10 Best Arnold Schwarzenegger movies of all time, ranked
Our favourite Schwarzenegger flicks of all time.
If you are a child of the ’80s, then you’ll agree with us that growing up with the movies of Arnold Schwarzenegger was a very special experience. His massive name emblazoned on a VHS would mean one thing: that movie would rock, hard.
Whether he was carrying an actual tree, covering himself in mud to hide from an ugly alien, or getting his ass to Mars, his towering performance would always turn an average film into a fantastic one.
Arnold may well be 72 now, but his action days are far from over. He’s back as the T-800 in Terminator: Dark Fate - his beard may be greying but the one liners are still there.
So, here are the top 10 Schwarzenegger movies...
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10. The Last Stand
There is a lot to like about The Last Stand. For a start, it’s a really well made action flick. Directed by the fantastic South Korean filmmaker Jee-woon Kim (his first English-language movie), it’s about a Sheriff (Schwarzenegger) stopping his town becoming overrun with drug runners. It’s pure popcorn for sure, but it’s over-the-top violence nods back to 80s Arnie flicks and the man himself is fantastic as the elder statesmen protecting his town.
9. Last Action Hero
Sometimes a little too meta for its own good, Last Action Hero is one of those movies that was way ahead of its time. Arnie plays Jack Slater, a Hollywood action hero who befriends a boy who gets sucked into his fictional world. As Schwarzenegger doesn’t exist in this world there’s some delightful spins on Arnie’s movies of the past - with the likes of The Terminator being played by Sylvestor Stallone. The proper action starts when Slater enters the real world to make sure that the real Arnold Schwarzenegger isn’t killed, as that would also kill Slater. Confusing, yep. But great fun, too.
8. Twins
Under the steady eye of Ivan Reitman (director of Ghostbusters and, er, Kindergarten Cop), the premise of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito finding out they are twins turns out to be a masterclass in comedy. Yes, most of the jokes focus on his muscles and how strong he is but Twins proves that there is more to the Arnold than the action side. A sequel, Triplets, has been mooted since 2012 in which Arnie and DeVito find out that have another brother, set to be played none other than Eddie Murphy. Here's hoping Triplets emerges from development hell in the near future.
7. Conan The Barbarian
Directed by John Milius - the man that the Walter from The Big Lebowski was based - this madcap fantasy film sees Schwarzenegger early in his career. It’s pretty much a given that he was hired purely for his muscles (which is fair), but he does offer some gravitas to the role, holding his own in the presence of Hollywood heavyweights Max Von Sydow and James Earl Jones - all while spouting Nietsche-inspired dialogue and cutting the heads off of giant snakes.
6. Commando
The beginning of Commando is serene. John Matrix (Schwarzenegger) is playing with his daughter, cutting down trees and carrying them on his own and having a jolly old time. Then his daughter is kidnapped and it all goes downhill from there. Matrix heads to his shed, which is packed with guns, and goes on a mission to find his missing daughter. What ensues is mayhem, one-liners and Schwarzenegger and his action-hero best.