Want to know the best Charles Bronson movies? How about the worst Charles Bronson movies? Curious about Charles Bronson’s box office grosses or which Charles Bronson movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Charles Bronson movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences and which got the worst? Well, you have come to the right place…. because we have all of that information.
Welcome to my Charles Bronson (1921-2003) Ultimate Movie Rankings career movie page. My first visit when I started researching Charles Bronson was to his IMDb page. I found that he had 160 acting credits from 1949 to 1999. That is over 3 projects a year for 50 years…a pretty impressive total. After throwing out 78 television performances and 12 uncredited bit parts that left 70 movies to research. I have ranked 61 of his movies from best to worst in this page.
So, I know what you are thinking…. where are the other 9 Charles Bronson movies? Well, I was unable to find box office numbers for 4 of his 1950’s quickie low budget films. And 4 of his movies he made in Europe from 1968-1972 never really got much of a release in North America….so they were not included.
This page will rank Charles Bronson movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Television shows, shorts, cameos and movies that were not released in theaters were not included in the rankings.
Charles Bronson Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews and awards.
Year
Movie (Year)
Rating
S
Year Movie (Year) Rating S
1967
The Dirty Dozen (1967)
1963
The Great Escape (1963)
1953
House of Wax (1953)
1954
Vera Cruz (1954)
1954
Apache (1954)
1960
The Magnificent Seven (1960)
1952
Pat and Mike (1952)
1974
Death Wish (1974)
1972
The Valachi Papers (1972)
1965
Battle of the Bulge (1965)
1954
Drum Beat (1954)
1975
Hard Times (1975)
1953
Miss Sadie Thompson (1953)
1968
Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
1959
Never So Few (1959)
1956
Jubal (1956)
1965
The Sandpiper (1965)
1951
The Mob (1951)
1975
Breakout (1975)
1962
Kid Galahad (1962)
1974
Mr. Majestyk (1974)
1954
Riding Shotgun (1954)
1966
This Property Is Condemned (1966)
1957
Run of the Arrow (1957)
1972
The Mechanic (1972)
1975
Breakheart Pass (1975)
1968
Farewell Friend/Adieu l'ami (1968)
1961
Master of the World (1961)
1971
Red Sun (1971)
1981
Death Hunt (1981)
1991
The Indian Runner (1991)
1963
4 for Texas (1963)
1968
Guns for San Sebastian (1968)
1958
Machine-Gun Kelly (1958)
1972
Chato's Land (1972)
1968
Honor Among Thieves (1968)
1970
Rider on the Rain (1970)
1961
A Thunder of Drums (1961)
1968
Villa Rides (1968)
1976
From Noon Till Three (1976)
1952
Red Skies of Montana (1952)
1977
Telefon (1977)
1973
The Stone Killer (1973)
1970
The Family (1970)
1984
The Evil That Men Do (1984)
1976
St. Ives (1976)
1982
Death Wish II (1982)
1986
Murphy's Law (1986)
1986
Act of Vengeance (1986)
HBO Movie
1964
Guns of Diablo (1964)
1970
London Affair/Twinky (1970)
1952
Battle Zone (1952)
Uncredited
1961
X-15 (1961)
1979
Love and Bullets (1979)
1973
Chino (1973)
1980
Borderline (1980)
1980
Cabo Blanco (1980)
1985
Death Wish 3 (1985)
1970
Cold Sweat (1970)
1983
10 to Midnight (1983)
1987
Death Wish 4: The Crackdown (1987)
1977
The White Buffalo (1977)
1988
Messenger of Death (1988)
1987
Assassination (1987)
1994
Death Wish V: The Face of Death (1994)
1989
Kinjite (1989)
Charles Bronson Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table
The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies anyway you want.
- Sort Charles Bronson movies by the co-stars of his movies
- Sort Charles Bronson movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort Charles Bronson movies by yearly box office rank
- Sort Charles Bronson movies how they were received by critics and audiences. 60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
- Sort by how many Oscar® nominations and how many Oscar® wins each Charles Bronson movie received.
- Sort Charles Bronson movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score. UMR Score puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
| R | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | Review | Oscar Nom / Win | UMR Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Actual B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | B.O. Rank by Year | Review | Oscar Nom / Win | UMR Score | S |
| 1 | The Dirty Dozen (1967) | Lee Marvin & Donald Sutherland |
51.00 | 454.4 | 703.90 | 5 | 86 | 04 / 01 | 98.9 | |
| 3 | The Great Escape (1963) | Steve McQueen & James Garner |
15.80 | 197.7 | 197.70 | 13 | 89 | 01 / 00 | 98.8 | |
| 2 | House of Wax (1953) | Vincent Price | 30.30 | 544.4 | 544.40 | 3 | 82 | 00 / 00 | 97.7 | |
| 4 | Vera Cruz (1954) | Gary Cooper & Burt Lancaster |
13.00 | 305.8 | 305.80 | 14 | 75 | 00 / 00 | 96.4 | |
| 5 | Apache (1954) | Burt Lancaster | 10.00 | 234.3 | 234.30 | 27 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 95.0 | |
| 6 | The Magnificent Seven (1960) | Yul Brynner & Steve McQueen |
6.40 | 100.4 | 546.80 | 44 | 85 | 01 / 00 | 90.5 | |
| 7 | Pat and Mike (1952) | Spencer Tracy & Katharine Hepburn |
5.80 | 114.3 | 149.50 | 45 | 80 | 01 / 00 | 90.2 | |
| 8 | Death Wish (1974) | Jeff Goldblum | 26.70 | 153.7 | 153.70 | 23 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 90.0 | |
| 9 | The Valachi Papers (1972) | Jill Ireland | 28.20 | 178.7 | 178.70 | 11 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 89.5 | |
| 10 | Battle of the Bulge (1965) | Henry Fonda & Robert Ryan |
13.80 | 145.7 | 145.70 | 17 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 88.8 | |
| 11 | Drum Beat (1954) | Alan Ladd | 8.60 | 200.9 | 200.90 | 33 | 48 | 00 / 00 | 88.4 | |
| 12 | Hard Times (1975) | James Coburn | 17.10 | 90.0 | 90.00 | 40 | 78 | 00 / 00 | 86.5 | |
| 14 | Miss Sadie Thompson (1953) | Rita Hayworth | 9.10 | 163.3 | 163.30 | 23 | 52 | 01 / 00 | 85.6 | |
| 13 | Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) | Henry Fonda & Jason Robards |
5.30 | 43.5 | 43.50 | 60 | 90 | 00 / 00 | 85.4 | |
| 15 | Never So Few (1959) | Frank Sinatra & Steve McQueen |
8.40 | 151.4 | 151.40 | 27 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 82.2 | |
| 16 | Jubal (1956) | Glenn Ford & Ernest Borgnine |
5.10 | 100.8 | 100.80 | 58 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 81.1 | |
| 18 | The Sandpiper (1965) | Elizabeth Taylor & Richard Burton |
16.70 | 176.0 | 176.00 | 13 | 35 | 01 / 01 | 79.4 | |
| 17 | The Mob (1951) | Ernest Borgnine & Broderick Crawford |
3.00 | 64.7 | 64.70 | 123 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 77.5 | |
| 20 | Breakout (1975) | Robert Duvall & John Huston |
22.80 | 120.0 | 120.00 | 30 | 51 | 00 / 00 | 76.7 | |
| 19 | Kid Galahad (1962) | Elvis Presley | 6.10 | 87.3 | 87.30 | 44 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 76.3 | |
| 21 | Mr. Majestyk (1974) | Al Lettieri | 10.60 | 61.1 | 61.10 | 45 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 74.5 | |
| 22 | Riding Shotgun (1954) | Randolph Scott | 3.00 | 69.3 | 87.60 | 104 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 72.1 | |
| 23 | This Property Is Condemned (1966) | Robert Redford & Natalie Wood |
5.50 | 53.9 | 53.90 | 52 | 66 | 00 / 00 | 71.2 | |
| 24 | Run of the Arrow (1957) | Rod Steiger | 2.50 | 48.1 | 48.10 | 98 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 69.6 | |
| 25 | The Mechanic (1972) | Jan-Michael Vincent | 7.30 | 46.1 | 46.10 | 50 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 68.8 | |
| 26 | Breakheart Pass (1975) | Ben Johnson | 6.50 | 33.9 | 33.90 | 60 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 65.8 | |
| 27 | Farewell Friend/Adieu l'ami (1968) | Alain Delon | 2.60 | 21.2 | 82.30 | 104 | 71 | 00 / 00 | 64.4 | |
| 29 | Master of the World (1961) | Vincent Price | 4.00 | 58.3 | 58.30 | 56 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 63.3 | |
| 27 | Red Sun (1971) | Toshiro Mifune | 6.70 | 43.6 | 205.90 | 49 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 63.1 | |
| 31 | Death Hunt (1981) | Lee Marvin | 5.00 | 19.4 | 19.40 | 95 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 57.9 | |
| 32 | The Indian Runner (1991) | Directed by Sean Penn | 0.20 | 0.5 | 0.50 | 206 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 54.7 | |
| 34 | 4 for Texas (1963) | Frank Sinatra & Dean Martin |
7.90 | 98.6 | 234.70 | 36 | 40 | 00 / 00 | 53.6 | |
| 33 | Guns for San Sebastian (1968) | Anthony Quinn | 2.60 | 21.7 | 21.70 | 103 | 64 | 00 / 00 | 53.1 | |
| 34 | Machine-Gun Kelly (1958) | Directed by Roger Corman | 2.60 | 46.2 | 46.20 | 88 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 47.7 | |
| 34 | Chato's Land (1972) | Jack Palance | 4.80 | 30.6 | 30.60 | 65 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 46.8 | |
| 36 | Honor Among Thieves (1968) | Alain Delon | 2.60 | 21.2 | 21.20 | 105 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 45.7 | |
| 36 | Rider on the Rain (1970) | Jill Ireland | 2.80 | 19.5 | 19.50 | 85 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 45.3 | |
| 38 | A Thunder of Drums (1961) | Richard Boone | 2.10 | 31.2 | 31.20 | 92 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 41.8 | |
| 39 | Villa Rides (1968) | Yul Brynner & Robert Mitchum |
3.40 | 28.2 | 28.20 | 86 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 41.1 | |
| 38 | From Noon Till Three (1976) | Jill Ireland | 2.70 | 13.8 | 13.80 | 111 | 60 | 00 / 00 | 39.4 | |
| 42 | Red Skies of Montana (1952) | Richard Widmark & Jeffrey Hunter |
3.50 | 68.1 | 68.10 | 100 | 41 | 00 / 00 | 34.2 | |
| 42 | Telefon (1977) | Lee Remick | 11.80 | 56.8 | 56.80 | 54 | 43 | 00 / 00 | 31.7 | |
| 43 | The Stone Killer (1973) | Martin Balsam | 3.80 | 23.1 | 23.10 | 78 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 31.6 | |
| 44 | The Family (1970) | Jill Ireland | 3.00 | 21.1 | 21.10 | 82 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 30.3 | |
| 44 | The Evil That Men Do (1984) | Jose Ferrer | 13.10 | 42.0 | 42.00 | 66 | 47 | 00 / 00 | 29.4 | |
| 46 | St. Ives (1976) | Jacqueline Bisset | 7.00 | 35.3 | 35.30 | 72 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 29.3 | |
| 47 | Death Wish II (1982) | Jill Ireland & Vincent Gardenia |
16.10 | 59.0 | 59.00 | 43 | 40 | 00 / 00 | 27.5 | |
| 46 | Murphy's Law (1986) | Carrie Snodgrass | 9.90 | 28.9 | 28.90 | 68 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 25.7 | |
| 49 | Act of Vengeance (1986) HBO Movie |
Keanu Reeves | 0.00 | 0.1 | 0.10 | 247 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 24.6 | |
| 49 | Guns of Diablo (1964) | Kurt Russell | 2.10 | 24.6 | 24.60 | 108 | 48 | 00 / 00 | 22.1 | |
| 51 | London Affair/Twinky (1970) | Trevor Howard | 1.30 | 8.9 | 8.90 | 137 | 51 | 00 / 00 | 18.5 | |
| 51 | Battle Zone (1952) Uncredited |
John Hodiak | 0.70 | 13.7 | 13.70 | 221 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 17.1 | |
| 52 | X-15 (1961) | Mary Tyler Moore | 2.00 | 29.1 | 29.10 | 96 | 43 | 00 / 00 | 16.0 | |
| 53 | Love and Bullets (1979) | Jill Ireland | 2.50 | 10.7 | 10.70 | 102 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 15.5 | |
| 54 | Chino (1973) | Jill Ireland | 2.90 | 17.5 | 17.50 | 96 | 46 | 00 / 00 | 14.8 | |
| 55 | Borderline (1980) | Ed Harris | 5.30 | 22.2 | 22.20 | 101 | 43 | 00 / 00 | 13.1 | |
| 57 | Cabo Blanco (1980) | Jason Robards | 2.00 | 8.2 | 8.20 | 141 | 47 | 00 / 00 | 12.6 | |
| 57 | Death Wish 3 (1985) | Martin Balsam | 16.10 | 48.9 | 48.90 | 54 | 34 | 00 / 00 | 12.0 | |
| 59 | Cold Sweat (1970) | James Mason | 2.70 | 19.0 | 19.00 | 88 | 43 | 00 / 00 | 11.9 | |
| 58 | 10 to Midnight (1983) | Andrew Stevens | 7.20 | 24.6 | 24.60 | 72 | 38 | 00 / 00 | 8.7 | |
| 60 | Death Wish 4: The Crackdown (1987) | Kay Lenz | 6.90 | 19.0 | 19.00 | 95 | 38 | 00 / 00 | 7.1 | |
| 61 | The White Buffalo (1977) | Jack Warden | 4.10 | 19.6 | 19.60 | 92 | 38 | 00 / 00 | 7.1 | |
| 62 | Messenger of Death (1988) | John Ireland | 3.10 | 8.1 | 8.10 | 148 | 42 | 00 / 00 | 7.0 | |
| 64 | Assassination (1987) | Jill Ireland | 7.60 | 20.9 | 20.90 | 90 | 37 | 00 / 00 | 6.2 | |
| 65 | Death Wish V: The Face of Death (1994) | Lesley-Anne Down | 1.70 | 4.5 | 4.50 | 178 | 38 | 00 / 00 | 3.6 | |
| 64 | Kinjite (1989) | Nicole Eggert | 3.40 | 9.3 | 9.30 | 127 | 34 | 00 / 00 | 2.7 |
Charles Bronson Adjusted World Wide Box Office Grosses
Movie (Year)
UMR Co-Star Links
World-Wide Box Office Adjusted (mil)
S
Movie (Year) UMR Co-Star Links World-Wide Box Office Adjusted (mil) S
The Dirty Dozen (1967)
Lee Marvin &
Donald Sutherland
703.90
The Magnificent Seven (1960)
Yul Brynner &
Steve McQueen
546.80
4 for Texas (1963)
Frank Sinatra &
Dean Martin
234.70
Red Sun (1971)
Toshiro Mifune
205.90
Pat and Mike (1952)
Spencer Tracy &
Katharine Hepburn
149.50
Riding Shotgun (1954)
Randolph Scott
87.60
Farewell Friend/Adieu l'ami (1968)
Alain Delon
82.30
| Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | World-Wide Box Office Adjusted (mil) | S |
|---|---|---|---|
| Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | World-Wide Box Office Adjusted (mil) | S |
| The Dirty Dozen (1967) | Lee Marvin & Donald Sutherland |
703.90 | |
| The Magnificent Seven (1960) | Yul Brynner & Steve McQueen |
546.80 | |
| 4 for Texas (1963) | Frank Sinatra & Dean Martin |
234.70 | |
| Red Sun (1971) | Toshiro Mifune | 205.90 | |
| Pat and Mike (1952) | Spencer Tracy & Katharine Hepburn |
149.50 | |
| Riding Shotgun (1954) | Randolph Scott | 87.60 | |
| Farewell Friend/Adieu l'ami (1968) | Alain Delon | 82.30 |
10 Possibly Interesting Facts About Charles Bronson
1. Charles Bronson(1921-2003) was born Charles Dennis Buchinsky.
2. Charles Bronson was one of 14 children born to a Lithuanian immigrant in Pennsylvania. Bronson started working in coal mines as a teenager before serving in World War II. He won a Purple Heart for wounds he received in combat.
3. Charles Bronson changed his name in 1955 due to concerns about the House Un-American Activites Committee(he thought it sounded too Russian). In some of his early successes like Apache, Vera Cruz and House of Wax he is listed in the credits as Charles Buchinsky.
4. Charles Bronson used the same approach to stardom as Clint Eastwood. Both started out in television, both went to Europe to make movies, both become international stars in Europe, and then both came back to the United States as stars. Bronson was actually offered the Man With No Name role in A Fistful of Dollars….but he passed and the role went to Eastwood. Meanwhile when Eastwood passed on Once Upon A Time In The West….the role went to Charles Bronson.
5. Roles that Charles Bronson turned down or was seriously considered for: Superman (Christopher Reeve part), Escape from New York (Kurt Russell part), A Fistful of Dollars (Eastwood part), Jaws (Robert Shaw part) and The French Connection (Gene Hackman part). The role that made Bronson a star in the United States, Death Wish, was originally written for Henry Fonda. Fonda was disgusted with the script and turned down the role.
6. Charles Bronson was married three times in his life. His marriage to Harriet Tendler(1949-1967) and his second marriage to Jill Ireland(1968-1990 her death) produced two children each. His final marriage was to Kim Weeks from 1998 until his death in 2003. He was the step father to David McCallum’s (NCIS) two children as well.
7. Charles Bronson and his wife, Jill Ireland, appeared in a total of 15 movies together. Besides her work along side of Bronson, Ireland is best remember as Spock’s love interest in the classic Star Trek episode…This Side of Paradise.
8. Charles Bronson was known as “le monster sacre” to the French movie going public. Le monster sacre means the sacred monster.
9. Here is a great trivia question…..Who is the only person to be a member of the Magnificent Seven and the Dirty Dozen…. not to mention he played one of the three roles that actually escaped the Great Escape….Mr. Charles Bronson.
10. Check out Charles Bronson’s career compared to current and stars of the past on my Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time Table.
10A. The missing 9 Charles Bronson movies: 1954’s Crime Wave, Tennessee Champ. 1955’s Big House USA, Target Zero. 1958’s Showdown at Boot-Hill, Gang War, When Hell Broke Loose, 1970’s Lola, You Can’t Win Them All. 1971’s Someone Is Behind the Door. I will continue to search for some North America box office numbers for these movies so they can be included in this page.
If you do a comment….please ignore the email address and website section.
This is awesome, thanks for putting it together. Bronson is one of my favorite screen presences of all time, his effortless mix of macho, cool and strong is unparalleled.
Thank you VienDamnage…I appreciate the kind words
I really like Charles Bronson. I am looking for a very old movie I thought he might have starred in. It takes place in either Florida or Georgia swamps. I was very young when I saw this movie so it might not have been Charles Bronson.
Hey Wanda….not sure if that is Charles Bronson…..but it might be one of the missing Bronson movies that I did not include in the page
im a big fan of charles bronson. i love his death wish movies, the great escape,ten till midnight, borderline and many more. hes a good acyor even though he has had some dumb movies, but all in all i enjoy most of his movies. brian from ontario, canada.
Hey Brian Rogers….you named some of my favorite of us as well…with The Great Escape being at the top of the list. Thanks for the comment.
I could never understand why I like Bronson; his acting skills were limited at best, and yet I have seen almost every one of these movies listed. By far, my favorite was Hard Times, a movie that I thought fit his acting skills perfectly.
Great collection of info here Bruce! Well done!
Thanks for stopping by billybuc….he had a very unique style. I have not seen Hard Times in a very long time….it is tie to revisit that movie
Wow, this page provides some stuff I didn’t know about one of my favorite actors, Charles Bronson. I don’t say that lightly, I’m a big fan of his work. Personally, I identified with him because he was strong and quiet (in his movies), and when it mattered, he got the job done.
Glad you like the page Jason…….I agree with your comment 100%