G.I. Joe the Rise of the Cobra is the film adaptation of the toy series G.I Joe Real American Hero, and is directed by the master of over the top CGI Stephen Sommers. The plot is rather typical. Megalomaniac McCullen (Christopher Eccleston) wishes to take over the world using (in this case advanced weaponry) in order to make things better for everyone. It then falls to the Joes to find the weapons and stop him.
As you might expect from a Stephen Sommers film, there is an ample supply of CGI effects on display, unnecessarily large explosions and the film keeps its tongue firmly in cheek. Fortunately, the real advantage of this film is that it is clearly not supposed to be taken seriously and it knows it.
The Good, The Bad, and The World Of GI Joe
Sienna Miller plays the role of the bad girl Baroness with obvious relish; and is the ex-fiancé of new Joe recruit Duke (Channing Tatum). The Joe’s commanding officer General Hawk (the ever reliable Dennis Quaid) initially only allows Duke and Ripcord to become temporary Joes because of Duke’s prior relationship with the Baroness. Duke’s friend Ripcord (Marlon Wayans) is on hand to prove comic relief, but does also prove that he can act seriously when the occasion calls for it and the always-necessary new guy trying to get with hot colleague. The focus of his attention is Scarlett (Rachel Nichols), who is coldly logical (emotions don’t exist because you cannot see them). That is until she shares a tender moment with Ripcord in the wake of an attack and suddenly she becomes in touch with her feelings.
The Pros and Cons
The best thing about this film is that you can simply check your brain at the door, and watch. One of the characters, Snake Eyes (Leo Howard), has taken a vow of silence and when Ripcord asks why, Breaker (Said Taghmaoui) tells him “He doesn’t say”. Which essentially sums up the whole film, it’s a bit silly, but never anything less than thoroughly enjoyable.
Some of the sequences you may struggle not to laugh at. The chase through the streets of Paris when Duke and Ripcord are wearing armoured suits that would put Iron Man to shame is a prime example, and the ‘twists’ you can see coming from a mille away. But quite simply it doesn’t matter.
The cast clearly enjoy themselves and there are moments when you get the distinct impression that they know what there doing is a bit ridiculous but they are having such a good time that they don’t mind.
On the downside, if you go and see G.I. Joe and expect to see anything more than explosions, fight sequences and two very attractive ladies then you are going to be disappointed. This is not a serious war film; it is not a serious film in any way. G.I. Joe is a cliched script, the plot is: save the world, and only four of the thirteen main cast are shown to have a back story. All the audience sees is what happened between Duke and the Baroness, plus Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow (Brandon Soo Hoo). However, the ending is obviously a cliffhanger and apparently Dennis Quaid has signed up to do two sequels so hopefully the other characters will be fleshed out a little later on.
4/5
For sheer entertainment this is exactly what you could ask for from a Summer Blockbuster with Sommers favourite Brandon Fraser making a cameo appearance.
Just sit back, relax and enjoy.
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