The Losers is loosely based on a comic book, but watching it, you’d think it was inspired by the television action serials of the 1980s.  That makes it a good fit in a year that will also see the release of a big screen A-Team and the “MacGyver”-inspired Macgruber.  Director Sylvain White and his screenwriters do their best to provide plenty of macho banter, stunts, and explosions and the results are somewhat mixed.

The title refers to a small group of special ops soldiers who find themselves on the wrong side of the law when a mission goes wrong in Bolivia.  After going against orders to rescue some children, the losers are betrayed by a nasty arms dealer named Max.  While everyone back home thinks they are dead, they are stuck in a foreign country with nothing to do but think about revenge.  The opportunity presents itself when a woman with questionable motives and plenty of connections shows up and offers to get them back in the States so they can kill Max for her.

Up to this point, the movie has been clever, fun, and intriguing.  Unfortunately, things start to go downhill once Max, formerly just a voice on the radio, is formally introduced.  He’s a unique merchant of death, specializing in “green” weapons for the ecologically-friendly terrorist.  Yes, you read that right, eco-friendly terrorists.  “Total destruction, no pollution” he tells one of his associates after his new weapon disappears an island as if it were the home of the castaways on Lost.

Action movies are often only as good as their villain, and as Max Jason Patric comes off looking more idiotic than deadly.  Speaking in a very low-key tone of voice, the actor appears to be impersonating Christoph Waltz’s sadistic villian in Inglourious Basterds, attempting to blend off-handed comic touches with moments of brutal violence.  It’s a delicate balance to pull off, which is why Waltz’s performance was a runaway choice for an Oscar.  There’s no menace in Max’s shenanigans.  He’s just a goofy guy playing “Go Fish.”

With the exception of Patric, the rest of the cast pulls off their fairly familiar roles quite nicely.  Jeffrey Dean Morgan continues to move towards leading man status as Clay, the leader of the guys whose authority begins to be challenged by Idris Elba’s Roque.  Columbus Short and Chris Evans get the comic relief roles with Evans getting most of the laughs.  The actor has been making a living off of these kinds of roles and it will be interesting to see how he plays the more serious—I’m assuming—Captain America, a high-profile upcoming role he just secured.

Zoe Saldana is the girl of the group and her introduction makes for one of the strangest moments in the film.  After approaching Clay in a bar she makes it into his hotel room before announcing that she has a deal for him.  They spend the next few minutes brawling in and completely destroying the room, and then she announces her plan.  There’s no real rational reason for the brawl other than to provide some sudden violence and sex appeal.  There are other moments in the film that feel a bit forced and someone cheap, such as a moment when someone presents a full set of color photos of a hard drive heist.  Who took the pictures?

The Losers could have made for a good action comedy and there are moments that still live up to the promise, but a poorly realized villain, a plot twist I just didn’t buy, and some other odd plot choices keep it from being worth a recommendation.  Hopefully A-Team and MacGruber will help pick up the slack.

The Losers is rated PG-13 for “sequences of intense action and violence, a scene of sensuality and language.”  The action and violence do seem to be toned down in a movie that still has the feel of an R film.

Courtesy of a local publicist, Jeff attended a promotional screening of The Losers.