Why Expendables 4’s CGI Looks So Bad Despite $100M Budget Detailed By VFX Artists

Summary

• The Expendables 4
  disappointed VFX artists with its poor effects, as it failed to make anything look especially believable.
• The Corridor Crew reflected that there was a ”
  lack of care
  ” put into the blockbuster movie’s effects.
• A lack of budget for VFX and abrupt changes from practical to green screen effects contributed to the movie’s failure.

While it was meant to be a hard-hitting action flick, The Expendables 4 disappointed a team of skilled VFX artists. As the first movie in the Expendables franchise since TheExpendables 3 was released in 2014, it was meant to revitalize the franchise. Jason Statham took the lead for the first time, with Sylvester Stallone rejoining the movies after seemingly quitting. Despite Statham’s hopes, the movie was a box office disappointment, earning just $51.1 million, thanks in part to releasing during the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes.

It earned little attention at the box office, but VFX artists are now drawing some notice to the poor visual effects. The Corridor Crew took to YouTube to share their perspective on the various effects during the latest “VFX Artists React” episode.

During the reflection, Niko, Jordan and Wren considered a several scene that featured a plane landing on a runway, two vehicles riding out, and then stunt jumps, and explosions. There were many harsh responses, ranging from “It could have been better” to “That’s rough, dude“. They found that the shots rarely matched together, and the actors never reflected how strong the recoil could be on their rifles. The trio eventually settled on the idea that all the problems stem back to a “lack of care“.

Expendables 4 Needed More VFX Work

The Corridor Crew Tore Expendables 4 Apart

The Corridor Crew reflected that the practical effects are likely where the majority of the effects budget went, as they had nothing but praise for those effects. The CGI budget, meanwhile, was smaller. The largest cost, however, came from paying The Expendables 4‘s cast, including Statham, Stallone, Dolph Lundgren, Randy Couture, and Iko Uwais. They were joined by Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Megan Fox, and Levy Tran. The well-known ensemble cast would have swallowed a large portion of the budget, leaving little for the VFX work.

There were several issues that the Corridor Crew isolated, but one issue of note was the abrupt change from practical effects to green screen. With characters leaping from real-world vehicles to images of Jason Statham sitting in front of computer-generated effects, the shift makes it appear downright baffling. The movie also makes use of picture sliding and other fairly basic effects, which hardly reflects the $100 million budget. The explosions were real, but the Corridor Crew believes that the effects did not blend well with the CGI.

The effects were so disappointing that one member of the Corridor Crew responded in shock after learning that the movie was released just eight months before their video was filmed. Given that the movie only made $51.1 million on a budget of $100 million, their criticism is harsh but likely reflects the prevailing response that convinced audiences to stay home. The movie earned a score of just 13% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer, so the negative response is fairly universal within the industry. The Expandables 4‘s effects were simply disappointing, and it hurt the franchise immensely.

Source: Corridor Crew / YouTube