Les Machines du diable

Fun genre-splicer where biker gang is enlisted by US army to rescue a VIP American captive behind enemy lines, with all the action and phony red paint stage blood they used to use in the 70's to go with it, Some pretty lousy acting to some pretty lousy dialogue, but not all. Big plus for me was the American's interaction with the Vietnamese locals as they try to go about conducting the business of daily life in a war zone, especially the lovely ladies, many of whom dancing in bra and panties in a "nightclub" (brothel). Cheesy love theme reprised over final massacre is the perfect unhappy ending.

William Smith is my all time favorite B-Movie actor- a truly talented individual whose list of lifelong accomplishments is extraordinary. He single handedly made movies like "The Losers" watchable and even enjoyable if you don't take them too seriously. The film centers around the U.S. Army hiring a motorcycle gang to rescue a presidential adviser being held captive in Cambodia. Smith plays gang leader Link Thomas, whose Army Sergeant brother sets up the mission. Most of the movie is spent focusing on events leading up to the mission with the gang partying, smoking, getting in fights and souping up their choppers as the rescue nears.

The acting is average, although a respectable cast (Adam Roarke, Paul Koslo & Bernie Hamilton) was assembled. There is too much time spent on love interests which tends to bog down the film, but the latter half especially is very entertaining as the mission takes place. This is 70's schlock through and through, but is a treat for William Smith fans, as he gets top billing and the lions' share of screen time.

No one will confuse this with anything Oscar worthy, but so what? A good way to numb your mind for an hour and a half.

When I first saw this movie, I turned off after a while, really finding it a bore. 14 years later, I gave it another day in court. I watched it to the end. This is an unremarkable movie, about a group of expendable bikies, you feel sorry for, as they are so pathetic. They're sent in to Asia to rescue a thankless CIA guy, who shouts abuse at them, after most of these poor sods are already dead. where leader, Smith is really the last man standing. This really chafed only for a moment, cause this movie really lacks any kind of interest. We do explosions and gun fire but again I just found it pointless. One bikie, having some R and R with some nude hotties, not following procedure, explains himself to one of the guys in charge of this operation, which I found funny. He brags on how he used to own this cat house, and had to pick up some money that was owing to him. At the mentioning of his bike being flogged, by a kid ,he's out of there in a flash. The scenes in this cat house were the only ones I liked in this forgettable movie, part of the Roadshow Vibrant Video collection.

I like when directors try to mix genres like "Chopper Chicks In Zombie Town", "Blade Runner", "Rock'n'Roll Wrestling Women Vs. The Aztec Mummy" etc. You don't always get the best results but at least it's interesting. In "The Losers/Nam's Angels" B-movie veteran William Smith leads a bikergang against the Viet Cong. Fun idea but the film spends too time with the bikers' love affairs, bar fights etc. In the end the gang gets their s**t together with their special built warbikes (no Harleys!). It's too late to save the movie but Tarantino must've been impressed since he used some scenes in "Pulp Fiction"! Nice try but see "Satan's Sadists" or "Apocalypse Now" instead.

When the president's chief adviser is captured by enemy forces in Cambodia, the CIA, in it's infinite wisdom, recruits members of the Hell's Angels in order to pull him out. Can we say 'expendable'? Aside from being criminally grotesque and sinfully stupid, these hog-jockeys spend most of their time trying to get organized and end up kicking the snot out of each other. And on top of that, they won't complete their mission without a bitchin' combat-ready chopper between their legs. That oughta come in handy in the jungle. Be sure not to miss the scene where a spindly member of the gang offers his fat biker buddy an ammends brewski, then hammers him in the gut with everything he's got, leading into a slow-motion exploding spit-up which I'm sure you'll want to savor every single frame of.