The 50 Most Stylish Fight Scenes Of All Time

Image via Complex Original

Director: Louis Leterrier and Corey Yuen

Release Year: 2002

Costume Designer: Martine Rapin

Who vs. Who: Frank Martin (Jason Statham) vs. Thugs

To date, the craziest fight showcase in Jason Statham's catalog is this unbelievably chaotic bumrush from The Transporter. The style code is A-grade, with elegant suits, sport-coats, and flying neckties; the battle rules, however, are nonexistent. Everything from guns to axes elevate what could've been a quick-draw shootout to a nihilistic uproar.

Director: David Ayer

Release Year: 2005

Costume Designer: Michele Michel

Who vs. Who: Jim Luther Davis (Christian Bale) vs. Gangsters

In the slept-on thriller Harsh Times, Christian Bale plays an ex-Army soldier who's got a few loose screws. The film's best scene is a scathing beatdown of some troublemaking Mexican gangbangers, clad in standard apparel: black hoodies, long-sleeve flannels and low-top sneakers. Aside from the accessories game being on-point complete with lapel pin, all-black watch and signet ring, this scene provides an instant quotable from Bale: "Badass kicks, dawg. You're lucky you got little bitch feet, or else I'd be stompin' around in them motherfuckers."

Director: Joel Coen

Release Year: 1987

Costume Designer: Richard Hornung

Who vs. Who: H.I. McDunnough (Nicolas Cage) vs. Gale Snoats (John Goodman)

This is what a sartorialist's worst nightmare must look like. To capture an authentic "trailer trash" mood for their irreverent comedy Raising Arizona, the Coen Brothers and costume head Richard Hornung went for the Peanuts' Pigpen look, and Nic Cage and John Goodman were all the better for it. Tussling inside a comparatively decadent mobile home, the pair's dirty fighting tactics are nothing compared to their filthy threads. F' a laundromat.

Director: Martin Scorsese

Release Year: 2006

Costume Designer: Sandy Powell

Who vs. Who: Billy Costigan (Leonardo Dicaprio) vs. Mobsters

The wardrobe design in this scene from Marty Scorcese's The Departed takes a page out of Dressing like a Mafia Don for Dummies. Anonymous Mobster No. 1's black-and-white shirt and No. 2's red blazer tap into that always-welcome Goodfellas vibe. Watch as Dicaprio, repping for the dressed-down hoods of Boston's Southie projects, makes quick work of these two paisans.

Director: Spike Lee

Release Year: 2002

Costume Designer: Sandra Hernandez

Who vs. Who: Monty Brogan (Edward Norton) vs. Frank Slaughtery (Barry Pepper)

Sandra Hernandez knows the importance of comfort. For The 25th Hour's friendship-dividing beatdown under an NYC bridge, she blessed Edward Norton and Barry Pepper with tie-less button-ups ready for a men's fashion mag photoshoot. That's before Norton asks Pepper to mangle his face before he heads to prison. The only publication that'd want him once the fight is over is Fight.

Director: Stephen Kay

Release Year: 2000

Costume Designer: Julie Weiss

Who vs. Who: Jack Carter (Sylvester Stallone) vs. Goons

In Get Carter Sylvester Stallone flexing the corporate look, but he's still in full-on Rambo mode. Here he pounds a couple of goons after graciously waiting for a lady to exit. The punches in this scene come down like battering rams. Even in a cheap suit, Sly is a one-man wrecking crew.

Director: Lexi Alexander

Release Year: 2005

Costume Designer: John Krausa

Who vs. Who: Green Street Elite vs. Millwall Firm

The grand finale of Green Street Hooligans plays like a showcase for a Macy's men's clothing section. Practically every piece of run-of-the-mill guy's fashion can be seen, which makes sense since soccer hooligans could give a rat's ass about looking trendy. That said, the badass factor of rolling with a whole crew of similarly dressed dudes is undeniable. Especially when you point them towards the nearest West Ham United haters.

Director: Robert Clouse

Release Year: 1985

Costume Designer: Drago Habazin

Who vs. Who: Jonathan Cabot (Kurt Thomas) vs. Various

Gymkata is a cheesy martial arts pic beloved within B-movie circles, mostly for this absurd yet bravura sequence. The film's protagonist is a gymnast, so naturally he mixes acrobatics into his fight repertoire. That he's doing it all in full-prep Ivy League regalia (khaki slacks, blue sweater) makes it all the more incredible. Don't ask us why he's in a village full of Medieval Times peasants; Gymkata isn't exactly Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Director: Barbet Schroeder

Release Year: 1987

Costume Designer: Milena Canonero

Who vs. Who: Henry Chinaski (Mickey Rourke) vs. Eddie (Frank Stallone)

Though sorely lacking in Ram Jams, this bar fight from Mickey Rourke's Barfly is no slouch. You know bartender Frank Stallone means business once you peep his collar-popped, tucked-in polo, the sleeves strategically tight around the biceps. All he's missing is a "'70s porn star moustache rides for  $1.00" sign across the chest to match his amazing belt buckle. Like most fellas that try to compensate with muscle-tees, however, Sly's less-talented brother comes up short.

Director: Stephen Chow

Release Year: 2004

Costume Designer: Shirley Chan

Who vs. Who: Sing (Stephen Chow) vs. Gang

Shirley Chan went the traditional route for Kung Fu Hustle's hero, played by director/co-writer Stephen Chow. Classically, the flood-ready black gi pants barely reach his ankles, giving foes a nice view of his tube socks as he crane-kicks their jaws. It's a nice counterbalance for the flick's overboard goofiness, namely this final blowout in which a dude randomly imitates a bullfrog before headbutting Chow through an endless succession of walls.

Director: Jeff Schaffer

Release Year: 2004

Costume Designer: Julia Caston and Vanessa Vogel

Who vs. Who: Scott Thomas (Scott Mechlowicz) vs. Robot Man (J.P. Manoux)

On the ridiculous side of fashion comes the street performer in EuroTrip, a superFrench weirdo dressed as a robot just to earn some cash. RoboTool is so committed that he even fights in herky-jerky motion, which makes this not only the most uniquely stylish fight on our list but also the most gross.

Director: Prochya Pinkaew

Release Year: 2005

Costume Designer: Ekabhume Nganchamang

Who vs. Who: Kham (Tony Jaa) vs. Gang

Face-kicker extraordinaire Tony Jaa's look in The Protector is on the all-cotton, casual male tip and it's just right. Well, except that red bandana tied around his neck. Strangely, though, we're not mad at it. Who knows, we could just be in awe of this one-take explosion of ferocity. Any chance to blow up Jaa's spot is one worth taking.

Director: Richard Donner

Release Year: 1987

Costume Designer: Mary Malin

Who vs. Who: Sergeant Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) vs. Mr. Joshua (Gary Busey)

Remember when Mel Gibson wasn't so damn looney tunes? In the late 1980s, nobody was cooler than Mel, especially when he played wisecracking Detective Riggs in Lethal Weapon. Tight '80s jeans didn't cramp his style as he scrapped in the rain with another one of our modern-day lunatics, Gary Busey. This is like a clash of the soon-to-be-nutso titans.

Director: Eddie Murphy

Release Year: 1989

Costume Designer: Joe I. Tompkins

Who vs. Who: Quick (Eddie Murphy) vs. Vera (Della Reese)

If the setting is right, bow ties are a suitable way to avoid forming the perfect tie knot and staying classy. For example, say a big momma such as Della Reese wants to squash your ass like Eddie Murphy in the 1918-staged, pre-Prohibition-era comedy Harlem Nights. Granted, Big D is going to have her way regardless of a man's garments, but that's not the bow tie's fault.

Director: George Roy Hill

Release Year: 1969

Costume Designer: Edith Head

Who vs. Who: Butch Cassidy (Paul Newman) vs. Harvey Logan (Ted Cassidy)

The magic of Paul Newman's cowboy threads in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is in their simplicity and fit. Basic beige button-down, a brown hat and matching brown slacks; straight like that. He's so relaxed in this subtle arrangement that the hat stays on when an hombre offers a manhood-testing challenge. Ever simple, though, Newman drops your boy with a swift kick to the family jewels. That's how Cool Hand Luke rolls.

Director: Albert S, Rogell

Release Year: 1943

Costume Designer: Walter Plunkett

Who vs. Who: Daniel F. Somers (John Wayne) vs. Jim 'Hunk' Gardner (Albert Dekker)

Flavor Flav once famously said "Fuck John Wayne," but back in the day the movie star would've snapped Flav in half like a twig. He was the Western genre's posterboy, meaning he showed city folk how to look like a cowboy without forcing it. As he tangles with an evil buckeroo during In Old Oklahoma, Wayne's button-down actually gets cleaner as it catches more and more dirt. That's true grit exemplified, partners.

Director: John Flynn

Release Year: 1991

Costume Designer: Richard Bruno

Who vs. Who: Detective Gino Felino (Steven Seagal) vs. Sticks (Dan Inosanto)

Like his filmography as a whole, Steven Seagal's cop uni in Out for Justice is gloriously one-note. Baggy black shirt tucked and the top buttons opened with a black guinea-tee underneath, it's quintessentially Seagal-esque, and what's better than that? Not that we'd ever try dressing like the B-movie bruiser, but such disregard for fashion trends fits him just fine.

Director: Michael Caton-Jones

Release Year: 1995

Costume Designer: Sandy Powell

Who vs. Who: Archibald Cunningham (Tim Roth) vs. Rob Roy MacGregor (Liam Neeson)

In the Scotland-set tale Rob Roy, Tim Roth was a long way from Mr. Orange. Dude looked like a brocade-clad lady, frankly, but once that unflattering wig came off, his dueling skills were on some Three Musketeers ish. Unlike other fencing clips within this list, designer Sandy Powell went with baggier fits for the film's 18th century swordsmen. The other fighters look like historical hipsters by comparison.

Director: Tom Shadyac

Release Year: 1997

Costume Designer: Judy L. Ruskin

Who vs. Who: Fletcher Reede (Jim Carrey) vs. Himself

This has to be one the most extreme makeovers ever. In the midst of kicking his own ass, Jim Carrey's sleazy lawyer in Liar Liar goes all Hulk Hogan on his business clothes. What an ass. Last time we checked, litigator's suits cost a grip, or the equivalent of a grip for heads still sipping on quarter-waters.

Director: Michael Schultz

Release Year: 1985

Costume Designer: Robert De Mora

Who vs. Who: Leroy Green (Taimak) vs. Sho'nuff (Julius Carry)

The Last Dragon has rightfully earned its stripes as a true hood classic, an Enter the Dragon for the block, and much of the credit goes to the Shogun of Harlem himself, Sho'nuff. Say it with us now: "Sho'nuff!" When you run an entire section of Manhattan, you deserve an imperial design, which definitely describes his splendid red gi, complete with a panther on the right shoulder. Why? Because he's the Shogun, dammit!

Director: Ridley Scott

Release Year: 2000

Costume Designer: Janty Yates

Who vs. Who: Maximus (Russell Crowe) vs. Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix)

Every man wishes he had a little Maximus in him (and, no, we're not pausing that—grow up already!). As Roman times warrior at the center of Ridley Scott's spectacular Gladiator, Russell Crowe dons the customary high boots, armored shoulder pads and vintage fighter tops of the times. It's a much manlier look than that of pain-in-the-ass rich kid Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), whose prissy white outfit screams "I'm trying out for a Shakespearean play." Applaud as Maximus bodies the sissy.

Director: Phil Joanou

Release Year: 1987

Costume Designer: Jane Ruhm

Who vs. Who: Jerry Mitchell (Casey Siemaszko) vs. Buddy Revell (Richard Tyson)

What happens when high school boys' mother still dress them? They most likely resemble the nerds of Three O'Clock High, two brainiacs that square off against the school's brutish bully. One's got on an ratty sweater and the other's clad in a V-neck vest better suited for a math teacher. Despite their stereotypically geeky appearances, however, they're left standing and the he-man's light goes out. Never judge a bookworm by his totally-'80s cover.

Director: Marco Brambilla

Release Year: 1993

Costume Designer: Bob Ringwood

Who vs. Who: John Spartan (Sylvester Stallone) vs. Simon Phoenix (Wesley Snipes)

The futuristic Demolition Man offers some next-level uniforms and apocalyptic action, and this final showdown between Sly Stallone and Wesley Snipes brings it all together. Snipes is especially styling, though it's anyone's guess what costume designer Bob Ringwood was thinking when he conceptualized his costume. He's got one of Dennis Rodman's old hairstyles and shoulder-pads that are ready for a football game on Planet Batshit. Ringwood has clearly seen Mad Max one too many times.

Director: Lau Kar-Leung and Jackie Chan

Release Year: 1994

Costume Designer: Ying Liu

Who vs. Who: Wong Fei-Hung (Jackie Chan) vs. John (Ken Lo)

It's the best of both worlds in this Drunken Master II bout. Jackie Chan's sleeveless top is the perfect step above gym threads for any musclehead, and his opponent's suit-and-tie targets those nine-to-fivers too busy making spreadsheets to bench-press any weights. No wonder Chan wrecks shop.

Director: Rob Reiner

Release Year: 1987

Costume Designer: Phyllis Dalton

Who vs. Who: Westley (Carey Elwes) vs. Inigo Montoya (Mandy Patinkin)

Unless you're The Rza in Bobby Digital mode, the eye-mask accessory and cape combo is ill-advised. There's a time and a place for everything, and the Renaissance-era fairy tale land seen in The Princess Bride is that look's perfect setting. On Cary Elwes, the Zorro-like design is dashing as hell. And, we'll admit it, the same goes for Mandy Patinkin's brown leather pants. Is it Halloween yet?

Director: Jack Cardiff

Release Year: 1968

Costume Designer: NA

Who vs. Who: Curry (Rod Taylor) vs. Henlein (Peter Carsten)

Tan doesn't seem like a very flattering color for mercenaries stationed in the smolderingly hot Congo. Within minutes of standing around in the sun, sweat stains dampen the uniforms and the otherwise regal dress loses a bit of its power. But testing a fellow soldier's manhood by wielding a chainsaw toward his face, like the reckless guy in this scene from this grindhouse-era war film? That'll open the floodgates for wet marks appear below the belt.

Director: Martin Scorsese

Release Year: 1991

Costume Designer: Rita Ryack

Who vs. Who: Max Cady (Robert De Niro) vs. Thugs

In Martin Scorcese's dark Cape Fear, Robert De Niro is at his most vicious as a psychotic ex-con. He's clearly insane—have a look at those white pants! Bobby D pulls the old-man-on-Nautical-vacation look off, though. The foolish hooligans that meet his wrath in this visceral fight scene can attest to that.

Director: Robert Wise

Release Year: 1959

Costume Designer: Anna Hill Johnstone

Who vs. Who: NA

Here's a rule that should be sacred: never bother a guy while he's knocking back some hard liquor. Disrupting a grown man's happy hour is grounds for punishment, even if you're a decorated soldier wearing finely tailored military garb. The bothersome soldier in Odds Against Tomorrow learns this the hard way. Some folks just don't respect a man in uniform.

Director: Robert Clouse

Release Year: 1970

Costume Designer: Richard Bruno

Who vs. Who: Travis McGee (Rod Taylor) vs. Terry (William Smith)

Real men leave their jackets on when it's time to rumble. The sharply attired fellas in this no-holds-barred fight from Darker than Amber rip their suits and shirts something fierce in the process, but that's the least of their problems. Just imagine the impending medical bills.

Director: Don Chaffey

Release Year: 1963

Costume Designer: Uncredited

Who vs. Who: The Argonauts vs. Children of the Hydra

There's no denying that stop motion pioneer Ray Harryhausen's skeleton warriors are the real studs in this Jason and the Argonauts. The humans battling the boney villains are by no means throwaway, though. The pointy armored suits and white undershirts worn by Jason and his boys embody the aura of classic Greek mythology.

Director: Zack Snyder

Release Year: 2009

Costume Designer: Michael Wilkinson

Who vs. Who: Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley) vs. Police

Rorschach might get his Jackie Chan on in this scene, but his look is pure Humphrey Bogart. Everyone's favorite homicidal detective stays in his signature tan trenchcoat and top hat. Take the shape-shifting white cover-up off his head and you've got a classic film noir archetype: the crime solver who's properly dressed for the constant rain-showers that permeate noir pictures. Umbrellas optional.

Director: Adam McKay

Release Year: 2008

Costume Designer: Susan Matheson

Who vs. Who: Brennan Huff (Will Ferrell) vs. Dale Doback (John C. Reilly)

Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly's 40-year-old slacker characters in Step Brothers certainly look like they've yet to grow up. Dig through your old childhood photo albums and, odds are, there are some loudly colored T-shirts to be seen, most likely purchased during trips to the seashore. Ron Jon Surf Club, anyone? Hysterical.

Director: Rouben Moumalian

Release Year: 1940

Costume Designer: Travis Banton

Who vs. Who: Don Diego Vega/Zorro (Tyrone Power) vs. Captain Esteban Pasquale (Basil Rathbone)

Back in the old Spanish colonial times, guys got away with some pretty flamboyant outfits. Check out the black knee-high boots, skintight red pants and wide gold belts in this classy sword fight from 1940s The Mask of Zorro. Those were the hot threads of the era, though, so who are we to judge? They probably think selvage jeans look as ridiculous as we think those teeny mustaches look child molester-y. Agree to disagree.

Director: David Gordon Green

Release Year: 2008

Costume Designer: John A. Dunn

Who vs. Who: Dale Denton (Seth Rogen) and Saul Silver (James Franco) vs. Red (Danny McBride)

The random fight midway into the stoner action comedy Pineapple Express is memorable for its sheer lack of tough-guy skill. It's a sloppy mess, something that'd make any UFC trainer cringe. But wheat-colored suits and revolting kimonos make it AWESOME. All hail Mary Jane.

Director: Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones

Release Year: 1975

Costume Designer: Hazel Pethig

Who vs. Who: The Black Knight (John Cleese) vs. Green Knight (Terry Gilliam)

The Monty Python troop's brilliant send-up of the King Arthur legend went to painstaking measures to capture the spirit of Medieval times. Hence, the armor suits look precisely authentic, particularly the Black Knight's menacing black ensemble (the horses didn't fare as well). A magnificent series of brutal dismemberment rips the sixth century attire into bloody sections, but that was par for the course back in the sword-and-shield days. They weren't exactly playing Parcheesi all day long. But no big deal, it's just a flesh wound. 

Director: Quentin Tarantino

Release Year: 2003

Costume Designer: Kumiko Ogawa and Catherine Thomas

Who vs. Who: The Bride (Uma Thurman) vs. The Crazy 88

Most Hollywood fight scenes ignore the fact that blood does actually land on clothing when folks use weapons. Leave it to exploitation fiend Quentin Tarantino to acknowledge the gore, smothering the black suits worn by the Crazy's 88s with crimson splotches and other human innards. Yet, this here are this splatter-filled showstopper somehow maintains a certain kung fu chic.

Director: Kurt Wimmer

Release Year: 2002

Costume Designer: Joseph A. Porro

Who vs. Who: John Preston (Christian Bale) vs. Brandt (Taye Diggs) and Dupont (Angus Macfadyen)

Wearing an all-white suit to gunfight/swordfight seems like a dry cleaner's worst nightmare. Yet somehow Christian Bale manages to keep his ivory outfit blood-free throughout the final fight in the otherwise sorta middling sci-fi flick Equilibrium. We can't even eat pasta without staining our clothes, but then again, we know exacting Bale can be onset. Scary bastard.

Director: George Armitage

Release Year: 1997

Costume Designer: Eugenie Bafaloukos

Who vs. Who: Martin Blank (John Cusack) vs. Assassin

Pay attention, former bully-magnets. If your old high school enemy wants to throw down at a black-tie-mandatory high school reunion, just follow John Cusack's lead, from the underrated comedy Grosse Pointe Blank. Jamming a pen into the bully's neck might seem like a rash move, but, as long as you don't get any blood on your white shirt, it's definitely efficient.

Director: Stephen Norrington

Release Year: 1998

Costume Designer: Sanja Milkovic Hays

Who vs. Who: Blade (Wesley Snipes) vs. Vampires

Forget Eddie Murphy in the despicable Vampire in Brooklyn (shouldn't be too hard, right?). The only Black vampire worth a damn is Wesley Snipes's Blade, the martial arts practicing, bloodsucking quasi-superhero. He's no Bela Lugosi style vamp, though; Blade's presentation is equal parts Batman (black-tinted armor) and The Matrix's Neo (black trenchcoat), though slightly cooler than both. Yeah, we said it.

Director: Adam McKay

Release Year: 2004

Costume Designer: Debra Mcguire

Who vs. Who: Channel 4 News Team vs. Evening News Team

How much '70s swag can one pair of eyes handle? Hopefully a lot, because the epic news team free-for-all at the center of Anchorman is chockfull of the bright suits that gave that decade's middle-aged players that "There's no way you won't notice this loud outfit" look that the chicks couldn't get enough. Just ask Ron Burgundy—dude got more ass than a swivel chair.

Director: Chan-wook Park

Release Year: 2003

Costume Designer: Sang-gyeong Jo

Who vs. Who: Dae-su Oh (Min-sik Choi) vs. Thugs

A best fights countdown without Oldboy's amazing edit-free hallway sequence is worthless. Thankfully, the film's leading man, Min-sik Choi, rocks a slick black suit while annihilating dozens of ineffective thugs. As for his opponents, they're wearing an assortment of pastel-colored, short-sleeved button-ups, which complements their lack of likability. Their shirts should never venture out of retirement homes down in Florida.

Director: George A. Romero

Release Year: 1978

Costume Designer: Michele Martin

Who vs. Who: Biker Gang vs. Zombies

Zombies can't make any statements, let alone fashion ones. Well, they can say "Aaargh," and sometimes "Brains!" But George A. Romero, the granddaddy of living dead cinema, liked his flesheaters silent but deadly. The climax of Dawn of the Dead is an extended battle of wits between the protagonists, a rogue biker gang and hundreds of zombies. At one point, the Hell's Angels have a little fun with the walking corpses and toss pies in their faces, but it's not long before the bikers' leather coats are stripped and their intestines are devoured like spaghetti. Even when you're without a pulse, vengeance tastes sweet.

Director: Terence Young

Release Year: 1963

Costume Designer: Jocelyn Richards

Who vs. Who: James Bond (Sean Connery) vs. Donald Grant (Robert Shaw)

Agent 007 always makes kicking ass and bagging international beauties look damn good. In From Russia with Love, Sean Connery plays James Bond with his trademark even keel, but this oft-celebrated trainbound smackdown with the villainous Robert Shaw shows 007's bruiser side. Once victory is his, though, J-Bond buttons his suit jacket, naturally. Being a stud is a 24/7 job.

Director: Robert Clouse

Release Year: 1978

Costume Designer: Uncredited

Who vs. Who: Billy Lo (Bruce Lee) vs. Hakim (Kareem Abdul-Jabaar)

Of course Quentin Tarantino stole Kill Bill's The Bride's yellow jumpsuit from the almighty Bruce Lee—that's what he does, after all, albeit to pay homage. Though Uma Thurman wore it better (do we have to explain why?), Lee made the look iconic in The Game of Death. In this bizarre scene, the martial arts master tussles with NBA great Kareem Abdul-Jabaar. The latter sports some vintage Daisy Duke shorts, which would probably reach past most guys' knees. He's over 7 feet tall, for crying out loud.

Director: John Carpenter

Release Year: 1988

Costume Designer: Robert Lewis Bush, Robin Michael Bush and John Melvin Young

Who vs. Who: George Nada (Roddy Piper) vs. Frank Armitage (Keith David)

Curiously, it took three wardrobe specialists to design some rather basic trucker gear. For professional wrestler turned actor Roddy Piper and perennial scene-stealer Keith David, that GMC wheelman look works. They Live is about an alien invasion, yet the movie's best moments come from its everyday Joes from Earth, namely this long, back-alley slugfest. Wonder who bought the first round once this match ended.

Director: Dennis Dugan

Release Year: 1996

Costume Designer: Tish Monaghan

Who vs. Who: Happy Gilmore (Adam Sandler) vs. Bob Barker (As himself)

Golf clothes are often unflattering until they cycle back to being wonderful in an ugly way. Not that it matters since the country club set are sickly PAID. Put it this way: without his money, Tiger Woods would've struck out with all those good-looking fame-whores. However, we'd never tell Bob Barker that to his face; just check out the pounding he delivers to Adam Sandler. Maybe Mr. Price is Right hates oversized hockey jerseys as much as we do.

Director: Walter Hill

Release Year: 1979

Costume Designer: Bobbie Mannix and Mary Ellen Winston

Who vs. Who: The Warriors vs. The Baseball Furies

Raw dogging red vests: that's what passed for tough-guy-chic in New York City back in the late 1970s. At least that's what the cult classic The Warriors would lead you to believe. Whether that's true or not, one thing's for sure: those Baseball Furies make us wish more MLB games erupted into fist-heavy riots on pitchers' mounds. Do notice, though, that, for all their stylistic pizzazz, the Furies get their asses handed to them with the quickness. What's good with that? 

Director: Rowdy Herrington

Release Year: 1989

Costume Designer: Marilyn Vance

Who vs. Who: Dalton (Patrick Swayze) vs. Goons

Nothing says "redneck bar atmosphere" like a ton of hillbillies wearing tucked-in

flannels and tight blue jeans. That's the look of choice for the grandiose bar fight in the

Missouri-set Road House, easily one of the late Patrick Swayze's coolest pics (Dirty Dancing it's not). He plays a bouncer working the front door at the Double Deuce, where the beer is always cheap and cold and drunkards love sloppy fistfights—not unlike your drinking hole of choice, we're sure. Man, pour some out.

Director: Andy and Lana Wachowski

Release Year: 2003

Costume Designer: Kym Barrett

Who vs. Who: Neo (Keanu Reeves) vs. Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving)

Keanu Reeves was rocking that "all black everything" steez years before Jay-Z. During the second Matrix flick's epic one-vs-many brawl, the former Ted Logan kept his look color-free while taking on 100 replications of his arch-nemesis, Hugo Weaving's Agent Smith. Like the film as a whole, the scene is dark and apt to scramble your brains. Unless you hate yuppies, in which case you can just imagine the Agent Smiths are milquetoast accountants and you're serving them a serious number-crunch.

Director: Christopher Nolan

Release Year: 2010

Costume Designer: Jeffrey Kurland

Who vs. Who: Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) vs. Subconscious

You want to know how to make the no-jacket suit look work? Just watch Joseph Gordon-Levitt's zero gravity rumble in Christopher Nolan's heady Inception. JGL bounces off walls, spins in the air and whoops serious ass, yet, by the end, his vest is perfectly situated, his tie is 6 o'clock straight and his shirt is still firmly tucked. We never have the same luck after open-bar wedding receptions.