The A-Team

Being a fan of the 80's television series as a child, naturally I was pretty excited 3 or 4 years ago when i heard about a possible 'A-Team' feature film. Back then, I believe the rumoured cast included Bruce Willis and possibly Jim Carrey??? The years went by until about a year ago I saw a picture of the current A-team cast in "EMPIRE" magazine....what - no Mr T????? OUTRAGE!!!

I was disappointed in the least and my eagerness and enthusiasm for an "up-dated' version of a beloved classic jumped out the window and died! Then, 2010 roles upon us and the trailers for the film hit the internet and cinemas but still - it didn't grab me. It looked tacky, un-original(well it's Hollywood and a re-make so it still kind of is), with totally over-the-top and overblown Micheal Bay-style action sequences and not a single trace of any whit or plot visible!

If it was not for my Dad (also an avid fan of the show) offering to pay for me, I probably would not have bothered seeing the film. Well...not at the cinemas anyway.

We watched the film last night and i have to say, it was definitely better than I was expecting. It was actually and surprisingly very good! I was fearing all my fond memories of my favourite characters such as 'B.A. Barachus' and 'Mad Murdoch' would be spat on and watered-down into ironic cliché versions of what they originally were - instead, I was treated to a clever and accurate modernisation of one of the best T.V. shows of the 80's!

The main concept for A-team to work is all about a successful interpretation of the characters. If the characters aren't right - the film will fall flat and will only be branded as A-team by name alone, nothing more than a cash-in on the name. Fortunetly the characters, although played by different actors - are successfully updated and portrayed and still somehow feel the same as the originals with the humour and witty dialogue still there in spades!

The cast did a fine job in their respective roles especially South African actor Sharlto Copley as 'Howling mad Murdoch'! He was hilarious and out of all the cast - resembled his 80's counterpart most accurately in his appearance. Quinton Jackson, although not quite Mr T - still managed to portray a descent portrayal of 'B.A' and although I don't recall him saying his famous catch-phrase more than once, he made up for it with his witty tattoos! I thoroughly enjoyed the back-story to his fear of flying!!!

The action scenes (as obvious from the trailers) are pretty big and impressive which is normal by today's standards. Lot's of explosions, gun/fist fights and airplane chases a-plenty fill the plot (yes...there is actually a plot) in nicely. None of the action sequences are drawn out too long and although some of the scenes suffer a bit from a little too much CGI, shaky-cam and quick cuts making visibility difficult and a bit muddled, still doesn't take away from the film's overall entertainment value.

The plot is not overly complicated but it IS there and it is not completely dumbed-down and insulting to the viewers intellect. A perfect balance of action, story and humour make A-team a brilliant and successful up-dated film adaption that successfully brings The A-team into the new millennium yet doesn't tread over the original.

Thankfully the best bits aren't shown in the trailers and the film is most deserving of at least one more sequel!

I pity the fool who doesn't enjoy this film!

I just returned from watching this movie, and frankly, I didn't even know it was a story taken from an earlier series until I wikipedia-ed it just now. That being said, the expectations and sensitivities in a fan of the original series is non-existent in me, so this is purely based on what I felt about the movie itself.

First off, the casting is near perfect. Everyone had a role that they played very well, and while Rampage Jackson's acting could have been a little better, his presence and screen time were downplayed to perhaps make up for it. But that's what I'm talking about, it was a very good balance of characters that was consistently carried throughout the movie. Who really stood out for me was Sharlto Copley. For someone who wasn't professionally trained as an actor, he portrayed the crazy Murdoch flawlessly. I brought my parents to watch the show and they loved his performance, with mom going as far to say the movie worked because everything funny came from him. I have to agree, I was certainly very entertained for the whole duration of the movie largely due to him.

What I didn't particularly like were the computer generated effects. They looked quite fake at times, and it hints at a rushed job by animators. While the first three quarters of the film had a fairly consistent amount of action, the last quarter was overkill. Spoilt the movie a little for me, but the overall experience was a good one. Movies are meant to entertain and I most definitely was, much more than I expected for the price I paid for my ticket. Word of warning though - you really shouldn't think too deeply about the story when you're watching this. There are unresolved plot holes and some people have expressed upset at this, but the film was never marketed as a 'story' kind of film in any way so they really should've known better.

This movie is not for movie buffs who look for the meaning of life in films, but if a hilarious, well-acted, action-packed movie is your thing? I say go watch this now.

Story : Okay

Acting : Ranging from awesome to not bad

Cast dynamics :Brilliant

Hilarity factor : Totally

Special Effects : Acceptable to meh at times

Duration : Long but I didn't feel it

Would watch again : YEAH.

If you are looking for a light, funny and action packed movie, it doesn't get much better than this. The A-Team is very, very easy too take in, but never boring, has action-scenes that will blow you out of your seat and is stuffed with plenty of damn funny moments.

Also very nice for a change: this action/comedy film doesn't take itself too seriously. Which is quite refreshing if you take a look at all the 'comedy with a message' crap Hollywood produces these days.

The new B.A. (Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson), Murdock (Sharlto Copley), Hannibal (Liam Neeson) and Face (Bradley Cooper) are all great at their roles. Props for Patrick Wilson as the slick C.I.A. agent Lynch and Jessica Biel is lovely as always. Joe Carnahan, who wrote and directed this movie, simply did a great job and gives the audience exactly what it needs.

I'd say it was definitely worth my money.

Overkill is underrated. One of the many mottoes Colonel John Hannibal Smith throws around whilst hatching his brilliant plans, dispensing them like his insightful wisdom increases the chances of success. A motto director Joe Carnahan has taken to heart in making 'The A-Team'. A smart move, as complete and uncompromising exaggeration appears to be exactly what the format asked for. Especially since the translation of TV shows to the big screen has proved to be no easy task. Just look at 'Miami Vice', which pretty much bombed despite the presence of Michael Mann, the director/producer who created the original series. Or the near criminal trashing überhobbyist MacGuyver recently received by the hands of questionable farce 'MacGruber'. In a world so significantly different from the mid-eighties, the severely underpaid and hopelessly dated missions of the four fugitives could have very much been out of place as well.

The reincarnation by the hands of Carnahan however, avoids many of the pitfalls that the outdated format has to offer. For one, the director has brought the well known premise of the series to the present. Vietnam has been replaced by Iraq and the bad attitude of Bosco Baracus is not the only thing that makes the foursome dangerous: the happy-go-lucky stance of a team that rarely asked for enemy casualties has been replaced by an attitude that better suits a group of elite soldiers. What is especially striking is how well the cast handle their roles, and how much fun they have doing so. Understandable, since the characters in Carnahan's installment have been blown up as well. Hannibal in the hands of Liam Neeson, although not as charismatic as George Peppard, is equally complacently on the jazz whenever a dangerous situation can be even remotely relished. Templeton "Faceman" Peck in the version of Bradley Cooper enjoys the swindling of both women and all sorts of tools even more than his predecessor Dirk Benedict and the script provides Quinton "Rampage" Jackson with a philosophical depth to his distinctive character - and evolution thereof - in the BA 2.0 version. The acting skills of the professional wrestler are up for debate, but then again you never questioned Mr. T. either. Even though he played the bejeweled, Mohawk sporting powerhouse with an acute fear of flying as an overly enthusiastic pupil in a school musical, always staring at the next person to speak his lines way long before they had the floor. The biggest fun, however, comes from Howling Mad Murdock in the interpretation of 'District 9'-phenomenon Sharlto Copley, who occupies the crazy pilot with both a zest for life and an absolute fearlessness of death – cue the suicidal midair antics. His inimitable flying skills, Murdockian features (sock puppets and his interaction with BA for example) and especially his imitation of Mel Gibson in 'Braveheart' - including stick horse - make him the movies' main asset.

The script then. The plot, pretty much a side issue, continuously serves up action excesses – equally incredible and entertaining – but yields more than a whipped episode of the series stretched to a playing time of two hours. You could say the plot is kind of a cross section of the five years the series ran, if you omit the recurring missions the mercenaries entered into. There is plenty of borrowing from existing story lines, more or less adapted to the new universe of Carnahan. The film opens with a spectacular introduction of the four veterans some years ago - only Hannibal and Face are trusted comrades, BA and Murdock have still to cross their paths - setting up the Alpha team that started it all. Included of course, is a supporting role for the black GMC Van, which can impossibly be disregarded as the fifth member. Cut to eight years and eighty successful missions later, to the operation that sees the team become the proverbial scapegoat the series theme credits were based on – something to do with a crime they didn't commit. The bank robbery in Hanoi has been replaced by the hijacking of a truckload of counterfeit money in Baghdad, commanding General Morrison is still here. The CIA is present as well, in a possible set-up for a sequel in which Hannibal's outfit will be contracted by the organization in a reference to Stockwell (Robert Vaughn) of the fifth season of the series. The plot is driven by the aftermath of the robbery, offering supporting roles for Captain Charisa Sosa (the distractingly attractive Jessica Biel) and CIA man Lynch (Patrick Wilson, 'Watchmen'), but it's all a mere hook for ridiculous set pieces and extravagant action to be towed on.

Hannibal's crack commando unit must pull out all the stops in order to clear its name, in an adventure that at times offers absolute top entertainment. That is, if you're willing to believe that a parachute suspended tank (as seen in the trailer), wherein the fearless foursome escape from an exploding plane, can be easily maneuvered in midair using the inboard cannon, simultaneously discarding enemy aircraft like it's a game of Duck Hunt. There are enough sequences that ask more than a lot of your ability to shut off your brain, but as said that exaggeration is exactly what this film needed. 'The A-Team' is simply a masterful popcorn spectacle par excellence, offering high-level action entertainment and jokes that are more often than not very decently set up. The cast has great fun working with the pleasantly unlikely adventures and the story is – in good tradition - full of references to the 80's hit series it is based on. The plot falters a bit left and right and the credo overkill is underrated is at times perhaps taken a little too far, but that is merely an expected consequence of handing control over to the man behind 'Smokin' Aces'. Regardless, the oncoming release might well feature a well-deserved 'to be continued' by the time the end credits start rolling.

I remember first hearing about this. Cautious optimism was among my immediate reactions. Later, I caught a trailer(on that, do not think for a second that you saw all the good stuff, there's plenty they didn't give away). I was still not sure what to think. Then I watched it tonight. I enjoyed every single frame. No, I'm not kidding, this works from the very start and never loses you. I love the show, and this pays a lot of respect to it(at times, a tad much... early on, Neeson's every other line contains the word "plan"), and this not only nails the four characters(who all get an unforgettable introduction each, and several individual heroic moments), it doesn't merely imitate, but builds and slightly reinterprets to update them. They are played rather well; Liam looks like he was born with that cigar in his mouth, Bradley genuinely is charming and suave, Sharlto(from District 9; he reverts to his dialect here and there) comes across as a lunatic without that making us dislike him, and Jackson... well, he looks cool, he's not asked to do anything he can't handle, and he's certainly got more charisma than any other wrestlers on the silver screen(or Vin Diesel). The acting is in general marvelous, and every role is well-cast. Everybody is a bad-ass in this(on/off at least), and that does get old every now and then. Biel is largely eye-candy(as is all other females in this), though we know that she can do this kind of thing, and she doesn't let us down. The dialog wants to be as clever and full of banter as 2008's Iron Man, and this leads to it trying too hard some(with that said, two thirds of it works perfectly, and it's not a complete buzz-kill when it doesn't). It is hilarious a lot of the time, and the half-full theater I was in all clearly got a kick out of it. This is two hours of pure fun with non-stop, awesome action that doesn't repeat itself, with shoot-outs, chases and fights. It's not realistic, and it's not meant to be. The plans are *brilliant* and seeing them gather materials for them is a blast. This keeps to an immensely fast pace, without overwhelming us, and it fits in plenty of well-thought out plot(that doesn't confuse, in spite of twists and such, that hold up). The script is by the guy who did Wolverine, Swordfish and Hit-man and a rookie; however, maybe because of help from the director(who I've only seen one other thing by, his outstanding The Hire short), they turn in something magnificent. FX are plentiful(occasionally overshadowing the people... be careful, Carnahan), and excellent with a few brief poor bits. The editing is tight, cinematography stylish. While it's black and white, switch-off-your-brain-at-the-door, Hollywood popcorn flick, it doesn't claim or attempt to be anything else, and it's an utterly well-made and re-watchable one at that. There is a little strong language and brutality to the violence in this(no blood). I recommend this to fans of the television series who don't have impossible-to-reach expectations, and everyone who can get into a movie that just entertains you for a solid 120 minutes. 8/10