User reviews

There's so much that can be said about 'The Extendables' but that title meant to draw comparisons is a bad omen. A tale of Hollywood big screen action men, their egos & problems gets showcased in a virtual no-name cast with little action or budget. The real issue is there's very few laughs which seems to be the entire point to lampooning them.

An Arnold Schwarzenegger-like action star Vardell Duseldorfer (Brian Thompson) aka V. D. is mounting a career comeback after a failed last movie, a run in politics and a scandal involving sleeping with his maid. He's a middle aged drunk, drug addict, impotent sex obsessed idiot. As director / star of his new movie shooting in Eastern Europe 'Hard Time On Mars' can he finish the film & recapture his old glory?

I like Thompson - a character actor - who made his bones typically playing heavies in big budget action fare or the odd hero in dtv flicks. Having actually shared the stage with Arnold, Stallone and JCVD is cool. However the tale here isn't a joy to watch and there's no fun insight. Thompson juggles starring, editing, producing, writing & directing which almost makes for a bad vanity project. A word from him in front of a green screen at the start cements this feeling.

Some faces make cameos - Mark Dacascos, Martin Kove, Kevin Sorbo, Patrick Warburton - none of it very good. A lot of people are adopting an apologetic tone towards 'The Extendables', but I don't want anyone to be influenced into seeing this. You might be a fan of Thompson or think the apt concept of seeing behind the curtain is a fun time, but this is pretty unfunny affair.