8 Most Fun Anime Action Movies of the 21st Century, Ranked

Some of the best anime movies have perfected the art of making “fun” look completely unhinged. One can turn a race into an intergalactic war, another can make a demon fortress feel like a roller coaster, while a third simply decides that two Saiyans should punch each other until reality starts cracking.

The best action features skip tedious exposition to construct dynamic, adrenaline-soaked spectacles built for massive screens. Balancing sheer entertainment value, kinetic pacing, production impact, and fight choreography, here is the definitive ranking of the eight most fun anime action movies of the century.

8 Spring Song Goes Full Gothic Opera With Fate’s Most Brutal Showdown

Tomonori Sudou’s Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel – III. Spring Song (2020) serves as the darkest, most visually opulent entry on this list. Studio ufotable utilized high-end digital compositing to animate the tragic climax of the Fifth Holy Grail War. The duel between Rider and Saber Alter inside the cavernous depths stands as a benchmark in digital animation, defined by light effects and swift camera movement.

It ranks #8 not because the spectacle is small (it absolutely is not) but because Spring Song is built around dark tragedy and payoff, making its pleasures more intense than carefree. It still delivered a major theatrical run, surpassing ¥1.7 billion in Japan and becoming the trilogy’s highest-grossing chapter.

7 Bleach: Hell Verse Drops Ichigo Into a Sinister Battle Where Hell Bites Back

Noriyuki Abe’s 2010 feature Bleach: Hell Verse takes Ichigo Kurosaki into the depths of the underworld to rescue his sister Yuzu from the Sinners led by Kokuto. Studio Pierrot produced the film to mark the franchise’s 10th anniversary, featuring heavy metal rock cues and glowing, high-contrast spirit-energy effects. The highlights include Ichigo’s terrifying Hollow transformation and his gold-armored Hell-infused state.

It sits at #7 because the visual aggression and franchise fan service make it fun, but the action does not maintain the same consistently inventive momentum as the films above it. Still, when Bleach goes feral, Hell Verse happily kicks the door off its hinges. Its status as the franchise’s fourth theatrical film also makes its Hell setting a particularly unusual expansion of the anime’s mythology.

6 One Piece Film: Z Serves Up a Swashbuckling Marine Showdown

Released on December 15, 2012, One Piece Film: Z sends the Straw Hats against former Marine admiral Zephyr, whose NEO Marines plan to destroy the New World. Eiichiro Oda served as producer, and the movie leans into classic One Piece pleasures: gadgets, adventure, comedy, emotional clashes, and Luffy throwing himself into impossible fights. Zephyr gives the action a more personal edge, while the Straw Hats each get opportunities to flex.

So, #6 fits because Film: Z is wonderfully swashbuckling, but its action is less visually experimental than the higher entries. Its greatest strength is atmosphere: it feels like the Straw Hats got a pirate blockbuster and ran with it. The Marine-versus-pirate conflict also gives the movie a satisfying old-school adventure flavor.

5 Broly Brings Dragon Ball’s Brawls to Absolutely Bonkers Heights

Directed by Tatsuya Nagamine and animated by Toei Animation, Dragon Ball Super: Broly (2018) redefines the franchise’s combat visual language. Naohiro Shintani’s fluid character designs allow Goku, Vegeta, and Gogeta to trade blows with the titular Legendary Super Saiyan in fluid, high-velocity sequences.

The film’s final 45 minutes feature continuous, uninterrupted brawling that shatters reality into abstract dimensions. Broly ranks at #5 because it relies almost entirely on power-scaling spectacle—it is an absolute blast for fight fans, though its single-minded focus on combat leaves less room for narrative variety.

4 Jujutsu Kaisen 0 Serves Curses, Carnage, and Maximum Yuta Energy

Jujutsu Kaisen 0, released in Japan on December 24, 2021, puts Yuta Okkotsu at the center of a prequel story about love, grief, and a terrifying Curse named Rika. MAPPA turns Yuta’s growth under Satoru Gojo into increasingly savage battles, culminating in his confrontation with Suguru Geto and an all-out display of cursed techniques, weapons, and monstrous energy.

Its action has personality: Yuta fights like someone learning to weaponize overwhelming emotion, while Maki, Toge, and Panda add distinct combat flavors. At #4, it delivers enormous fun and a knockout climax, but its escalation is less inventive than the spectacles above it. The movie still finished its Japanese theatrical run with ¥13.75 billion and roughly 9.8 million admissions (via Crunchyroll), becoming the 9th highest-grossing Japanese movie.

3 Redline Is a Gorgeous, Unhinged Adrenaline Shot to the Veins

Takeshi Koike’s 2009 directorial masterpiece from Studio Madhouse stands as hand-drawn animation’s ultimate passion project. Spending seven years in production and utilizing over 100,000 hand-drawn frames, Redline follows daredevil driver JP in a deadly, illegal intergalactic race on the militarized planet Roboworld.

The film features speed, vibrant character designs, and a retro-futuristic soundtrack composed by James Shimoji. It ranks at #3 because it delivers a pure visual high; its narrative is intentionally thin, but as a pure, unfiltered expression of kinetic animation and visual spectacle, few films match its energy.

2 Infinity Castle Turns Demon Slayer Into Pure Big-Screen Mayhem

Haruo Sotozaki and Studio Ufotable elevated the franchise to new Heights with Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle (2025). Dropping the Demon Slayer Corps straight into Muzan Kibutsuji’s shifting dimensional fortress, the movie strips away setup in favor of relentless, high-stakes combat. The feature shines through its spatial choreography as the Hashira fight while gravity contorts around them.

Driven by Go Shiina and Yuki Kajiura’s thunderous orchestral score, the film delivers a visceral cinematic ride. It misses the top spot only because its structure serves as the first act of a trilogy, with Part 2 rumored to be released in 2027, whereas Reze Arc offers a self-contained, explosive climax.

1 Reze Arc Throws Chainsaw Man Into a Bloody Bombshell of a Ride

Released in Japan on September 19, 2025, Reze Arc takes Denji from awkward teenage yearning to full-scale devil carnage when he meets the mysterious Reze. Directed by Tatsuya Yoshihara, the movie turns the manga’s Bomb Girl storyline into a breathless collision of romance, melancholy, explosive transformations, and savage close-quarters combat.

Denji’s Chainsaw Man clashes with Reze’s terrifying hybrid power while the wider devil-hunting world keeps the pressure brutal. What puts it at #1 is the balance: the action is spectacular without becoming empty noise, and the emotional whiplash makes every explosion hit harder. It is sexy, stupid, heartbreaking, hilarious, and gloriously violent in exactly the right proportions.

Agree with the ranking? Tell us which anime action movie deserves a spot on the list.