Given that both 2010’s The Expendables and 2012’s Expendables 2 turned decent profits, should the existence of 2014’s Expendables 3 come as a surprise? Obviously not.

And it also shouldn’t shock anyone that the franchise paused there, as declining ticket sales meant Expendables 3 broke even at best. Autumn 2023 apparently will bring back the series, however.

A few years earlier, Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone) and Conrad Stonebanks (Mel Gibson) co-founded “The Expendables”, a ragtag group of mercenaries. However, when Conrad turned to illicit arms dealing, Barney became forced to assassinate him.

Or maybe not, as Conrad reappears alive and well. This leads to a battle between the two former colleagues.

When the first movie appeared in 2010, its basic premise worked enough on its own to entice viewers. It mixed a “dream team” of 80s action stars Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis with other notables to create a veritable genre event.

Expendables 2 couldn’t coast on that novelty, so one would expect it to bring in plenty of new notables to pick up the slack. However, only Jean-Claude Van Damme and Chuck Norris presented significant additions.

It did allow for Stallone, Schwarzenegger and Willis to spend more time together, which helped fulfill the promotion better. Those last two offered glorified cameos in the 2010 flick but they enjoyed more to do in the second flick.

Apparently in an attempt to sustain the franchise, Expendables 3 brings a slew of new celebrities to the flicks. It loses Wills, but in addition to Gibson, it adds Harrison Ford, Antonio Banderas, Wesley Snipes, Ronda Rousey, Robert Davi and notable action star Kelsey Grammer.

Can these new faces bring life to a fairly mediocre series? Yeah, kind of. Expendables 3 doesn’t excel, but it seems fresher than its predecessors.

Each film came with a different director. Stallone himself helmed the 2010 movie, while Simon West took on the 2012 iteration.

With Expendables 3, we find Patrick Hughes behind the camera, though I suspect fans reacted “Patrick who?” back in 2014. At that point, Hughes enjoyed only one feature credit as director: 2010’s Red Hill, a Western he shot in his native Australia that received almost literally no theatrical release in the US.

That made Hughes a surprising choice for a big budget action sequel. Perhaps given that the first two movies featured older veteran directors, the producers figured new blood would invigorate the franchise.

And to some degree, this seems true. I feel like Stallone and West just coasted for the prior films, whereas Hughes works a little harder to make the property work.

As noted, the third chapter can’t rely on the novelty of the cast to carry the day, though those involved clearly hoped the inclusion of so many new actors would add spark. Though not noted previously, this chapter actually creates a “new Expendables”.

When Barney contemplates the mortality of his long-time associates, he decides to cut them loose – whether they want that or not. This means he brings in a younger group portrayed by Glen Powell, Ronda Rousey, Kellan Lutz and Victor Ortiz.

None of them can do much with their thin parts, but the presence of more novel actors gives the movie a little jolt. Of course, we know that the “OG Expendables” will return by the climax, but I like the change of pace.

The “new old” actors like Banderas, Grammer and Ford provide a bit of zest as well. As my snarky comment earlier implied, Grammer doesn’t exactly scream “action hero”, but he brings some comedic relief in his wry way, and Banderas, Gibson and Ford deliver a bit of panache as well.

Most importantly, Expendables 3 shows more flair in terms of its action scenes. The opening rescue sequence boasts more impact than pretty much anything in the first two movies, and subsequent set pieces also feel more engaging.

I guess the biggest step up here comes from the fact that Expendables 3 feels like a movie from the 21st century and not just a tired rehash of 1980s clichés. Expendables 2 became especially egregious in that regard, particularly when it offered a lot of irritating self-reference.

For the most part, Expendables 3 avoids those cheap gags. Even when it does allude to the actors’ past, it does so in a more subtle manner.

Can I call Expendables 3 a great – or even especially good – action movie? No, but it comes with enough zest to make it a reasonably entertaining flick and my favorite of the franchise to date.

Footnote: with an end credit reel that lasts 10 and a half minutes, you probably expect a bonus scene or two in there. Wrong: the movie simply comes with a ridiculously long presentation.

The Expendables 3 appears in an aspect ratio of 2.40:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. As expected, the movie came with a terrific visual presentation.

At all times, definition looked great. The film showed solid delineation, with nary a soft spot to be found.

I witnessed no shimmering or jagged edges, and edge haloes failed to appear. Of course, print flaws also didn’t occur, so this was a clean image.

In terms of colors, Expendables 3 emphasized teal, amber and orange. While predictable, the hues seemed well-rendered.

Blacks were dark and deep, and low-light shots offered nice smoothness and clarity. Everything about the image worked.

Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, the Dolby Atmos soundtrack of Wife presented an exciting experience. One would anticipate a high-octane blast from a movie like this, and that’s what the mix delivered.

The soundfield boasted a lot of activity and used the channels well. Vehicles and various forms of mayhem came from logical spots all around the room and meshed in a smooth manner. All the speakers became active partners to turn this into a vibrant, engrossing track.

Audio quality also seemed strong. Music was lively and full, and speech appeared natural and concise.

Effects dominated and appeared solid. Those elements came across as accurate and dynamic, with fine low-end response as well. I felt pleased with this sizzling soundtrack.

How did the 4K UHD compare to the Blu-ray version? Both came with identical audio.

As for visuals, the 4K offered superior delineation, colors and blacks. Like I mentioned, whites/contrast felt a bit too strong, but I still thought the 4K became the more satisfying presentation.

No extras appear on the 4K disc itself, but we get a few on the included Blu-ray copy. Whereas the 4K provides only the movie’s “PG-13” theatrical edition (2:06:27), the Blu-ray also boasts an unrated cut (2:11:31).

The first two movies opted for “R” ratings, which makes sense given the genre. I guess the studio figured a “PG-13” Expendables would sell more tickets – which turned out to be incorrect, as the third movie saw a distinct decline in sales.

In any case, the “Unrated’ version rectifies this. It may lack a formal rating, but with added violence and profanity, it clearly would’ve gotten an “R”.

Though most of the additions bring the aforementioned extra “R” content, these tend to be very brief. Some new or more substantially extended scenes appear as well.

For instance, we get more of the “new Expendables” as they bond. Galgo yammers more in the longer cut as well.

Does the unrated version really work any better than the “PG-13” one? Mildly, at least for fans of the franchise, as they want as much violence as possible.

Nothing much changes in terms of story or characters, though, as the additions for the supporting roles I mentioned don’t truly do much. Still, I’m glad fans can see the longer/more explicit cut.

As we move to extras, the main attraction comes from an Expendables 3 documentary called… Expendables 3 Documentary. It runs 51 minutes, 56 seconds and offers notes from producers Kevin King, Jason Constantine and Danny Lerner, executive producers Boaz Davidson, Avi Lerner, Les Weldon and John Thompson, co-writer/actor Sylvester Stallone, stunt coordinator JJ Perry, editor Sean Albertson, aerial coordinator Marc Wolff, director Patrick Hughes, and actors Terry Crews, Jason Statham, Harrison Ford, Wesley Snipes, Dolph Lundgren, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Glen Powell, Mel Gibson, Randy Couture, Kellan Lutz, Antonio Banderas, Ronda Rousey, Victor Ortiz, and Kelsey Grammer.

The program covers the presence of new director Patrick Hughes, stunts and action, sets and locations, cast and characters.

With nearly an hour at its disposal, I expected the documentary to offer a good take on the production, and it does occasionally provide some useful material, especially when we get shots from the set. However, an awful lot of the show simply praises the movie and all involved, so it becomes a disappointment.

New Blood lasts 16 minutes, 11 seconds and features Lutz, Ortiz, Snipes, Banderas, Rousey, Gibson, Stallone, Powell, Lundgren, Gibson and Couture.

“Blood” looks at new Expendables. It offers a handful of decent thoughts but turns into another fluffy reel.

Next comes The Total Action Package, a six-minute, 40-second piece that provides remarks from Powell, Snipes, Stallone, Rousey, Ortiz, Lundgren, Hughes, Couture, Lutz, Snipes, and Banderas.

Here we cover… not much of anything, though I guess the featurette intends to look at action scenes. Instead, it praises the actors and becomes a snoozer.

A Gag Reel fills five minutes, 41 seconds with the usual goofs and giggles. Nothing especially thrilling appears.

Called “Christmas Runs the Gauntlet, an Extended Scene spans two minutes, 46 seconds. As expected, it adds more action and seems competent in that regard.

The disc opens with ads for Draft Day, Life of Crime, A Most Wanted Man, Divergent and Red 2. No trailer for Expendables 3 appears here.

After two disappointing action flicks, The Expendables 3 offers a moderately pleasant surprise. While not a great film, it seems friskier and more engaging than its predecessors. The Blu-ray comes with strong picture and audio but bonus features seem superficial. This becomes the most entertaining entry in the franchise.

To rate this film, visit the prior review of THE EXPENDABLES 3