Esquadrão Classe A

Action packed film dedicated to the original TV series with the same name. Interesting at first because of its cast (Bradley Cooper, Liam Neeson, Sharlito Copley) and because of the very fast pace right from the beginning of the film. The action sequences are messy but deliver entertainment throughout the movie and that overruns the sometimes flawed script and the plot holes. Acting is ok; the performance of Sharlito Copley is hilarious. He is spicing up the boring in between conversations of the characters and the things he says or does are very funny. Overall, entertaining blockbuster which still stands its ground. 7/10

The idea of a movie version of eighties television series the a-team didn't appeal to me at all. I assumed that they couldn't possibly capture the things that made the series so special. I have been proved wrong.

The A-Team is side-splittingly funny, action packed, clever and sexy.

I loved every single frame of this movie and sincerely hope they make another. The dialogue is witty and clever- and very quotable.

The stuntwork is amazing. I actually bought the DVD and this film is enjoyable even after several viewings.

The actors all do a great job in updating the iconic original characters.

If you are looking for a light, funny and action packed movie, it doesn't get much better than this. The A-Team is very, very easy too take in, but never boring, has action-scenes that will blow you out of your seat and is stuffed with plenty of damn funny moments.

Also very nice for a change: this action/comedy film doesn't take itself too seriously. Which is quite refreshing if you take a look at all the 'comedy with a message' crap Hollywood produces these days.

The new B.A. (Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson), Murdock (Sharlto Copley), Hannibal (Liam Neeson) and Face (Bradley Cooper) are all great at their roles. Props for Patrick Wilson as the slick C.I.A. agent Lynch and Jessica Biel is lovely as always. Joe Carnahan, who wrote and directed this movie, simply did a great job and gives the audience exactly what it needs.

I'd say it was definitely worth my money.

I just returned from watching this movie, and frankly, I didn't even know it was a story taken from an earlier series until I wikipedia-ed it just now. That being said, the expectations and sensitivities in a fan of the original series is non-existent in me, so this is purely based on what I felt about the movie itself.

First off, the casting is near perfect. Everyone had a role that they played very well, and while Rampage Jackson's acting could have been a little better, his presence and screen time were downplayed to perhaps make up for it. But that's what I'm talking about, it was a very good balance of characters that was consistently carried throughout the movie. Who really stood out for me was Sharlto Copley. For someone who wasn't professionally trained as an actor, he portrayed the crazy Murdoch flawlessly. I brought my parents to watch the show and they loved his performance, with mom going as far to say the movie worked because everything funny came from him. I have to agree, I was certainly very entertained for the whole duration of the movie largely due to him.

What I didn't particularly like were the computer generated effects. They looked quite fake at times, and it hints at a rushed job by animators. While the first three quarters of the film had a fairly consistent amount of action, the last quarter was overkill. Spoilt the movie a little for me, but the overall experience was a good one. Movies are meant to entertain and I most definitely was, much more than I expected for the price I paid for my ticket. Word of warning though - you really shouldn't think too deeply about the story when you're watching this. There are unresolved plot holes and some people have expressed upset at this, but the film was never marketed as a 'story' kind of film in any way so they really should've known better.

This movie is not for movie buffs who look for the meaning of life in films, but if a hilarious, well-acted, action-packed movie is your thing? I say go watch this now.

Story : Okay

Acting : Ranging from awesome to not bad

Cast dynamics :Brilliant

Hilarity factor : Totally

Special Effects : Acceptable to meh at times

Duration : Long but I didn't feel it

Would watch again : YEAH.

Overkill is underrated. One of the many mottoes Colonel John Hannibal Smith throws around whilst hatching his brilliant plans, dispensing them like his insightful wisdom increases the chances of success. A motto director Joe Carnahan has taken to heart in making 'The A-Team'. A smart move, as complete and uncompromising exaggeration appears to be exactly what the format asked for. Especially since the translation of TV shows to the big screen has proved to be no easy task. Just look at 'Miami Vice', which pretty much bombed despite the presence of Michael Mann, the director/producer who created the original series. Or the near criminal trashing überhobbyist MacGuyver recently received by the hands of questionable farce 'MacGruber'. In a world so significantly different from the mid-eighties, the severely underpaid and hopelessly dated missions of the four fugitives could have very much been out of place as well.

The reincarnation by the hands of Carnahan however, avoids many of the pitfalls that the outdated format has to offer. For one, the director has brought the well known premise of the series to the present. Vietnam has been replaced by Iraq and the bad attitude of Bosco Baracus is not the only thing that makes the foursome dangerous: the happy-go-lucky stance of a team that rarely asked for enemy casualties has been replaced by an attitude that better suits a group of elite soldiers. What is especially striking is how well the cast handle their roles, and how much fun they have doing so. Understandable, since the characters in Carnahan's installment have been blown up as well. Hannibal in the hands of Liam Neeson, although not as charismatic as George Peppard, is equally complacently on the jazz whenever a dangerous situation can be even remotely relished. Templeton "Faceman" Peck in the version of Bradley Cooper enjoys the swindling of both women and all sorts of tools even more than his predecessor Dirk Benedict and the script provides Quinton "Rampage" Jackson with a philosophical depth to his distinctive character - and evolution thereof - in the BA 2.0 version. The acting skills of the professional wrestler are up for debate, but then again you never questioned Mr. T. either. Even though he played the bejeweled, Mohawk sporting powerhouse with an acute fear of flying as an overly enthusiastic pupil in a school musical, always staring at the next person to speak his lines way long before they had the floor. The biggest fun, however, comes from Howling Mad Murdock in the interpretation of 'District 9'-phenomenon Sharlto Copley, who occupies the crazy pilot with both a zest for life and an absolute fearlessness of death – cue the suicidal midair antics. His inimitable flying skills, Murdockian features (sock puppets and his interaction with BA for example) and especially his imitation of Mel Gibson in 'Braveheart' - including stick horse - make him the movies' main asset.

The script then. The plot, pretty much a side issue, continuously serves up action excesses – equally incredible and entertaining – but yields more than a whipped episode of the series stretched to a playing time of two hours. You could say the plot is kind of a cross section of the five years the series ran, if you omit the recurring missions the mercenaries entered into. There is plenty of borrowing from existing story lines, more or less adapted to the new universe of Carnahan. The film opens with a spectacular introduction of the four veterans some years ago - only Hannibal and Face are trusted comrades, BA and Murdock have still to cross their paths - setting up the Alpha team that started it all. Included of course, is a supporting role for the black GMC Van, which can impossibly be disregarded as the fifth member. Cut to eight years and eighty successful missions later, to the operation that sees the team become the proverbial scapegoat the series theme credits were based on – something to do with a crime they didn't commit. The bank robbery in Hanoi has been replaced by the hijacking of a truckload of counterfeit money in Baghdad, commanding General Morrison is still here. The CIA is present as well, in a possible set-up for a sequel in which Hannibal's outfit will be contracted by the organization in a reference to Stockwell (Robert Vaughn) of the fifth season of the series. The plot is driven by the aftermath of the robbery, offering supporting roles for Captain Charisa Sosa (the distractingly attractive Jessica Biel) and CIA man Lynch (Patrick Wilson, 'Watchmen'), but it's all a mere hook for ridiculous set pieces and extravagant action to be towed on.

Hannibal's crack commando unit must pull out all the stops in order to clear its name, in an adventure that at times offers absolute top entertainment. That is, if you're willing to believe that a parachute suspended tank (as seen in the trailer), wherein the fearless foursome escape from an exploding plane, can be easily maneuvered in midair using the inboard cannon, simultaneously discarding enemy aircraft like it's a game of Duck Hunt. There are enough sequences that ask more than a lot of your ability to shut off your brain, but as said that exaggeration is exactly what this film needed. 'The A-Team' is simply a masterful popcorn spectacle par excellence, offering high-level action entertainment and jokes that are more often than not very decently set up. The cast has great fun working with the pleasantly unlikely adventures and the story is – in good tradition - full of references to the 80's hit series it is based on. The plot falters a bit left and right and the credo overkill is underrated is at times perhaps taken a little too far, but that is merely an expected consequence of handing control over to the man behind 'Smokin' Aces'. Regardless, the oncoming release might well feature a well-deserved 'to be continued' by the time the end credits start rolling.