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Here's a look at the new movies I saw this week.

The Expendables 3
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mel Gibson, Kelan Lutz, Wesley Snipes, Randy Couture, Dolph Lundgren, and Terry Crews
Synopsis: In the summer of 2010, Sylvester Stallone was banking on the idea that audiences were tired of superheroes in tights and lavish special effects. He thought audiences missed good ole’ fashion action films, so he brought the world “The Expendables.” It was a novel idea — taking a group of action heroes from the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, and throwing them together in a big, loud throwback to a bygone era. The first film was fun, and it drew and audience. So, naturally, Stallone upped the stakes, expanded the cast and increased the explosion budget of “The Expendables 2” in the summer of 2012. Two years later, he hoped to catch lightening in a bottle a third time with the second sequel in the budding franchise. But this film feels tired now, and it’s flopped at the Box Office. There have been rumors of a fourth film in the franchise, but given the reception this time that might be wishful thinking. “The Expendables 3” follows the familiar format. Barney Ross (Stallone) and his band of mercenaries for hire expand their crew and face some baddies bent on ruining the world. This time that comes in the form of Stonebanks (Mel Gibson), an original member of Ross’s team who was thought to be dead but is now the world’s leading arms dealer. Barney’s team takes a run at taking Stonebanks out, but falls flat. Barney begins to think his team is getting too old, and the risk to them is too great, so he cuts them loose and recruits a new, younger team. When that team gets in a jam, too, Barney’s old friends come to the rescue. In some ways I think this movie was meant to be a metaphor for what Stallone has brought to the action genre with these films. His team — composed of heroes from a bygone era (including Dolph Lundgren, Wesley Snipes, Randy Couture and Jason Statham) — is dubbed past their prime. He recruits a young group — which includes “Twilight” star Kellan Lutz, boxer Victor Ortiz and MMA fighter Ronda Rousey — that plan to use youth and the latest technology to achieve success. That new group fails to accomplish the mission, so the old guys and their old methods come to the rescue. As a meta statement about how Stallone feels about the film industry, “The Expendables 3” makes its point. In the end the young guys and some of their technology and the old guys and some of their classic methods have to work together to accomplish the goals. That’s a nice idea, I guess. But if we’re evaluating “The Expendables 3” as a piece of pop entertainment, it feels stale. The film slides into the same routine as its predecessors, and now feels as tired as the big effects spectacle films it sought to counter-program against. We’ve seen this story many times over the years, and there isn’t enough original here to keep this franchise going.
Rating: PG-13 for violence including intense sustained gun battles and fight scenes, and for language.
Verdict: One star out of four.

Sin City: A Dame to Kill For

Starring: Jessica Biel, Mickey Rourke, Powers Boothe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Eva Green, and Josh Brolin

Synopsis: When the original “Sin City” film came out in 2005, it debuted to much fanfare. It was an original concept in terms of the cinematic style, the use of black and white and it’s heavy use of green screen. It cost about $40 million to make and made nearly $75 million at the domestic Box Office. It was also one of the most violent and depraved films I’d seen. That was largely due to its source material — Frank Miller’s graphic novels. The movie certainly put the graphic in the graphic novel adaptations. It was dark, moody and exceedingly violent. “Sin City: A Dame to Kill For” is largely the same, but the movie marketplace has changed in the nine years since. “Sin City” no longer stands out for either its cinematic techniques or its levels of violence and depravity. Torture porn movies are darker and more depraved in their violence, and the use of green screen has become passé. That, in fact, might be one of the reasons “Sin City: A Dame to Kill For” struggled at the Box Office. Earlier this year the follow up to “300,” another graphic novel adaptation from Frank Miller’s literary arsenal, failed to earn its money back. It cost $110 million to make, and it made back just over $106 million at the Box Office. “Sin City: A Dame to Kill For” struggled even more, making just over $6 million on opening weekend. That’s likely a sign audiences are fatigued with these stories and this style of filmmaking. “Sin City: A Dame to Kill For” offers another collection of stories with intertwined characters. It’s got some familiar faces, and some new characters. But the stories all end the same — with sex and violence. Mercifully the follow up is shorter than the original, but it’s no less graphic in terms of story. But whereas the first felt original in the way the story was put together, this feels tired and boring. There isn’t much to hold onto her, and there isn’t much to like about the film. And nine years after the original debuted, it’s clear people aren’t clamoring to see more of this world brought to life on screen.

Rating: R for strong brutal stylized violence throughout, sexual content, nudity, and brief drug use. Enter with caution.

Verdict: Zero stars out of four.

Upcoming Releases:

Friday, September 12 — "A Dolphin Tale 2," "No Good Deed," "Search Party"

Friday, September 19 — "This Is Where I Leave You," "A Walk Among the Tombstones," "Maze Runner," "Reclaim"

Friday, September 26 — "The Equalizer," "The Boxtrolls," "Laggies"