2026 has delivered two notably different action films in The Furious and Netflix’s War Machine. While War Machine combines military action with science-fiction survival, The Furious has received the stronger critical response and is currently the highest-rated action movie of the year on Rotten Tomatoes.
The Furious holds a 97% Tomatometer score based on 158 critics’ reviews. War Machine, meanwhile, has a 66% rating. Although both films center on survival and intense combat, their stories use very different emotional foundations.
War Machine follows Alan Ritchson as an Army staff sergeant who returns to military training after surviving an attack that kills his brother. Two years later, he becomes candidate No. 81 in the Ranger Assessment and Selection Program in Colorado. His team’s training mission turns into a fight for survival when an unknown extraterrestrial killing machine attacks them.
The Furious focuses on Wang Wei, played by Xie Miao, a mute tradesman with an undisclosed past who searches for his kidnapped daughter. He joins forces with Navin, a journalist portrayed by Joe Taslim, who is looking for his missing wife. Their pursuit leads them into conflict with a criminal human-trafficking network.
The film’s straightforward rescue story gives its action a more personal foundation. Wang Wei is a father taking matters into his own hands after being failed by a corrupt police system, while Navin’s parallel search adds urgency to the mission. The characters’ losses and their pursuit of justice give the violence a clear emotional and moral purpose.
That personal focus is presented as one of The Furious’ main advantages over War Machine. Although Ritchson’s film begins with the death of his character’s brother, that emotional thread becomes less prominent once the extraterrestrial threat takes over. The conflict then centers primarily on survival rather than on the protagonist’s earlier personal motivations.
The action choreography also separates the two films. The Furious emphasizes tactile martial-arts combat and hand-to-hand fighting, making its physical danger feel immediate. Its fight scenes remain connected to Wang Wei’s emotional state, allowing the action to reinforce the character’s desperation.
War Machine begins with disciplined military combat but changes direction when the alien opponent appears. The film then becomes more focused on surviving overwhelming destruction. Ritchson’s established image as a larger-than-life action performer also gives his character a sense of strength from the outset, while Wang Wei is introduced as a more vulnerable figure.
The Furious ultimately maintains a clearer genre identity. Directed by Kenji Tanigaki, it draws on Hong Kong cinema and classic kung fu while incorporating modern pacing and graphic violence. War Machine’s blend of military drama and science-fiction survival gives it a distinct identity of its own, but it moves further away from the conventions of a traditional action film.
Based on its critical score, personal storytelling and commitment to martial-arts action, The Furious is presented as the stronger overall action movie of 2026, despite War Machine’s broader genre combination and popularity on Netflix.
Sources: Comic Book Resources.