We got a little grief from some readers when we panned “The Losers” trailer a couple of weeks ago, but it looks like our instincts were spot on. Late yesterday it was reported that “The Losers” release date was being bumped from April 9th to June 4th, and while some fanboys are proclaiming that this must mean that Warner Brothers are so pleased with the film that they are giving it a juicy summer spot, the truth is the film probably needs a lot of work.
Recently, test screenings for “The Losers” happened in LA and reports were not good. As one reader wrote in to Latino Review, “The movie was ok. Still needs a lot of work, at least storywise as some parts ultimately don’t make sense, especially the ending…….Overall, the movie felt like the “A-Team” but with different flavoring.” Again, pretty much verifying what we thought of the trailer when we saw it, and seems to confirm that that the release date move has more to do with getting a film that makes sense in the can. It also gives filmmaker Sylvain White some time to do reshoots or film additional scenes if he needs to (and we wouldn’t be surprised if that happens).
However, the move to June 4th isn’t one taken entirely out of a hat. It does position the film to open one week before “The A-Team” and with both movies – for all intents and purposes – looking exactly the same and vying for the same audience, it’s a pretty sneaky movie. It also gives the film relatively no competition that weekend, as it will face “Marmaduke,” “The Killers” and the recently moved “Get Him To Greek.” While the latter film will probably still win the weekend, it at least makes “The Losers” the most attractive second option among the selection of dreck.
As for “The A-Team” they’re sticking with their June 11th date for now. Recently Bradley Cooper revealed that Dirk Benedict from the original series would be making a cameo appearance in the film and….nobody really cared. That scene will probably land with all the impact as the original dudes from “Starsky & Hutch” appearing in that film. Fifty-year old Dads in the audience we’re sure will be thrilled.