'The Expendables 2' Reviews: What The Critics Are Saying (Not Good)

This Friday sees the release of the muscle-tastic "Expendables 2," which reunites pretty much every action hero ever in the ultimate revenge rampage.

Starring (deep breath!) Chuck Norris, Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Randy Couture, Terry Crews, Liam Hemsworth and Bruce Willis, the Expendables reconvene on a mission to Bulgaria to stop Jean Vilain (Jean Claude Van Damme) from selling plutonium.

The film is a sequel to the 2010 hit, which went on to gross over $274 million worldwide. Will 'Expendables 2' have the same luck? Maybe. But for now, let's take a look at what the critics are saying about this weekend's action-packed flick.

Nick Pinkerton (Village Voice)
Has the parallel between the actor and the mercenary's trade ever been so overt?

Justin Lowe (Hollywood Reporter)
Taut, humorous and attractively packaged, the sequel is both fleet footed and engaging enough to captivate audiences with more than just nonstop action.

Justin Chang (Variety)
Redundant, b0mbastic and cheekily self-aware, "The Expendables 2" is also savvy enough to supply its own auto-critique.

Katey Rich (CinemaBlend)
"The Expendables 2" isn't nearly clever enough to operate as an actual action movie as well as a parody of one, but it is a good amount of fun.

Alison Willmore (Movieline)
Whatever throwback charm the first film had has been utterly "Snakes on a Plane"-d by this sequel, which from the start is far more pleased with itself than audience members are ever given a chance to be.

John Semley (Slant Magazine)
It plays out like a series wet-dream scenarios, performed by a cast of vintage action figures battered and broken from overuse, bleached and slightly molted from sitting in the sun too long.

Dave Calhoun (Time Out)
If someone told you that the negative was found on the shelf of a studio that went bankrupt in 1991, you'd most likely believe them.

Rene Rodriguez (Miami Herald)
Chuck Norris is also in this movie, although you should know that he gets roughly five minutes of screen time, half of those devoted to his telling of a Chuck Norris joke.

Nick De Semlyen (Empire Magazine)
A huge, bulging disappointment.

Todd Gilchrist (The Playlist)
"The Expendables 2" is a fun roundup of action stars who simultaneously celebrate and send up their former glories.

'The Expendables 2' Reviews: What Are The Critics Saying?


The Story
"It's up to Stallone's Barney Ross and his AARP team to save the world by grabbing hold of a stash of plutonium from a plane that crashed in Albania before the villain (Van Damme) gets it first. Simple stuff. Barney's second-in-command Lee Christmas (Jason Statham, a baby at 44) is back in play. And there's new blood in the form of Liam Hemsworth as a sniper trained in Afghanistan and Yu Nam as a Chinese tech genius who is — OMFG! — a woman. Their contractor, Mr. Trench (Willis), insists on it. And their friendly rival Trench (Schwarzenegger) is amused by it. Cue the hail of bullets." — Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

The Opening Scene
"In what might just stand as the most chaotic opening sequence ever filmed, 'Expendables 2' careens out the gate at a reckless pace.... The ensuing 10-minute sequence is a cacophony of macho madness, featuring rifles, sub machine guns, bazookas, helicopters, flying daggers, airborne motorcycles, shattered helicopters, makeshift torpedo/cannons, sputtering sea planes, brutal decapitations and about 100 gallons of fake blood." — Steven James Snyder, TIME

Compared to the First
"When Stallone gathered up a mini-platoon of action stars for the first 'Expendables' two years ago — along with relative young 'uns like Jason Statham and Jet Li — it had a self-deprecating kick. '2' works harder to land punches, but when it does, it provides the kind of fun its fan base hopes for. But expectations, and targets, are lower all around." — Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News

The Final Word
"Taut, humorous and attractively packaged, the sequel is both fleet-footed and engaging enough to captivate audiences with more than just nonstop action." — Justin Lowe, The Hollywood Reporter

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/169...-reviews.jhtml

when the commercial had arnold saying "ill be back" and bruce saying "youve been back enough wait here ill be back"

i knew this movie would be mad self-referential haha

the first wasnt the best movie to it was just cool seeing all the action stars past and present in one movie.

and damn chuck only gets 5 minutes of screen time.

Cause dont nobody wanna see these old[..] niccas prancin' around the jungles and !!.
I barely liked the 1st one and Im all about violence and !! blowin up.

gonna be watching tomorrow [pic]

Didn't watch the first one, but what exactly were the critics expecting? A movie full of Oscar-worthy performances?

was the first one any good?

All that matters is the nostalgia, the body count, the creative [rip]s, and the explosions.


If you're looking for anything outside of those parameters, you're going for the wrong reasons.


Seeing it tomorrow. [pic]

yep [pic]

I still can't get the sound of Terry Crew's shotgun out of my head from the first one.

[pic] ... pretty much summing it up right here.

[pic]

People acting like this was oscar material.

seein this !! in a few hours,!! the critics,they said even worse !! bout the first one and that !! had Oprah sick that summer lol..

It's a failure action movie. Kinda funny but ehh.[pic]

The movie is what it is, a great piece of nostalgia. For those that g Hrew up loving 80s action films this is a dream come true to see all those action stars kicking[..] and taking names in the same film. By no means is it an oscar contender, but I got my moneys worth.
Btw, that trailer for Stallones next movie "Bullet In The Head" was [pic]

i swear I be hearing that nicca gun when I'm playing MW3 lol

That's shotgun was bad[..] though.
Can't wait to see this one [pic]

[pic] Exactly

like someone said u have to go in there just wanting to see a fun and gory movie, cant go in there expecting a movie to make u cry or feel bad for a certain actor, We want big guns dumb 1 liners and body counts in the 10000!!

just saw it.


I got more than enough AA-12.


Chuck Norris yo!!! [pic]


Van Damme vs. Stallone !! Sly w/ those body blows!! Van Damme kick! [pic]

Jet Li w/ that pan!! [pic]


Terry Crews got way more screen time. the body count is in the thousands. they was kicking in front doors the whole movie.


i cosign this movie. But if u didn't like the 1st one, don't bother w/ this one cuz u don't get it.