The Expendables 2

The Expendables 2 has quietly become one of the more dependable crime dramas currently available in Australia on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, and in the US on fuboTV and Paramount+ Amazon Channel. The length is exactly right for the story it is telling — nothing rushed, nothing dragged out. A 6/10 rating says what the writing already makes obvious: this one works. Sylvester Stallone sets the tone, and the ensemble matches it scene for scene. Start it on Netflix whenever you need something guaranteed to land.

The Expendables 2 arrived without much fanfare and built its audience the hard way — through word of mouth. The plotting gives The Expendables 2 its backbone, but it is the characters you come back for. Mr. Church reunites the Expendables for what should be an easy paycheck, but when one of their men is murdered on the job, their quest for revenge puts them deep in enemy territory and up against an unexpected threat. Credit to Sylvester Stallone and Jason Statham for grounding it — this is a cast that earns the twists. It was released in 2012. The Expendables 2 is at its best in the quiet scenes between the plot beats, where the character work actually happens. It delivers reliably on what it promises, which is more than most of its competition manages.

If you cannot walk away from a good mystery, The Expendables 2 will keep you hooked. It stands on its own even without an obvious comparison point. It is a manageable watch, easy to fit into a single evening. Watch Sylvester Stallone work — it is a masterclass in the genre. Few crime dramas earn their twists this consistently.