Anyone seen "The Expendables"?

Not the type of movie I review, but the type I like to see now and then. And we might have a "guys night out" while I'm on vacation this week. Can anyone give this movie a thumbs up or thumbs down? (No Spoilers, please.)

I have to give this one a "thumbs sideways".

We went to see this when it opened, jazzed about all the old school action heroes. I have to say, Sly loves his close-ups. That camera is always on close-up. I have now memorized every crater and wrinkle in Stallone's and Statham's faces. Wouldn't be so bad, but every single action scene is shot from a free-cam/handy-cam at - you guessed it - extreme close range. After a point, I simply gave up trying to follow the action.

On the positive side, we get at least one great character moment with each one of the guys. The hardware they use is impressive, and they do work to get maximum benefit from their toys.

If you're okay with the extreme close-ups on the action, some coarse (but not abusive) language, and perhaps a tiny bit more splatter than strictly necessary, this ought to make an excellent popcorn flick. If you read books like the Stony Man series, you can expect a similar experience from The Expendables.

mindspike wrote:I have to give this one a "thumbs sideways".

We went to see this when it opened, jazzed about all the old school action heroes. I have to say, Sly loves his close-ups. That camera is always on close-up. I have now memorized every crater and wrinkle in Stallone's and Statham's faces. Wouldn't be so bad, but every single action scene is shot from a free-cam/handy-cam at - you guessed it - extreme close range. After a point, I simply gave up trying to follow the action.

On the positive side, we get at least one great character moment with each one of the guys. The hardware they use is impressive, and they do work to get maximum benefit from their toys.

If you're okay with the extreme close-ups on the action, some coarse (but not abusive) language, and perhaps a tiny bit more splatter than strictly necessary, this ought to make an excellent popcorn flick. If you read books like the Stony Man series, you can expect a similar experience from The Expendables.

Great to get your take on it! Thanks, Winston! No firm plans to see a movie yet, but I'll let you know if we see it!

Thanks again!