Rating of
2.5/4
Action Isn't Expendable; Everything Else...
Chris Kavan - wrote on 08/16/10
The Expendables is a really fun movie - it's a throwback to the big stars of the 80s, while updated with a bit of an edge for a contemporary audience. It has many of the biggest names in action, even if a few were only cameos. However, behind the explosions, behind the swagger and talk I can't help but notice it's also a pretty dumb movie as well.
The only reason you go to see a movie like this is for the action, and in that capacity, The Expendables delivers. You have lots of bullets flying - and it does get graphic - heads explode, people get cut in half, blood does flow. When you run out of bullets, why, you have plenty of knives too - and they tend to stick in necks rather well. Terry Crews perhaps mans the most impressive BFG put on screen - if I was gun nut, I might ask for one on Christmas.
I have to admit, it's also a good time watching the old school and new school of action heroes on screen. Even though it's only a cameo, it was great watching Stallone, Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis in their one scene together. It was also nice to see Stallone and Mickey Rourke as kind of mentors to the young upstarts in Jason Statham, Randy Couture and Jet Li. Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts and Steven Austin played the bad guys - though Lundgren was more of a lost soul than a true bad guy.
Still, you can tell that age is catching up. Watch the scene were Stallone is running after the plane on the dock and tell me he doesn't look a tad too old. These scenes pop up every now and then and serve as a reminder that many of these men are no longer in their prime, no matter how hard they want to capture those glory days.
Beyond the action, and the teamwork between generations, there is little else to recommend. The story is right out of the bad guys handbook - dictators, rogue CIA agent, dictator's unruly daughter - not only are the characters straight out of the 80s, so is this story. The characters themselves are never really explored, everyone had a code name like Road Block or Christamas or Ying Yang or Gunner - and other than a brief look into Jason Stratham's love life, you never get a sense of what any of these people do outside of their mercenary-for-hire business.
Also, if you're looking for any interesting dialogue, you're also out of luck. Other than a few stray one-liners, there isn't much in the speaking department either. Rourke's character comes the closes, but he says "brother" so often, I though he was channeling Hulk Hogan. You could make a drinking game out of just that.
The point is, if you're in the mood for action this film is for you. With so many stars, everyone gets at least one good scene - and it is really fun to watch. However, after you get past all the loud noises and bullet-strewn bodies, you'll find it's decidedly hollow.
