When men don’t play video games, read books, or drink with their buddies on poker nights, they typically watch movies during their downtime. But not just any movie, that is. These films often tick all the right boxes: intense themes of violence, drama, heaps of action, and lots of sexy women.
However, guy movies are not necessarily synonymous with action movies as many often thought. While they are packed with car chases, gangsters, and explosions, they are widely diverse as well. They come in different genres such as comedies, bromance, male sports, or simply a cult favorite.
Amid an ocean of Hollywood films, there is a great selection of best movies for men that transcend time. These all-time classic masterpieces offer two hours of awesome cinematic experience, you keep watching them many times over.
They also bring a huge impact to your life that you often quote your favorite lines from the movie around peers. It is also likely that you cannot just conveniently watch these movies on the popular streaming app Netflix.
But what makes the best movies for men? Basically, these movies have been box office blockbusters, too. These films also received high critic scores and numerous accolades.
Our choice of best movies made for men mostly features intense and violent action titles, dark-themed dramas, and insane men comedies. Epic guy movies like Goodfellas, Die Hard, The Godfather, The Terminator, and a lot more make perfect weekend movie picks.
So, let us now dive into our curated list of 30 best movies for men in no particular order (We do not want to play favorites.) Please note that our guide may contain some spoilers.
INCEPTION (2010)
Dubbed as one of the best sci-fi thriller films in history, Inception tells a story of a man’s dreams inside another’s. It is directed and written by the legendary filmmaker Christopher Nolan who co-produced it with his wife, Emma Thomas.
The story focuses on Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), a professional thief who goes inside his targets’ dreams to steal secrets from their subconscious. In return for planting an idea inside someone’s mind, he gets his family back and clears his criminal record.
This 2010 film was a critical success, winning four out of eight Academy Award nominations. At the box office, Inception is a monster hit with more than $836 million gross sales worldwide against a $160 million budget.
The ensemble cast also includes Ken Watanabe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Elliot Page, Tom Hardy, Dileep Rao, Cillian Murphy, Tom Berenger, and Michael Caine.
Run Time:2h 28m
IMDb score: 8.8/10
THE GODFATHER (1972)
The Godfather is heralded as one of Hollywood’s most critically-acclaimed and biggest box office successes of all time. In fact, this Francis Ford Coppola crime film spawned two more sequels after hitting the big screen in 1972.
The film series took its inspiration from Italian-American author Mario Puzo’s 1969 eponymous novel. While it is also enjoyable for any movie junkie, it resonates well with the male viewers like no other movie ever does.
Its central themes revolve around family, honor, and revenge, making it an archetype of gangster movies for all time. This epic crime film follows Michael Corleone (Al Pacino). Michael unwillingly got involved with his family’s mafia operation after the attempted murder of his father, Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando).
The Godfather is definitely a must-watch classic for anyone who has missed out on it yet. It won three Oscars including Best Motion Picture and raked in $135 million or equivalent to $711 million today at the box office.
The cast includes James Caan, Richard S. Castellano, Robert Duvall, Sterling Hayden, John Marley, Richard Conte, Al Lettieri, Diane Keaton, Abe Vigoda, Talia Shire, and others.
Run Time: 2h 55m
IMDb score: 9.2/10
DIE HARD (1988)
Die Hard is arguably the first movie that comes to mind when men are asked about their favorite action feature. The 1988 iconic flick has all the right ingredients, from action to comedy, to keep you on the edge of your seats from beginning to end.
It raises the bar for the action genre with its witty one-liners. It also has plenty of hand-to-hand combat, guns, explosions, and helicopter stunts.
This action-thriller feature received critical acclaim upon review and is now hailed as one of the greatest action films. It also saw commercial success, spawning a sequel in 1990.
Set inside the LA skyscraper on one Christmas Eve, the story follows John McClane (Bruce Willis), a cop confronted with family issues. While off-duty, he turned hero as he single-handedly fights villainous terrorists in bare feet and saves the day.
Directed by John McTiernan, Die Hard also includes Bonnie Bedelia, Reginald VelJohnson, and Paul Gleason.
Run Time: 2h 12m
IMDb score: 8.2/10
300 (2006)
Anyone who has not seen 300 yet is totally missing out on an epic saga ever told on cinema. How so? First, it is a riveting Zack Snyder masterpiece. Second, it has the palatable recipe for a guy movie: gore, blood, war, and fantastic narrative.
The 2006 historical action fantasy movie is based on the 1998 eponymous comic series by Frank Miller and Lynn Varley. It is a fictional retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae in the Persian Wars in 480 B.C.
The story follows King Leonidas (Gerard Butler), king of the Greek city-state of Sparta. He leads 300 brave Spartans into a war against a Persian God-King Xerxes and his massive army of 300,000 soldiers.
Despite mixed reviews from critics, 300 made a whopping $456 million at the box office upon its opening. After eight years, a prequel entitled Rise of the Empire based on Miller’s unpublished graphic novel Xerxes was released in 2014.
The film’s top cast also includes Lena Headey, David Wenham, Dominic West, Vincent Regan, Michael Fassbender, Tom Wisdom, Andrew Pleavin, Andrew Tierman, and Rodrigo Santoro.
Run Time: 1h 57m
IMDb score: 7.6/10
FIGHT CLUB (1999)
Fight Club abounds with blood and violence, making it one of the best movies of all time for men. The 1999 thriller drama is a movie adaptation of Chuck Palahniuk’s 1996 novel of the same name.
It is quite entertaining to see Brad Pitt and Ed Norton in this movie alongside a bevy of masculine dudes kicking each other’s butt. But on top of that, it can depict the life of a man in the modern-day materialist world.
Using a narrative technique, the film’s story centers on a depressed insomniac man portrayed by Norton who also voiced the unnamed narrator. Soon, he forms an underground “fight club” with soap salesman Tyler Durden (Pitt).
Fight Club was a sleeper hit as it did not fare well in the box office upon release. However, it later earned critical acclaim and commercial success, making it a must-watch cult classic.
Directed by David Fincher, the film also features Helena Bonham Carter as Marla Singer along with actors Meat Loaf, Jared Leto, Holt McCallany, Zach Grenier, and Eion Bailey.
Run Time: 2h 19m
IMDb score: 8.8/10