Review: The A-Team
Hollywood has always been green; it's the color of money, and recycling properties is a sure return on investment. So it's no surprise that the 80s cult classic The A-Team was dusted off and re-imagined for a new audience on the big screen. The A-Team (2010) updates the story with an unlikely team of Army Rangers framed, court-martialed and imprisoned, only to break out to track down the real culprits.
In the mid-80s, Stephen J. Cannell ruled TV. The king of action-filled TV hours (along with co-creator Frank Lupo) is responsible for many manly hours of TV drama. Watching the renegade Vietnam vets irreverently dole out justice wasn't just a guilty pleasure; it was refreshing from the onslaught of gravitas pigeonholing Vietnam vets as troubled at best, psychotic killers at worst.
When the news broke about yet another "re-imagining" of a beloved cult classic, skepticism was the polite reaction. With Joe Carnahan helming and co-writing the script with Brian Bloom, one of the co-stars. The director behind Smokin' Aces is more likely to honor the original than most.
The re-imagining starts with a backstory introducing the characters to each other before a fast forward to the Iraq war, when our unconventional heroes make the mistake of one last mission which lands them in prison. But this is the A-Team, and prison walls aren't as much of a challenge as avenging their honor and restoring their names.
As a team, the cast of The A-Team has chemistry to spare, particularly the younger three of the four. Liam Neeson as Colonel Hannibal Smith stands out as the alpha male of the group, although his hair is clearly meant to mimic the late George Peppard's. Bradley Cooper is more than up to the task to take on Templeton "Faceman" Peck, the bad boy with more charm than any three men should have. With a body to go with it, Cooper is shirtless for nearly half the movie, bringing plenty of eye candy. Sharlto Copley (District 9) is perhaps a little too Howling Mad as Murdock at the start, but once Carnahan gets going, it becomes more entertaining and less overbearing.
As for the original A-Team, you can see two of the original cast members, if you don't blink. Dirk Benedict appears as a prisoner in Pensacola, and Dwight Schultz, the original Howling Mad Murdock, plays a doctor of his successor.
The movie contains so many explosions that there's no need for a D-Box to feel you're caught up in the moment; Carnahan used enough munitions to simulate the D-Box in a regular theater. The action is nearly nonstop, with the team racing around the globe. And never fear, it's clear there's hope for a franchise.
The A-Team is likely to become a man-cave staple, with plenty of action and antics for any action-movie fan.