The A-Team parents guide

The A-Team Parent Guide

Although The A-Team likely will appeal to teen boys yearning for action, parents might not feel the same enthusiasm.

Overall C-

Hannibal (Liam Neeson), Face (Bradley Cooper), Murdock (Sharlto Copley) and B.A. (Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson) were members of The A-Team, a unit of the Special Forces. Now they are being incarcerated for a crime they did not commit. Unwilling to accept their fate, the foursome uses their unique skills to clear their names and get revenge on those who framed them. This movie is based on the popular 1980's TV series.

Release date June 11, 2010

Violence D+
Sexual Content B-
Profanity C-
Substance Use C-

Why is The A-Team rated PG-13? The MPAA rated The A-Team PG-13 for intense sequences of action and violence throughout, language and smoking.

Run Time: 119 minutes

Official Movie Site

Parent Movie Review

The soldiers of fortune that once enjoyed popularity on North American TV screens during the 1980s are staging a comeback. This time they are appearing in movie theaters with the hope of sparking sentimentality from their aging fans and instilling an interest in younger audiences.

Cigar smoking ringleader Hannibal (Liam Neeson), along with the spontaneous Murdock (Sharlto Copley), womanizing Face (Bradley Cooper) and the eminent Baracus (Quinton Jackson) join together to form an elite team for the Army Special Forces. They are commissioned to stop a potential counterfeiting ring hatched in Iraq that will cost the US government billions. But the operation goes bad and the foursome end up being accused of the very crime they were trying to prevent. Determined to clear their names, the band of men runs from federal agent Charisa Sosa (Jessica Biel)—the one woman in the film who provides a minor love interest for Face—while seeking help from CIA Agent Lynch (Patrick Wilson).

Yes, the plot really can be summarized in a paragraph. After all, it’s difficult to carry on much dialogue when eighty percent of the runtime is taken up with gunfire. The script scarcity also puts a bit of a damper on character development. In short, whether or not you have seen these cardboard characters in their original broadcast glory, you won’t learn any more about them here.

As the copious amounts of violence riddle the big screen, the sanitized depictions of the television series (sometimes accused of being unrealistic by the critics of the day) are no longer evident. This 2010 team has guns that really do shoot and often blood is seen as a result. As well, death is more frequent with many nameless characters meeting their demise from bullet wounds, car wrecks, bombings and other life extinguishing methods.

Unfortunately, some offensive language and sexual content accompanies this excessive violence. Profanities, though relatively infrequent, are used throughout and include scatological terms, a sexual finger gesture and an interrupted sexual expletive. A few sexual comments are heard too, and one brief scene implies an intimate encounter between a man and woman who have just met. That’s not too surprising. This is a man’s movie and the female characters are subject to male whims.

Although The A-Team likely will appeal to teen boys yearning for action, parents might not feel the same enthusiasm. At the very least, moms and dads may prefer a story that offers a modicum of consequence in exchange for the kind of death and destruction these guys unleash in the name of saving America a few bucks.

Directed by Joe Carnahan. Starring Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Sharlto Copley, Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson. Running time: 119 minutes. Theatrical release June 11, 2010. Updated

The A-Team
Rating & Content Info

Why is The A-Team rated PG-13? The A-Team is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for intense sequences of action and violence throughout, language and smoking.

Violence: Various guns and assault weapons are used throughout. Many people are shot, some fatally. High amounts of property damage occur. Fistfights between men are frequently depicted. A man forcibly kisses a woman—in return she slaps him and then he kisses her again (but this time she appears to enjoy it). A vehicle is smashed into a room full of people. A bloody injury is shown in explicit detail. Various vehicles and aircraft explode. While watching a bomb hit a building with people inside on a video screen, a person remarks that it "looks like Call of Duty" (referring to the popular video game).

Sex: A couple of sexual remarks are heard (some are derogatory toward women). A man finds a woman’s underwear on his bed, implying a sexual relationship. A man is accused of sleeping with another man’s wife—the woman is happy with the situation. A man and woman share a passionate kiss.

Language: Approximately nine scatological expletives, an interrupted sexual expletive, terms of deity and mild profanities are heard. A sexual finger gesture is seen.

Drugs/Alcohol: A principal protagonist frequently smokes cigars. A man claims he uses antifreeze to marinate meat for a barbeque. A character afraid of flying is frequently given sedatives and injections without his consent. A man takes a drug to induce a death-like seizure so he can escape from prison.

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The A-Team Parents' Guide

The A-Team TV show was criticized for depicting many violent acts where no blood was seen and few people were ever seriously injured or killed. Do you think it is more correct to portray violence with realistic injuries? What are the pros and cons between these two scenarios?

The one major female character in this film appears to be employed in a position of control. Is this an accurate assessment? Who is she actually accountable to? What characters determine the outcome of her investigation?

Home Video

The most recent home video release of The A-Team movie is December 14, 2010. Here are some details…

The A-Team release to DVD and Blu-ray on December 14, 2010.

The A-Team on DVD (Single Disc) offers:

-Theatrical version of the film

- Extended Edition of the film

The A-Team on Blu-ray (2 Disc) includes:

Disc One:

-Theatrical version of the film

- Extended Edition of the film

- The Devil is in the Details: Inside the Action with Joe Carnahan

- Deleted Scenes

- Gag Reel

- A-Team Theme Mash-Up Montage

- Plan of Attack

- Character Chronicles: Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Rampage Jackson, Sharlto Copley and Jessica Biel

- Visual Effects Commentary with Visual Effects Supervisor James E. Price

- Digital Copy “How To”

- BD-Live Extras: What’s New, Live Lookup

Disc Two:

- Digital Copy of The A-Team Theatrical Release

Related home video titles:

Special Forces’ members team up to thwart crime in Mission Impossible. In Bourne Identity an agent runs from his former employer who wants to kill him for unknown reasons.