The 40 most popular 1920s action movies, ranked. Click any film for ratings, reviews, trailers, and where to watch.


Sherlock Jr.
1924 · 45m
country: United States
A film projectionist longs to be a detective, and puts his meager skills to work when he is framed by a rival for stealing his girlfriend's father's pocketwatch.


Wings
1927 · 2h 24m
country: United States
Two young men, one rich, one middle class, both in love with the same woman, become US Air Corps fighter pilots and, eventually, heroic flying aces during World War I. Devoted best friends, their mutual love of the girl eventually threatens their bond. Meanwhile, a hometown girl who's the lovestruck lifelong next door neighbor of one of them pines away.


The Navigator
1924 · 1h 5m
country: United States
The wealthy and impulsive Rollo Treadway decides to propose to his beautiful socialite neighbor, Betsy O'Brien. Although Betsy turns Rollo down, he still opts to go on the cruise that he intended as their honeymoon. When circumstances find both Rollo and Betsy on the wrong ship, they end up having adventures on the high seas.


Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
1925 · 2h 23m
country: United States
Erstwhile childhood friends, Judah Ben-Hur and Messala meet again as adults, this time with Roman officer Messala as conqueror and Judah as a wealthy, though conquered, Israelite. A slip of a brick during a Roman parade causes Judah to be sent off as a galley slave, his property confiscated and his mother and sister imprisoned. Years later, as a result of his determination to stay alive and his willingness to aid his Roman master, Judah returns to his homeland an exalted and wealthy Roman athlete. Unable to find his mother and sister, and believing them dead, he can think of nothing else than revenge against Messala.


The Mark of Zorro
1920 · 1h 47m
country: United States
Don Diego Vega pretends to be an indolent fop as a cover for his true identity, the masked avenger Zorro. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2012.


The Black Pirate
1926 · 1h 34m
country: United States
A nobleman vows to avenge the death of his father by the hands of pirates. To this end, he infiltrates the pirate band; Acting in character, he single-handedly captures a merchant vessel, but things are complicated when he finds that there is a beautiful young woman of royal blood aboard.
Dog Justice
Dog Justice
1928 · 1h
country: United States
A silent film from 1928.


Chasing Trouble
1926 · 50m
country: United States
"Blizz" Ballard, summoned by the Homesteaders' League to track down a gang of cattle rustlers, arrives in Paradise Valley. In the saloon, he is taunted by Jerome Garrett, who hopes to intimidate him but is himself beaten in a fight. Ballard, after proving himself by riding an outlaw horse, is taken on at the Gregg ranch. Garrett, in the family's favor and admired by Emily, the judge's daughter, accuses Ballard of being a cattle thief, while his accomplices capture and torture the sheriff.


White Eagle
1922 · 5h
country: United States
Two factions struggle to gain and keep possession of a pool of molten gold.


Battling Brewster
1924 · 2h 30m
country: United States
An action movie serial that premiered in 1924


Burning Words
1923 · 50m
country: United States
David Darby and his younger brother Ross are both members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Ross is accused of murdering Slip Martin, but David doesn't believe his brother committed the murder and, not wanting to see him executed, takes the blame himself.


Speed Mad
1925 · 50m
country: United States
Bill Sanford (William Fairbanks), a daredevil race-car driver, is abducted by his main competitor Alan Lawson (Lloyd Whitlock) and his henchmen, on the eve of a race he hopes will win him $5,000. But he escapes his captors and arrives ate the race track just in time to drive his speedster to victory. With the prize money, he saves the father, Charles Hampton (Charles K. French) of his sweetheart Betty Hampton (Edith Roberts) from losing the family.


Fashion Madness
1928 · 57m
country: United States
Gloria Vane (Claire Windsor), a shrewish, vain young debutante turned fashion model drags her dying lover, Victor Redding (Reed Howes), ten miles to the nearest settlement in the Canadian wilderness, saves his life and is transformed. How they got from New York City to the Canadian wilds is another story.


Pirate Gold
1920
country: United States
No overview available
Speed Cop
Speed Cop
1926 · 50m
country: United States
A motorcycle cop falls in love with a pretty girl when he gives her a speeding ticket, and she realizes that she loves him at the dinner she stages, with the help of her uncle, a judge, as a joke on the policeman.


The Trail of '98
1928 · 1h 27m
country: United States
Fortune hunters from all over the country rushing to the Klondike in 1897 to seek their fortunes in the gold are tested by hardships of the journey.


Golf
1922 · 25m
country: United States
Comedy on the golf links.


Border Vengeance
1925 · 48m
country: United States
After Wes Channing's partner, the feckless Buck Littleton, loses his half-interest in their ranch to gambler Flash Denby, Wes stands up against the sheriff's men when they try to seize the ranch-- land that has a gold mine on it. Denby tries to trick Mary Sims, granddaughter of Wes's neighbor Rufe Sims, into signing over the rights to the land. Denby's machinations are all set in order-- but Wes's right hook may prove to be a hell of a monkey wrench!


Border Law
1923 · 20m
country: United States
Texas Ranger Chuck Williams is the bashful sweetheart of the daughter, Ellen, of the captain of his Texas Rangers troop. He is working with the Mexican Rurales in an effort to stop a gang of gun runners. The gang-leader shows up, posing as an artist, and Ellen takes him in as a boarder to make Chuck jealous. But Chuck is wise to the boarder, who kidnaps Ellen and heads for the mountain hideout of his gang.


The Nut
1921 · 1h 14m
country: United States
Eccentric inventor Charlie Jackson tries to interest wealthy investors in his girlfriend's plan to help children from poor neighbourhoods.


Mister Radio
1924 · 1h 18m
country: Germany
Among the vertical rockfaces of Saxony athletic Gaston saves the lives of four climbers. Both rescued ladies fall in love with him, one helps finance Gaston's futuristic invention, but the financier is darkly connected with Gaston's fate.


American Pluck
1925 · 56m
country: United States
Blaze Derringer is a Texas cattle baron's son. He goes to a cabaret on his birthday, helps a pretty young woman and her guardian avoid a raid, but gets tossed from college for bad behavior. His disgusted father dispatches him to seek his fortune. Blaze jumps a freight, befriends a fake British duke and a sporting African-American, and is offered a prize fight in Galveston. He wins, but may have killed his opponent, so he takes the offer of the woman from the cabaret to accompany her to Begonia, where she's a princess about to be crowned. A court minister, the dastardly Count Verensky, has plans to share the throne and her affections. Can the plucky American help the Europeans sort things out?
Broadway Billy
Broadway Billy
1926 · 55m
country: United States
Broadway Billy is a 1926 American silent drama film directed by Harry Joe Brown.


The Demon
1926 · 50m
country: United States
A band of marauders are burning the property of ranchers in Slocum Valley. Dane Gordon, Percival Wade's silent partner, poses as an ex-convict, joins the gang, and falls in love with Goldie Fleming, stenographer to Bat Jackson, the brains of the gang. He learns that the raids are conducted for the purpose of depreciating the properties so that they can be purchased for a song. The gang learns Dane's real identity and plots to blow him up.


The Grail
1923 · 50m
country: United States
Texas Ranger Chic Shelby is sent to capture James Trammel and his son, John--two outlaws hiding in the mountains who are victims of a cattle war. Shelby tricks John, who has killed a cattleman, into believing he is an itinerant preacher by delivering a sermon on eternal love. John comes forward to be arrested, obviously moved by Shelby's sermon. Meanwhile, Sam Hervey betrays John's sister, Susie. Fearing her father's wrath, Hervey seeks out James Trammel, shoots him, and blames the crime on Shelby. Shelby clears himself by capturing Hervey, John is acquitted, and Susie ends her own life by drowning.
Flyin' Thru
Flyin' Thru
1925 · 50m
country: United States
Lieutenant Willis returns home from France, where he was an aviation ace, to find that his father has been falsely jailed for the murder of Judson Blair.


White Mice
1926 · 1h
country: United States
Roddy Forrester has formed the White Mice club with a pal. The purpose of the club is to help those in trouble. When Roddy's father sends him to the South American republic of Montebello, he gets his chance to be of service. General Rojas, the former president, is locked away in a prison and slowly dying. Roddy decides to rescue him, especially since he has been inspired by the general's pretty daughter, Inez.


Thundering Romance
1924 · 50m
country: United States
A cowboy sets out to help a pretty young girl who is about to lose her ranch when crooks plan to foreclose on it because she doesn't have enough money to make her mortgage payment. He puts together a cattle drive in order to sell the herd to raise the money to pay off the note, but when the crooks hear about this, they make plans to stampede the herd along the way.


The Whirlwind
1920
country: United States
The Whirlwind is a 1920 movie serial.


Helen of Troy
1924 · 3h 24m
country: Germany
Helena is a 1924 German silent drama film directed by Manfred Noa and starring Edy Darclea, Vladimir Gajdarov and Albert Steinrück. The film was based on the poem the Iliad by Homer. It was released in two separate parts: The Rape of Helen and The Fall of Troy. It was produced by Bavaria Film at the Emelka Studios in Munich. The film was made on an epic scale with thousands of extras, and large sets which rivalled those of the larger Berlin-based UFA.


Lightning Speed
1928 · 55m
country: United States
Jack Pemberton, a cub reporter falls in love with Betty (Mary Mayberry), the governor's daughter. During an investigation into racketeering, Jack learns that gangster Velvet is attempting to kidnap Betty in order to force her father to pardon a relative on death row.


Trooper 77
1926 · 3h 20m
country: United States
Trooper 77 is a 1926 American silent serial directed by Duke Worne.


Wolf Fangs
1927 · 1h
country: United States
Thunder, a dog raised by Ellen, a sheepherder's daughter, is driven to the wilderness by the brutal treatment of her father, Bill Garside, and becomes an outlaw; when grown, he takes command of a wolfdog pack. Later, Ellen, driven from her home by the same brutal herder, seeks refuge at the cabin of Neal Barrett, the forest ranger; she is pursued by the hungry pack and is stranded on a rocky cliff where Thunder once again encounters his former mistress. He challenges the pack in her defense, provoking a battle between himself and a rival for his command. Later, Thunder rescues Ellen from her brutal father.


Silver Valley
1927 · 50m
country: United States
Fired for crashing his aeroplane into his employer's ranch, Tom Mix is elected sheriff in a town with, as a title stated, "a high mortality rate among sheriffs." Mix, of course, prevails against almost impossible odds, at one point cornering a gang of cutthroats holding leading lady Dorothy Dwan captive in the crater of a volcano about to erupt.


The Bloodhound
1925 · 50m
country: United States
"Moose" Rambo is killed by an unknown assailant during a barroom brawl, and Belleau is wrongfully accused of the crime. Sergeant McKenna of the Northwest Mounted Police is detailed to go after him, and Constable Fitzgerald, who saw Belleau on the night of the murder, is struck by the resemblance between Belleau and McKenna. Believing them to be the same man, Fitzgerald confides his suspicions to the chief and is detailed to pursue McKenna.


The Heart of Maryland
1927 · 1h
country: United States
At the outbreak of the War Between the States, Maryland Calvert is loved by Maj. Alan Kendrick, son of a Virginia general, and Capt. Fulton Thorpe. Nancy, whom Thorpe has loved unwisely, follows him to Washington and commits suicide when she learns he will not marry her; as a result, Alan is forced to request his resignation. When Fort Sumter is fired upon, Alan, who admires Lincoln's principles, joins the Union Army though his father is among the Secessionist leaders; as a result, he is estranged from Maryland. Thorpe, who has joined the Confederacy as a spy, is responsible for Alan's arrest, but Maryland victoriously comes to his aid by ringing the alarm bell.


The Suitor
1920 · 18m
country: Unknown
Larry having to go through a lot of trouble to get his girl. All from bomb baking cooks to high flying crashes.


Soiled
1925 · 56m
country: United States
Chorus girl Mary Brown promises to give herself to playboy cad John Duane in exchange for $2500 so she can pay back a theft her brother made from his employers. Her sweetheart, race-car driver Jimmie, learns about it and gives her a check for $2500, but the check is worthless unless he can win the Big Race that afternoon. He leads through every lap but blows a tire on the last lap and finishes fourth. It appears that Duane will soon be hugging sweet Mary, unless Jimmie can find a buyer for a race-car with a flat tire.


The Mysterious Island
1929 · 1h 35m
country: United States
On a volcanic island near the Kingdom of Hetvia rules Count Dakkar, a benevolent leader and scientist who has eliminated class distinction among the island's inhabitants. Dakkar, his sister Sonia and her fiance, engineer Nicolai Roget have designed a submarine which Roget pilots on its initial voyage just before the island is overrun by Baron Falon, despotic ruler of Hetvia. Falon sets out after Roget in a second submarine and the two craft, diving to the ocean's floor, discover a strange land populated by dragons, giant squid and an eerie undiscovered humanoid race.


Super Speed
1925 · 50m
country: United States
Pat O'Farrell, a rich young man, takes a job as a truck-driver for his uncle's milk company, and falls in love with Cliare Knight, daughter of the Knight Car Company.
The 1920s were silent cinema's artistic peak, when directors had perfected a purely visual storytelling language just as sound arrived to displace it. German Expressionism and Soviet montage both date from here.
Action cinema runs from the stunt-driven spectacle of Hollywood blockbusters to the choreographed precision of Hong Kong and Korean thrillers. The best of it treats physical performance as storytelling — chases, fights, and set pieces that reveal character rather than pause for it.