
#5) Although I didn't like the outcome, I thought that the scene between Melish and Steam Boat Willy in Saving Private Ryan was very tense.

Wasn't Willy, but yes.

The fight scene from "They Live" between Roddy Piper and Keith David is Great!!

Oooo, I second the Roddy Piper-Keith David melee.

How about the sword fight between Inigo and the Man in black in Princess Bride?

Sean Connery and Robert Shaw wearing each other out in "Robin and Marian"?

Achilles' one-shot takedown of Boagrias in "Troy"?

Viggo Mortensen fighting nekkid in the steam room in "Eastern Approaches"? (Beats the heck out of Ahnold…)

Westley (as The Dread Pirate Roberts) and Inigo Montoya in "The Princess Bride"?

Any number of scenes from "The Three Musketeers" and "The Four Musketeers" (Michael York, Oliver Reed, etc. version)?

Brad Pitt again, bare-knuckle fighting in "Snatch"?

Allen

Steven Seagal in "Under Siege"?

Aw, come on! It's a joke!!!

Seriously, "The Duellists": is there any better?

Roddy Piper-Keith David melee

I thought the one at the end of Saving Private Ryan was fairly grim, it could qualify for one of the best in that sense.

For grand scale, I like the French pouring into the German trench in "Alls Quiet on the Western Front", I really like the shots of the French dropping into the trench with their bayonets leading right at the camera. Lots of bayonets, clubbed rifles, entrenching tools and pistols.

You are all wrong, the fist fight from 'The Quiet Man' cannot be beaten.

Simple.

No argument.

YouTube link

The revenge sequence in Braveheart is really good in my book. (fairly early in the movie in fact). It starts out with William Wallace pretending to surrender: very quiet, no music, and in slow motion, with an emphasis on sublte sounds, like the clink when one of the English soldier's takes the horse's bridle. Then it builds up with music and accelerating action until they have seized the fort and the sheriff surrenders.

Seven Samurai has multiple scenes. Scenes featuring Kikuchiyo (Tishiro Mifune) and Kyuzo (Seiji Miyaguchi) are my favorite, especially Kikuchiyo's "aristeia" when he avenges Kyuzo and loses his life.

The fight in the high school in Grosse Pointe Blank.

I can't believe the bayonet-to-assaggi combat in Zulu! has not been mentioned. The melee in the courtyard and then in the hospital always stirs me.

On that vein, there is some pretty gripping HTH combat in Zulu Dawn as well.

I also give a big vote for the final combat sequence in Last of the Mohicans. Fast and brutal.

Also, some the melee fighting in Excalibur is incredibly intense. The final "embrace" between Arthur and Mordred always gives me chills.

Jason

Check Toshiro, not Tishiro

Chap who kills Mellish:
link

Steamboat Willie:
link

Two different fellas. Note the insignia on the collar patches if you still don't believe me.

Why do people always say "I can't believe nobody has said …" instead of just saying it themselves?

The Quiet Man is a pile of , and so is the fight in it.

Simple.

No argument.

You do realize that is a figure of speech and not meant to be taken literally, Plynikes?

The thing that makes me laugh is that usually when folks use that phrase on these kind of threads, somebody has already said it. But at least you didn't fall into that trap.

Does the fight scene in Unforgiven count? or any part of Big Trouble in Little China – the funeral scene being one of the best.

Spartacus drowning the gladiator trainer in the pot of soup.

They Live is one of my favorites. Hand to Hand to me means bare fist no weapons.

I thought the fight scene in "The Bourne Ultimatum" where Bourne (Damon) crashes through the window at the start is good.

Dave

Conan the Barbarian from beginning to end.

I really liked the fight between Beatrix and Bill at the end of Kill Bill v.2. It was so fast I watched it multiple times, and then on slow… I never get tired of watching it.

I like the fight scenes in the Bourne Identity trilogy. Using books and other stuff as weapons, and so fast and brutal, it is great.

Bob Hoskins (CSM Williams) in Zulu Dawn, and Nigel Green (CSgt Bourne) in Zulu. Nice bayonet work from them both.

The after school fist fight between Casey Siemaszko and Richard Tyson in "3 O'Clock High"

YouTube link

Bond & Grant in train stateroom: From Russia with Love.
Any of several in Bourne Identity
Any of several fighting scenes in The Three Musketeers (Michael York version)

Soldier knife/pan/fists fighting against a werewolf in "Dog Soldiers".

"They Live" for sure!

Knife fight at the end of "Dune" where at the end Sting gets a knife in the throat and then ripped apart by his voice attack.

Brian

trench fight in Cross of Iron

The final fight between Robert Roy MacGregor and Archibald Cunningham in "Rob Roy" is another favorite. But my all-time favorite films for sword fights have already been mentioned a couple of times: the 3/4 Musketeers films. ("Musketeers? Dueling in defiance of the edicts?").

The oil-barrel fight in The Transporter is good too.

Obi-Wan and Darth Vader on Mustafar in Episode III.

Have to agree with Last of the Mohicans. Another fun one…be it very over the top…was the fist fight inside the car near the end of Doomsday. The one that starts here:

link

It was cool and really outrageous.

There's also the first fight scene in Brotherhood of Wolves:

link

Oh…and don't forget this brutal scene from Equilibrium. Its more of a beating than a fight:

YouTube link

They shouldn't have walked onto the set during his take…

I kind of liked the subway station fight scene between Neo and Agent Smith in the first Matrix.

I will give a shout out for the final fight in Last of the Mohicans, Mellish's final fight in SPR, Anakin/Vader v. Obi-wan in Episode III, the oil-barrel/bus garage fight in Transporter.

But I think one of the most awesome fight sequences is Bruce Lee's use of the scarf in "Enter the Dragon" (?) is phenomenal!

Andy Welkley
"Your Phrendlee Hevy Phyzx T-chrr"

It's distressing to me that the first scene to come to my mind was also the Roddy Piper scene from 'They Live'…

Second was the running battle from The Three Musketeers… where they are throwing anything and everything at their opponents.

Third is the big final dustup in Android… though that might just be a favorite cause of the time and place and company I was keeping.

EDIT: and a big "Oh Yeah!" for the mention above of "3 O'Clock High"… I always forget that that the big fight actually does happen.

As for a fight without weapons, you have to see the fight between Jackie Chan and Jet Li in The Forbidden Kingdom.
I decided to buy the movie after I saw this scene.

Seven Samurai is had to beat. More recently I really liked the combat scenes in Musa the Warrior. Particularly the final battle – regardless of the clches.

Bruce Lee vs. Kareem Abdul Jabar, from Game of Death.

River Tam vs. the Reavers, Serenity.

Leeloo vs. those space orcs, The Fifth Element…

WOW! 39 posts and not 1 person even mentioned the dragon Bruce Lee.

I loved the scene in the Korean movie The Duelist when the main character is fighting the assassin guy in the shadows of a dark street.

It's starts at 7.00 minutes in this clip and finishes in the next one 5 of 12. They do it again sorta at the end of the movie too.

YouTube link

Cable Guy YouTube link

This one is good from "Invasion USA" YouTube link

Bruce Lee & the nun chuck scene in "Return of the Dragon" YouTube link

Musashi v. Kojiro @ Ganryu Island. YouTube link

The one in Gladiator where they fight the guys in the spooky helmets – I was entertained!

I do like some of the Seagal limb breakin' – "Anybody seen Richie?!"

Gangs of NY YouTube link "grin"

Star Trek YouTube link

The martial arts fight in Paris at the beginning of "Team America: World Police"

The quick and brutal brawl at the beginning of Casino Royale.

Also the fight in toilets in The Warriors.

Best? Basil Brush

Runner up? Shari Lewis and Lambchop.

Ash vs. Witch in "Army of Darkness"

"Yo, She (w)itch! Let's Go!"

Seth Rogan. Yes, Seth Rogan, actually had two good fight scenes in "Observe and Report."

It was also one of the funniest, and most disturbing movies I have ever seen.

Thought of another good one: the brawl in the trailer in "Raising Arizona".

Last episode of first series of rome ( not a film I know ) when Pullo & Verinus take on the gladiators, savage stuff.

Phil

Spear duel at the end of Hidden Fortress. Very rare to see neither guy pulling a sword in a pivotal scene.

Most everything in the Richard Lester Musketeers films.

Errol and Basil in the '38 Robin Hood.