With the nation's attention focused on the tragic events in Ferguson, Missouri, as well as the terrible loss of actor Robin Williams, audiences heading to theaters this weekend are likely to be looking for some crazy, escapist fun. Which means this weekend's biggest draw is likely to be "The Expendables 3," the third entry in Sylvester Stallone's action franchise starring every aging action star from yesteryear known to man.
Most critics couldn't stomach the movie, or at least had reservations about it, though a respectable portion relished its over-the-top zaniness. Some took issue with it departing from the franchise's past R ratings for a PG-13 this time out. One thing everyone seemed to agree on is that the sole currency "The Expendables 3" trades on is nostalgia.
Anyone with fond memories of action movies from the 80s and 90s will probably find at least one thing to enjoy about the movie, which appears to be exactly the sentiment the movie is based on.
Here's a selection of reviews.
Rolling Stone was just bored.
Stallone and his AARP, er CIA, mercenaries are back for more lame-ass mayhem, this time PG-13 instead of R-rated to bring in younger strays.
Hitfix kind of loved it.
I think this new chapter in the series also has some weird issues, but it does indeed feel like each time they make one of these, they get closer to getting it right.
Variety found it vaguely insulting to human sensibilities.
From train-crashing start to back-slapping finish, Lionsgate's latest and longest showcase for Sylvester Stallone and other aging slabs of B-movie beef... smacks of desperation and teen-audience pandering, from the literally bloodless action to the introduction of a younger, hotter backup team of fighters.
The Hollywood Reporter was feeling franchise fatigue while watching it.
Fans... may be disappointed to discover that the law of diminishing returns is inexorably setting in with the third iteration.
Entertainment Weekly managed to have a good with it, finding it more enjoyable than the first two.
This latest rah-rah red-meat installment is the biggest and best surprise of the series. It has its flaws, but it's mostly a big, dumb, gruntingly monosyllabic hoot.
Vulture's dislike for it was downright palpable.
The first two films barely held together. Just jamming a bunch action clichés together doesn't really amount to much if you don't do anything interesting with them. But those first two movies look like Seven Samurai next to The Expendables 3, a sad, bad parade of uninspired cameos and listless violence.
Harry Knowles at Aint it Cool News, who can always be counted on to fall for nostalgia, adored it. The second was his favorite in the series, but he liked this one almost as much.
This is spectacle at a completely different level than most of the Summer flicks. It's outright cheesier, busier and sillier... but that's not a bad thing. I's just a real damn fun thing.
The New York Times didn't hate it, but didn't love it.
The director, Patrick Hughes, pours these gunfire barrages, explosions and a few leaping stunts into rambling set pieces, as if turning an action hose on and off.
British newspaper The Guardian was torn between logic and fun.
This is brutally efficient film-making from director Patrick Hughes... You couldn't call it confusing; this film knows what it wants, and gets it by the shortest possible route. It may be boneheaded; ridiculous it isn't.
"The Expendables 3" opens nationwide today, August 15, 2014. It reportedly filmed with a $90 million budget.
