{"id":9015,"date":"2012-09-03T13:20:49","date_gmt":"2012-09-03T17:20:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?p=9015"},"modified":"2012-09-03T13:20:49","modified_gmt":"2012-09-03T17:20:49","slug":"review-expendables-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?p=9015","title":{"rendered":"Review: Expendables 2"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Good day all, this is the Angry Webmaster with another movie review. This time it is The <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Expendables_2\" target=\"_blank\">Expendables 2<\/a> starring just about every action film star in the last 30 years.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/The_Expendables_2_poster.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft  wp-image-9016\" title=\"The Expendables 2\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/The_Expendables_2_poster-202x300.jpg?resize=99%2C149\" alt=\"\" width=\"99\" height=\"149\" \/><\/a>As always, there will be spoilers so if you haven\u2019t seen the film yet and like surprises, exit now or the Secretary will disavow all complaints you may file with the management.<\/p>\n<p>As usual, I went to my favorite theater, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.chunkys.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Chunky\u2019s<\/a>. This was a late showing, 9:45pm, since I had to stay up until midnight due to some real world work I had to take care of. Because of this, I had a rather larger than normal lunch so I would be hungry when I went to the theater. It worked. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<p>Now, a little background. I missed the first Expendables movie when it came out. I saw it recently on Netflix so I had the background. I\u2019m glad I took the time to watch the first one. As I mentioned before, this film stars all the big name action heroes of the last 30 years. Here is a list of them.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Sylvester_Stallone\" target=\"_blank\">Sylvester Stallone<\/a> (Barney Ross<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jason_Statham\" target=\"_blank\">Jason Statham<\/a> (Lee Christmas)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jet_Li\" target=\"_blank\">Jet Li<\/a> (Yin Yang)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Dolph_Lundgren\" target=\"_blank\">Dolph Lundgren<\/a> (Gunnar Jensen)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chuck_Norris\" target=\"_blank\">Chuck Norris<\/a> (Booker)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jean-Claude_Van_Damme\" target=\"_blank\">Jean-Claude Van Damme<\/a> (Jean Vilain)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Bruce_Willis\" target=\"_blank\">Bruce Willis<\/a> (Mr. Church)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Arnold_Schwarzenegger\" target=\"_blank\">Arnold Schwarzenegger<\/a> (Trench)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Terry_Crews\" target=\"_blank\">Terry Crews<\/a> (Hale Caesar)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Randy_Couture\" target=\"_blank\">Randy Couture<\/a> (Toll Road)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Liam_Hemsworth\" target=\"_blank\">Liam Hemsworth<\/a> (Billy the Kid)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Scott_Adkins\" target=\"_blank\">Scott Adkins<\/a> (Hector)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Yu_Nan\" target=\"_blank\">Yu Nan<\/a> (Maggie Chan)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Along with the old timers, there are several newcomers, as it were, to the genre including Yu Nan. (Who hails from the same region as Mrs. Webmaster) The others are younger or aren\u2019t as well known as the top 8 box office draws of the 20<sup>th <\/sup>century. Also, Jet Li apparently was not part of the majority of the film for some reason.<\/p>\n<p>The film opens with our heroes in Nepal to rescue a Chinese businessman. They shoot their way into the terrorist camp, in a truly over the top, utterly ridiculous, totally unbelievable and completely fun scene. The wipe out just about everybody and rescue the businessman and someone else. That turns out to be a mercenary named Trench. (Arnold Swarzenegger) Trench is embarrassed that he needed to be rescued as well.<\/p>\n<p>Jet Li is in the kitchen, first shooting terrorists until he runs out of ammo then he starts using the patented Jet Li method of ass kicking. After they kill everyone the good guys run for the river and their seaplane. The newest addition to The Expendables is \u201cBilly the Kid\u201d played <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Liam_Hemsworth\" target=\"_blank\">Liam Hemsworth<\/a>. He\u2019s a former army sniper and proceeds to cover the good guys escape with a .50cal Barrett sniper rifle. Assorted heads and body parts are messily removed. Everyone climbs aboard The Expendabless seaplane and they start their take off run. Unfortunately the bad guys have blocked the river.<\/p>\n<p>In the previous film we found out that The Expendables had installed machine guns in the nose with Jason Statham firing them. This time they\u2019ve added a BFG. (A large caliber artillery piece) They blow the blockade to pieces and make their dramatic escape. Now they fly to Beijing to drop off their rescued businessman. The only problem is their permit won\u2019t let them land until the next day. So, Jet Li puts on a parachute, straps the confused businessman to the harness and jumps from the plane and the rest of the movie.<\/p>\n<p>Later, we\u2019re back at the bar The Expendables likes to use and the New Guy, Billy, tells Stallone that this work isn\u2019t for him and that he will be leaving at the end of the month. Stallone is good with this and thinks it\u2019s the right decision. Stallone rides off on his bike and goes to his hanger. As he\u2019s walking through the seaplane CIA agent Mr. Church (Bruce Willis) shows up and forces Stallone to accept a mission to retrieve an item from a safe in an airplane that was shot down in Albania. Church sends technical expert Maggie Chan (Yu Nan) with The Expendables to crack the safe.<\/p>\n<p>Off they go and there\u2019s the usual byplay between everyone. They land on a lake in Abania and start heading to the crash site. Billy, showing his youth, runs ahead to the plane. The others take one look at him and just keep walking. They reach the plane and Ross, (Stallone) has Billy go up a hill and cover them. (Note: There is a thick fog all over the place. You won\u2019t see anything with standard optics)<\/p>\n<p>Chan gets the safe open after accidently triggering the self destruct countdown and removes a case. They leave the plane and prepare to leave but can\u2019t find Billy. They head up the hill in the fog to find him and instead run into a large group of armed men called the Sangs and led by Jean Vilain. They have captured Billy and have him tied up after beating him. Vilain demands The Expendables drop their weapons and hand over the item Chan has recovered or he will kill Billy. The Expendables complies, but Vilain kills Billy anyway.<\/p>\n<p>They recover Billy\u2019s body and bury him. At this point Maggie tells The Expendables that the item is a computer containing a blueprint to the location of five tons of refined plutonium abandoned in a mine by the Soviet Union following the Cold War. Vilain intends to retrieve the plutonium and sell it. Maggie Chan is able to track the computer and the Expendables start after the Sangs, both to retrieve the computer and for simple revenge.<\/p>\n<p>The Expendables makes its way through Bulgaria and comes across what looks like an American town. It\u2019s actually an old Soviet training base. The Expendables spend the night there while Lee Christmas heads back to the plane to pick up more ammo and weapons. The next morning, a large group of Sangs arrive and a major battle erupts. They are doing rather well until the Sangs bring in a tank. The Expendables soon run out of ammo and when all seems lost, a rocket comes out of nowhere and destroys the tank. Moments later all the Sangs are gunned down. The Expendables come out of cover and are trying to figure out what happened when a lone figure walks towards them out of a cloud of smoke. It turns out to be an old friend of Ross\u2019s, a mercenary named Booker. (Chuck Norris)<\/p>\n<p>Booker tells them what is going on in the area and that a nearby village will be friendly to them. The Expendables invite Booker to join them, but Booker tells them he works alone. (Hey, it IS Chuck Norris after all) Christmas comes on the scene with the ammo and they all head off to the village.<\/p>\n<p>Now, rather than go through every single fight scene, (Cough up the $6 and go see it yourself you cheapskate), I\u2019ll just give my overview from here on out. The movie is good fun. You have all these action stars who have made dozens of movies each. They have all created certain persona\u2019s for themselves. For Schwarzenegger, he has the tag line \u201cI\u2019ll be back\u201d and for Norris it\u2019s his working alone. And of course, Bruce Willis is \u201cYippee-Ki-Yay Motherfucker!\u201d So are these lines used by the stars? Oh hell yes. However, the tag lines end up being stolen by the other stars. The whole film is both dark and comedic which was the intent of the director and writers. The stars understand what the film is all about and decide to have a good time with it. I\u2019m sure the out takes are hilarious as these megastars intentionally overact.<\/p>\n<p>One of the more inside jokes is Dolph Lundgren. His character is a slightly crazed substance abuser who is also has a PhD in chemistry and engineering. In other words, a rocket scientist. Dolph Lundgren is in fact a trained engineer and is a real life rocket scientist who went into acting.<\/p>\n<p>One of the annoying parts of the movie was Jet Li not sticking around after the opening segment. His spit was well filled by Yu Nan. While her character has the same \u201ckick ass\u201d abilities of Jet Li, she also brings a more cerebral approach. For instance, when the Expendables need to ask some captured Sang a few questions, Maggie Chan doesn\u2019t want to take the time to beat it out of them. She simply opens a small surgical kit with a number of very sharp instruments. The answers to her questions came soon thereafter.<\/p>\n<p>Now, I will admit I was surprised they made a sequel to the first movie. I will be surprised if they do another one, but it seems they are actually looking at filming Expendables 3 with even more action film stars. They appear to be in talks with Harrison Ford, Clint Eastwood and Nicolas Gage. Eastwood is in his 80\u2019s and honestly might not be up to it. Still, it wold be cool to see. I wonder who will steal his \u201cGo ahead&#8230;Make my day\u201d tag line?<\/p>\n<p>So, do I recommend this movie? Yes I do. I give it a 4 out of 5 stars. I will probably get it on DVD when it comes out in a few months as well. It\u2019s a corny shoot \u2018em up with no basis in reality, but then, I don\u2019t go to the movies for reality, I go to be entertained, and I was. I think you will be as well.<\/p>\n<p>That is all for now<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>~The Angry Webmaster~<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<span id=\"post-ratings-9015\" class=\"post-ratings\" data-nonce=\"e36d1a8bb3\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"rating_9015_1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-postratings\/images\/stars_crystal\/rating_on.gif?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"1 Star\" title=\"1 Star\" onmouseover=\"current_rating(9015, 1, '1 Star');\" onmouseout=\"ratings_off(1, 0, 0);\" onclick=\"rate_post();\" onkeypress=\"rate_post();\" style=\"cursor: pointer; border: 0px;\" \/><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"rating_9015_2\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-postratings\/images\/stars_crystal\/rating_off.gif?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"2 Stars\" title=\"2 Stars\" onmouseover=\"current_rating(9015, 2, '2 Stars');\" onmouseout=\"ratings_off(1, 0, 0);\" onclick=\"rate_post();\" onkeypress=\"rate_post();\" style=\"cursor: pointer; border: 0px;\" \/><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"rating_9015_3\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-postratings\/images\/stars_crystal\/rating_off.gif?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"3 Stars\" title=\"3 Stars\" onmouseover=\"current_rating(9015, 3, '3 Stars');\" onmouseout=\"ratings_off(1, 0, 0);\" onclick=\"rate_post();\" onkeypress=\"rate_post();\" style=\"cursor: pointer; border: 0px;\" \/><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"rating_9015_4\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-postratings\/images\/stars_crystal\/rating_off.gif?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"4 Stars\" title=\"4 Stars\" onmouseover=\"current_rating(9015, 4, '4 Stars');\" onmouseout=\"ratings_off(1, 0, 0);\" onclick=\"rate_post();\" onkeypress=\"rate_post();\" style=\"cursor: pointer; border: 0px;\" \/><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"rating_9015_5\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-postratings\/images\/stars_crystal\/rating_off.gif?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"5 Stars\" title=\"5 Stars\" onmouseover=\"current_rating(9015, 5, '5 Stars');\" onmouseout=\"ratings_off(1, 0, 0);\" onclick=\"rate_post();\" onkeypress=\"rate_post();\" style=\"cursor: pointer; border: 0px;\" \/> (<strong>1<\/strong> votes, average: <strong>1.00<\/strong> out of 5)<br \/><span class=\"post-ratings-text\" id=\"ratings_9015_text\"><\/span><\/span><span id=\"post-ratings-9015-loading\" class=\"post-ratings-loading\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-postratings\/images\/loading.gif?resize=16%2C16&#038;ssl=1\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" class=\"post-ratings-image\" \/>Loading...<\/span>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Good day all, this is the Angry Webmaster with another movie review. This time it is The Expendables 2 starring just about every action film star in the last 30 years. <a href=\"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?p=9015\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9016,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4,6,84,62],"tags":[4,6,62],"class_list":["post-9015","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","category-humor","category-movies","category-reviews","tag-entertainment","tag-humor","tag-reviews"],"views":1661,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/The_Expendables_2_poster.jpg?fit=350%2C519&ssl=1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":15697,"url":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?p=15697","url_meta":{"origin":9015,"position":0},"title":"Movie Review: The Expendables III","author":"Angry Webmaster","date":"August 15, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Good day all. Last night I saw the opening of \u201cThe Expendables III.\u201d It had the usual stars plus a few new entries. Now, be advised, there might be spoilers in this review. If you haven\u2019t seen the movie and plan to, and you are bothered by potential spoilage, leave\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Entertainment","link":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"Expendables_3_poster","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Expendables_3_poster-202x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":14088,"url":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?p=14088","url_meta":{"origin":9015,"position":1},"title":"Review: I, Frankenstein","author":"Angry Webmaster","date":"February 1, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Greetings all. It\u2019s a new year and a new review. Last night I saw the new movie I, Frankenstein. I had seen the commercials for it and it looked interesting. I was very mistaken.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Entertainment","link":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"toilet","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/06\/toilet-289x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":21107,"url":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?p=21107","url_meta":{"origin":9015,"position":2},"title":"Deadpool now on Blu-Ray","author":"Angry Webmaster","date":"May 8, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Good day all. Time for a little shameless advertising. A few months back I saw and reviewed the Marvel movie, Deadpool. The movie, starring Ryan Reynolds became a massive hit.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Entertainment","link":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"Deadpool_poster","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Deadpool_poster-206x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":21969,"url":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?p=21969","url_meta":{"origin":9015,"position":3},"title":"Review: Suicide Squad","author":"Angry Webmaster","date":"August 10, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Good day all. I\u2019ve been out all day so this won\u2019t be a detailed review of the new movie, Suicide Squad. I went to see this film last night with a few friends. It was an OK film, not spectacular.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Entertainment","link":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"popcorn","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/popcorn-246x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":19003,"url":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?p=19003","url_meta":{"origin":9015,"position":4},"title":"Review: Hitman, Agent 47","author":"Angry Webmaster","date":"September 12, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Good day all. I hope you had a pleasant Labor Day weekend. I spent mine at the movies watching films so, in this case, you don't have to. I saw the film, Hitman: Agent 47 last week.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Entertainment","link":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"popcorn","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/angry.net\/blog2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/popcorn-246x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":26363,"url":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?p=26363","url_meta":{"origin":9015,"position":5},"title":"Review: Solo: A Star Wars Story","author":"Angry Webmaster","date":"June 3, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Good day all. Last night, I saw the new movie in the Star Wars universe called \u201cSolo: A Star Wars Story. This is my review of that mess of a movie. I\u2019ve been following the news of the production of this film off and on for a while. A lot\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Book","link":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?cat=63"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/i.pinimg.com\/originals\/a4\/c1\/da\/a4c1dacbf850c519869b8a9e44b3e65c.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9015","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9015"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9015\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9022,"href":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9015\/revisions\/9022"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9016"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9015"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9015"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9015"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}