Remakes are dodgy territory in my opinion, especially a series I grew up watching and loving. The cheesy one-liners, BA's susceptibility to drinking milk to get on a plane, Hannibal's cigar-smoking smile, Murdock's perfect insanity, and Faceman's seductive skills, coupled with flipping cars and bullets that never hit anyone were what made it such a phenomenal television show. So here is how I discovered this new film even existed. I was sitting in the cinema waiting to watch Inception, and the trailer for this film came up. I sat there with my head in my hands, to the point of breaking down in tears as to how they ruined a perfectly respectable show. The characters did not fit those I knew and loved: Mr. T is irreplaceable for one thing, and the new theme tune was nowhere near as good as the original.Here's a tip to all you directors out there who want to produce a remake: Don't deviate too much from the original, or face the backlash! At least keep the theme tune from the original! I mean fair enough, in one section of the film they use the original track, but be consistent and use it in the marketing too!
The story centers around a group of Iraq War veterans looks to clear their name with the U.S. military, who suspect the four men of committing a crime for which they were framed. The group consists of Colonel John 'Hannibal' Smith (Liam Neeson), Lt. Templeton 'Faceman' Peck (Bradley Cooper), Sergeant Bosco 'B.A.' Baracus (Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson), Captain James 'Howling Mad' Murdock (Sharlto Copley) and also Jessica Biel as Charissa Sosa.
Watch the following trailer to see what I mean:
Flying tanks and general ridiculous storyline were one of the main reasons I did not go to the cinema to watch this film. In fact, I was on a five-hour British Airways flight on-board a flight from Cyprus, back to the UK. Unlike the more modern Cyprus Airways planes I normally fly on, I thought I had stepped back in time onto a plane with shared 16" isle box televisions. "Fair enough," I thought, as I was sure they would have a better selection of films on BA than on Cyprus Airways. I opened the entertainment guide and hey presto... The A-Team. 5 Hours stuck on a plan with no entertainment but this 117 minute pathetic excuse for a remake. I mean, I'm FAIRLY sure it was the Vietnam war, not the Iraq War where they met, not to mention BA usually wears tonnes of gold chains claiming that he "ain't gettin' on no plane," compared to "chopper". I was annoyed but thought I may as well give it a go.
You know what? Director Joe Carnahan actually did a decent job. I have no qualms in saying that the storyline was pathetically poor, as was most of the acting aside from Liam Neeson (as always), and newcomer Sharlto Copley (who is possibly the only person on earth who could possibly immitate Dwight Shultz' version of Murdock). Liam Neeson was as effective as George Peppard (who sadly passed away in 1994 with lung cancer). I thought "Rampage" was quite poor, but there seems to be this considerable trend in that wrestlers/cage fighters seem to think that they can act when they get the chance (aside from Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson and Steve Austin who are showing considerable signs of improvement). I have a gigantic crush on Jessica Biel, but recently I think she's been a bit wooden as an actress... but don't worry Jessica, I still love you. Bradley Cooper has been getting all the breaks since his hit film "The Hangover" (2009), and he does quite a good job of imitating Dirk Benedict's Faceman.
Overall I have rated this film 6/10, because as a stand-alone film, I did find myself really enjoying myself as it unfolded. I think the charm of ridiculous scenarios, coupled with a bit more violence and grit than the original, was a welcoming addition to this version. I do feel that it was totally unnecessary to show how the group met for the first time, as everyone knows that they were a unit. In a way it was nice to bring the story forward a few decades, but would have been nice to retain the original recordings of the narration and theme tune. Finally, I think that if I had never grown up with the original series, I would have enjoyed this a lot more, but simply because it was not the same feel as the original, it does not beat its charm and wit overall. I guess "I ain't gettin' on no BA Plane" to Cyprus again!
"Flying tanks and general ridiculous storyline were one of the main reasons I did not go to the cinema to watch this film."
ReplyDeleteYet you watched the television show fine? That was equally as unrealistic and ridiculous. Cabbage cannons anyone? How about Murdock (yes his name ends in a 'k') constantly going from being wanted as part of the team to not? Let's not forget the fact that every time a bad guy came into contact with water in the TV version they were rendered helpless and unable to fight The A Team! The TV show had its problems too. I have to wonder what people are expecting from The A Team when they review saying things about ridiculous plots and unrealistic scenes. It's as if they never saw an episode.
Now granted I first watched the film before seeing the TV show so I still think it's good even after viewing all five original seasons.
The film had to be updated for this day and age hence the Iraq references.
As for Rampage's acting ability, well Mr T wasn't exactly a brilliant actor himself.
They couldn't just make it a carbon copy of the TV show, then they'd be getting slated for that too.
I do agree Sharlto Copley was the stand out of the fim, but the rest of the cast did a great job also.
"I mean, I'm FAIRLY sure it was the Vietnam war, not the Iraq War where they met, not to mention BA usually wears tonnes of gold chains claiming that he "ain't gettin' on no plane," compared to "chopper"."
ReplyDeleteSo you wanted the movie to be an extended episode of the TV series with virtually no changes made?
"Flying tanks and general ridiculous storyline were one of the main reasons I did not go to the cinema to watch this film."
So you DIDN'T want the movie to be an extended episode of the TV series because you don't like ridiculous storylines?
"I think the charm of ridiculous scenarios, coupled with a bit more violence and grit than the original, was a welcoming addition to this version."
The charm? I thought flying a tank was ridiculous and exactly why you DIDN'T want to see the film.
"I do feel that it was totally unnecessary to show how the group met for the first time, as everyone knows that they were a unit."
Well, if they hadn't shown us this and opened the film with Murdock cooking, it COULD have worked. BUT, the opening sequence of how they met I feel was crucial to establishing the relationship of the men to each other through the movie. And for someone who saw the movie first and had no idea what the A-Team even was prior to that, we need that. Those of us who weren't in the loop needed the extra time to get to know those men.
"Finally, I think that if I had never grown up with the original series, I would have enjoyed this a lot more, but simply because it was not the same feel as the original, it does not beat its charm and wit overall."
Which could be a reason why I disagree with you on so many points - the movie was my introduction to the A-Team. However, I have seen the entire series, and I still have to argue that while the movie did have crippling drawbacks (its plot was weak and its character development seriously underdone), it captured the absolute essence of the series: the ridiculous, over-the-top, insane fun of watching these guys do whatever they can to stop something. If this film had been closer to an episode of the TV series, there would have been endless complaints about this or that wrong, the phony visuals, the lame dialogue, the endless plot holes. i'm not saying the series has that. I'm saying in this day and age, what you got away with in the 80s would NOT fly now....not even with Captain H.M. Murdock at the controls.
That being said, I'd like to throw something out there: according to your review (and the lines I quoted above), the entire reason the film didn't draw you in at first was because it was exactly like the series: over the top and ridiculous. What, then, were you looking for in this film? And what didn't you see?
Thanks for the comments. I think if you watch the series now (especially after the film), of course it looks over the top and rubbish, and I'm sure many will believe that the new film is better than the original, but watching it as a child, I think it has more of a sentimental attachment to me personally.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Mr. T was not the best actor in the world, but for some reason you forgave his acting. If you look back at Knightrider now and all of that era, you could easily say that those shows were the same sort of quality.
Times do change, and with the original cast too old (or deceased) to play a new version of the film, of course there would be a need for a change of cast, but I just didn't really see a need for a revival aside from potential marketing purposes.
What made the series so successful was that nearly every episode had a similar theme throughout, with similar, predictable quotes and phrases. Again, growing up with it, I believe that I have different attachments to how it plays out to you as you rightfully mentioned.
I did admit that it was a great standalone film (i.e. if it wasn't branded A-Team) for instance. I just think it was missing something, and I couldn't exactly tell you what.