Rating: 
Summary: An Apt Title
Review: Normally, I tend toward positive reviews and simply don't comment on things I don't care for - but "Born Losers" showed up on one of the movie channels recently, and having first viewed this "movie" while under the influence with a group of friends years ago, I was curious to see if it would still elicit the uncontrollable laughter we all experienced while watching it. I am happy to report that one can be perfectly straight and still howl at the ridiculously bad acting, amateurish production, and are-you-kidding-me plot that comprises this mess. The most remarkable aspect about "Born Losers" is that Tom Laughlin found someone to back "Billy Jack" (a slightly more coherent version of the same story).Unfortunately, one cannot dismiss "Born Losers" (or any of the other Billy Jack series flicks) as pure camp. Under the guise of a '60s idealist, Laughlin created a crude vigilante character that served no useful purpose other that having the ability to crack a few heads. Elevating him anywhere above that is undoubtedly the act of a born loser.
Rating:
Summary: Born Losers - The Title Tells It All
Review: Oh....my....God. What a horrible movie. I am a big fan of Billy Jack, Chuck Norris and other "B" movie genre, but this was too bad even for me. Even taking account of the decade it was made, this movie is too bad for words. It's too bad to be amusing. Next to this movie, Billy Jack is Oscar-material. I didn't even know this movie existed until I bought the boxed collection! Save your money and avoid it!
Rating: 
Summary: Almost three stars but...
Review: OK, what's the deal with Tom Laughlin? He's really not that bad an actor (at least in this role), the character of Billy Jack (especially in this movie) is really likeable, and every action scene involving him is somewhat memorable. So why does he keep putting himself in five minutes of his movies? "Billy Jack" should have been called "Hippies Take Over the World, Guest Starring Billy Jack."
I guess this could be called a "biker movie" but I can't even really call it a great one. The acting is the absolute worst I have ever seen, and the main actress rules over the bad actors as their queen. Also, the plot is predictable almost to the next minute, and many of the scenes seem to serve no purpose at all. All this made most of the movie unbearable. Thankfully, just when I want to hit the rewind button, Billy Jack comes in and starts adding those oh-so-few interesting scenes of good action and competant acting. Him taking down the lead biker was a great scene - let's just say those stupid white goggles finally get good use.
Still, the only reason I would watch this is nostalgia with friends or family. Otherwise I would not recommend this to any one else. That is, of course, unless its on TV and you can flip channels during the boring parts.
Rating: 
Summary: Billy Jack Kicks A**
Review: Okay, there is no other way to say it, Billy Jack kicks [rear]. This is the first in a line of movies starring Tom Laughlin as Billy Jack, and he is THE MAN! Other popular good guys from way back in the day (think Eastwood) have nothing on Billy Jack. He's just cool. This movie is totally late 60's, you get the moral lessons about young, pretty girls being careful because their is always some rogue element out there to hurt you into submission. In this movie it is a band of bikers. So it is completely campy. But still cool. Tom Laughlin may not be the greatest actor ever, but the movies he made (writing, directing, starring...he does everything) show a man that can and will kick [rear] when the going gets tough, and also fights for the right cause every time. I wish instead of Dolly the sheep, those scientists would have cloned Billy Jack, 1,000 times. A Billy Jack for each city, each town. Then people would be free to be happy and safe. Just check it out, you will be mentally high fiving Billy Jack for days....
Rating:
Summary: A Classic Movie Well Worth Watching!
Review: One of the classic movies. It shows how one former Green Beret manages to survive the onslaught of a motorcycle gang after law and order break down. The heroine in this movie was also outstanding. I have never seen her in another movie. This was the original Billy Jack movie and it was one of the best in the series. Billy Jack uses his Green Beret training to save the local community from the lawlessness that prevails in the local community. The ending of the movie will always be a favorite. Be sure to buy this movie. It is one of the best.
Rating: 
Summary: 60's Drive-In Action flick!
Review: There is no question that "Born Losers" is a campy, 60's B-grade action flick, but it's surprisingly aged much better than its more famous sequels. "Born Losers" was the film that introduced actor/writer/director Tom Laughlin's "Billy Jack," a half-Indian, ex-Green Beret, to popular culture. In "Born Losers," Billy Jack has returned from Vietnam and is trying to readjust to civilian life by attempting to avoid any hassles with society. However, when a vicious biker gang invades his hometown and rapes several girls, Billy finds himself being forced into conflict with the gang because the authorities are either too powerless or too cowardly act. Basically, Billy comes to the defense of one of the gang's victims, a college girl named Vicky (Elizabeth James), when the gang attempts to intimidate her from testifying against them. Overall, "Born Losers" is a low budget film with mixed performances (Elizabeth James was very cute, but she was a horrible actress!) and an uneven script (can anyone explain why that one girl does a striptease?) However, it's a fairly entertaining film for its genre- a late 60's, drive-in, biker movie. Yes, it's campy, but, overall, it's really not that bad especially in comparison to its sequels. In those later movies, Tom Laughlin would turn quiet, loner Billy Jack into a preachy defender of hippies who punches, kicks, and shoots his way through waves of rednecks in order to make the world safe for flower power. The first of the sequels, "Billy Jack," was an enormous hit in the early 70's, yet viewed today its hypocritical message of "kung fu for peace" and absurd political statements makes it laughably dated. "Born Losers" is also dated, but because it didn't have any real political message it really stands up much better today than either "Billy Jack," "The Trial of Billy Jack," and "Billy Jack Goes to Washington."
Rating:
Summary: Born Winner
Review: This is a superb movie! The first of the Billy Jack saga, this tells us what he did right after he got back from Viet Nam. We see the societal attitudes that prompted him to leave civilization and seek spiritual truth in the next movie. The acting and direction are wonderful, and there is a VERY interesting character played by Jane Russell. A type of part that she never did anywhere else!
Rating: 
Summary: PLEASE remake this movie!
Review: This movie has to be the best of the Billy Jack series, largely because it doesn't beat the viewer over the head with endlessly repetitious liberal diatribes and sappy sentimentalism like the others do. The bad guys in this are just plain BAD. They are not the Establishment (Whoa! THERE'S the 60s popping up!), they are just pure evil. Billy fights them and wins because he is tougher than they are and MUCH more adept at violence. I could go on and on...The reason is because at the end, you want someone to PLEASE REMAKE THIS MOVIE with a great script, great camera work, etc. The only problem is...who do you get to play Billy Jack? None of the current crop of young actors could carry this role at all. Neither could any of the current martial arts stars. Sigh...get this movie, get some popcorn, and get ready to watch One Man take out the bad guys.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent For Its Genre -- But Raises Some Questions
Review: This was a great film of the vigilante-kicks-butt variety, wherein a lone hero confronts a biker gang and prevails in the end. But is raises some questions. The folks being intimidated -- frightened (one might say terrorized) -- by the gang never stopped once and asked themselves, "Why do they hate us?" And Billy Jack acted like a unilateral cowboy, merely diving into the fray and neutralizing the gang members. He did not attempt to reach out to them with the spirit of compassion, inclusion, tolerance or diversity. He simply attacked, in order to make THEM stop attacking. Shouldn't he have formed a coalition of some sort, and made some resolution about the gang terrorists, and sent inspectors to inspect them? Billy Jack wiped out the threat and so forth, which we must suppose was the point of the movie, but wouldn't people have felt better about themselves (people other than the gang's victims, that is) if the gang had been given more time for inspections to work? It doesn't really matter if the gang members continued beating up victims during the inspection process, so long as a dialogue had been established and the process was moving forward. This Billy Jack person just didn't have the vision and charisma of many contemporary so-called leaders, who certainly would have dealt with this biker gang in a wholly different fashion.
Rating:
Summary: TV version
Review: This was never more than a cult movie to begin with and this DVD is the cut for TV version. All but the most benign nudity is gone and so is the more agressive violence. This leaves it a pathetic kiddie version of the original. Unfortunately, there probably is not an original copy left as in the old days, once the movie was cut for TV then the original was often discarded as no further use could be seen for the complete movie. Obviously it would never return to theaters and the original could never be shown on TV so what posible use could it be. VCRS and DVDS, who knew? If your looking for that raw hard cheap exploitation film that we all loved, this ain't it. Save your money.
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