The Expendables is exactly what we were expecting – a great 80s action film. But is that enough?

With The Expendables, Sylvester Stallone focused less on the plot and more on the cast. The film features Stallone himself as the head of the titular mercenary group for hire which include Jason Statham, Jet Li, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, Dolph Lundgren, and Mickey Rourke, who has retired from the group. These tough guys are hired (over a similar group led by Arnold Schwarzenegger) by the mysterious Mr. Church (Bruce Willis) to take out a dictator (David Zayas) on the small island of Vilena in the Pacific who is being funded by an American (Eric Roberts) and his thugs (led by “Stone Cold” Steve Austin). Although reluctant to go through with the job, Stallone is lured back by the beautiful Sandra (Giselle Itié).

The Expendables is an action film in the purest sense. Eschewing the recent innovations of the gritty spy genre jump-started by The Bourne Identity, Sylvester Stallone provides a raw, violent film full of guns, knives, and explosions. The visceral action on display here is a rare sight in cinema today, having almost died out in the 90s. It’s odd that such a thriving genre got pushed aside in favor of comic-book and sci-fi flicks (which I also love). Action has remained an integral part of popular entertainment, but the true action film, unfortunately, is a dying breed. Not only does The Expendables bring back this fun genre, it does so with the most impressive ensemble cast in recent memory. Seeing Stallone, Willis, and Schwarzenegger on-screen together is quite a treat, but the rest of the cast is also great.

But has nostalgia blinded us? If you take out the action legends, would it be the same? Of course it wouldn’t. Part of what makes the film so enjoyable is seeing these stars back on the screen. Most of them aren’t retired, per se, but its been a while since we saw Stallone, for example, in a true leading action role. Bruce Willis, who gives the best performance in the film by far, and Arnold are left with mere cameos, but that scene is so fun to watch. In any case, I am judging this film based on my observation of it in the here and now.

Without such a fantastic cast, The Expendables would be a very mediocre film. The plot is nothing new, and the dialog and characterization is shoddy at best. From a writing perspective, Stallone has seen better days. Still, the charisma that these actors bring to their roles and the classic over-the-top action makes up for any shortcomings in the more subtle aspects of filmmaking. Unfortunately however, the film thinks that it should be more than an action film, so we are forced to sit through too much mediocre dialogue and half-hearted character development. I understand some of this, but at times the film’s faults are pushed to the edge and almost, but not quite, mess with the awesome action. The most egregious example of this is the random Jason Statham side-plot that is completely unnecessary. The film needs a villain so I understand setting up the actual job, but anything not related directly to the mission at hand should have been trimmed out completely.

In the present flood of comic-book and superhero films, “The Expendables” are a group of tough, manly heroes that use firepower to achieve their goals. There is the story about redemption and heroism, but that was unfortunately pushed aside. Still, I defy you to come up with another film this year that packs so much true action into one movie.

The Expendables is a film that pushes its flaws to the center, trying to be something it shouldn’t be but still remains an awesome action film that really delivers what it sets out to and the amazing cast is a a must-see.

Rating: ★★★½☆ 

If you’re an action junkie, you’re pretty much already sold on Sylvester Stallone’s The Expendables. I need not explore the plot of the film, because with a cast consisting of Stallone himself, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts, Randy Couture, Steve Austin, Terry Crews, Bruce Willis and Mickey Rourke, you need no other reason to purchase a ticket.

That, and this clip (which seems to reveal a lot from the film, so spoiler warning) seems to deliver a pretty clear message about the fun experience we’re in for. Enjoy, and get excited for August 20, 2010. I’ll be in line for this one.

Stone Cold is Expendable

AFI at this moment is already reshaping their 100 Movies list to put The Expendables at number one. This movie just keeps getting better with an already stellar cast with Sylvester Stallone, Mickey Rourke, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Randy Couture, and Forrest Whitaker. Add Stone Cold Steve Austin to that list.

ScreenRant reports that the Texas Rattlesnake will be joining the aforementioned and Charisma Carpenter in Sylvester Stallone’s epic action film. For those not up to speed, the film is about a group of mercenaries who are sent to South America to take down a dictator only to realize it’s a suicide mission because they are, well, “expendable”.

At this point, I’m expecting the world’s population to increase by the millions when this film comes out due to the pregnancies this film will cause. The cast assembled is any action fans wet dream and the story oozes with the ultimate in kickassery.

Filming begins March 28, 2009 and here’s hoping the cameras don’t explode from filming too much awesome.

Papa Johns pizza is hosting the exclusive trailer for The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. Check it out here or in HD below.

You can see the HD version at here.

Let’s see. I’m not a big mathematical person, but I think I have this flick figured out. Okay. The Karate Kid + Neverending Story + Last Action Hero = The Forbidden Kingdom. And that’s not really a bad thing.

Going by the ads for this movie, you’d think this was a movie about Jet Li and Jackie Chan teaming up to save the world from the bad guys. Which it was. But the ads are also anglo-saxon free, and the movie is certainly not. The movie is getting a US-wide release, so of course we need a white character to make the film accessible, as well as very few subtitles. Now, going into the theater, I was almost totally clueless as to the film’s plot, which is usually my plan. (Frank Costanza: “I like to go in fresh!”) At the very least, the less I know about the film’s plot, the less I can get attached to the perfect plot in my head, and the chance of disappointment shrinks.

Now, anyway, our token white character is played by the awkward kid from Sky High, Michael Angarano, who’s managed to sprout chest hair. Despite his chest hair, we’re asked to believe his character, Jason, is a kung fu-obsessed kid. Despite the fact nobody under 30 watches kung fu, Jason spends all his time thinking/eating/breathing/pooping kung fu. Anyway, there are bullies (of course there are bullies) who push Jason into helping them rob the store where Jason buys all his kung fu movies. During the robbery, the store’s old shopkeeper is shot by the bullies, and Jason runs away, taking with him an old staff the old man kept. As the bullies chase Jason to the rooftop, our hero is magically(?) swept off the roof, and blacks out.

When he wakes up, Jason is in ancient China (the mystical part, with gods and people who can float in the air). There he meets a drunken master played by Jackie Chan, who fills him in on the magical backstory of the staff Jason’s found. The staff, apparently, belonged to the Monkey King (who looks like a really furry guy, not a monkey), who was defeated in battle via trickery by the evil Jade Warlord. Anyway, prophecy needs to be fulfilled, world needs to be saved, and you get the general idea. And the journey begins, etc., and they meet a young assassin girl, and a monk played by Jet Li. The RPG system is alive! Jet Li and Chan, of course, train Jason in kung fu, with a training montage, of course. And they go out to fight the bad guys and save the world, and I assume there’s a moral lesson in there somewhere.

I’ll stop here and let you figure out the rest of the movie for yourself. Only a jerk would give it away for free.

Now, as for the movie itself, it sounds paint-by-numbers, and it sounds goofy, and it even sounds a little deceitful when the commercials don’t even mention time travel or the appearance of Caucasians. And, yeah, it feels like a amalgamation of Last Action Hero, Neverending Story, and Karate Kid. But it makes those things work. It’s actually a pretty fun little kung fu movie, despite the inclusion of high wires, and despite the weak but necessary typical bully scenes. It’s certainly the prettiest ‘fu movie I’ve seen in a while, and it nicely pays homage to all the old movies. It definitely gets a thumbs up, and you’ll definitely enjoy it if you’re a kung fu fan, or just enjoy Jackie Chan and/or Jet Li.

Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆