''The Dependables'' (previously known as ''Pride of Lions'') is a 2014 straight-to-DVD

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

directed by

Sidney J. Furie Sidney Joseph Furie (born February 28, 1933) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and producer best known for his extensive work in both British and American cinema between the 1960s and early 1980s. Like his contemporaries Norman Jewison ...

Plot

Five young American soldiers are held hostage in Afghanistan by a Taliban warlord. When the US Army is slow to act, a grandmother and four grandfathers with military backgrounds fly to Afghanistan to rescue them.

Cast

Production

Filming took place in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

and

Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Sault Ste. Marie ( ) is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is at the St. Mary's River on the Canada–US border. It is the third largest city in Northern Ontario, after Sudbury and Thunder Bay. The Ojibwe, the indigenous Anishinaabe inhabitants ...

Reception and analysis

In his book ''Sidney J. Furie: Life and Films'', author Daniel Kremer writes, "''A Pride of Lions'' again reflected the ''Hit!-Iron Eagle'' formula, this time following a group of ex-military senior citizens who venture to Afghanistan to rescue their prisoner-of-war grandchildren." Director Sidney J. Furie is quoted in the book as saying, "A lot of people will look at such a film, or any direct-to-video work of mine, as just another unsophisticated little action thriller with the customary cheap thrills, but the work is of the utmost importance to me, and I always sit in with the color-timer and the sound mixer. These movies are what they are, but I always take a proactive role in every stage of production. I'm never on autopilot and I never take my leave from a project when the shooting stops." Margot Kidder is quoted as saying, "I haven't consistently laughed that hard on a movie set in years. We had such a good time." Writing for the ''

Journal of Popular Film & Television ''Journal of Popular Film and Television'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal published by Routledge, which purchased it from Heldref Publications in 2009. Michael Marsden, who was the dean of the College of Arts & Sciences at Northern ...

'', Daniel Kremer writes that ''The Dependables'' is an example showing that Sidney J. Furie "thrived at making movies of Hawksian professionalism that venerate (mostly male) camaraderie". Reviewer Valkor of the-other-view.com draws comparisons to '' The Expendables'', writing, "The Dependables uses an obvious play on words to work against popular films, now a trilogy, The Expendables. The style is also the same in that it gathers a few well-known actors from the past, bringing them together for this film." The reviewer added, "I like the idea of bringing together these veteran actors who still look great and it would appear as though they were having a blast making this film". The reviewer ultimately concludes, "The idea is pretty sound but execution fails miserably." Reviewer JJBona of cityonfire.com writes, "In the last couple of years, we’ve reported a number of projects riding the success wave of The Expendables franchise. Some are currently filming, other are sitting in development hell. ..One take that’s definitely in the can is the action-comedy The Dependables. If you thought Stallone’s crew were a bunch of old men, check out this cast: Bo Svenson (Walking Tall Part II), Louis Gossett Jr. (Iron Eagle), Seymour Cassel (The Mountain Men), Cedric Smith (Forever Knight), Tom Jackson (Star Trek: The Next Generation) and Margot Kidder (1978’s Superman)." The reviewer ultimately concludes, "We seriously doubt you’ll spend your hard earned money on it".

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dependables, The (film) 2014 films Films directed by Sidney J. Furie Films set in Afghanistan Canadian action films 2014 action films 2010s war films Films shot in Toronto Films shot in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Films about veterans Films about old age English-language Canadian films 2010s English-language films 2010s Canadian films