By Ashley Hillard

Jeffrey Dean Morgan (”Watchmen”) plays Clay, the leader of a group of former CIA black ops trying to figure out who set them up to die during a mission. Joining them is a frighteningly skinny Zoe Saldana (”Avatar”) as Aisha, a special agent with her own agenda and a lead to the man that set The Losers up, a heavily guarded weapons dealer known as Max (Jason Patric).

Joining Clay and Aisha are Jensen (Chris Evans), Roque (Idris Elba), Pooch (Columbus Short) and Cougar (Oscar Jaenada).

Evans is the comedic relief of the group as well as the techy guy and his scenes are among the best in the film. Jaenada brings a Western badass feel to the film, as though he walked off the set of ”Dusk Til Dawn” and onto ”The Losers” set. The ensemble is fantastic, working together to create a solid mix of humor with action.

Sylvain White (”Stomp The Yard”) directed this film based on the DC graphic novels. White’s style is reminiscent of Tarantino’s (a compliment!) in the stylized violence and sped up camera speed. The sex scenes are steamy and there are plenty of creative ass shots of Saldana. Writers Peter Berg, James Vanderbilt and comic creator Andy Diggle deserve a lot of credit for making this a standout graphic novel actioner in Hollywood’s current sea of graphic novels-turned-motion-pictures. The characters are developed quickly and efficiently, with scenes that make them sympathetic yet tough, charismatic and imperfect.

”The Losers” strength is the writing and White’s style and sense of comedic timing. This isn’t the run of the mill hero film and even though ”The Losers” are not as well known as other DC characters, they are probably a bit more relatable as they are highly skilled average joes with families and lives that they don’t want Max to mess with. Add this one to your must see list.

Extras

A featurette