Directed By Scott Waugh

Starring – Jason Statham, Megan Fox, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson

The Plot – Armed with every weapon they can get their hands on and the skills to use them, The Expendables are the world’s last line of defense and the team that gets called when all other options are off the table. But new team members with new styles and tactics are going to give “new blood” a whole new meaning.

Rated R for strong/bloody violence throughout, adult language and sexual material

EXPEND4BLES (2023) Official Trailer – Jason Statham, 50 Cent, Megan Fox, Dolph Lundgren – YouTube

POSITIVES

Even though nine years have passed since the last installment, and many of the original cast have since been replaced, this group still shares a bond in chemistry that is irresisible to indulge in, making the most of the corny dialogue that works because they continuously commit to it. This is especially the case with Statham and Stallone, whose bountiful friendship off-screen transfers seamlessly to their dynamic on-screen, with a degree of one-upmanship that they use on every poorly unfortunate victim, all in the name of comedy. The gags themselves are nothing cleverly constructed or even overly-effective, but when executed within the confines of these imposing figures enhances the appeal all the more, especially when they’re being deposited in the balance of brutality. Speaking of the movie’s action, the set pieces themselves are plagued by some underwhelming elements of production, but the ferocity of the fights are impactful all the same, with crisply chaotic choreography and gushing of gore that never disappoint with what this franchise has been unabashedly known for. This is where having action genre icons like Statham, Tony Jaa, and Iko Uwais under the same roof goes a long way, especially since the physicality depends on them so much, and their efforts are paid off remarkably with camera techniques and editing schemes that never obscure the detection of their movements. Lastly, the performances are all over the place, but the right side of the shine goes to Dolph Lundgren, Uwais and especially Statham, who instill such a captivating gravitas to their respective portrayals. Statham in particular has charisma for miles, driving through sequences of many tonal and even genre shifts to showcase Statham’s versatility as a commanding protagonist.

NEGATIVES

Unfortunately, this is definitely the weakest installment in The Expendables franchise, and the reasons rest on many underwhelming complexities, but in particular the screenplay, which feels a bit disjointed in everything from structure to even the focus of the established narrative. For starters, the film doesn’t feel like it has a second act, establishing the conflict by the film’s thirty-five minute mark, before then transitioning into the climax. This not only undercuts the magnitude of the conflict in a way that makes it feel essentially underscaled, but beyond that leaves the film’s storytelling feeling like it was an abused victim of the editing room floor, leaving things to materialize spontaneously in ways that are unnaturally believable. On top of this, there’s a sharp tonal difference in this film from the other three, which have it feeling a bit more serious and straight forward than its predecessors. There are elements of humor distributed casually and even cleverly throughout, but they’re often in the minority, instead surmising a film that has a bit of an identity crisis in articulating the aspects that its fandom appreciates about it. Beyond this, the film’s antagonist, played well by Iko Uwais, is drastically underwritten and underutilized, wasting away a character who on his own merits could probably fight and waste most of The Expendables simultaneously. His character shows promise during the film’s introduction, articulating his rich combination of intelligence and physicality that make him such a challenge for our band of misfits, but from there practically abandon him throughout the duration of the 98 minute run time, which only further devalue the magnitude of a conflict that should be immense in scope and scale. My final problem with the script is that for lack of a better phrase, it has no balls in anything daring or original that it attempts for the franchise. An example of this is in a dramatic bombshell that it drops during the opening act, with regards to one of its characters, reshaping the objective for the group in ways that appraise some stakes and circumstances to the occasion that feel very personal, but then wasted away during a third act that neurotically hinders its dramatic intensity. Aside from the script, my only other problem of noteworthy influence was in the depths of some of the worst C.G blood deposits and backdrops that brought back the worst kind of memories from “Hidden Strike”. This is most evident during chase sequences, with one of the characters atop a vehicle and shooting at their oppositions, where this clearly visible outline of artificiality envelopes our characters in ways that severely outdate the product, and even cause an unshakeable distraction during sequences that you’re supposed to be thoroughly invested in.

OVERALL
“Expend4bles” is the underwhelming last whimper to an action juggernaut of a franchise that once ran on machismo and adrenaline. With horribly obtrusive artificiality in visuals, a litany of miscalculated script issues that constantly undercut its momentum, and an absentee second act that forcefully condenses the magnitude of the conflict, the star-stacked ensemble of action icons are forced to work overtime to appeal towards audience expectations, but instead leave this fourth installment entirely expendable.

My Grade: 4/10 or D