It is said that if you have the right cast in place you're halfway there. If so, The A-Team is a long way from home.
What made The A-Team the TV series work was the chemistry among the A-Team members: charismatic John "Hannibal" Smith (George Peppard), charming Templeton "Faceman" Peck (Dirk Benedict), grumpy B.A. "Bad Attitude" Baracus (Mr. T), and wacky H.M. "Howling Mad" Murdock (Dwight Schultz). Vietnam War veterans, they've been on the run ever since the country they served has framed them for a crime they didn't commit. But, if you have a problem, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire the A-Team, as they offer their services as private soldiers of fortune.
Their service would typically involve: springing Murdock from a mental institution; B.A. driving them around in a black GMC van; tricking B.A. into boarding a plane; Faceman getting it on with the ladies; Hannibal coming up with a plan; and the assembling of a device of sorts to beat the bad guys. After Hannibal's plan has come together and the bad guys have learned their lesson, the A-Team drives off into the horizon where a new adventure awaits them. It's uncluttered, straightforward fun.
And it's everything the movie is not.
Among the A-Team cast only Sharlto Copley (Wikus Van De Merwe in District 9 [2009]) as Murdock seems an inspired pick, while the rest is miscast. Liam Neeson as Hannibal? Uh-uh. Neeson is too elegant a presence. You want him to lead a Mission Impossible subterfuge, not an A-Team loop-de-loop. Bradley Cooper's Faceman brings the looks sans the charm, while Quinton Jackson foolishly tries to channel Mr. T's B.A..
It could've worked out just fine if only the plot wasn't so random, involving, for instance, time jumps that nonchalantly fast-forward the story first eight years and then six months ahead. Time jumps are for epics and time travel movies, not an A-Team flick.
If you're going to see it for old time's sake, be warned: there are no cameos by the original A-Team cast other than a brief appearance of the GMC van, which get totalled. Randomly.
(Running time: 117 minutes)
