The Color Purple... and Black & Blue

By Chris Kavan - 08/28/10 at 08:54 AM CT

Call it a brawl, a dust-up, fisticuffs or a beatdown - anyway you look at it, sometimes all you want is a good fight. It takes a good actor to take a punch - and a better one to get through a choreographed fight. Here then are my favorite screen gems when it comes to getting the crap beat out of you - fist to fist, no weapons (unless improvised).

1) They Live - Roddy Piper and Kieth David in an alley in a fight of epic proportions. Part WWF, part bar fight, all awesome. While the acting chops of Mr. Piper may not be great thespian material, this has to be one of the most fun and brutal fights on screen. This is a no-holds-bar, down and dirty fight and my top of the list.

2) Raging Bull - Sometimes authorized fights are every bit as bloody as random ones. Just because you're sanctioned in the ring doesn't mean it won't be dangerous. The editing is superb in Raging Bull - you feel every punch and it's no wonder so many boxers wind up with problems later in life taking that kind of abuse for a living.

3) Fight Club - I mean, the movie has "fight" in the title, so you expect some damn fighting. The best fight, however, isn't between two men (well, not really). When Edward Norton decides he doesn't want his job, he has a talk with his boss, then proceeds to beat the ever-living crap out of himself. Now that takes dedication and some great timing. There are plenty of other guys beating up guys, but Norton vs. Norton takes the cake.

4) Small Guy vs. Big Guy - Not any particular movie here, but since I'm a short guy, I love it when the big guy goes down: The Princess Bride, Sherlock Holmes, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Raiders of the Lost Ark - and I'm sure there are plenty more. Truth is, it usually involves brains over brawn (or sometimes dirty tricks) and that's the kind of fight I can get behind.

5) Happy Gilmore - And sometimes you just have to have fun with things. Seeing Bob Barker take a punch has to be one of the funniest moments in film. Then seeing him get up and take down Sandler? Priceless. Especially when he throws in the "bitch" comment. Movie magic for sure - but unexpected and completely entertaining.

I do enjoy a good fight every now and then - who do you like? Rocky? Bruce Lee? What fights make you happy?