By Dave Montalbano
http://cinemadave.livejournal.com
The Expendables 3 opens tomorrow with a sense it’s the last hurrah for the old action stars.
Four years ago, it was a novelty to see Stallone and Schwarzenegger in the same scene at the same time; but the couple has made four movies together and the novelty has worn thin. The good news is that the film does hold up as an action movie with sly Hollywood humor. Bruce Willis is out; Harrison Ford replaces him with double entendres about Willis’ missing character.
The Expendables team (Dolph Lundgren, Randy Couture, Terry Crews, Jason Statham) rescue Wesley Snipes from a runaway train and blow up a prison.
After The Expendables are tricked by the master villain (Mel Gibson), Stallone decides it’s time to retire the team and reboot with a young team of mercenaries. Taking a page out of The Dirty Dozen, Stallone uses Kelsey Grammer to recruit the young talent. The mission is a failure and Gibson gloats.
The action scenes are as overwhelming as one expects, but tongue-in-cheek humor keeps the filmed glued in reality. Of the three Expendables, Gibson is the best antagonist to match Stallone. Both are cold professionals whose staring contest is scarier than blowing up a building or flying into a helicopter blade.
For those seeking action entertainment minus loud explosions, check out The Discoverers. In this film, a 21st Century family reunite with a quirky grandfather (Stuart Margolin), who likes to reenact 18th Century history. The family learns to cope with the great outdoors without cell phones and the Internet. As the father, Griffin Dunne is getting his best notice in two decades.
I could not wrap up this column without mentioning the loss of Robin Williams. For 37 years, Williams has been a household name and managed to reinvent himself to the point that no one could take him for granted. My generation knows him as “Mork,” current college graduates know him as the “Genie” and today’s young people know him as “Teddy Roosevelt.” He made us feel good; but nothing is more poignant than the tears of a clown — when no one is around.
We have also lost actor Danny Murphy, who lived in Florida. Paralyzed for over 30 years from a diving accident, Danny rose above his disabilities and lived an adventuresome life. He began his acting career in his early 40s with cameo roles in films like Something about Mary, Shallow Hal and Fever Pitch. Last autumn, Danny premiered CinemaAbility, an award-winning documentary about how Hollywood perceives people with disabilities. He was an inspiration to everybody who ever met him.
[This week, we also lost legendary actress Lauren Bacall, known for films like “To Have and Have Not.”]
