Movie Review - The Losers

Went to see The Losers last night with the new boy.  I had read several reviews of the movie that said it was your basic blow-shit-up flick, which we all know is my favorite kind.  Oh, spoiler warning, just in case.

In the interest of full disclosure, I don't know the source material at all, so I can't comment on how faithful the movie was.

There is no clear reason why these fellas are "The Losers".  The head dude, Clay, refers to them as "Losers" once during the movie.  And there is one conversation about why Clay doesn't want to be called Colonel anymore: "...because if he doesn't have the Army, then he's just a loser like the rest of us."  There's more to that conversation, but it's not especially important.  And I know I used quotes, but it's really paraphrased.

The movie opens in Bolivia, where the crew is marking a drug lord's estate for bombing.  You are introduced to the "The Losers" in comic book panel style; with their handle (Jensen, Cougar, Roque, Pooch, Clay) and their speciality.  No explanation is offered as to the origins of said handles.  It's probably goes without saying, but the attack on the drug lord's compound doesn't go as planned.  The Losers decide to abort the mission.  Turns out, a shadowy figure named Max had reasons for destroying the drug lord and intercepted the Losers' abort order.  Losers are framed for a massive loss of life and are stranded in Bolivia, while everyone in the States thinks they are dead.

Clay is obsessed with finding out more about Max, while the rest of the Losers just want to clear their names and go home.  Enter Zoe Saldana (Aisha); beautiful (duh) and mysteriously rich, and willing to bankroll the Losers in order to get her hands on Max.

I should probably mention that Max is in the process of buying a weapon called a "snook".  It's sort of a bomb, and sort of a tornado generator, and mostly a huge pile of crap.  Shiny, though.  Max has a side-kick named Wade who doesn't seem to know much about anything and is mostly used to toss people off buildings (accidentally) and guard "packages".

The Losers concoct a plan to abduct Max.  Doesn't go so well.  There is some internal strife, especially between Clay and Roque.  Then (oh no!) it seems like Aisha set them up.  Roque wants to kill her, but Clay, who has a weakness for volatile women, says no.

Have I mentioned the explosions?  There were explosions.  Thankfully, the movie never tries to be more than it is, and they avoid shoveling plot into the mix.  There is one bit with Max and his mangled hand that has no earthly reason for existing, but they mostly avoid such things.

And yes, it was left open for a sequel, but I honestly don't see that happening.  Aisha and Clay have unfinished business (I know I didn't talk about that), Max is still loose, and the Losers still haven't cleared their names.  I figure that people who saw the movie without knowing the source don't particularly care about resolution (you so don't get that kind of invested in the characters); and the people who saw the movie because of the comic already know how it plays out.