Although Arnold Schwarzenegger has dabbled in the comedy genre with such films as: Kindergarten Cop, Junior, and Twins; it’s the action genre that has made him a household name. Mostly known for playing the Terminator and spouting lines likes “I’ll be back” and “hasta la vista baby”, Arnold has always taken his action presence with a grain of salt. In 1993 he even went as far as to parody himself by playing Jack Slater in the action/ comedy film entitled Last Action Hero. In 2003 Arnold took a bit of a hiatus from acting while he focused on his political career by running and then being elected governor of California. Since leaving office in 2011, Arnold has been attempting to restart his acting career with films that simply haven’t had the impact like the ones in which he once starred in. David Ayer’s new action film entitled Sabotage is another attempt to get Arnold’s calling back on track.
A special DEA task force has been assigned to infiltrate a drug cartel’s compound and destroy the large stack of money that sits inside. While on the mission, the group decides amongst themselves to steal ten million of it, hide it, and then come back for it later. When they go back for the money, they realize that it’s been stolen and they begin to suspect each other for taking it. Months later, different team members begin turning up and a female police detective is put on the case to figure out who is doing it.
This film is bombastic, outrageously stupid, and filled with so many plot holes that it’s reminiscent of Swiss cheese. Arnold and his A-list of actors do their best with the material that they are given, but the overall serious tone of the film coupled with its over-the-top action and over complicated plot leave an unsettling comedic element within. The motivations and personalities of characters are absurdly goofy and are evocative of Saturday morning cartoon characters rather than real people. For example, the police detective is being hardnosed and somewhat prudish in one scene and then in the next she is cracking sexually-laced jokes and making fun of her partner for no reason whatsoever.
The action scenes are shot with the typical shaky cam style which gives them a very pronounced, true-to-life feel. However the amount of blood that is expelled from those getting shot is almost laughable in the sheer volume of what you can see coming out. As the plot unfolds and you begin to realize what is really going on, the entire film simply falls apart. There are two significant twists that happen and both will have you shaking your head in pure disbelief. The ending especially feels like it was cut out of one of Arnold’s 80’s films due to its largely campy quality.
The film as a whole isn’t entirely unwatchable; the camaraderie between the numerous task force members shows a lot of promise but is unfortunately underutilized throughout. Action can sometimes entirely save a film but when numerous stern things become increasingly laughable over and over, the action becomes outweighed and the film begins to turn into something unbearable. To put it bluntly, Sabotage is the name of the film and is also what David Ayer did to it in order to make it into the crap that it turned out to be.
FINAL TAKE: 3/11
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[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=8HDArXZgrsE]
About the Movie
Synopsis: A special DEA task force team begins getting killed off one by one because of a botched drug cartel assignment.
Director: David Ayer
Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sam Worthington, Joe Manganiello, Terrance Howard
Rated: R
Run time: 109 min
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Just call me “Turbo” because it sums me up in a single word. I’m originally from Visalia, California but currently reside in Mesa, Arizona. I’m a movie and video game fanatic with a BA in Film and Media Production from ASU. I try to see every movie that I can (new and old) as well as play the latest video game releases. My goal in life would be to create a feature length film which viewers absolutely love. However, until then I love to entertain people with my 100+ voice impersonations as well as fill them in with the latest movie/ gaming news on Twitter. Facebook.com/turbizl, Twitter: @turbizl
