Plot: A group of mercenaries known as the Expendables are hired to kill a ruthless Dictator in South America.

Review:

Oh, what killed the action star of old? Sylvester Stallone claims Tim Burton's 1989 film "Batman" did it, for introducing an action hero who didn't need to be bulging with mussels. I think he's wrong, because "Beverly Hills Cop" came out a few years prior, and that movie made Eddie Murphy into an action star. Plus, he overlooked that old timers like Arnold Schwarzenegger had some hits after that("Terminator 2") before losing box office pull in the late 90's, and Stallone himself had "Cliffhanger". Also, remember that Steven Seagal and Jean Claude Van Damme became huge stars in the 90's. The problem is that action films were more over-the-top and cheesy, and "Batman and Robin"(speaking of Schwarzenegger) probably was the big nail to end that trend. After that, people were suddenly sick of cheesy movies. Then in the late 90's, movies began to satirize the previous decade with movies like "The Boondock Saints" and "Scream". While the action stars tried to fix their image, they failed to do so and people always remembered them as over-the-top and cheesy, which audiences no longer wanted. The box office showed these results. But Christopher Nolan's "Batman Begins" showed that you could do the impossible: Treat what was thought to be a dead subject seriously. Stallone caught on and released "Rocky Balboa", which I didn't care for but fans did, and it was a modest success. While sequels had turned the franchise into a joke, the newest sequel made you take the character seriously again. He followed this up with "Rambo", one of the darkest action films I've ever seen. Now his most recent venture is "The Expendables", which is mistakenly thought to be a throwback to 80's action films. It's not.

For "The Expendables" to be a proper throwback, it would need to go the route of movies like "Rambo 3" and "Commando": Over-the-top, cheesy and extreme. While the film is extreme, it is much closer to "Rambo"(not to be confused with "First Blood") in tone. Unlike that film, however, "The Expendables" isn't as dark or depressing, even having some genuinely funny moments. But most of all, it fits the Post-Christopher Nolan times of taking itself seriously. When you laugh, it's intentional. But it's not meant to be laughed at, which is why it is not a true throwback. It's more like throwing 80's action stars back into an epic action movie. Plus, they add newer stars too. It is the old meets new, and it is the greatest action movie of the year.

The Expendables are a group of honorable, but vicious mercenaries lead by Barney Ross(Sylvester Stallone). The group includes Christmas(Jason Statham), Yin Yang(Jet Li), Gunnar(Dolph Lundgren), Hale Ceasar(Terry Crews) and Toll(Randy Couture). They're hired by Mr. Church(Bruce Willis) to kill Eric Roberts for his crimes against cinema. Er, wait, that's the contract I put out...They're hired to kill Monroe(Eric Roberts) for being an evil, rogue CGI agent who uses the local General to for his own means. They realize that it's an impossible mission, but Ross is impressed with Sandra(Gisele Itie), the General's daughter, and her valor to stop her Father and Eric Roberts before a sequel to "Raptor" is made....er, I mean Monroe because he's a ruthless asshole. So the Expendables decide to take Monroe out once and for all.

I have no idea where I should begin. For me, the main treat is the casting. Sure, Arnold and Bruce Willis only have one scene total(that you see most of in the trailers). It is quite surreal to see them and Stallone together. But everyone does what's expected of them and a little more. The characters all have hints of depth, which I prefer. I like my movies to be subtle about that kind of thing. So scenes of Jet Li bitching about how he deserves more money because he's small not only cracked me up, but it also revealed that characters insecurity. The big surprise is Dolph Lundgren as the drugged up one. The character is messed up and quite tormented, but there is never a scene of him openly talking about it. Everybody does great in their roles. Stallone and Statham are givens, but Li and Lundgren are great despite having less screentime. Hell, Randy Couture and Terry Crews impressed me, and I never expected that(Crews for example is more comfortable in comedies, as shown with his awkward performance in "Gamer"). Unfortunately, the movie doesn't focus on those two enough for us to really care about them. But special mention needs to go to Eric Roberts, who is awesome as the villain. The guy is so insanely evil that you love to hate him. Smaller roles are occupied by Mickey Rourke and Stone Cold Steve Austin(who gets a fight with Couture; MMA vs WWE!). Rourke is always great and Steve Austin does fine with what he has to do. The beauty of this movie is watching all of these actors and characters interact. It's compelling in itself.

But while Stallone's more recent movie are more introspective, and "The Expendables" is that to a point, it's more action oriented. The gore is thick and plentiful and the camera captures the gunfights excellently. The battles are all epic in scope and ambitious in execution. Plus, there are even a few awesome car chase sequences! What kind of action film would it be without them? Stallone is arguably the best action director out there right now. He knows how to magnify the actors presence with the right angle while shooting the action effectively. If there is one fault here, it's the fight scenes. While the fight choreography is great, the camerawork doesn't do it justice. The camera is too close and shaky to capture it in all its glory. One of my favorite sequences was when Jet Li gets to fight Dolph Lundgren. It's an awesome fight, but the camerawork needed to be more steady. Stallone needs to watch more Asian action films. You don't see this kind of problem with "Yip Man" or "Ong Bak 2". But otherwise, he does a superb job delivering a hardcore actioner that's unlike anything else that's come out for quite some time.

With all that said, "The Expendables" is not a great movie. It's a great action film, and yes, there's a difference between the two. But if you don't get it, I completely understand. Some people won't be as intrigued to see these action stars working together. Some scenes might seem pointless to the plot(Christmas's girlfriend), but it's there so we can see Statham be a little bit more than just badass...which he gets to be in these scenes anyway. The plot is simply there to drive the action, and is standard for an action film. Others simply might despise extreme, bloody action. So if "The Expendables" isn't for you, you might want to stay away. We're not talking about "Inception" here. "The Expendables" is an action film for bloody action fans. In that regard, it's about as perfect as can be.

Violence: Rated R worthy. VERY R WORTHY!

Nudity: None. Oddly.

Overall: "The Expendables" is everything it wants to be. If you don't like what it's going for, then don't watch it. In my opinion, this might be a movie that you'll like if you think it looks good. But you won't if you think it's going to suck.