Sabotage (2014)

When your team is supposed to be built on trust, what do you do when you can’t trust anyone? In March 2014, we watched as a team was slowly torn apart… from the inside out.

Directing this 109 minute action/drama/crime/thriller is David Ayer.

Figuring out who done it is: Arnold Schwarzenegger as John “Breacher” Wharton, Sam Worthington as James “Monster” Murray, Joe Manganiello as Joe “Grinder” Phillips, Josh Holloway as Eddie “Neck” Jordan, Terrence Howard as Julius “Sugar” Edmonds, Mireille Enos as Lizzy Murray, Max Martini as Tom “Pyro” Roberts and Olivia Williams as Caroline.

A DEA task force lead by a man named Breacher takes 10 million dollars from a cartel’s hide out. After coming up with a plan of getting the money safely out of the building, the team jumps into action and pulls off the heist. Only problem is, where the team was supposed to pick up the money, they find it’s missing and no one knows what happened to it. Now, someone is working their way through the team one by one trying to find the stolen money.

So here’s another flick where we get to watch Schwarzenegger shoot a bunch of bullets, kick in some teeth and save the day. Least that’s what I thought was going to happen when I sat down to watch the movie. So imagine my surprise when I got half the bullets and even less teeth kicking in by the time the movie was over. Seriously!? I just watched a Schwarzenegger film and the bad guys didn’t even need a dental plan in this one! Watching this movie (side track with me for a second will ya) was like ordering a beer, taking a big old drink (of what you were expecting) only to have your taste buds confused and overwhelmed by what al-most tasted like beer, but not really. Lo and behold, it was light beer. All (most) the right taste, half the calories, which that doesn’t even make sense to me, but that’s for another argument. To get back on point, I just watched an action film with Schwarzennegger in it, and when it was over I realized, I had gotten a Schwarzenegger light film. Believe it or not, I always get back around to my points, sometimes it just takes a few.

I’m not saying that there are no shoot outs or car chases because yeah you get them. Just not as many as I’m used to seeing with Schwarzenegger as a headliner.

The storyline that (writer) Skip Woods and (writer/director) David Ayer came up with was good. It’s definitely a different style for Arnie because the film is pretty dark and gritty. Luckily the brief breaks of action scenes helps keep it interesting because it lags from time to time. It’s supposed to be a this huge drama/thriller… well, there is a lot of drama, but the thrilling part never really took off for me. Even though the characters were kind of cool, you don’t really get a chance to know all of them that well. Some of the cast just comes off as more or less extras, instead of the more important parts that they were playing.

The group is supposed to be this badass DEA task force that takes on the big drug dealers. So it’s (supposed to be) understandable that they don’t act like your “typical” unit. Yet as they interact with everyone around them they wind up looking more like emotional misfits that are acting out because they can (I think they just needed a hug personally). Instead of your usual “This is how we unwind…” wild bunch. What ever, it’s an action movie. I mean really, who would watch a movie about a bunch of mentally stable, I don’t know, let’s say… librarians running around kicking in doors and thwarting bad guys? Hmm, that could work.

By far, this isn’t Schwarzenegger’s best film. It’s entertaining, for an action flick but it never evolves into anything more than just an action flick (with less action-y stuff). Which is kind of sad since it seems like his last few movies are going less action more drama. Unlike his return to acting film, The Last Stand (2013). Now that movie spent money on bullets. As for the plot, nothing new here, revenge is an age old storyline used over and over. The playthrough was ok, and had a few good twists and turns but unfortunately it’s still a predictable movie when it comes down to it. To me, even Arnie didn’t quite seem like his old self during this movie. Maybe he was trying something different, I don’t know, but I didn’t really like it.

Overall, it’s worth watching if you’re a Schwarzenegger fan, but even then I’d wait for the movie to hit the rentals before spending the money on it.

It’s rated R for nudity, violence and language.

3 stars

Summary : It's worth watching if you're a Schwarzenegger fan, but even then I'd wait for the movie to hit the rentals before spending the money on it.

It's rated R for nudity, violence and language.


Rating


Average

3