Shawna's Movie Review

The A-Team

Mixed reviews on this one....

Opening night...packed theater. According to the ticket booth reader board 3 showings in a row were completely sold out. I showed up early, got my center seat and happily waited for the movie to start.

The new A-Team movie has been reset in modern times; instead of the Team being Vietnam vets they are now in the Afghan war. Its also a bit of a prequel in the fact that as the movie opens they have not been framed for "a crime they didn't commit". In fact, the first 20 minutes or so sets the whole "framed caper" up.

That being said, the first 20 minutes I sat in the audience wondering just what I had gotten myself into. Humorous, yes. Action packed, yes. Over-the-top, heck yeah...but not what I was thinking. We are introduced to the characters one-at-a-time, and are dropped in the middle of a mission that takes a few minutes to fathom just what is going on. Turns out this is the first time most of the team are meeting one another, in totally unbelievable fashion. We then jump forward a few years and the Team has been working together for awhile now when they are framed, stripped of rank and thrown into prison.

This is where the movie gets good.

Jailbreak. Plans of revenge. Crazy heists that keep you guessing. Tons of action with huge explosions. One-liners that leave you laughing. An ending fight that you have to see to believe....this is the A-Team at its certifiably craziest best.

Liam Neeson is great as Hannibal Smith...amazing piece of casting, and the one that made me truly excited to see this movie. Bradley Cooper plays Templeton "Face" Peck...and a lot of reviews from female fans are just gushing over how ripped he got himself for the role. Yes, he has his shirt off quite often, but seeing as how I am not into muscles, I wasn't really focused on any sort of drool factor. He is, however, great in the role and a good choice to take over from Dirk Benedict (who I admit I did have a major crush on at the time). Mr T's role of B.A. "Bad Attitude" Baracus is played by movie newcomer (and pro wrestler) Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. A bit cheesy at times (but then Mr T had the cheese market cornered when he played the role) I found myself liking the character when I really had a hard time tolerating him in the series. Best of all is Howling Mad Murdoch...his opening scene, swinging on helicopter rotors singing Dead or Alive's "You Spin Me Round" is downright hysterical...in fact, Sharlto Copley steals every scene he's in and has me searching for other films he's been in.

Jessica Beal, Gerald McRaney and Patrick Wilson (funny, he's not listed on IMDB.com as being a part of the cast) round out the major characters.

Ending impression....worth seeing. If you are not a fan of the show you might want to wait for the DVD though and watch it on a smaller screen...somehow, seeing as this is a remake of a television show, makes me think that watching it on tv would feel right at home. Stay through the end credits as there is a fun cameo from 2 of the original cast members that's worth watching.