Plot: Mexican immigrants in a small Texas border town, under attack by a local militia group, hire a band of mercenaries to protect them.
It wasn’t until recently that I realized there were people that didn’t like The Bad Pack; it’s at 31% on Rotten Tomatoes and even has a RIFFTRAX about it but I actually really enjoy the film and not in an ironic way either.
This is like a mini-Expendables (and certainly better than Expend4bles) with a cast that includes Robert Davi, Ralf Moeller, Roddy Piper, Shawn Huff, Larry B. Scott, Sven-Ole Thorsen, Vernon Wells and Marshall Teague as the villain Lamont Sperry.
At 90 minutes The Bad Pack manages to pack in plenty of action with some fight scenes, explosions and a final 20 minutes which is basically one massive shoot-out. My only real issue is that as much as I love a 90 minute film, this is just getting going when it ends. I could have watched another 15-20 minutes easily as I was just enjoying the ride and the characters.
Robert Davi is in rare hero mode as the surly but still likeable McQue, a mercenary who leads a rag tag group into Texas to free a small town from the grip of a Militia (led by the always awesome Marshall Teague). The script may not be razor sharp but I’ve seen plenty worse on movies with bigger budgets and there’s just something so appealing about the simplicity of the story and characters.
It has a few laughs although Roddy Piper is more subdued than usual as he is normally larger than life every moment he was on screen. I still love every scene with him and he has some fun banter with Latrell (Patrick Dollaghan).
Vernon Wells only shows up in a brief cameo but it’s awesome to see him in a movie like this even for a few minutes.
The music score is the kind I love to listen to with some awesome electric guitars as well as a memorable theme tune and is one of my favourite aspects of the entire movie.
Overall, The Bad Pack may not be perfect but it’s still a ton of fun with a great cast and plenty of action; I just wish it was a little longer as it spends so much time setting everything up that it’s all over a little too quickly. So, Sue Me! I like The Bad Pack and if you don’t then I guess I’ll see your ass in court.
