TheJohn
""The Expendables" Such an incorrect name for these guys!"
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Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone) leads a group of heavily armed and well skilled mercenaries. They normally tackle tough hitman jobs that sane people wouldn't even give a thought on taking up. They complete a mission in Somalia and return to the states with a new mission waiting for them. -summary
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Assembling some of the hottest action movie stars from the 80's on to the 2000's for one big explosive, adrenaline pumping extravaganza sounds like a great idea in theory. To be honest, I was sold on the very mention of it when I first heard of The Expendables directed and co-written by Sylvester Stallone. I actually had hope for the movie since the guy's career had been made on these type of movies. After finishing this flick, all I saw was missed opportunities and some very choppy action with weak CGI special effects to go along with it. The story and plot really wasn't much better, and I just have to wonder had this movie been directed by Uwe Boll would it have the same following. For some reason I kind of doubt it, because it's cool to rip Boll and not cool to tear apart this poor man's A-Team made up of accomplished action stars. And lets be honest here.... This really isn't too far above sir Uwe's standards.
Well, since everyone says you watch this movie for the action and damn the plot, let's talk about the action. While there is a large amount of fire fights and high speed car chases; I found the editing and sped up direction when called for to be very distracting at times. Jet Li is a very entertaining martial artist, and you don't get enough of his moves list here at all. There are far too many flashes of blows and shifts in the action for me to really enjoy much. The gun battles were unimaginative for the most part, and the digitized gore was too fake looking. Rambo used this same stylish approach, but it actually looked better there while it felt like Stallone was trying to play it safe here, and for me it just didn't really work.
I know people don't want you to pay attention or talk about the plot (because it sucks and they don't want you to know that), but it's part of the movie so here goes. Barnes receives a mission from Mr. Church (Bruce Willis) to lead an attack against a dictator in a South American country. This leads him to meet a brave patriotic woman named Sandra (Giselle Itie), and he's forced to leave her behind when his recon mission goes up in smoke. I really began to lose interest in the plot when the focus shifted to a woman because you knew where this was headed. There's nothing the least bit clever or suspenseful here. The plot twist and even bad guy deaths can be seen from a mile away.
The movie was just boring all around for me; the cameos within cameos failed to register, characters were stale, dialog missed more than it hit, and it's pretentious message pushed through Mickey Rourke felt forced. And that's another thing, Rourke delivered a solid acting performance. What is good acting doing in this movie? Stone Cold Steve Austin and Randy Couture are in it. There isn't suppose to be good acting in this.
The Expendables does have its little cool moments involving Jason Statham, the macho man syndrome is through the roof, and it does have that 80's action movie nostalgia feel; but due to the bad special effects, choreography, and complete lack of imagination, the Expendables is a great idea gone wrong. Also, shame on you John Rambo for swiping from Dogs of War starring Christopher Walken, which is a far superior film by the way.
Pros:
-Assembles an interesting cast of stars
Cons:
-Very bad use of CGI and editing
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FM_ALEX
December 05, 2012
I liked this one as I am sure you could have guessed but it could have been a true classic with more put into it.
Madpenguin
December 05, 2012
I'm not surprised. I thought it was too stale, and the sequel makes it look even more horrible.
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RabidChihuahua
November 28, 2012
Thanks for the warning on this.
Madpenguin
November 28, 2012
You're better off watching Commando.
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More The Expendables reviews
Remember the good ol’ 80’s and the 90’s when action movies that channeled unreasonable amounts of male testosterone ran rampant in the Multiplexes? Well, if you’re a fan of those movies, you will definitely DIG writer/director Sylvester Stallone’s “THE EXPENDABLES”. It is a film that boasts of a cast made of several action stars and pays homage to the action heroes and movies that gave us the entertainment that seemed all but forgotten in this age of remakes, … more
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* out of **** "The Expendables" is, simply put, a missed opportunity. I really do dig what Sylvester Stallone, operating from both ends of the camera as co-writer/director and star, is trying to do by bringing together a few of the action genre's biggest stars from now-and-then and putting them all in one movie; but his reach can't even be said to exceed his grasp, because there honestly isn't enough ambition in this picture for me to even admire it in such regards. While … more
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For a while I've gotten tired of the "new" guard of action movies. Usually too stylized with little guys running around. Too much bullet time and taking themselves so seriously. Stallone knew what worked in the 80s of headbanging, gun barrel melting fun and he transplants that here perfectly. The fact that these guys have a name like "Expendable" somehow meaning that they could be thrown away is a crime to waste such gusto and cool. … more
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There was a time when you could rely on a bad action film to at least supply you with action. "The Expendables," which is said to be an homage to the guy films of the 1980s and 1990s, doesn't give you action so much as a blur of images chopped together so badly, you can barely revel in the violence they're meant to depict. What's the point in creating scene after scene of shootings and stabbings and explosions when the camera doesn't linger long enough on the aftermath? … more
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review by zstoner66.
November 15, 2010
This movie is exactly what I wanted it to be. A bunch of out dated eighties stars killing brown and black people. The worst thing that could have happened to this movie is if it became a social commentary. That is probably the only bullet that gets dodged in this one. Sly Stallone co-wrote, directs, and stars in a movie about mercenaries for hire. Their newest mission is to stop a South American dictator with a connection to drugs and the CIA, holy god even the headline … more
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Stop me if you’ve heard this joke. Stone Cold Steve Austin, Mickey Rourke, Sylvester Stallone, Jet Li, Jason Statham, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts, Bruce Willis, and Arnold Schwarzenegger all walked into a bar, and they decided to make a movie about it. The bloody, testosterone-fueled macho child of a film is the punchline. To test and see if you would like this film, examine this piece of dialogue, directly quoted from the film. Steve Austin-”How … more
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My son saw it and said it was real good. Looking forward to finding some time to get to this. Haven't seen a really good action flick like this since Inglorius Basterds.
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Packed with some of the best action stars, The Expendables runs on explosions, fight scenes and the pure thrill of action. If you want a good time with a wonderful cast, action and humor, then this one is for you.
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Rip roaring action adventure in the old 80's sense. Keeps going, rarely lets up and takes everyones names.
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About the reviewer
Madpenguin
Serious gamer and hardcore comic reader.
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About this movie
Movies, Action Movies, Action, Jet Li, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Randy Couture, Jason Statham, Eric Roberts, Dolph Lundgren, Amin Joseph, Terry Crews, Senyo Amoaku, David Zayas, Gary Daniels, Steve Austin
Director:
Sylvester Stallone
Genre:
Action,
Adventure
Release Date:
August 13th, 2010
MPAA Rating:
R
Runtime:
103 mins
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