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The Expendables is the latest film from Sylvester Stallone, following new sequels in both the Rocky and Rambo film franchises, during what some have described as a "career comeback" for Sly. Written by, directed by and starring Stallone, The Expendables is a tribute of sorts to the old action films from the 1980s and early 1990s. You remember, the ones where stuff gets blown up ... constantly.
Stallone is the leader of a team of mercenaries-for-hire who take on the job of overthrowing the dictator of the small island country of Vilena, later discovering that an ex-CIA agent, portrayed by the often-typecast-in-this-type-of-role Eric Roberts, is behind the country's struggles. But, let's face it, the plot is secondary in this film. The entire purpose of this movie is to throw us back to those old-school, blow-'em-up action flicks, and it serves that purpose quite nicely. In the same vein as those films, plenty of stuff gets blown up, plenty of people get shot (often in brutal fashion) and plenty of cheesy one-liners are spewed by the cast.
Speaking of the cast, Stallone is surrounded by a "who's who" from action films past and present. Jet Li, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren and Mickey Rourke are all members of the Expendables, with Terry Crews and UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) legend Randy Couture rounding out the group. The aforementioned Eric Roberts is the main antagonist, and pro-wrestler-turned-action-star "Stone Cold" Steve Austin stars as his "muscle." (For the UFC and/or WWE fans, they even included an on-screen fight between Couture and Stone Cold.) Oh, and if that's not enough, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis appear in cameo roles, as they have a scene with Stallone placing all three action icons on-screen at the same time.
Like I said, there isn't much of a plot to speak of in this movie, and there are definitely no Oscar-worthy performances. But, anybody that goes into this movie expecting such probably shouldn't be seeing this film in the first place.
In closing, The Expendables is a more-than-suitable nostalgia piece for those of us who grew up watching action films in the 80s/early 90s. And it does exactly what it sets out to do - serve as a popcorn flick. No more. No less. In my opinion, the critics that think otherwise obviously had some unrealistic and uninformed expectations going in. Definitely take the time to go see this movie if you've ever enjoyed films from the genre. If not, you'd probably be better suited seeing something else.
Shane Brown's movie reviews on HobNobWilson are brought to you by The Roxy of Lebanon. The Roxy is located at 200 Legends Drive in Lebanon. For movie listings, please visit The Roxy website or call the Roxy Movie Line at 615-444-4RXY.
Shutter Island follows two federal marshals as they head to a mental institution for the criminally insane on a secluded island to investigate the escape of a potentially dangerous patient. Upon arriving on the island, they're met with little cooperation by doctors, guards and other personnel, leading them to speculate that the goings-on behind the walls of the institution may be more sinister than they appear.
This movie had so many twists that it makes it difficult to write a review without giving much away. If you don't pay attention, you will most likely miss something. And, trust me, there were definitely some twists. Sure, lots of movies involve plot twists, but this one kept me trying to figure what was real and what wasn't all the way through. Scorsese did an excellent job keeping the viewer guessing and, I'll be honest, I did not see the ending coming at all.
As for the acting, the entire cast was brilliant. DiCaprio completely delivered in role of Teddy Daniels, a federal marshal who is still trying to come to terms with the death of his wife. Sir Ben Kingsley was convincing as the mysterious head psychiatrist of the hospital. Mark Ruffalo gave the best performance of his career as Teddy's partner, Chuck. And my favorite performance in the film was from Michelle Williams, who played Teddy's deceased wife during flashback/dream sequences. The rest of the supporting cast, including Jackie Earle Haley, Max von Sydow and Emily Mortimer, were equally as impressive in their limited roles as well.
The only real gripe I have with the movie is what appeared to be continuity errors. Throughout the film, there were numerous scenes that seemed to have been sloppily edited in post-production. In actuality, these "cuts" were deliberate and were intended to add to the uneasy feeling of the film. While I do agree that this technique can be effective in that manner, it was way overused in this film and oftentimes seemed unnecessary. In fact, I didn't figure out that it was intentional until about the third or forth time. It should've been more subtle but, instead, it just became a distraction. Of course, who am I to question Martin Scorsese's directing techniques?
Other than that, Shutter Island was a very good film. It kept me interested from beginning to end and provided a very unexpected ending. As far as psychological thrillers go, it was one of the best I've seen in a while. If you're a fan of such films, definitely go see this one. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
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The Wolfman is this weekend's entry in the "Which Movie Can We Remake Now?" contest. It's an update of the classic 1941 monster movie, The Wolf Man, starring Lon Chaney Jr. This time around, Benicio Del Toro is taking on the role of the title character, unfortunately with not-so-great results.
The story takes place in late 19th-century Blackmoor, England, where, after his brother has gone missing, Lawrence Talbot has been summoned to return home by his brother's fiance, Gwen, to help find him. Upon his arrival, he learns that his brother's mangled body had been found days earlier, mutilated by some sort of wild animal or beast, speculated by many to be a werewolf.
While investigating his brother's death at Gwen's request, Lawrence, himself, has a run-in with the beast, leaving him badly wounded but alive. After healing from the attack, Lawrence discovers that the beast's bite came with a few side effects. Those side effects are especially evident in the presence of a full moon. (Full moons seem to happen more often than scientifically possible in this film, by the way.)
Some things worked for this film, and others didn't. I'll start with the bad then work my way up.
The story, unfortunately, was bland at best. We were given very little reason to care about any of the characters, and the pacing was terrible. Not to mention, the big twist could be seen from a mile away. In fact, it was so obvious that I almost feel dirty even calling it a "twist".
And I was very disappointed with the performances of both Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins, which is surprising considering both men are usually on top of their game. Emily Blunt did a decent enough job with the screen-time she was given, though. And Hugo Weaving's limited role made all of his scenes the most watchable.
On the upside, the movie didn't hold back in the blood and gore department. I must admit, I expected it to be a watered-down supposed-to-be-horror-turned-drama. I was pleasantly surprised by the numerous limbs and entrails that were ripped from bodies. When the Wolfman goes on a rampage, believe me, he goes on a rampage.
And I loved the fact that the Wolfman looked very similar to the original 1941 version. Many people may not agree with that assessment but, in my eyes, it was a perfect homage to the original film. And the transformation scenes were very well done. Of course, it's always cool to see a person transforming into some sort of beast right before our eyes.
All in all, the film wasn't terrible, but it was far from great. Cool special effects and makeup, excellent production design, and blood and gore can't make a film, but it can at least make a bad film watchable. And that's exactly what we have with The Wolfman.
