Arnold Schwarzenegger is trying, in his sixties, to re-establish himself as an action star after his stint in California politics.  To his credit, he’s attaching himself to projects written and directed by good young filmmakers.  However, the results have been less than outstanding since his return.  Sabotage is an odd choice for him, since it seems to undercut much of the heroic mythos that his persona has promulgated for so long.

Schwarzenegger stars as John Wharton, leader of an undercover DEA unit of badass agents.  A bust occurs in which the team steals some $10 million, but then the cash disappears.  Six months of bureaucratic purgatory follows before the DEA gives up on finding the money and lets the team get back into operation.  But then, one by one, the team members begin turning up dead.

There’s a lot of plot to wade through, much of it presented as backstory in flashback, and we’re not always sure what’s going on.  Director David Ayer is now an old hand at this type of complex police story, with hard-edged characters, a plethora of profanity and bloodletting galore.  All of this is present, and much of it works.  Add in a smart cop played by Olivia Williams and one of the most memorable, sexy, nut-job agents I’ve ever seen (the amazing Mireille Enos) and it turns into quite a ride.

The story follows its own sense of logic, which I didn’t always appreciate.  It’s not exactly action-packed, although a few sequences deliver the goods.  I’m still not sure who killed the Guatemalans, and the motivation for eliminating the team members one by one is specious at best, no matter who is doing it.  Like a lot of these kinds of movies, the story isn’t as important as the impact with which it is delivered.  And this movie is impactful, though not always in a good way.

Sabotage is already being touted as a notorious flop, although it doesn’t deserve the reputation it will soon have.  It’s just different, something that Arnold’s fans, if there still are any, are having a tough time accepting.  Action fans should like the movie because it is unapologetically brutal, and has some nice character work.  I like my action films a bit more sensible, so I cannot really recommend this one, despite some great work by Mireille Enos and Olivia Williams.  ☆ ☆ 1/2.  31 March 2014.