Sabotage (2014) or, Hardcore Badasses!

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Arnold Schwarzenegger and his band of roughnecks meet you heavily armed in David Ayer's Sabotage

A DEA operations group 'lose' 10 mil. $ at a big explosion of drug cash money and are then investigated for months. When they are finally activated again, they begin dying one by one.

Sabotage is a hardboiled, violent, extremely bloody revenge action-thriller that also involves drugs and f-bombs and other cuss-words dropped left and right continuously. - It won't appeal to all, for sure.
But it has good characters; not least the two female ones: Olivia Williams (Hyde Park on Hudson (2012)) looks to be enjoying her time playing a radically different, strong, contemporary cop character, and Mireille Enos (The Killing (2011-14)) reminded me of a young, red-headed, white Grace Jones, (which is a compliment in the context.) They are good, and so are Joe Manganiello (Magic Mike (2012)), Sam Worthington (Avatar (2009)) and Arnold Schwarzenegger (The Last Stand (2013)) as the natural center of the movie, group leader Breacher.
Sabotage features cool cars and weapons and a nightmarish train-scene. It all leads forward with building tension to SPOILER a Mexican finale that is a little incongruent to the rest of the film, but still strangely enjoyable, in which Arnie comes out as the avenger from the North, good as always.
It is directed by David Ayer (End of Watch (2012)), who is also seeing the release of his huge WWII tank movie Fury in 2014. 

Related posts:

2014 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED IV]
2014 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]
2014 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

Olivia Williams wears cool shades, looks cools and plays well in David Ayer's Sabotage

Thai poster with a stone-set Arnold for David Ayer's Sabotage

Watch an awesome trailer for the film here

Cost: 35 mil. $
Box office: 17.5 mil. $
= Big flop
[Sabotage was the worst opening for an Arnold-starring film in over 30 years (just 5.3 mil. $ US opening weekend) and only got to 10.5 mil. $ in total American gross, which is terrible. The rest of the world didn't help Sabotage much, which didn't even have a theatrical premiere in several countries like Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Italy, Canada and Hungary. It got bad reviews generally, but apart from that I cannot explain its lamentable result. Younger male action-fans are obviously not a dependable segment anymore, (and that's really sad.)]

What do you think of Sabotage?
Why do you think it flopped so badly?

28 Weeks Later (2007) or, Fast Zombies in England 2

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The blood-red poster for Juan Carlos Fresnadillo's 28 Weeks Later

The zombie virus from the first film has left England a wasteland. Now American forces are trying to re-establish the country, - but disaster strikes again.

The nearly doubled budget, compared to its successful predecessor, Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later (2002), means (especially) more alone-in-the-world scenes and an expensive fire-bombing-scene of London here in the inevitable sequel. The sequel also employs documentary-style photography.
Weeks, co-written by its Spanish director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (Intruders (2011)), Rowan Joffe (Before I Go to Sleep (2014)), Enrique López Lavigne (El Asombroso Mundo de Borjamari y Pocholo (2004)) and Jesús Olmo (Flores Muertas (2004)), is intensely frightening and at times disgusting.
But on the down side, its score by John Murphy (Snatch. (2000)) is monotone, and an annoying subplot with kids also weighs down the film.
Boyle was busy with Sunshine (2007) at the time of the making of the movie and therefore left the directing to Spanish Fresnadillo, known at the time for the Spanish mystery film Intacto (2001).
Robert Carlyle (Trainspotting (1996)) stars in 28 Weeks Later alongside Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker (2008)) and Rose Byrne (Bridesmaids (2011)). But these bigger stars can't conceal that the movie isn't nearly as good as 28 Days Later.
It was a hit though, so another sequel is in talks.

Related review:

28 Days Later (2002) or, Fast Zombies in England

The mediocrity of 28 Weeks Later is apparent in its trailer

Cost: 15 mil. $

Box office: 64.2 mil. $
= Big hit (returned 4.28 times the cost)
[28 Weeks Later premiered 26 April (London) and runs 100 minutes. Shooting took place in the UK, including London and Wales, and in Paris, France, ending in September 2006. The film opened #2, behind holdover hit Spider-Man 3, to a 9.8 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it spent another week in the top 5 (#4) and grossed 28.6 mil. $ (44.5 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 10.6 mil. $ (16.5 %) and Spain with 4.5 mil. $ (7%). It was nominated for 2 British Independent Spirit awards. As of July 2010, the film has sold 1.3 mil. DVD and Blu-ray units in North America alone, accruing another 24.3 mil. $, which, if added into the theatrical gross, would change the film's status to that of a 'huge hit'. Fresnadillo returned with Intruders (2011). Carlyle returned in The Last Enemy (2008, miniseries) and theatrically in Stone of Destiny (2008); Renner in Take (2007) and Byrne in Just Buried (2007). 28 Weeks Later is fresh at 71 % with a 6.6/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of 28 Weeks Later?