Only one Expendables movie lived up to the original promise of the Sylvester Stallone franchise

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Only one Expendables movie lived up to the original promise of the Sylvester Stallone franchise

The Expendables 2 was the only one of the four Expendables Movies that actually accomplish what Sylvester Stallone set out to do with the all-star action franchise. For years, Stallone was best known for headlining two major franchises: The Rocky franchise, about an underdog boxer becoming a world champion, and the Rambo franchise, about a Vietnam War veteran who comes to terms with the fact that the only thing he knows how to do is kill. But in 2010, Stallone added a third franchise to the list: The ExpendablesAbout a gang of elderly mercenaries secretly making the world a better place.

Although it was conceived by screenwriter David Callaham, once Stallone took over the project, The Expendables became an excuse to get every big action movie star on the same market. Stallone is supported by Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren and Mickey Rourke, and Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis make a memorable cameo appearance alongside their Planet Hollywood co-founder. The Expendables Set out to poke fun at the bombast of ’80s action movies while still recapturing their cheesy magic, but only one entry in the franchise pulled that off.

Expendables 2 made fun of itself while still being a good movie

Expendables 2 is both a self-parody and a really good action movie

Released in 2012, The Expendables 2 is the best entry in the franchise by far. It works brilliantly as a silly self-parody – The villain is literally called Villain – but It’s also a really good action movie. Simon West took over the director’s chair from Stallone and brought all the explosive spectacle and self-aware humor of his classic debut feature Can air to the proceedings. The plot and dialogue are nothing to write home about, however The movie has more than enough exciting action sequences and tongue-in-cheek comedy moments to make up for it.

Simon West took over the director’s chair from Stallone and brought all the explosive spectacle and self-aware humor of his classic debut feature Con Air.

The Expendables 2 Uses his amazing figure more than the first. Schwarzenegger and Willis both get a much bigger role in the sequel, and Chuck Norris and Jean-Claude Van Damme both bring a bit more star power to the ensemble. It’s a really fun movie full of goofy one-liners and delightfully wild action, but it still takes its time to pull off its James Bondian premise of an eccentric rival mercenary threatening the world with a deadly weapon. It is the best Expendables movie, and it’s not even close.

Expendables 2 improved on everything Expendables tried to do

The first Expendables took itself a little too seriously

The Expendables 2 Was a huge improvement on what the first one Expendables Movie was set to do. The first film took itself a little too seriously, playing its story of aging mercenaries taking down a ruthless dictator too straight, and It just wasn’t that good of a movie. The self-aware humor of The Expendables 2 Works so well because the story would be unintentionally hilarious without it. By taking his ridiculous plot seriously, The original Expendables Film invited unintended laughs. The Expendables 2 Embrace that absurdity Rather than trying to pretend it’s not there.

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Part of this can be blamed on the fact that The Expendables is not technically originated as a Expendables Movie. Callaham’s script was initially developed independently of Stallone. When he had the idea for the Expendables franchise, Stollone used Callaham’s existing script as a jumping-off pointSo there was a little consideration to the tone and narrative established by Callaham. with The Expendables 2Stallone developed the script from scratch as Anne Expendables Movie in line with his original vision of a star-studded, self-aware throwback to the 80s action classics that put him on the A list.

Expendables 3 & 4 completely lost track of what made the franchise interesting

They’re just B-Movies, not a love letter to B-Movies

The next one Expendables Movies failed to recapture the perfect tonal balance of The Expendables 2. The action wasn’t as riveting and the humor didn’t land as effectively. Whereas The Expendables 2 is a loving spoof of old-school action cinema, the later sequels are only tired examples of it. 2014s The Expendables 3 And 2023’s box office flop Expend4bles were just b-movies, not a knowing love letter to b-movies. The Expendables 3 Adds some great new action stars to the ensemble – Wesley Snipes, Antonio Banderas, Mel Gibson, Harrison Ford – But it is completely lacking in its predecessor’s sense of fun.

Expend4bles Gets off on the wrong foot completely when it becomes clear that Stallone’s role is a glorified Comey. from there, It doesn’t even have the fun of watching the 80s action stars back in action againWhat is all this franchise really had to begin with. Lundgren is still in the picture, but the rest of The cast is rounded out with non-action stars like Megan Fox and 50 Cent. The story of The Expendables preventing World War III is a big premise for this series, however Expend4bles is sorely lacking The Expendables 2s star power and tongue-in-cheek humor.

The Expendables 2 reunites some of the most famous action stars in movie history in an explosive mission to stop Jean Claude Van Damme’s terrorist leader Jean Vilain. This time, Sylvester Stallone’s Barney Ross is accompanied not only by teammates such as Jason Statham’s Lee Christmas, Dolph Lundgren’s Gunner Jensen, and Terry Crews’ Hale Caesar, but also by old friends such as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Trench Mouser, Bruce Willis’ Mr. Church , and Chuck Norris’ book.

Director

Simon West

runtime

1 h 43 m

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