The Losers, 2010 – Movie Review

Director: Sylvian White
Starring: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoe Saldana, Idris Elba, Chris Evans, Jason Patric, Columbus Short, Óscar Jaenada

This review by Jinja.

Where do I start with this one!? I’d been looking forward to this movie since the early trailers, lots of action and comedy elements. But standing in the queue to get tickets was the sudden realisation that film is a 12a – now, I’m 33 so it wasn’t the fact I’d have a problem getting in, or the fact it was mid afternoon and there were 12 year olds queueing for tickets. My problem, it instantly became a severely watered down movie in my head…

Cut to: 5 minutes into the movie…

Oh my god, what have the BBFC done!? This should be at least a 15! We’ve just seen our heroes kill a load of guerrillas in a rather graphic way, followed by 25 innocent kids blown up in helicopter. Now seriously I don’t have an issue personally with any of the violence, I like to think of myself as a well rounded individual, but this sort of stuff not so long ago would be at least a 15 but most likely an 18. Its on par with the Schwarzenegger classic Commando – proper comic book over the top action but a very high kill quota. Myself and my viewing colleague both had for the whole movie a constant ‘this is so not for kids’ thought running through our heads. By the way its not just the graphic deaths, sex scene and the language is definately more in line with a 15.

To be honest this film should have been designed from the kick off as an 18, maybe it was, as the scenes could have gone a lot further, and pushed harder. It did feel in places like it was cut too soon or something had been changed to make it flow…but not quite in a straight line (if you get me).

OK, I’m done with the ratings system!

The opening scene didn’t drag you into the movie, and you didn’t seem to care about any of the Losers for pretty much the whole movie. The action scenes where very well designed, the comedy elements (the ‘sex fight’, ‘Don’t Stop Believing’, etc) where superb…but there just weren’t enough. Now I haven’t read the comic books this movie is based on, so I don’t know how close it works.

Chris Evans character seemed to get all the good comedy lines which he pulled off very well. Idris Alba played an American, again, and as he is such a good actor pulled it off…. Actually the whole cast did gel, and they all had there own little skill and style which you enjoyed.

Basically, its an OK summer action ‘not quite blockbuster but did try’ sort of movie. There were too many missing elements and some obvious cuts which may all be fixed by a directors cut…actually that could turn it into 18 and make it all better. Oh and yes the twist is that obvious, no matter how much you tell yourself it can’t be until the final reveal.

Andy
Frikkin hurrumph!!
Jinja
Just a little more regarding the rating of this movie, direct from the BBFC website:
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Extended Classification Information
‘The Losers’ is an action adventure film based on a series of comic books about five members of a CIA black ops team who are betrayed and then left for dead after a covert mission. The film contains one use of strong language and moderate action violence.
The film is a knowing and comic cartoon-like adventure romp, with a very clear division between heroes and villains. There are plenty of action sequences, where punches are thrown or thousands of bullets fly, but the heroes largely manage to emerge from the fighting unscathed, and with no injury detail whatsoever. Some exceptions to this occur towards the end of the work, with brief sight of a bullet wound about to be stitched and the climactic fight where the villain uses a large knife to slash at the hero and create some slightly bloody cuts through the cloth of his jacket.
Some mild to moderate language is heard during the film, such as ‘bitch’, ‘asshole’ and ‘crap’, as well as one use of strong language (‘f**k’). The single use of strong language serves to characterise the speaker as someone hot-headed and dangerous.
The film also includes the start of a mild impressionistic sex scene, with implied female torso nudity, but only seen from the rear. It is both brief and discreet. It also contains a simulated cock fight.
No-one younger than 12 may see a ’12A’ film in a cinema unless accompanied by an adult. No-one younger than 12 may rent or buy a ’12′ rated video or DVD. Responsibility for allowing under-12s to view lies with the accompanying or supervising adult.
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They don’t mention the fact the word Shit gets used quite a bit. And the ‘no injury detail whatsoever’ erm you see people getting shot and falling to the ground…shot…dead – is death not worse than an injury? Is the severe disfigurement of the bad guys hand not injury detail?
Really I’m not trying to spoil the fun for viewers. I’m actually being selfish – I wanted this film to be an 18 or at least a 15. I wanted it to be completely over the top ridiculous blood splatteringly disgusting to be honest! But making the film fit to standard to make money out of the kids isn’t fair on the actual viewing public this movie is truly aimed at, 18+. But it is definitely not a film I felt comfortable watching with 12 year olds and probably younger to be honest in the audience.
I think thats the rant over. Sorry, thanks for listening.
Robert
“The opening scene didn’t drag you into the movie, and you didn’t seem to care about any of the Losers for pretty much the whole movie”
and
“Basically, its an OK summer action ‘not quite blockbuster but did try’ sort of movie. There were too many missing elements (..)”
are spot on. Throughout I felt something was missing, although they indeed tried really hard. And what was with the Jason Patric part? [GOB-mode] I mean, come on! [/GOB-mode]