Movie Review: G.I. Joe

Title: G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra

Director: Stephen Sommers

Starring: Channing Tatum, Marlon Wayans, Dennis Quaid, Sienna Miller

Release: August 7, 2009

Country: USA

Genre: Action

Rated: PG-13

First Viewing: August 12, 2009

Plot Synopsis

The IMDb summary was just too concise to pass up: An elite military unit comprised of special operatives known as G.I. Joe, operating out of The Pit, takes on an evil organization led by a notorious arms dealer.

My Thoughts

If the plot had stayed as indicated above - aka good guys v. bad guys - I would have enjoyed the film more. But they just had to throw in a love story. Two actually. One for each of our new Joes - Duke (Tatum) and Ripcord (Wayans). While Ripcord's flirtation with Scarlett was both fun and relatively significant to viewers (inter-racial, yay! finally), the main love story between Duke and Ana (Miller) was a bit too much for me. I could never envision those two together, their backstory was seriously flawed, and I found myself hoping Ana would die, so that part of the plotline could end.

The good points of the film should be relatively obvious - the fighting, the technology, and Dennis Quaid. The action sequences in the film were exciting and the tools these puppies used to fight each other were out of this world. For some the alien nature of their technology was a turn off; afterall, we are supposed to be watching a real action show, not SFF. I, however, have no problem with this whatsoever. Go ahead, use a crossbow that can find its target on its own; put together a suit that makes you almost invincible; and throw on the suit that does make you invisible; I like it. As for Dennis Quaid...well, who doesn't like him? He's awesome.

People seem insistent on comparing Joes to Transformers 2, so I feel I have to throw something in. I mean, it is almost necessary since I watched them like a week apart and they are so fundamentally similar. When it comes down to it, I preferred Transformers for two reasons: one, better acting, and two, Transformers brought the funny. I like to laugh during my over-the-top action films. It lets me know that the movie isn't taking itself too seriously. I will say this in Joe's defense though - I could actually see the action sequences in Joes. I knew what was going on and that made them more interesting; whereas in Transformers, the camera was shaking so bad and shots were flipping by so fast, it was all a big blur of shiny transformer metal flying around indistinctly.

Rating: 3 out of 5 bags of popcorn