The Losers****

I think we've had a lot of films recently based on comics; Kick Ass, Iron Man 2, Watchmen (2009) and The Dark Knight (2008) based on the DC Comics character Batman, and I'll admit I'm starting to really like this phase. I enjoyed Kick Ass and Iron Man 2, so I hoped that I would like The Losers as another graphic novel based film.

It's been a while since Sylvain White directed a film but after three years, I think he did The Losers justice. Who could resist with five well built men? And not forgetting to mention Zoe Saldana (Avatar) wearing little to nothing half the time but definitely knowing how to shoot a gun. She knew how to keep the guys in their place with her feisty yet threatening personality and her appearance allowed her to blend in with the men, as she sported tattoos and piercings. I almost believe she could be the new Halle Berry as she seems to have proved herself as an action chick.

What I admired about The Losers was its incorporation of the comic style, for example when the characters were introduced they were in their graphic form with their names and traits, which was helpful for anyone who wasn't really aware of who they were. It also suggested the way they worked as a team, individually they all contributed to produce a number of skills. I thought the way the labels merged with the landscape to inform us of the rapidly changing location was clever, the font was technical looking as though you were in a video game and kept up this idea of a 'mission'.

There was a fair amount of slow motion in the film, but it was nothing like the slow mo in Prince of Persia. In The Losers the whole frame slowed right down, it was like the scene in the Lion King where Simba fights Scar as an adult, it made everything incredibly dramatic. One scene that stupefied me was where Saldana and Jeffrey Dean Morgan are fighting in a hotel room whilst fire slowly creeps up the walls as though they are completely oblivious to it. The editing kept up a fast pace so you could barely take in the gun fights at points but this kept the audience engaged. There were plenty of explosions and stunts you'd find in an action packed film; bikes driving into aeroplanes, cars exploding in the middle of the city and Roque (Idris Elba) putting on a show with his knife skills. There were plenty of chat-up lines from Jensen (Chris Evans) and quick wit and licking of the lips from Cougar (Oscar Jaenada).

The soundtrack conveyed just how fearsome and masculine these ex soldiers were, and undoubtedly you cannot beat a bit of Journey - Don't Stop Believin' to lighten the tense mood. With an unexpected twist, this film is a specific must see this year - The Losers turned out to be quite the opposite.