It wasn't very DEEP or complex but it delivered everything Sly promised and then some. A hell of a lot of fun. A mans movie that even WOMEN were enjoying, with lots of camaraderie that will put a smile on guys faces who hang out with like minded people too.
The Arnold and Bruce cameos were gold. Arnie looks old as **** but he was on the giving and receiving end of some funny jokes.
Sly is basically playing straight man leader but he really wrangled these guys and this movie into something fun and I was impressed with the punishment he took in this.
Eric Roberst is a real weasel as the rogue CIA agent. Rourke is doing the typical wise man/confidante thing but he's entertaining to watch. Jet Li is cool in his action scenes but he gets to have some funny moments. The movie is full of cliche's but Sly makes them work FOR the film in this case.
Loved Jet and Dolphs throw downs and Dolph was really dishing out the one liners. No doubt in my mind now that HE was the spark that made Universal Soldier ignite years ago.
I've always like Statham but that bastard made me love him in this movie. His got a lot of charm and he and Stallone have great chemistry.
Terry Crews is funny and a ****ing monster. That BFG he was using at the end got cheers from the audience. Sly knew how to use Randy Couture right too. Austin was big and intimidating as Paine. Again Sly used him right. And **** it was cool to see Gary Daniels even if it was in a smaller part as one of Roberts henchmen. I wonder if JCVD was up for Daniels role or Dolphs initially?
Looking at the experienced actors and the just well known tough guys from other professions its clear Sly was going for a cast that more than anything could be credible kicking ass and being intimidating. And he made a SMART move early on dropping 50 Cent from the Hale Caesar role and hiring Crews. 50 would have stuck out like a sore thumb.
The strafing run on the pier and gasoline dump and ignition was bad as hell. I was wondering why Statham was climbing into the nose of the plane but it was just a really cool payoff.
Everytime I thought "man I wish this would happen" it DID. Sly made this movie with the intended audience in mind. I wanted to see Statham and Li fight Gary Daniels and Sly made it happen. same with Couture vs Austin. I wanted to see Dolph fight Jet and Sly made it happen. I wanted to see Sly fight with the big heavy in Austin and it happened.
The only major beefs I had were I wish Sly had pulled the camera back some and kept it still for some of the action. There was also a WTF moment with Gunnar (Dolph) showing up a the end. That threw me for a loop at first but Barney said he missed his heart. But still
I guess they saw Gunnar as their brother despite his problems and forgave the resident **** up. Even if he lived I found it hard to believe they'd take him back but oh well. part of me likes that they did the unexpected there and I want to see Dolph back with the team since he was still likable in this.
Bring on Expendables 2!
