Moviegoer’s love of the action hero just won’t die, and there’s no one more directly responsible than Sylvester Stallone. Indeed, it was he who directed and co-wrote the 2008 “Rambo,” and he who helped pen the screenplay and directed 2010’s “The Expendables,” which assembled many of Hollywood’s action icons for one last romp. They came back for another romp in 2012 with “The Expendables 2.” There was something about these films, an element of actioners long past that refused to die, and something that was just plain fun. Unfortunately, with 2014’s “The Expendables 3,” a lot of the fun dissipates. The movie packs in too many action heroes with a story that doesn’t keep up. While the film finishes nicely, the plot grinds to a halt during its second act, which the film never quite recovers from.
Each “Expendables” film adds more action icons, and this one is no different. The Expendables’ leader Barney (Stallone) leads a mission to rescue one of his captured brethren (Wesley Snipes) from confinement, and the scene is chock full of the explosions, intense camera zooms, and bravado that makes movies like this enjoyable. Quickly after that, the team attempts to take out a target, Stonebanks (Mel Gibson), a long-forgotten member of The Expendables who turned into a profiteer and arms dealer, who Barney thought he killed long ago. His team is seemingly decimated by this man, and the rest of “The Expendables 3” is devoted to them trying to finish the job and take out Stonebanks for good.
The sin of “The Expendables 3” is that it clamors around and seems to forget that tough guys alone don’t make an action movie. Stallone directed the first film; a man named Patrick Hughes, who has helmed only six movies, his last 2010’s small town revenge story “Red Hill,” directs this one. The beginning is wrought with the right stuff, featuring crowd-pleasing helicopter chases, knife fights, and indeed Snipes’ Doc wants to be Danny Trejo’s character from “Desperado” here. And the opening sequence ends perfectly, with a train acting as a missile to take out Doc’s adversary. However, the film spirals down from there, as Barney, who realizes it is he who put his crew in danger, disbands The Expendables and works to piece together a younger team for the dangerous mission of taking out Stonebanks.
To its credit, the film presents some humorous scenes, such as Barney assembling a younger team who brings new technology and firepower to the table. There’s also a woman recruit, Luna, who is played just right by Ronda Rousey, a woman MMA fighter. Another recruit is a loner who lives in a cave and has a talent for climbing. But overall these characters just fall flat. The script gives them no backstory, and the film’s cinematography gives them virtually no close-ups to cement who they are. They are assembled solely as a plot device to get the original team back together, and are indeed captured at a certain point and in need of rescue. The old veterans vs. new recruits dance is somewhat amusing, but tired; we’ve seen this before in “Gone in 60 Seconds” and it’s nothing new.
The fight sequences are entertaining enough, but take too long to get there. While rare for an actioner, most of “The Expendables” is truly boring, with not much of note occurring. Antonio Banderas joins the crew, is quite funny and likable, and his character indeed is the saving grace of much of the middle section. The film’s epic finale carries on for much too long, even if it does give audiences what they want – bodies, explosions, and lots of them. The film is also devoid of the one-liners that made Stallone and Schwarzenegger’s early careers so delightful. Finally, the film builds up to a climactic confrontation that just isn’t there. Barney’s hand-to-hand combat at the end of “The Expendables 2” is crowd pleasing and epic; one here between he and Gibson’s Stonebanks feels tacked on and rushed.
If you liked the other “Expendables” films, you’re not likely to hate this one, but might be a little disappointed. The prowess of its stars gives way to an uninspired narrative, and the close doesn’t seem to fit the bill. The film’s final scene is funny, full of camaraderie, and delightful. Watching it, I started enjoying what it is I like so much about “The Expendables” films. But by then the movie’s over, and the credits roll – which isn’t a deal breaker, but was just kind of a letdown.
– by Mark Ziobro
