The Expendables gets a (generic) official trailer.

Well, that looks every bit as underwhelming as the leaked 'bootleg trailer' from a couple months ago. This has been tested a couple times and the word has been generally unimpressive. The film certainly feels like an 80s throwback, right down to the cheesy theme song that inexplicably shares its title with the film in question. The film also feels very 80s in that it's mainly just planning for action with a major action blow-out coming only at the finale (think Commando). I'm still beyond shocked that Lionsgate gave away what should have been a applause-garnering surprise cameo (the scene at 0:51). This trailer at least looks polished and clean and the cast rundown does a better job of highlighting which big action stars are actually in the picture. If Lionsgate has any brains (who knows these days?), they'll cut a second clip later this summer highlighting the bad guys (Eric Roberts and Danny Trejo) and the women in peril (Charisma Carpenter and Giselle Itié) and emphasizing hard action over 'the bonds of brotherhood'. This is a pick-up for Lionsgate, so their exposure shouldn't be too bad. At this point, The Expendables looks every bit as disappointing as that other 'dream team-up' Freddy Vs. Jason.

Scott Mendelson