In the 1970s, Steven Spielberg made us all afraid to go into the water with his monster hit JAWS.  The movie was an amazing success and the American Film Institute ranks it as the #2 most thrilling movie in history, behind Psycho.  Its critical acclaim and box office success spawned several spin off movies and similar horror genres designed to both scare us and destroy the swimsuit industry.  Perhaps the most famous spinoff (aside from the JAWS sequels) was the Piranha series.  Directed by Joe Dante in 1978, Piranha centers around two idiots that accidentally release mutant killer fish into a stream near the Lost River Lake Resort.  Mayhem ensues and many people are eaten by the tiny little bastards.  Instead of the nail biting suspense found in JAWS, Piranha focused on providing the audience with a lot of laughs and some cheap gore.  And instead of a giant grey fin and scary music to alert the audience that bad stuff was going happen, Dante used an underwater camera to mimic what the fish were about to eat.  

There were some obvious thematic similarities between Piranha and JAWS, so many that Universal originally filed a law suit against New World for spoofing the film.  However, when Speilberg saw the comedy-horror flick he loved it so much that Universal decided to drop the suit.  Unknown Director James Cameron directed the Piranha sequel Piranha Part Two: The Spawning, which featured flying piranha.  The movie was dreadful, but it did give us one of the great directors of our time.  Later in the 90s Roger Corman would try to bring the nasty fish back in yet another movie, but by then the awful JAWS sequels had left moviegoers looking somewhere else for their scares.  Piranha was never a critical or box office hit, but it is considered by many to be a horror classic of that era.  

Fast forward to 2010, several decades since it was safe to swim again.  Director Alexander Aja (High Tension, and The Hills Have Eyes) brings his cast to Lake Victoria, Arizona where a pack of killer fish are waiting.  The story is simple enough: Lake Victoria is a hot spot for Spring Break and each yeah the population explodes as thousands head to the tiny little town to get drunk and show their boobies. Shortly before the festivities, a small earthquake opens up a crack beneath the lake unleashing swarms of nasty piranha.  Now these aren’t your normal garden-variety piranha, these are prehistoric killer fish who have laid dormant since the stone age. And man are they hungry. 

Sheriff Julie Foster (Elisabeth Shue) is off to patrol the Spring Break madness and tells her son Jake (Steven R McQueen…yeah, you read right: Steve McQueen) to watch his little brother and sister.  Jake has other plans, however, as he’s been asked to escort a Girls Gone Wild crew and their hot babes to the hot spots in the lake. (Oh yeah) The rest of the story you can guess right now: scientists show up to investigate, they discover the ancient piranha, and a lot of drunk spring breakers get eaten (or at least nibbled on a lot).

Okay, so Piranha 3D is not a movie for everyone and it certainly isn’t a movie for kids under the age of 13.  But if you are a horror fan like me, or a fan of the killer fish genre you will absolutely love this movie.  Let’s look at why.
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Remember first time you saw the concept of bullet-time in a movie?  For most of us, it was The Matrix that introduced us to slowing down time to gain a new visual perspective.  The Matrix left me feeling blown away at the fresh cinematic approach to visuals and storytelling.  But, if I’m honest with myself, it wasn’t this new cinematic approach that made The Matrix one of my favorite science fiction movies of all time; it was the deep narrative and tight script that pulled that movie together.  Since then Hollywood has used bullet-time in hundreds of action films, only to fall short when the story doesn’t live up to the visuals.

Like The Matrix, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World offers a completely new visual approach to telling the story.  And lucky for us, Director Edgar Wright doesn’t simply rely on the coolness factor of the film’s visuals to carry the picture.  Instead, beneath all the glitz and glam is a well thought-out portrayal of the awkwardness of young people in love.  How Wright weaves together his visual style with concepts in the film is simply stunning and makes it one of the must-see films of this summer.    

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is based off a comic book series by Bryan Lee O’Mally.  The story focuses on young Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) who like many young people is struggling with his own identity and self esteem.  He plays bass in a band called Sex Bob-omb (clever Super Mario reference there) and like many other garage bands, they aren’t all that good.  To enhance his self-esteem (and forget about his ex-girlfriend) Scott starts to date a high-schooler named Knives Chau (Ellen Wong).  Being much younger than he, Knives is enamored with Scott and thinks it’s cool that he plays in an indie rock band.  At first Scott is happy with the relationship, as it boosts his ego, but soon he discovers the reality that an age difference can bring. Knives just isn’t the girl for him. 

In a dream, Scott meets a young punk girl named Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead).  When he later bumps into Ramona at a party, he is convinced it is destiny and he begins to pursue a relationship with her.  At first, Ramona is quite reluctant in any kind of relationship with Scott, but she soon gives in to his charm and they go out on a date.  Later, at a battle of the bands, Scott is confronted by Matthew Patek (Satya Bhabha) and he learns that if he wants to continue dating Ramona he must defeat her seven evil exes in a Mortal Kombat-style dual to the death.  The remainder of the film has us watch as Scott battles each of the seven evil exes, wondering along the way if love with Ramona is actually worth it. 
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In 1987, director John McTierman dropped Arnold Schwarzenegger, Karl Weathers, and yes even Jesse “The Body” Ventura deep in the jungle to do battle with what would become a modern-day movie monster, the Predator.  The movie featured some classic one-liners, tremendous action, and the most would-be-Governors in cinematic history.  Human-like in form and so very non-human under the mask, the Predator was truly bad-ass.  Grossing over 98 million dollars (and that was a lot back then) the Predator would appear again in subsequent sequels; first battling Danny Glover in the heat of LA, and then against a slew of Aliens in movies that I am sorry to say that I actually watched.  Having endured the later films, I actually thought that would be the end of our beloved cloaked villain. But I was wrong, and boy am I glad to have been wrong. 

This time, Director Nimród E. Antal and screenwriter Robert Rodriguez bring Adrianne Brody and a cast of eight others to a new jungle, although this time the jungles are not in South America, but rather a complex game reserve on an alien planet.  Royce (Brody) wakes up in a freefall high above the jungle.  His parachute opens at the last second dropping him amongst a cast of other nefarious individuals with similar backgrounds.   Mexican drug cartel enforcer Cuchillo (Danny Trejo), Spetsnaz soldier Nikolai (Oleg Taktarov), Israel Defense Forces sniper Isabelle (Alice Braga), Revolutionary United Front officer Mombasa (Mahershalalhashbaz Ali), death row inmate Stans (Walton Goggins from The Shield ), Yakuza enforcer Hanzo (Louis Ozawa Changchien), and a doctor named Edwin (Topher Grace).  None of Royce’s new friends can remember how they arrived, so the mercenary takes charge as the crew of human predators looks for a way to get off the planet.  Can they survive long enough to not kill each other, or will they become prey for a group of Predstors?

I was a huge fan of the original film, and rightfully so.  As a piece of work the film continues to stand as a classic of modern sci-fi horror.  Phrases such as “I ain’t got time to bleed,” and “get to da choppa,” have become popular catch-phrases amongst geeks and non-geeks alike.  It is one of the films I believe every guy needs to see in order to fit in among men.  Despite a very strong presence in the comics (Batman vs. Predator = simply amazing) the subsequent films didn’t do much to advance the canon. 

Predator 2 was pretty good, but lacked the suspense that the original had.  Many complained that Glover couldn’t hack it as the lead and he lacked credibility as someone who could tackle the alien beast.  That film was on television just this past weekend, and while I enjoyed the nostalgia of Predator 2, I must say that the critics were right: Glover is no Arnold.  The film did have one cool geek moment when we see the Alien skull in the mother ship.  Sadly Fox would take this concept and almost destroy two franchises at once.   
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I was feeling rather let down by this years crop of summer movies.  Iron Man 2 came out way to early and it’s been kinda downhill since then.  Oh sure Toy Story 3 was awesome, but overall it’s been a summer movie season where I have felt let down.  Where is the movie everyone is talking about?  Where is something that I can enjoy and yet have a lively discussion afterwards?  Who can save us from the doldrums and lack of creativity in Hollywood?  No, not Batman, but you would be close.  For the movie gods have listened to our cries and brought us a savior, and that savior’s name is Christopher Nolan.  For the Director who brought us The Dark Knight and Momento has challenged us to rethink how we view movies yet again with his latest masterpiece Inception.  It’s stylish, well acted, incredibly well paced, lots of action, and best of all it makes you think.  For me I don’t know what else I could ask for in a film. 

The film centers around Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), a wanted thief who enters the dreams of others to obtain information that is otherwise inaccessible.  Cobb and his team, Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt from 3^rd Rock ), and his “architect” (someone who designs the world of the dream) Nash (Lukas Haas) are working a heist inside the mind of Saito (Ken Watanabe), whom is aware of their deception.  Cobb and his team fail the mission, but soon realize that Saito was auditioning them for something greater.  Instead of stealing evidence from an enemy, Saito would like Cobb to plant an idea into his head instead.  Such an activity is called inception, and it is not only very difficult to pull off, but dangerous as well.  As a reward Saito will pay his team very well and provide Cobb what he desires most, the ability to return home and see his children.  

Cobb accepts Saito’s offer and recruits a forger named Eames.  Forgers are capable of shifting their appearance within the dream world and a must for an act of inception.  Cobb must also find a replacement architect as his was captured by Saito’s men in the botched mission.  He finds a suitable student in Adrianne (Ellen Page) and while he explains to her the rules of the dream world, Adrianne begins to suspect that there is something bothering Cobb.  In his dreams she see’s visions of his deceased wife Mel and his inability to let go of what happened to her.  While Adrianne fears that Cobb is a threat to his own mission, she agrees to help him but with a watchful eye.  Can Cobb’s team plant an idea into the mind of Saito’s rival Robert Fisher (Cillian Murphy aka The Scarecrow) or will Cobb’s own insecurities and nightmares be the downfall of them all? 

The first thing you need to know about Inception, is it’s not a film you can passively enjoy.  You can’t decide to run to the bathroom or get a refill on popcorn and expect that when you come back you can just jump right back in.  Every frame in this film has something of value to it, something that can help explain what is going on, or a red herring as to what you THINK is happening.  It is literally a visual puzzle of your mind that Nolan helps you unravel in the span of two and a half hours.  Missing any pieces of this puzzle will inevitably sullen the experience for you.  It’s also an intricate enough puzzle that you may desire re-visiting to pick up on things you may have missed.  So unlike most Summer movies, you’ll WANT to have your brain with you when you enjoy this film. 

The next thing you need to know about Inception is the visual artistry is exceptional.  I’m not just talking about the special effects which are top notch, it’s how they are woven into the imagery itself to make you think or catch you off guard.  Every explosion, twist and turn of the minds eye in this film is painstakingly planted there for a specific reason.  Many times you won’t understand why something just happened until future narrative tells you why it was important.  This visual storytelling keeps you on the edge of your seat and your brain can’t help but ask for more.  

The acting in Inception is quite solid, and I am slowly becoming a DiCaprio fan.  He is meticulous about what scripts he chooses lately and I for one applaud his decisions.  We watch as this outwardly stoic and confident thief shows us the turmoil that races in his own mind, especially when he dreams.  In this way Cobb is like so many of us, trying to be tough when he is hurting on the inside.  The supporting cast is also quite good, but they are helped by a script that is extremely well written and mostly glitch free.  And for a story like Inception, continuity is a must.  It reminds me of when I first saw The Matrix and how nail tight it appeared to be.  Over the years I have noticed only a few small things in that film, but nonetheless the script was sound.  

I really can’t go into more detail on the plot or the ending as that would spoil the fun of the film.  All I can say is that as someone who frequents the theater, I am acutely aware of where a story is taking me.  So when a story goes in a direction that I did not expect, I am pleasantly surprised.  I found myself having this pleasantly surprised feeling through most of this film.  Plots would twist and things would happen that I didn’t see coming, and yet in retrospect these twists all felt right and not insulting to the audience.  Again, master storytelling at work.  I even heard that the end of this film was simply fantastic and I will admit that indeed it was.  Nolan ends his story in such a way that it naturally sparks debate, but remains true to the essence of the visual puzzle that is Inception.    

I can’t recommend this film enough.  Christopher Nolan has done it again and you owe it to yourself to go and see what everyone will be talking about this summer.  You can even be like me, and see it a few times, it’s that good.   (Oh and please use Spoiler Tags if you want to get deep into specifics of the film)

What two things do Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, David Spade, Rob Schneider, and Kevin James all have in common?  Well they all used to be on Saturday Night Live, and they all USED to be funny.  Well ok technically Kevin James was never a regular on SNL, but he could have been, and from the way this film plays you might never know the difference. 

The movie itself is a reunion movie as five elementary school friends reunite to share a weekend outdoors with their families.  All five of them were on a championship basketball team and 30 years later when their coach dies, they return to their hometown to attend his funeral.  Lenny  Faber (Adam Sandler) is a Hollywood agent and married to fashion designer Roxanne (Salma Hayek), Eric “Babbay” Lamonsoff (Kevin James) is an assistant manager married to Donna (Maria Bello), Kurt McKenzie (Chris Rock) is a stay at home father married to a very pregnant Deanna (Maya Rudolph), and Rob Hillard (Rob Schneider) is married to Gloria (Joyce Van Patten) despite the fact that Gloria is 30 years older then him.  Marcus “Dickie” Higgins is the only one among them who isn’t married and he spends most of the movie getting drunk and ogling women.  All these men, their bratty kids and all head to Lenny’s cabin to reminisce about the good old days.  I had to wonder if the good old days were interesting and or funny, because the present day certainly is not.

One of the things that a good comedy can do is take funny characters and situations and wrap them up in a heartwarming message.  Recent movies such as Get Him to the Greek, and She’s Out of My League do a great job at doing just that.  Two things that set these successful movies apart from THIS one are interesting characters and a good script.  All of the characters, and I do mean ALL of them, in this film seem incredibly flat.  In a sense they seem more like characters I might see on a SNL sketch.  In fact you will recognize several SNL cast members in the movie aside from its stars: Colin Quinn, Norm MacDonald, Tim Meadows, and even Steve Buscemi make cameo appearances in the film.  Now sketch characters aren’t so bad except when they are asked to carry you through 90 minutes of film.  And by the end of THIS film, you are glad to see them go away. 

The other thing that hampers this film is the script.  Written by Adam Sandler and Fred Wolf the story is a mess of stale jokes, missed opportunities and a never ending battle of trying to decide what kind of movie it wants to be.  Sandler wants us to see these families come together and realize that the best part of life is simply being with each other.  But the language and the dialogue that is used to get us there is either so far out there or right in our faces.  As a frequent moviegoer I’m rather taken back when you insult me with trite dialogue that hits me over the head with a lofty ideals. Good movies use the narrative and dialogue to help me come up with these same ideals on my own, making a much more powerful experience.  I could forgive all of that IF the film was funny.  I can recall two, maybe three actual funny scenes, the rest reminded me of an SNL sketch that missed the mark.  Oh please let this end…  

So you may ask, why did you go see this movie?  That is a great question and one I am happy to explain.  My son had his braces removed and his Mom promised to take him to any movie he wanted to and buy him a big tub of popcorn.  Well, she never kept up her end of the bargain and so when I got him this weekend I told him I would keep her promise.  He really wanted to see this film, and so off we went.  My son and the other 13 year old kids in the house really enjoyed the film, and sometimes that’s enough to make a movie going experience better; my kid liked it so I feel good.  Sadly, despite my son’s enjoyment I couldn’t get past the trite that was on the screen.  So unless you’re 13, or if you have 90 minutes of your life you are willing to just toss away, you’ll want to stay as far away from this film as possible.  I’m not even going to recommend renting this, even if you are a diehard SNL or Sandler fan.  Go do something fun like play Bionic Commando or something.

This week Mitch and Chris are joined by none other than M.C. Wilson himself as they discuss the 1950 Akira Kurisawa film Rashomon. Widely considered one of the greatest films ever made, it is also a fantastic exercise in storytelling, and not one to miss.

You can subscribe in the iTunes music store, or download the episode below. Don’t forget to take part in the discussion, which will be in the comments section for this post.

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Film Festival Podcast: Roshomon

This week Mitch and Chris dip into the festival’s first bit of New Hollywood: the 1973 Peter Bogdonavich con-man film Paper Moon. The film, set in Great Depression-era Kansas, follows confidence man Moses Pray (played by Ryan O’Neal) as he takes the newly-orphaned Addie (played by O’Neal’s real-life daughter Tatum) to live with some of her distant relatives, forming a reluctant bond along the way.

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I LOVE comic movies, I usually ignore the reviews and go and see almost every one that comes out; and for the most part I am happy with what I get onscreen.  I will even shamefully admit that I enjoyed Ghost Rider, a decent popcorn movie on one of my favorite comic characters.  I had read truly awful reviews of Jonah Hex and despite my curiosity; I had planned on renting this movie later this Fall.  Then yesterday, my son and I had a conversation that went like this: 

“Dad can we go see Jonah Hex?”

“Gee Tiny, why do you wanna see that movie?”

“Because…it has Megan Fox, Cowboys, and things blow up in it.” 

I couldn’t argue with his logic, the premise of the movie is strong.  And with all of us enjoying the goodness that is Red Dead Redemption, I was kinda itching for a decent cowboy flick myself.  So off to the matinee we went in hops of seeing boobs, guns, and splosions.  Sadly for us, the film lacked a lot of what we went looking for.  If had more boobs and guns perhaps I could recommend it. 

For those who aren’t familiar with the DC comic,  Jonah Hex is a Western antihero created by writer John Albano and artist Tony DeZuniga. Hex is a surly and cynical bounty hunter whose face is horribly scarred on the right side. Despite his poor reputation and personality, Hex is bound by a personal code of honor to protect and avenge the innocent.  Hex has appeared in several of his own series and in many crossover series such as Crisis on Infinite Earths, and most recently as a member of the Black Lanterns.  In the comics, Hex is truly a badass, and he has a unique knack to communicate with the dead.  On paper such a character would make a great Hollywood movie, so what could have gone wrong?  Let’s look back at pre-production to see if we can’t figure out why.

In 2000, Fox developed a one-hour television adaptation based on the character with Akiva Goldsman and Robert Zappia, but the project did not make it to production.  By July 2007, Warner Bros. held feature film rights to the character and sought to produce a film. Goldsman paired with Andrew Lazar as producers, and Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor adapted the screenplay.  Then in November 2008 Neveldine and Taylors stepped down from being directors due to creative differences with the studio.  Warner Brothers explored the possibility of hiring Andy Fickman or McG but it chose Jimmy Hayward from PIXAR to direct the film.  That’s right an animated director doing his first live action film.    

The picture went through several re-writes and then production stalled as the film slowly ran out of money.  Warner pieced together what they had filmed and put their best effort on the screen, and I must admit, it really shows.  There is a ton of plot elements and exposition that is simply left to the audience to deduce through later narrative.  This doesn’t work well when you are introducing a new comic hero in a movie.  Even when your audience is familiar with the back-story (e.g. Superman) a character’s back-story is a crucial element to the films success.  Jonah Hex has very little of this, the film opens with a montage of civil war images in an attempt to tell the story of this haunted bounty hunter.  We eventually see Jonah (Josh Brolin) tied to a stake as his nemesis Quinton Turnbull (John Malkovich) chastises him for what he did to his rebel squad and he blames him for the death of his son Jeb.  Turnbull burns Hex’s house down with his wife and child inside and then he brands him on the right side of the face so everyone will know who did this to him.  While an origin story like this is cool, I wanted to SEE these events happen, so I get a greater sense of who this character is.  Instead we see later flashbacks that kind of fill in the blanks, but they don’t quite fit the bill. 

The same can be said of Megan Fox’s character Lilah.  Lilah is a prostitute who seems interested in Hex and for the life of me I can’t tell you why.  In fact, I wasn’t even sure of her real name until the credits rolled.  It’s as if Hayward wants Ms Fox to be just some eye candy to make us forget all the questions we have going on throughout the film.  Now I would be fine with that IF we had more of Megan Fox being sexy and a badass.  Sadly her screen time is about 15 minutes, not nearly long enough for me to forget the film’s flaws.

But what about the cool Western gunplay?  Well, there is some of that in this film.  In the first five minutes we see Hex bring in wanted men he’s collecting a bounty on.  The Sheriff turns out to be as shady as the men he was after and a huge gunfight ensues.  It was the best part of the film and it left me hopeful for more scenes like that one.  The movie had about 3 more action sequences as cool as that, spread in between flash-backs and lousy exposition.  Again, more gunplay would have made the film more forgiving.

Moreover, things just kind of happen in Jonah Hex.  One moment we see Hex talking to Turbull’s son Jeb in the graveyard and then he’s assaulting a fort reminiscent of Fort Mercer from Red Dead Redemption.  Wait, how did we get here?  It’s cool and all, but WTF just happened?  It’s this music video pacing and unfinished scenes that ruin the great idea that Jonah Hex could have been.  In fact, the entire time I kept thinking to myself, ”Gee this could have been awesome if…”

All that being said, there is enough cool moments in the film to make it worth a rental.  I wouldn’t recommend paying money for it in the theater unless you had absolutely nothing better to do, or if you just can’t get enough Megan Fox.  It’s sad because I really do dig this character and I do think he deserves a well told story onscreen.  Perhaps Christopher Nolan can pick up the pieces when he’s done with Batman (whenever that might be).

In 1995 my first wife (Tiny’s Mom) and I went to see a revolutionary animated film featuring the antics of toys who came to life when people weren’t watching.  Directed by John Lassetter and starring the voices of Tom hanks, Tim Allen, and yes one of my favorite funnymen Don Rickles, Toy Story was a huge success.  Toy Story was also revolutionary as it helped launch a multitude of computer animated films to follow.  While many companies have tried to duplicate the Magic that is PIXAR, few have come close.  Their movies always capture a sense of wonder and awe and they focus on things that we as moviegoers NEED in our theater experience; story and character development. 

This weekend PIXAR released its third installment in the Toy Story saga grossing over 109 million dollars in box office revenue.  This makes Toy Story 3 the 11^th hit that PIXAR has released and the second largest grossing animated film opening behind Shrek the Third.  The story is simple and full of familiar characters in familiar sitruations, and yet as John Tweeted Saturday “PIXAR” can do no wrong.  I believe John is right and let’s discuss why. 

The story of Toy Story 3 opens with Woody and the gang remembering the good old days when they used to play with Andy.  These days have long since gone and our toy friends spend a life locked inside a wooden toy chest, hoping that someday they will get played with again.  You see, Andy has grown up and getting ready to go off to college.  His Mom encourages him to either donate, store, or throw away his old toys.  Reluctantly Andy packs up the gang (minus Woody) and begins to haul them off to attic.  A case of mistake identity occurs and the toys find themselves on the sidewalk, soon to be fodder for the garbage truck.  After breaking free of the bag the toys revolt and sneak into a donation box headed for a day care center. 

Once the toys arrive at the center, they are greeted by a lovable pink teddy bear named Lotso-Hugs-A-lot (voiced beautifully by Ned Beatty).  He and his partner Ken (Micheal Keaton) run the toy operation at the day care center and they are excited to see a new batch of toys arrive for the kids to play with.  The toys themselves are happy to get played with as well, that is until they are whisked into the toddler room where they are abused by bratty kids who have no respect for the toys whatsoever.  Buzz complains, only to find out that the whole operation is a racket and he and the rest of the toys must find a way to escape the day care center or face a life of cruel playtime. 

There is a ton of things to love about this film.  First it follows the PIXAR formula of successful movie making; a simple story that includes moments of character development.  We watch as the characters we know and love continue to grow and explore important themes such as loyaty and friendship.  We learn what it REALLY means to be a toy and in doing so we are reminded of our youth and how precious our own toys were to us. 

I couldn’t help but smile while watching this film, my friends from PIXAR are getting even better at this than they were in 1995.  Don’t get me wrong, PIXAR films have always been fun and enjoyable for people of all ages, and the scenes with Ken in this film made me nearly wet myself.  But now they tend to be rather touching as well.  I think it stared back with Wall-E, as I felt so close to the tiny garbage collecting robot and his friend Eva.  Then in UP I found myself weeping like a baby in the first five minutes of the film.  Now in Toy Story 3, I couldn’t help but get choked up once again.  The last 10 minutes of the film were so heartwarming as Andy and his toy friends have one final moment together.  It’s a passing of the torch so to speak leaving things open for Woody and his friends to continue their adventures together. 

I didn’t spend the extra money to see this film in 3D, but Tiggermango tells me it was well worth the price.  Like all PIXAR movies there is a short 5 minute film preceding the feature.  This one is particularly touching and in 3D it adds a special touch.  Regardless of whether you choose to shell out the extra cash for the 3D experience, Toy Story 3 is well worth your time.  Whether you have kids or not you owe it yourself to go and see this film.  The animation is phenomenal and the story is superb, and if you’re a sap like me, you might even walk away feeling like a kid again.

When I was a kid, my friends and I would watch the NBC action adventure The A-Team on a regular basis.  We liked it because it had memorable, iconic characters and over-the-top cartoon violence.  We knew what to expect with the show, Hannibal and his team would use their smarts and create some wild plan to beat down a bad guy who was suppressing someone in need.  They took old spare parts from whatever they could find and built wild contraptions that (when they worked) would take the bad guys by surprise.  Oh, and the flipped a car in every episode, it was the hallmark signature stunt that always made us cheer.  The show ran for five seasons and is still part of American popular culture.  

Like so many great ideas from our past, The A-Team was recently made into a major motion picture by FOX.  All along I wasn’t so sure about this film.  The trailer looked like just another Hollywood rip off and I’m not sure I was ready to see what they would do to one of my favorite franchises.  But Hilden told me he was “all in” when we saw the trailer at Kick Ass.  So, believe it or not, I put my faith in Hilden and on a very rainy weekend went out to see this film.  

Directed Joe Carnahan and produced by  Stephen Cannel (who sis the original TV show) , and Ridley and Tony Scott, The A-Team melds familiar characters and themes into a two hour action adventure.  The story starts out in Mexico, where we see Colonel John “Hannibal” Smith (Liam Neeson) being held captive by corrupt Mexican officers who are working for General Tuco.  Hannibal escapes and is off to rescue his friend Templeton “Faceman” Peck (Bradley Cooper) who is being held captive by Tuco and had apparently had himself a good time with Tuco’s wife.  Along the way he recruits disgruntled Ranger Bosco “B.A.” Baracus (Quinton Jackson) to aid him in his quest and the ride off to save Face in a very familiar black van.  After the rescue, the three of them need to get out of Mexico fast, and so they recruit the services of an insane pilot H.M. “Howling Mad” Murdock to fly them out in a medical chopper.  The chase is on and we see the origins of this team, as well as some lore from the show that was never fully flushed out.  This fifteen minute segment was action packed, funny, and had me smiling the entire time.  From then on, I was hooked and couldn’t wait for the rest of the ride.

The movie continues 8 years later as Hannibal’s team is a highly regarded, elite combat unit stationed in Iraq.  Hannibal is contacted by the CIA, as they need help location some U.S. treasury plates that were stolen by Saddam.  Despite being warned by the base commander and other black ops teams NOT to go after this prize, Hannibal gets the A-Team together to recover the plates and counterfeit money.  Fans of the show can guess what will happen, as things do not go as planed and the team is framed for crimes they did not commit.  All four of them, are sent to separate prisons to serve time for what they had done.  Of course, they break out and look for a way to find who really framed them and clear their names. 

Like its television predecessor, The A-Team is shallow, absurd at points, and yet a shit-ton of fun.  The first thing I appreciated was the dialogue.  It was witty, clever and often times, quite funny.  I had forgotten how funny the TV show was and this film reminded me of that. 

Carnahan is careful to be true to the essence of these iconic characters and yet he manages to amp them up for a Hollywood audience.  Hannibal has his cigar and B.A. sports his trademark Mohawk.  Face is still a ladies man and Murdock fly’s planes like I do when playing Crimson Skies.  Yet Carnahan explores the depth of some of these characters as we learn more about Hannibal’s strategic prowess and always thinking two steps ahead of your enemy.  B.A. even struggles with own sense of self as he ponders whether violence is the right solution for his problems.  Of course we all hope he comes up with the right answer and when he does, cheering ensues. 

The acting in the film was also a surprise to me.  One of the roles I was worried about was Hannibal, portrayed by Liam Neesom.  I’m a huge George Peppard fan and leaving this crucial role to just anybody would be a huge mistake.  Not only does Liam play the role faithfully, but he adds a layer of depth to the character that we never get in the TV show.  He is both calculating and yet very much the father figure for the team.  In one scene he and B.A. discuss his struggles with violence and he offers insight that my Dad would give me.  Well done. 

Bradley Cooper personifies Face and plays the role to a tee.  He uses his wit and charm to get him in and out of situations.  He even has a high tech prison cell that most mobsters would be envious of.  Cooper also shows a tender side as he warns his ex-girlfriend and now DCIS Captain Charissa Sosa (Jessica Bel …meow) that the CIA has laid a trap for her and her team. 

Perhaps the biggest surprise acting wise was turned in by Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.  As many of you know, Quinton is a huge MMA star.  Unlike the WWE, the combatants in MMA are really beating the heck out of each other and there really isn’t much acting going on at all.  I questioned whether Jackson had the chops to make that leap to the big screen; a leap that so many wrestlers have failed to make successfully.  I might argue that even Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson hasn’t really sold me on his star worthiness.  I must say, that not only was I pleasantly surprised at how good Jackson was at the role, but I found myself wondering (even hoping) where we might see him show up next.  Jackson doesn’t try and be Mr. T as that would be next to impossible to pull off.  Instead he interprets B.A. in his own way and throws a nod or two towards Mr. T that we all can enjoy.

There are some flaws in the film as not everything makes sense.  Some of the over-the-top action is just plain absurd, but I will admit that I was having too much fun to really care about that.  I am most disheartened with the lack of a cameo from Mr. T.  There are some clever cameos hidden after the credits that I really enjoyed, but Mr. T was not one of them.  They had originally wrote a cameo for Mr. T, but he turned it down because he felt the film had too much sex and violence in it.  Um, dude did you ever watch your own show?  Later T explained that he really loved how the film turned out and he regrets his decision. 

Nonetheless, The A-Team is certainly worth watching.  For fans of the show I believe it really is a must see.  The movie will re-acquaint you with the characters and silliness that made that show a success.  Non fans can simply sit back and enjoy the non stop action that Carnahan and the actors bring to the screen and the witty banter between the characters.  You may not find a lot of deep symbolic meaning in this film, but what it does do quite well is keep you entertained.  Thanks Hilden, I’m all in now, and you should be too.