Mountain Views News          Saturday, April 5, 2014

Mountain Views News Saturday, April 5, 2014 
15THE ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Mountain Views News Saturday, April 5, 2014 
15THE ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT 
Co-writer/director

David Ayer returns with 

another cop film after his 
sensational 2012 sleeper hit, “End Of Watch.” 
While that flick packed a whole lot of emotional 
punch, Ayer’s new flick, “Sabotage” is about as 
pointless as two-dollar bill. It features Arnold 
Schwarzenegger as John “Breacher” Wharton, 
the commander of a DEA elite group in his 
darkest post-political role. The group consists 
of the usual ragtag, booze-lovin’, foul mouthed, 
testosterone driven sociopaths. “Sabotage” begins 
with Breacher viewing a videotape of a woman 
being tortured and subsequently killed by 
Mexican drug cartel. Eight months passes and his 
team is about to infiltrate a drug house in Atlanta. 
The team blows through bad guys left and right in 
an incredibly bloody affair. Once they get down to 
the bottom level of the mansion, it becomes clear 
Arnold and his band of brothers (and one female) 
are there to skim some cash off the pile of millions 
that’s neatly wrapped up. To be exact, the agents 
are taking ten million to split between them, 
which is a fraction of what is actually there. After 
successfully tying the cash to a rope and sending 
it down the toilet drain, one of their comrades is 
taken down by a guy left over from upstairs. The 
team quickly kills him, but the FBI, who initiated 
the raid, hears the commotion. Arnold, quick to 
stall them, gets the group out of there right before 
blowing up the rest of the money. The following 
night, the team heads down to the sewers and 
to their amazement, the rope has been cut and 
their ten million is missing. Coincidently, the FBI 
knew exactly how much was missing from the 
drug house and it leads into a full investigation 
of the team. 

After integrations of all the members and months 
of being followed, the FBI finally drops the case. 
However, it becomes real serious when someone 
starts taking down these members one man at a 
time. The real story begins when the team has to 
figure out who wants them dead after two of their 
members are mysteriously murdered. “Sabotage” 
also stars Sam Worthington as “Monster,” Mireille 
Enos as Lizzy, Terrence Howard as “Sugar,” Joe 
Manganiello as “Grinder,” Josh Holloway as 
“Neck” and Max Martini as Tom “Pyro” Roberts. 
It is suspected that the Mexican drug cartel doesn’t 
take too lightly to those trying to rip them off, 
even if there is no hard evidence these guys stole 
their money. The film starts off promising. I don’t 
mind the excessive and gory violence, but there’s 

SEAN’S SHAMELESS 
REVIEWS: 


By Sean Kayden 

SABOTAGE 

little merit for any of it. In fact, each supporting 
character is nearly identical in personality. Unlike 
“End of Watch,” in which you honestly care about 
the two men with badges, these guys are just too 

gung-ho on drinking and killing. Another side 
note is what the hell is Oscar nominated actor 
Terrance Howard even doing in this? Not that he 
has done many good films over the past few years, 
but he has maybe a dozen lines in “Sabotage.” 
Like most of the supporting characters, you have 
no clue what these guys are really all about, but 
in a film such as this, maybe that doesn’t really 
matter. Arnold’s character is the most flushed 
out. In the second half of the film, it’s really more 
geared toward him, David Ayer didn’t write the 
first draft, but he received writing credit. The 
original writer was Skip Woods, a screenwriter 
with a less than stellar track record (“Swordfish,” 
“Hitman,” “The A-Team,” “A Good Day To Die”). 
However, Ayer is still masterful behind the 
camera and brings a lot of kinetic energy to the 
screen. While the dialogue is far from anything 
remotely good, Ayer keeps the energy relatively 
high despite some clunky scenes. 

“Sabotage” suffers from a nearly inconceivable 
late third act. The reasoning behind what occurs 
to some of the members has no motive beyond 
pure speculation. Once you find out the real 
answer to the missing money, it leads into an 
ending that is so far-fetched, you can’t help but 
not to laugh. It turns into a modern day western 
set in a seedy Mexico bar. I’ve come to realize 
everything leading up to it, along with the big 
plotline of DEA agents being taken down, holds 
little purpose. “Sabotage” is only recommended 
for the true Arnold diehards and anyone looking 
for a reason to see extreme violence on screen. 
There are a few laughs, some good action scenes, 
and Arnold using the f-word in nearly every other 
sentence amongst the preposterously crafted 
storyline. If that doesn’t pop your cork, then steer 
clear before you self-sabotage yourself. 

Directed By: David Ayer 
Written By: Skip Woods and David AyerRated R for strong bloody violence, pervasive 
language, some sexuality/nudity and drug useRelease Date: March 28th, 2014 
Grade: 2 out of 5 

Jeff’s Book Picks By Jeff Brown 

CHILDREN OF THE REVOLUTION: AN INSPECTOR 
BANKS NOVEl by Peter Robinson 

Award winning bestselling author Robinson returns with a superb 
tale of mystery and murder that takes acclaimed British Detective 
Chief Inspector Alan Banks back to the early 1970s,a turbulent time 
of politics, change, and radical student activism.The body of a disgraced 
college lecturer is found on an abandoned railway line. Chief 
Inspector Banks begins to suspect that the victim's past may be connected 
to his death. Forty years ago the dead man attended a university 
that was a hotbed of militant protest and divisive, bitter politics. 
And as the seasoned detective well knows, some grudges are never 
forgotten or forgiven. Just as he’s about to break the case open, his 
superior warns him to back off. Yet Banks isn’t about to stop, even if 
it means risking his career. He's certain there’s more to the mystery 
than meets the eye and more skeletons to uncover before the case 
can finally be closed. 


BOY'S LIFE by Robert McCammon 

This wonderful unforgettable book is set in Zephyr, Alabama, which is an idyllic hometown for 11 
year old Cory Mackenson , a place where monsters swim the river deep and friends are forever. Then, 
one cold spring morning, Cory and his father witness a car plunge into a lake , and a desperate rescue 
attempt brings his father face-to-face with a terrible vision of death that will haunt him forever. As 
Cory struggles to understand his father's pain, his eyes are slowly opened to the forces of good and 
evil that are manifested in Zephyr. From an ancient, mystical woman who can hear the dead and 
bewitch the living, to a violent clan of moonshiners, Cory must confront the secrets that hide in the 
shadows of his hometown ,for his father's sanity and his own life hang in the balance. 

Younger Next Year: Live Strong, Fit, and Sexy - Until You're 80 andBeyond by Chris Crowley and Henry S. Lodge M.D. 

This book draws on the very latest science of aging to show how anyone 50 or older can become 
functionally younger every year for the next five to ten years, and continue to live like fifty-year-olds 
until well into their eighties. To enjoy life and be stronger, healthier, and more alert. To stave off 70% 
of the normal decay associated with aging (weakness, sore joints, apathy), and to eliminate over 50% 
of all illness and potential injuries. The rules are deceptively simple: Exercise Six Days a Week. Eat 
What You Know You Should. Connect to Other People and Commit to Feeling Passionate About 
Something. The science ranges from the molecular biology of growth and decay to how our bodies 
and minds evolved and why they fare so poorly in our sedentary culture. The result is a paradigm shift 
in our view of aging. 


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TAURINO QUARTET PERFORMS HAYDN, MENDELSSOHN,
RAVEL AND ENESCU AT SIERRA MADRE PLAY-HOUSE ON 
APRIL 6

 Sierra Madre Playhouse presents the next in its series of concerts featuring emerging artists 
from the Colburn Conservatory of Music. In the spring of 2013, Eduardo Rios, violin; Madeleine 
Vaillan-court, violin; Tanner Menees, viola; and Benjamin Manis, cello, formed the Taurino Quartet. 
Since then, they have performed at numerous local venues. This summer, they will be Fellows at the 
Nor-folk Chamber Music Festival at the Yale University School of Music in Norfolk, CT.

 Program: 
Franz Joseph Haydn, String Quartet Op.76 No. 2 “Fifths” (1796);
George Enescu: Concertstucke for Viola and Piano (1906);
Maurice Ravel: Violin Sonata No. 2 in G Major (1927);
Felix Mendelssohn: String Quartet Op. 80 in F Minor (1847).

 At Sierra Madre Playhouse, 87 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre, CA 91024. Ample free 
park-ing behind theatre. Sunday, April 6, 2014 at 7:00 p.m. Adults $20. Students $15. Reservations: 

(626) 355-4318. Online ticketing: www.sierramadreplayhouse.org 
Drifting Secondhand 
Smoke Affects 
Everyone! 



The poisonous chemicals in secondhand tobacco smoke 
affect any and everything it comes in contact with, 
including your children and pets. You and your loved 
ones deserve a clean air environment, with protection 
from unwanted secondhand tobacco smoke in your home 
and community. 

Join the Coalition for Clean Air Residential 
Environments (C.A.R.E.) of Sierra Madre. For a 
cleaner, safer, and healthier community. 

For more information, contact: 

caresierramadre@gmail.com 

(626) 229-9750 
Made possible with funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention through the Los Angeles County Department 

of Public Health.