THE EXPENDABLES
US, 2010, 103 minutes, Colour.
Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts, Randy Couture, Steve Austin, Giselle Itie, Terry Crews, Mickey Rourke, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis.
Directed by Sylvester Stallone.
Testosterone. No. TESTOSTERONE. No. T- E- S- T- O- S- T- E- R- O- N- E. Yes, and with a huge plus...
Having established a screen presence with Rocky and Rambo (with sequels to both in recent years), Sylvester Stallone is branching out into a new character, Barney Ross, the leader of a squad of mercenaries who, had they been employed by the US military might have stopped the war in Afghanistan in the first couple of days. We see them at once in operation against Somali pirates (a new and topical enemy for movies), total enemy body count, releasing their amazed hostages and getting unobtusively back to the US to await further bookings.
One comes almost instantly. A mysterious Mr Church (cameo by Bruce Willis) urges them to destroy, with extreme prejudice, the corrupt government of a Latin American island (when they are interrupted by a comic cameo, aureole shining behind him, from Arnold Schwarzenegger in some amusingly hostile banter with Stallone and the comment, as he leaves, about his wanting to be president).
Stallone’s mainstay is Lee Christmas, played by movies’ current tough guy, Jason Statham. He is expert with knives, Stallone with bullets which sets up some competitive rivalry in mid-mission. Jet Li is there too (with wry comments about his being small) and some wrestlers, Randy Couture and Steve Austin (and some jokes about the former seeing a psychotherapist).
And, Eric Roberts is there, too, smiling and snarling simultaneously, in a performance that has stood him in good stead in many a B or straight to DVD movie: the master villain.
If you want action, more action and then more action, plus impossible stunts and punishing body fights (Stallone keeps getting up again and again after more physical pounding than was inflicted in The Passion of the Christ), then here you are.
There are plenty of nasty touches, vicious deaths with an immediate aftermath of nonchalant wisecracks. There is also a grim torture sequence when the woman who tries to help the expendables is waterboarded.
The whole thing is more than a bit much for all except the macho, hawkish niche audience.
1. Sylvester Stallone and his career, Rambo and Rocky, this film as continuing his interests and characters?
2. The niche audience for this kind of testosterone film, the male audience, the action audience? Others’ responses?
3. The Stallone perspective, his being the star, his image, tough, American? The group, the mercenaries, their values, not supervised, the control? The cast and their screen images? Seeing them together?
4. The initial action in Somalia, the contemporary issue of pirates and hostages, the set-up, the brutality of the pirates, the violence, the characters in the group, their abilities, strategies, decision-making, interactions, their achievement? The body count? The release of the hostages? Setting the tone for the film?
5. The action sequences, the stunts, their range, the special effects, explosions, fire, buildings collapsing, flights? The overall impact? The stunt work?
6. Audience response to the violence, gratuitous or justified? The contexts? American supremacy? Opposing tyrannies and removing governments? The overtones of memories of Iraq, Afghanistan…? The place of rogue agents, their power, money, drugs? Dominating a small country? The supply of weapons, the destructive power? Their use, callous? The Expendables and their lack of humane concern, a day’s work, the final wisecracks?
7. Stallone and Statham, Barney Ross and Lee Christmas, friends? Their pasts, their relationships? Lee and his being sad, going to meet his girlfriend, her change of heart, learning what he did? The group for hire, in Somalia, the achievement, the competition between bullets and knives? Their leadership of the group?
8. Ying Yang, Jet Li and his style, small, the fights, the jokes, effective?
9. The contrast with Gunner, Dolph Lundgren and his size? Big, angry, prejudiced? His being refused admission to the group? His going to James Munroe? The betrayal, going into action, the chase and the attempt to kill Ross and Christmas? The fights, with Ying Yang, his being injured, spared and rejoining the group?
10. Randy Couture and Steve Austin, their wrestling backgrounds, the jokes about psychotherapy? Their going into action?
11. The cameo with Arnold Schwarzenegger, his entrance with halo-like light behind him, the jokes about clashing with Stallone, his wanting to be president?
12. Bruce Willis, Mr Church, in the church, the discussions about hiring the group, the agency background, the promise of money, his motivations?
13. The island, the dictator, the backing of the US, the local inhabitants and their being oppressed, working for the drug dealers? Munroe and his tough henchmen, Munroe’s ruthlessness, visiting the site for the drugs, angry because it wasn’t developed? The pressures on the dictator, the daughter being captured, her torture for information?
14. Ross and Christmas, flying in, the landing, the confrontation at passport control, the contact with the girl, driving to the estate, the fight to get out, the shootouts, the girl staying, her being taken? The return of the plane, exploding everything on the wharf?
15. The decision to go back, the training, the aims? The action sequences? The raid, the executions? The deaths, the body count? Ross being captured, his attempt to rescue the girl, the chase, the explosions, the collapse of the presidential building, Munroe taking the girl, his killing the dictator? The dictator and his speech to the people offering to repent? His talking with his daughter? Munroe’s death, the knife and the bullets?
16. The tradition of mercenaries andThe Wild Geese? Audience tolerance of this kind of gung-ho, macho, hawkish action adventure?
17. Tool and his personality, his past, the close-ups of his monologue, his reappearance with the group at the end, his skill with knives?
