I should begin this review by giving a brief summary of the film. However, with The Expendables films, this really is not neccessary. All you need to know is Stallone's team of misfits are back in action, and have been thrown into a pit of pain and revenge.
The problem with The Expendables films is that their fame has preceded them before filming even starts, just a quick fly through the names involved; Stallone, Schwarzenegger, Li, Lundgren, Statham, Norris; has any action fan weak at the knees, therein lies the problem, can a film ever be great when the premise relies on throwing together the biggest action stars in film history and hoping they can work together? The first film managed it, this one doesn't. It is hard to pin-point just one issue, but the main two are the clunky dialogue, and rushed set pieces.
The promotion of the film relied heavily on bringing back Arnie with a bigger role, he must only be in this film for five minutes in total, the disappointment I felt was ridiculous, especially when he comes out with dialogue like, "we all belong in a museum", it was just WRONG.
But with every cloud comes a silver lining, and that lining is the muscles from Brussels, Jean-Claude Van Damme. He delivers scene after scene packed with exciting action, hilarious one-liners, and a thrilling dark streak, who knew Van Damme could play the bad guy so well? JCVD's return to action is definitely welcome and if the rumours are true, the next Expendables film can only get better, *SPOILER ALERT* his fondness for playing twins should hopefully ressurect this role.
Overall a satisfying action film, but lacking in wit and charm.
6/10
