The Expendables 2 (Aug 2012)

Genre:

Action

Directed by:

Sylvester Stallone

Starring:

Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li

Release date:

Fri 17, Aug 2012

 Budget           $100 million

Box office            $235.6 million

     The Expendables 2 is a 2012 American ensemble action film directed by Simon West and written by Richard Wenk and Sylvester Stallone, based on a story by Ken Kaufman, David Agosto and Wenk. It is a sequel to the 2010 action film The Expendables, and stars Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Chuck Norris, Randy Couture, Terry Crews, Liam Hemsworth, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The film follows the mercenary group The Expendables as they undertake a seemingly simple mission that evolves into a quest for revenge against Jean Vilain, a rival mercenary that has murdered one of their own, and who threatens the world with a deadly weapon.

     Principal photography took place over 14 weeks beginning in September 2011 on an estimated $100 million budget, with filming occurring in Bulgaria, Hong Kong and New Orleans. Controversy arose over environmental damage caused during filming in Bulgaria, and the accidental death of a stuntman. Brian Tyler returned to score the film.

     The film was released across Europe on August 16, 2012, followed by a North American release on August 17. A tie-in downloadable video game was released on July 31, 2012, that served as a prequel to the events of the film.

Plot

     The Expendables—leader Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone), knives specialist Lee Christmas (Jason Statham), hand-to-hand combat specialist Yin Yang (Jet Li), heavy weapons specialist Hale Caesar (Terry Crews), demolitions expert Toll Road (Randy Couture), the unstable Gunner Jensen (Dolph Lundgren), and sniper Billy the Kid (Liam Hemsworth), the team's newest recruit and Ross' protegée—are deployed to Nepal to rescue a Chinese businessman. There, they also rescue the captured mercenary Trench (Arnold Schwarzenegger), Ross' rival. Yang parts with the group to escort the businessman back to China.

     After returning to New York City, Billy tells Ross that he intends to retire by the end of the month to live in France with his girlfriend Sophia, and Ross accepts his decision. Later, Ross is forced to accept a mission from CIA operative Mr. Church (Bruce Willis) 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 team to crack the safe. In Albania, the mercenaries successfully retrieve the item, but are then ambushed by international criminal and arms dealer Jean Vilain (Jean-Claude Van Damme), his right-hand man Hector (Scott Adkins) and his mercenary group, the Sangs, who have captured Billy. Vilain demands the Expendables' weapons and the item in exchange for Billy's life. The team surrenders the item, but Vilain roundhouse kicks a knife through Billy's heart and flees with the Sangs by helicopter. Ross recovers a note for Sophia from Billy's body, and the team buries their fallen comrade, swearing revenge on Vilain.

     Maggie tells the team 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. The Expendables are able to partially track the blueprint computer's signal to follow Vilain, leading them to Bulgaria. They rest at an abandoned Russian military base overnight. The following morning, the team is ambushed by the Sangs and a tank. After the Expendables run out of ammunition, they are saved by Booker (Chuck Norris), Ross's old friend, who quickly eliminates both the Sangs and the tank. Before he departs, Booker informs the group of a nearby village whose residents oppose Vilain. Meanwhile, Hector and Vilain discover the plutonium and begin its collection.

     Arriving at the village, the Expendables find several armed female villagers guarding their children from Vilain's forces: the local villages' inhabitants are taken by Vilain's forces and put to work in the mine as slaves, never returning. The women plead for the Expendables' help. The Sangs arrive to collect more villagers, but they are ambushed by the Expendables and killed. After locating Vilain and the mine, the team assaults the area with their plane before purposefully crashing into the mine itself. The team manages to save the enslaved miners from execution, but Vilain and Hector escape with the plutonium. Vilain remotely detonates explosive charges in the mine, causing it to collapse and trap the Expendables and miners.

     Church and Trench arrive and free the Expendables and miners. The pair then joins with the Expendables to pursue Vilain. The group intercepts Vilain and his men at an airport as he prepares to leave by plane. Joined again by Booker, the Expendables, Trench, and Church engage the Sangs in battle. Christmas manages to decapitate Hector, while elsewhere Ross and Vilain fight their own personal duel. Ross defeats Vilain, stabbing him and avenging Billy.

     In the aftermath, Ross is provided with an old biplane by Church. Church, Maggie, Booker, and Trench then leave the team. In France, Sophia (Nikolette Noel) discovers a box on her doorstep, containing a large sum of money and Billy's letter. As the Expendables depart in the plane, they give a final toast in honor of Billy.

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References.

External links:

"Main Page." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 13 Sept. 2012. Web. 13 Sept. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page>.

https://www.google.com/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi 

 

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