“Give me a minute, I’m good. Give me an hour, I’m great. Give me six months, I’m unbeatable.”

Justin’s rating: The truth is worth the risk. Well said.

Justin’s review: Like any other kid growing up in the ’80s who was too young to see any of the amazing action movies of the era in the theaters, I had to make do with what I could find on the small screen. Usually, a good substitute was The A-Team, since it had all sorts of action, explosions, gunfire, and a 0% casualty rate. Parents really liked that last one.

I wasn’t a die-hard fan, but as I said, it was an acceptable substitute. And how could you go through the ’80s without admiring Mr. T?

I guess there weren’t quite enough A-Team loyalists left who wanted to show up for the 2010 remake, however. It went over flat in theaters, despite a plum summer release date, and certainly didn’t spark a franchise revival. But time’s been kinder to this movie’s memory, growing a new fanbase that’s enjoyed this dirtier version of Mission Impossible.

In The A-Team, things kick off with a new version of how the famous four Rangers come together during a desperate mission in Mexico. There’s Hannibal (Liam Neeson), the genius planner; Face (Bradley Cooper), the con man; BA Baracus (Quinton Jackson), muscle and proud van owner; and Howling Mad Murdock (Sharito Copley), mentally unstable pilot.

Flash-forward eight years and 80 missions later, and the A-Team gets blindsided by a betrayal that not even Hannibal saw coming. Convicted of a crime they didn’t commit, the four are sent to supermax prison while the real bad guys went free. That doesn’t sit well with any of them, and so these four promptly break out and work to exonerate their names.

There’s a good crowd-pleasing mix of entertainment — military strikes, heist planning, and buddy action quipping. This is as far from “serious” and “dour” as you can get, and I am absolutely here for it. I just wish it was a little shorter and some of the intrigue dead weight was jettisoned for even more bonkers sequences.

Fortunately, these four project real chemistry and joy as they work together, and it’s a blast to watch them bouncing off each other as they pull off ridiculous plans.

The A-Team isn’t some brilliant hidden gem, it’s simply an entertaining, humorous popcorn flick that not enough people gobbled up the first time around. Sometimes that’s the cure for too many disappointing romps through Hollywood’s backyard.

Intermission!

• Behind-the-Mohawk Cam, that’s a new one
• “I’m living the dream!”
• That’s a beautiful van
• Hanging? Burning alive? Why not have both for maximum fun times!
• “Last week he tried to escape by jump starting an ambulance”
• Stitches come in lightning versions
• “Met him, he LIT MY ARM ON FIRE.”
• “You gorgeous rust bucket, did you miss your mommy?”
• The bad guys admiring Murdock’s helicopter barrel roll was funny
• “I know you’re Airborne Rangers, but that was ridiculous!”
• “There’s a plan in everything, kid, and I love it when a plan comes together!”
• “What would you like to discuss?” “Did you take my Steely Dan CD?”
• “263 jumps, and one flight with you screws that all up.”
• Nice Braveheart speech, with pony
• “Is it weird that I’m more scared now than what we just did?”
• Waking up in an active crematorium is a new fear, thanks film
• Now THAT’S 3D!
• A tank is an ultimate escape pod from a plane
• “Why we in a falling tank?” “Because the plane we were in exploded.” “What, when!”
• “They trying to shoot down that other drone?” “No, they’re trying to fly that tank.”
• “That’s awesome, that looks just like Call of Duty, doesn’t it?”
• “CIA’s got rules, they’re just cooler than yours.”
• The guy struggling to figure out a suppressor
• “Look at BA, he looks like a huge banana.”
• The shell game writ large