Okay, first of all, get loaded before watching this film. A 40 oz. of King Cobra or St. Ides is a good start. Being inebriated greatly enhances your enjoyment of this flick. It was obviously filmed in the Philippines with Filipino folk playing Vietnamese and Cambodians. William Smith's hair gets progressively lighter until during the final sequence, he is blond. The other four guys who portray Hells Angel types are pretty pathetic. Limpy looks like a skinny, sleazy 70's porn star. Then there's the guy with a shocking green rag across his forehead with a swastika on it. I don't think macho biker types would wear chartreuse, but he never takes it off. Then there's the flabby guy with the huge love handles who fights all the time with his shirt off. Then there's the guy with no muscle tone and killer blue eyes who is the farthest thing from a biker type. We get to see a few topless Filipino women and that's nice. The final assault on the enemy camp with choppers modified with shields and machine guns is classic. I think they knocked down and blew up the same tower three times. Anyway, William Smith is the only legit biker type and he carries the film. Fun movie, but make certain you have plenty of malt liquor on hand to help maintain your viewing pleasure.
The Losers
1970
Action / Drama / Thriller / War
The Losers
1970
Action / Drama / Thriller / War
Plot summary
Some bikers are hired by the CIA during the Vietnam War to rescue a captured agent from the clutches of the Red Chinese army. After a round of drinking, fighting, and whoring around, the cycle gang, led by Big Bill Smith, fix up their Yamahas with machine guns, grenades and armor plating, and storm the enemy camp.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
March 13, 2020 at 04:07 AM
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William Smith, Badass
Dumb--even for a biker film
Aside from "Werewolves on Wheels", "Nam's Angels" (aka "The Losers") is probably the dumbest biker film of its day. Now that's saying a lot, as there were MANY bad biker films and only a few good ones. It's a very strange genre that many folks today simply won't understand...and frankly, I lived during that era and STILL don't understand!
This film begins with a motorcycle gang (headed by William Smith) arriving in Vietnam during the war. They have been recruited to infiltrate territory where the Army isn't allowed--and they'll go using their motorcycles! Think about it--cycles through the jungle! But, before they go on their stupid mission, the guys do what you'd expect--get drunk and make it with local prostitutes. Overall, the film is cheap, makes zero sense and is pretty dull. If you love bad biker films, then this should be right up your alley--otherwise, you could only do better looking elsewhere.
By the way, 'Vietnam' in this film is actually the Philippines--a place where tons of horrible American-produced movies were made in the late 60s and early 70s.
The Losers!
Also known as 'Nam Angels, this Jack Starrett-directed film (he also made Run, Angel, Run!; Race with the Devil and Hollywood Man, among others) has a great high concept: a biker gang called The Devil's Advocates are sent to Cambodia to rescue an American diplomat because they're the only ones who can get the job done.
They're led by Vietnam vet - and the brother of the Army Major who has recruited them - Link Thomas, who is played by the always dependable William Smith. They're under the orders of Captain Johnson (Bernie Hamilton, who was Captain Harold Dobey on Starsky and Hutch) and include fellow vets Duke (Adam Roarke from Dirty Mary Crazy Larry and Frogs) and Dirty Denny, as well as Limpy (Paul Koslo, Vanishing Point) and Speed (Eugene Cornelius, who was Space in Run, Angel, Run!).
They head to Vietnam, but come on, we all know it's the Philippines, because the mechanic who works on their bikes, Diem-Nuc, is played by Vic Diaz. It doesn't matter, because by the time you start trying to figure out locations*, our heroes are doing wheelies and blowing things up with rocket launchers and machine guns while they do wheelies.
This movie does have some basis in reality. Sonny Barger, who was the Maximum Leader of the Hells Angels, sent LBJ a telegram offering the skills of his club in the Vietnam War. That inspired Alan Caillou, who originally wrote that The Losers would live. Starrett and Smith rewrote the script to the ending we know now.
If you watch Pulp Fiction, you can see a scene from this movie, being watched by Butch's girlfriend the day after his fight. When he asks what she was watching, she says, "A motorcycle movie, I'm not sure the name."
*They're reused from Too Late the Hero.