The Yellow Flick Road

YFR Analysis - The Expendables

When discussing this genre ( and let's not get confused... That is what these movies are, a formulaic genre) understand that it will fall into the middle of the Yellow Flick Road. The Expendables and all its ilk are Neo-Golan Globus action adventures.

For those uninitiated, The Yellow Flick Road is the theory that all movies are based on the 1939 MGM classic The Wizard of Oz starring Judy Garland as Dorothy. No matter the genre - Action, drama, horror, western, sci-if, rom-com - they all take their cue from the Wizard of Oz.

Here is the breakdown in sixteen simple steps. You can design the perfect circa 1980s Action-adventure based on the following:

1. An upset Dorothy petitions for Toto, who is about to be destroyed by Mrs. Gulch. This translates to a rescue mission.

2. Dorothy decides to run away. After a successful rescue, the team still needs to escape.

3. Dorothy has a heart to heart with Professor Marvel, and opts to return home. The team discusses among themselves the philosophical  ramifications of being a mercenary, soldier of fortune, call it what you will.

4. Dorothy returns home during a tornado. Sly, our leader, gets a visit from Bruce Willis.

5. The twister lifts the house, Dorothy is knocked out. Winds up in Oz.

The team flies to their new mission. A new member is added.

6. Introduction of the Wicked Witch. Threats are made. Insert bad guy here, According to taste - Eric Roberts, JCVD, Mad Max... Call it what you will.

7. Follow the Yellow Brick Road. The walking begins.

8. The Scarecrow is introduced. Some ensemble member impresses the others with intelligence.

8. The Tinman is introduced. In an ensemble cast, some physical feature is featured - Terry Crews's guns, Jason Staham's knife skills... Take your pick.

9. The Lion is introduced. Some unstable border-line psychotic gets a dressing up or dressing down, usually by Dorothy. Dolph Lungren. 'Nuff said.

10. Poppies. That will make them sleep. Fortunately, Glinda is watching their six. Some benefactor comes along and helps the plot along surreptitiously. Chuck Norris, perhaps, in an obligatory cameo.

11. The Emerald City and an audience with the Wizard.  After some resistance, Dorothy and her mates are welcomed in and tasked. Consider that the Emerald City looks more put together than it actually is. Therefore, the help they get is superficial, perhaps a pep talk, nothing more substantial than that. Can you connect the dots at this point?

12. Their mission falls flat.  Usually, Dorothy gets captured and is reliant on her companions to figure out how to rescue her. In the original WoZ, Dorothy was captured because of the Ruby slippers. In an 80s gun feast, that translates to weapons grade plutonium, which the bad guy already possesses, so it is a car chase.

13. The Scarecrow has a plan. Some out of the box thinking, in this case, the addition of some extra characters, allows the plot to move forward.

14. Showdown with the Wicked Witch leads to her horrible death at the hands of Dorothy. Sly gets to dispatch the bad guy. For those of us who crave a decent fight scene, Jason is in full Transporter mode.

15. The team is rewarded with brains, hearts and courage, and Dorothy gets to go home. Understand that our Wizard (Bruce Willis) provides Sly with a spurious way home, then leaves first.

16. Dorothy gets a dose of reality. Sly and Jason  et. al have some light banter that also recalls the event du cinema.

You know, 99% of action films follow this formula, from Die Hard to Lockdown.  Test me, please.