Home | Movies By Year | Movies from 1970
The Losers (1970 film)
Buy The Losers (1970 film) now from AmazonFirst, read the Wikipedia article. Then, scroll down to see what other TopShelfReviews readers thought about the movie. And once you've experienced the movie, tell everyone what you thought about it.
Wikipedia article
'The Losers' released on video as 'Nam's Angels' is a 1970 American biker war film directed by Jack Starrett.
Plot
The plot involves a gang of Hells Angels-type bikers called "The Devil's Advocates" involved in the Vietnam War. They are sent to the Cambodian jungle on Yamaha bikes in order to rescue an American diplomat/CIA Agent, Chet Davis.
The biker gang is led by Link Thomas, a Vietnam veteran and the brother of an Army Major who has recruited them. His gang consists of Duke, also a Vietnam veteran, Limpy, Speed, and another Vietnam veteran, Dirty Denny. They are under the orders of Army Captain Jackson.
The gang modifies their motorcycles in a garage run by Diem-Nuc. They weld armour plating with submachine guns on the handlebars. Limpy drives a three-wheeler modified from a Harley-Davidson frame with a Volkswagen rear end, that is armed with heavy .50 calibre machine guns and a multiple rocket launcher from a helicopter. In order to open fire on enemy soldiers in trees or towers the gang do wheelies whilst firing their weapons.
Cast
*William Smith as Link Thomas
*Bernie Hamilton as Captain Jackson
*Huston Savage as Dirty Denny
*Adam Roarke as Duke
*Paul Koslo as Limpy
*Gene Cornelius as Speed
*John Garwood as Sergeant Winston
*Ana Korita as Kim Sue
*Vic Diaz as Diem-Nuc
*Alan Caillou as Albanian
Production
On 19 November 1965, Sonny Barger the "Maximum Leader" of the Hells Angels motorcycle club sent a telegram to President Johnson offering the Angels as "gorilla fighters" (sic) in the Vietnam War. Though the President turned them down, the idea became a Vietnam War movie made in the Philippines using sets and crew from 'Too Late the Hero'.
William Smith stated that the original ending had the rescued diplomat die whilst the gang lived, but Jack Starrett and Smith rewrote Alan Caillou's screenplay. Smith also stated that the earring he wore in the film was given to him by the Hells Angels during another motorcycle film he made.
Paul Koslo was taught to ride by the film's stuntman Gary McLarty.
Originally titled 'Nam's Angels', the title was changed before release to the more generic 'The Losers'Devine, Jeremy M. & Schatz, William. 'Vietnam at 24 Frames a Second', McFarland, 1995, p. 60. with composer Stu Phillips writing a song incorporating the title.
"The Devil's Advocates" gang also appears in the films 'Run, Angel, Run!' and 'Werewolves on Wheels'.
In popular culture
A glimpse of the movie appears in Quentin Tarantino's 'Pulp Fiction', which Fabienne was watching, then had said "A motorcycle movie, I'm not sure the name.
John Milius said this film was a "big inspiration for 'Apocalypse Now'."
See also
*Outlaw biker film
*List of biker films
*Exploitation film
References
Buy The Losers (1970 film) now from Amazon
<-- Return to movies from 1970