Somewhat entertaining but bad storyline

Rating: 4/10 (9 September 2010)

The Expendables has somewhat a lot of action but it is lacking in storyline and a good plot. The movie retained the finest action figures one could only dream of putting together in one frame and that was exactly what Sylvester Stallone did. Watching Sylvester guiding a bunch of mercenaries was a joy in itself and that too action heroes like Jet Li, Jason Statham, Randy Couture and Terry Crews. Steve Austin maintains his dignity by beating up Sylvester Stallone but eventually ends up as a victim to Randy Couture. The acting was pretty bad and the script/ dialogue was also pretty disappointing. Their were some action and fight scenes towards the end but it was difficult to watch because of the shaky camera and it would switch directions very quickly.
Jason Statham manifested some great skills in there with his awesome fighting style. He was the best character in this. Jet Li augmented himself to the list of fighters by beating the hell out of the bad guys. Dolph Lundgren was asked to leave the group because of which he fires back at Sylvester and Jet Li but ends up getting shot ( not killed as he rejoins the team eventually ). Eric Roberts poses himself as the bad guy with Steve Austin watching his back every now and then. Terry Crews has one great scene where he comes out with his shotgun and goes on a rampage. It was a wasted opportunity for Willis and Swarzenneger. They were only seen in one scene and it was pretty fast. Also for a movie with this many action stars, it was only a little over 90 minutes. They should have focused more on a story and tale the film over 2 hours.
The Expendables tries to do too little with too much. It ticks a lot of the mandatory action genre boxes with its big bangs, slimy villains, one-liners and curiously named heroes, but provides a largely hollow and unengaging experience. Expendables? Disposables more like.