- Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
- Video Codec: AVC/MPEG-4
- Resolution: 1080p/24 (23.976Hz)
- Audio Codec: English DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1
- Subtitles: English, English SDH, Spanish
- Region: A (Region-Locked)
- Rating: Not Rated
- Run Time: 113 Mins
- Discs: 1 (1 x Blu-ray + Digital Copy)
- Studio: Lionsgate
- Blu-ray Release Date: December 13, 2011
- List Price: $24.99
[amazon-product]B005Y1B3Q0[/amazon-product]
BestBuy.com:
Purchase The Expendables Extended Director’s Cut at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:4/5]
The Film
[Rating:4/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:3/5]
Click thumbnails for high-resolution 1920X1080p screen captures
(Screen captures are lightly compressed with lossy JPEG thus are meant as a general representation of the content and do not fully reveal the capabilities of the Blu-ray format)
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The Film
[Rating:4/5]
Even at his, let’s say, slightly, advanced age and with the unfortunate plastic surgery, Sly’s is believable in his latest actioner The Expendables. It is a hit because it puts him right back where fans have really wanted to see him all along – with a big gun in his hands trekking through the jungle, like in that other successful franchise, Rambo.
With an all-star cast of action film heavyweights that is a casting director’s wet dream come true, including Sylvester Stallone himself, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Randy Couture, Mickey Rourke, and even cameos by Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger, Expendables could only lose with a bad script. Fortunately, Stallone, who directed and co-wrote the screenplay, stepped up and delivered with an adrenalin fueled, high-octane action film with heart and humor.
Barney Ross (Stallone) leads a group of mercenaries called “the Expendables” who take on impossible jobs around the world that people want kept secret. When they get a particularly dangerous mission from the secretive Mr. Church (Willis) to topple the military dictator of a tiny island nation in the Gulf of Mexico, the guys take on the mission due to its big payout of $5 million.
When Barney and Christmas (Statham), the blade expert, first scope the island out for the mission, they realize it is too dangerous and must flee, but in doing so they put in danger the life of their contact, Sandra (Giselle Itié). Barney, unable to get Sandra out of his mind, decides to go back to save her on his own, but the rest of the group decide to help. Together, they head down to the tiny island to complete the dangerous mission and rescue the beautiful Sandra from the evil clutches of her father’s backer, a rogue CIA agent (Eric Roberts).
The Expendables arrives in this new edition with an all-new extended director’s cut that is every bit as fun and thrilling as the theatrical edition. The finale will leave you with your jaw hanging open. This is what a good action film should be.
Video Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
In the AVC/MPEG-4 1080p/24 encodement, The Expendables looks very strong. There is a lot of detail extracted from the original Super 35mm production and wide contrast. Blacks are deep, with only some slight issues with crush, but not enough to detract from the nuance of shadow delineation. Only occasionally do some issues with softness crop up, more from the film itself than the actual transfer.
Audio Quality
[Rating:5/5]
The film is supplied with an awesome DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 soundtrack that has a wide dynamic range, clean dialogue and lots of directional panning across the front. The surround channels are active from the very beginning of the film with lots of atmospherics and discrete sounds. Low frequencies are big and audacious, especially during the spectacular finale.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:3/5]
This new Extended Director’s Cut edition of The Expendables brings along all the extras from the original release plus two new features.
The supplements:
- Introduction by Sylvester Stallone – New
- Action: The Expendables (Spike Get Real) (1.78:1; 00:20:33) Spike TV’s behind-the-scenes featurette on The Expendables.
- “Sinner’s Prayer” Music Video by Sully Erna (of Godsmack) – New
- Sylvester Stallone: A Director in Action (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:20:21) – Stallone speaks about directing his latest action film.
- Inferno: The Making of The Expendables
- Metamenu
- BDTouch
- Digital Copy
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:4/5]
This is a good one to pick up, especially if you haven’t already purchased the theatrical edition of The Expendables. Either way, this is like the rebirth of classic Stallone, helped out by some old and new action stars. Recommended.
Additional Screen Captures
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[amazon-product]B005Y1B3Q0[/amazon-product]
BestBuy.com:
Purchase The Expendables Extended Director’s Cut at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:4/5]
The Film
[Rating:4/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:3/5]
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