The A-Team

Watched The A-Team in the cinema yesterday, and totally amazed at the nonsense that is coming out of Hollywood these days. In our desi (Indian) slang, we all unanimously categorized it as “bundle” aka nonsense. But, it was fairly enjoyable nonsense nonetheless.

The movie is apparently based on a TV series of the same name and has a huge list of big-name stars. Think Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Jessica Biel…they are all there. I haven’t seen the TV series, so I cannot compare them here, but the movie was enjoyable, if a bit forgettable.

The Story

Directed by Joe Carnahan, the story follows a group of Army Rangers, Colonel John “Hannibal” Smith (Liam Neeson), Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Peck (Bradley Cooper), B.A. Baracus (Quinton “Rampage” Jackson) and Murdock (Sharlto Copley) who form the A-team. The movie opens in Mexico, where some of the Rangers are on a rescue mission with total fun action sequences.

Fast forward 8 years and 80 missions later, the same group is approached by CIA agent Lynch (Patrick Wilson) with a special mission to retrieve stolen U.S. currency plates and a huge amount of counterfeit currency from Baghdad. The mission goes haywire and the team is accused of war crimes and are stripped of their titles in an extremely over-the-top melodramatic style that had all of us rolling with laughter.

They are also imprisoned. After 6 months in prison, Agent Lynch again contacts them and offers to help them escape from prison if they are able to bring the actual culprits to book. The second round of adventures begin with absolutely mind-blowing action sequences (and also some mind-numbing dialogues).

So does the movie work?

Well, it does…sort of…in parts. The casting is a bit odd in my opinion. I am used to seeing Liam Neeson in more serious roles, and in this movie, he is not thaat convincing mouthing some really inane one-liners? Here’s an example of a supposedly smart-aleck line that he mouthes a number of times in the movie:

No matter how random things may appear, there’s still a plan…kid

Bradley Cooper is in his element here, probably the best thing in the movie. He performs well, and looks super-hot while doing so. I loved him in The Hangover and I love him here too. Btw, do you think he bears a faint resemblance to Hrithik Roshan (our Bollywood superhero)? I thought the two resemble quite a bit…

Quinton Jackson is solid and has some funny scenes. Sharlto Copley is brilliant as the insane but genius pilot Murdock. Jessica Biel is Captain Charisa Sosa and Bradley Cooper’s ex-girlfriend. She’s incredibly hot with an amazing body, but her performance is beyond bland. Plus, she was incredibly insulting to Bradley Cooper, so all of us girls completely turned against her ;).

In my synopsis of the movie, I have emphasized the action scenes, and they are truly the strength of the movie. Don’t go looking for any serious war story, or drama…just sit back and enjoy the ride. The action is interspersed with a good dose of humor, and we all enjoyed a few laughs.

Some scenes were a bit far-fetched though especially the scene where the A-team attempts to “fly” a tank. Yes, I meant flying a tank! If you still don’t believe, take a look-see here:

Now, you understand why we called this movie a bundle 🙂