Review by Doug Cooper
Stars Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoe Saldana,
Idris Elba, Chris Evans, Columbus Short,
Oscar Jaenada, Jason Patric
Written by Peter Berg & James Vanderbilt
Certification UK 12A | US PG-13
Runtime 97 minutes
Directed by Sylvain White
While we wait with bated breath for the movie of The A-Team here's something to tide you over. The Losers plays like a modern version of that hoary old TV series. Morgan is the Hannibal Smith-type character, the grizzled leader of a small black ops team of marines who are double crossed on a mission in Bolivia when tracking down a shady businessman. At the mass compound they infiltrate they find 25 young children being held captive in order to be employed as drug mules. They help the kids escape, loading them all onto a military helicopter that will take them to safety - only to see said helicopter blown up and everyone perish.
This all the work of dastardly villain Jason Patric, a multimillionaire bent on causing destruction. The rest of the movie features the team including Elba, Evans, Short and Jaenada, who all have respective skills in modern day combat - don't ask me what they are, I can't remember, but the credit titles give you a brief description at the beginning - being offered money to go back to the US to find Patric and kill him, despite being wanted men. The offer comes from Saldana, a kick-ass heroine. Morgan falls for her, but can she be trusted?
The plot itself is rudimentary, being merely an excuse for a series of action set pieces that are adroitly presented with razor sharp editing. The cast do what they can with their limited characters - Patric has a fine old time as the baddie, obviously enjoying himself by making the role quirky but never threatening, Morgan is a stalwart leader while Saldana looks worryingly thin. They share a tepid love scene together and the poor girl looks as if she could do with a fried breakfast.
There's nothing remotely original about it, reminding one at certain times of those cheesy action epics of the '80s and '90s that Arnie, Bruce, Chuck and Jean Claude all indulged in, but the in-your-face confidence of it all keeps one engaged throughout. It's a fast food takeaway of a movie, unedifying and disposable, but vigorously paced and watchable enough if you're completely undemanding. Take it or leave it.