In the 2000s, Charlize Theron had just a few action film credits to her name with Æon Flux and Atomic Blonde.
Last seen in Netflix's Fast & Furious film.
BEST: Desert Duel (Mad Max: Fury Road)
While Mad Max: Fury Road has many ambitious vehicular scenes featuring cutting-edge practical effects, one of Imperator Furiousa's (Charlize Theron) best scenes is her hand-to-hand duel against the titular hero Max (Tom Hardy). Both engage in an intense fight in the backdrop of a sprawling desert.
Throughout the fight, Max is chained to the 'War Boy' known as Nux (Nicholas Hoult). As Max waits for one of the Five Wives to cut down his chain, Furiosa charges at him, and what follows is a very realistic display of visceral combat skills. As Nux is still chained to Max, even he gets dragged into the fight. Finally, Max overpowers Furiosa despite it being a very close competition.
WORST: Final Duel (Snow White & The Huntsman)
Rather than just being a damsel in distress, this film's version of Snow White (Kristen Stewart) turns into an armored warrior seeking revenge on the evil Queen Ravenna (Charlize Theron).
The film's final fight scene between the two is not particularly bad but it might just get too formulaic for some. It seems like an unfair battle as Ravenna has the upper hand for most of it. Despite her having magical powers, she just relies on simple punches and chokeholds to overpower Snow White. When all the odds seem to be in the Queen's favor, Snow White stabs her with a concealed dagger in what seems like a very convenient ending.
BEST: Stairwell Fight (Atomic Blonde)
Atomic Blonde is arguably the best film in Theron's career when it comes to stunt choreography. MI6 spy Lorraine Broughton is tasked with protecting an informant named Spyglass (Eddie Marsan), a Herculean task that involves going against KGB agents and their henchmen.
In a claustrophobic staircase, she goes against two such adversaries in a perfectly edited, hyperviolent fight. They kick, punch, and stab each other falling down the stairs, from one floor to the other. What's commendable in this fight is an attempt at realism. Both sides get exhausted after taking a few hits. Just because Theron's character is the heroine doesn't mean that she's indestructible. Hence, she's even shown to be taking a breather at times rather than fighting continuously.
WORST: Earring Removal (Æon Flux)
Æon Flux's visuals, production, and action scenes might seem a bit dated for modern-day audiences. Unlike Atomic Blonde, the film features Theron in very convenient settings offering little to no challenges to her character.
The fight at the library between the protagonist and Freya (Caroline Chikezie) can even be unintentionally laughable at times. Continous jump cuts and swinging kicks prevent the scene from being as smooth as the fights from its animated source material. After some fast-paced combat, Freya plunges towards Flux and both seem to be locked in a hug. And then, to free herself from Frey's clutches, Flux lolls out her tongue and bites off her earring!
BEST: Church Massacre (The Old Guard)
In some of The Old Guard's action scenes, Theron's Andy is a seemingly immortal warrior with regenerative abilities while her combatants are mostly mere mortals.
When surrounded by several of Steven Merrick's (Harry Melling) soldiers, Andy goes on to massacre the crew with ease and finesse. Relying on a sword as well as a pistol, she pins them all to the ground while even dismembering a few limbs. Ruelle's haunting track "The World We've Made" plays in the background adding to the dark atmosphere.
WORST: Æon Flux Vs Sithandra (Æon Flux)
Similar to the aforementioned scene from Æon Flux, this is another one-on-one fight that plays out in an unmemorable fashion. Both Æon Flux and Sithandra seem to have similar fighting styles to the point of almost looking like clones. If Flux cartwheels her way to a ledge, Sithandra would follow suit.
What happens next is a surprisingly bland fight that viewers would probably be tired of watching given how the entire film is riddled with such choppily-edited clashes.
BEST: Apartment Fight (Atomic Blonde)
Atomic Blonde has some of the best indoor fighting sequences and if the stairwell fight wasn't enough, the apartment fight comes as a close contender. Lorraine needs to escape from her Berlin apartment but a few policemen pose as threats. So, she makes the best out of the tools in front of her to immobilize them. For instance, she makes use of a hose to wrap it around a policeman's arm so that he drops his gun.
She further uses the hose to strangle one of them while striking down the others with kitchen implements like pans. With all her enemies down to the ground, Lorraine yet again uses the hose to swing down the building.
WORST: Deflecting Torpedos (The Fate Of The Furious)
This is a scene that doesn't directly involve Charlize Theron in action but it's an ambitious fight that's orchestrated by her character, the master hacker Cipher. All through the third act, Cipher can be found in an airplane's control room orchestrating the actions of the terrorists under her. These terrorists operate nuclear submarines and torpedos but of course, the franchise's heroes save the day by speeding away in their sports cars.
And if these fast cars aren't enough, Luke Hobbs himself steps out of the car and redirects a torpedo using his hand! While fans of the series would expect such highly unbelievable scenes, others might just find it a tad bit over-the-top.
BEST: City Destruction (Hancock)
Hancock finds Will Smith playing the lead, an amnesiac with superhuman abilities. When Mary Embrey (Charlize Theron) gives Hancock a hint of her own hidden powers, he tries agitating her to see her true potential. This turns out to be a bad idea as they go head-to-head in a no-holds-barred display of flying and reckless destruction.
Property gets damaged and civilians get intimidated. Theron's Mary then goes on to pick up an entire truck and crash Hancock straight to the ground. Finally, she also manipulates weather to create a series of cyclonic disturbances. The scene is hilarious, ridiculously destructive, and yet suits the satirical tone of the film.
WORST: Merrick's Death (The Old Guard)
The Old Guard unleashes the best of Charlize Theron as an action star. However, after multiple fighting scenes, the conclusive fight gets slightly underwhelming. While the film offered immense strength to its immortal heroes, Harry Melling's villain Steven Merrick was too weak to serve as a 'final boss.'
After defeating his many henchmen, Andy and her protégé Nile (KiKi Layne) shoot each other confusing Merrick who then gets stabbed by Andy's axe. Nile goes on to jump out of the building's window along with Merrick. And of course, Nile survives while the pharmaceutical CEO dies in seconds.
