G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra Cover

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra is an Action/Family film that is inspired by the American toy series G.I. Joe, which is similar to Action Man in the UK. It was directed by Stephen Sommers ('The Mummy' and 'Van Helsing') in 2009 and features a large ensemble cast. Essentially the film has a good vs bad premise which is popular for family movies. Although the special effects that were used are decent, the story was predictable which ruins the plot.

Storyline:
A nanotech-based weapon called 'Nanomites' has been created by a Scottish weapons master named James McCullen (Christopher Eccleston). His company known as M.A.R.S. sells four warheads of the 'Nanomites' to NATO in which the main character Duke (Channing Tatum) and his colleague Ripcord (Marlon Wayans) must deliver the weapons. But alas, they are ambushed by Cobra, which to me and you are the bad guys, and must defend the package. Then G.I. Joe (known simply as 'Joes') arrive and help the remaining soldiers. This leads to Duke and Ripcord joining the Joes and going back to their base. Cobra then attack the base and get the weapons, you already know where this is going. So it's up to the Joes to take back the warheads before the 'Nanomites' are released into cities and devour everything that is metallic. Again, it's a simple good guys vs bad guys plot and it is so predictable! Yes, there are background stories for the main characters which adds a little bit of depth, but it's not enough to save the dry yet blunt story.

Acting:
Right, this is why the movie is saved, the cast. I'll go through the actors by team. So Channing Tatum plays the main protagonist for the Joes, he is mediocre at best. I'm not a big fan of Tatum, I just cannot seem to like his performances. His acting was pretty stale in this film, but you are not watching this movie for the acting, you are watching it for the action. Marlon Wayans plays Ripcord which was a strange choice. He is seen as a funny actor but the film shows us that he is both serious and funny, and I like that. You will want to see more of Wayans instead of Tatum, trust me. Dennis Quaid as General Hawk was a good choice, he is a pretty good actor in general but anyone could have played his character. The other team members were acting at a satisfactory level, nothing amazing so I won't waste time going through them. Now for team Cobra, Christopher Eccleston plays James McCullen, the primary antagonist, and I enjoyed watching him play a villain. He was good in '28 Days Later' but he was pretty menacing in this film. Sienna Miller plays The Baroness and she did a good job, her character was the most emotional considering she is linked with Tatum's character despite being evil, so her acting had to be decent and it was. 

Duke (Channing Tatum) and Ripcord (Marlon Wayans) attempting to save Paris.

Cinematography:
The special effects in this film were 50/50, considering six different companies were in charge of the effects. At times the special effects were really good, the explosions and gadgets had good effects. But there were other times when they were really bad, especially scenes that include the Joes flying to a specific place. The scene that sticks out into my mind is when they are flying across the Sahara Desert, awful CGI, just plain bad. This is a 2009 film, 'The Chronicles of Riddick' had better CGI and that was made in 2004. Although I must admit, when the Eiffel Tower was collapsing, that did impress me. So I have a love-hate relationship with the effects of this film. 

Scripting:
Typical family film and I have nothing against it. It's blunt, un-emotional and boring at times. Wayans plays the typical funny guy and he does have some cheesy one-liners but what do you expect, it's just appealing to its target audience and it does. When you look at the cover of the film, you can tell who will be fighting who without even watching the film. The two ninjas (Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow) will be having a throwdown, or more as it turns out. The two female characters will fight. The protagonist and antagonist will fight and it's just too predictable. The script is mediocre, it isn't bad but it's super predictable and that takes away some of the fun from the movie. 

Final Verdict:
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra is a mediocre family film, it's based off of a toy so don't expect anything amazing. The effects were good in places but the story itself was too predictable and that took alot of the fun away. The cast is pretty good, Wayans and Eccleston particularly, so there are redeeming factors. This means I'm giving G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra...

5.5/10                                     Play.com: Used = £2.98                               (*At the time of this review)