Starring Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Mickey Rourke, Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts, Randy Couture, Steve Austin and David Zayas (with very brief appearances by Arnold Schwarzenneger and Bruce Willis)
"Capable of being sacrificed, if necessary" That is the definition of the word 'Expendable' on www.dictionary.com and (in my opinion), this movie is certainly that.
Now, first off, let me say that I did enjoy the movie. It was exactly what it was intended to be-- the ultimate, man-infested, testosterone-filled (digital) blood and (not really any) guts action movie. A movie for guys who like movies for guys. There was plenty of my-gun's-bigger-than-yours and ha-I-still-killed-more-than-you's for anyone and everyone who wanted to expect nothing as they walked into Stallone's latest.
But...
For some reason, I was left lacking. Was it the non-coesive story? Should I even have been looking for one? Was it the stupid one-upmanship between characters? Was it the horrible effects-laden violence?
Yes. It was all that. The story was non-coesive and didn't make sense half the time and the other half of the time, I didn't care. The characters were pretty flat and I honestly didn't like any of them; they reminded me of the cocky punks I choose to ignore in social situations. The one redeeming character moment that I did really appreciate and love was a moment from Mickey Rourke as he shares a memory of his past with Stallone (even though the depth of it was far off track with the rest of the movie). And the effects... I'm all for using digital technology to create a feeling and add depth to what we are seeing but this was dumb-- you could tell they spent all the budget on getting all these names in one movie. Digital effects (CGI) should be so good that you can't tell it's even there. They are to support the story, not detract.
Now I know, I'm being pretty hard on a movie that was made for the one reason of being a dumbed down action and adrenaline boost. It is that. And, had my expectations of all these big action heroes being brought together for the first time in one movie, been met, I'd be all smiles. But, for me, it just doesn't deliver.
I'll probably enjoy more the next time I watch it with no expectations. Maybe that's the point.
Enjoy.
Brice
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