I saw GI Joe today. It was fun in a simple purely visual kind of way, but--
GI Joe was typical mediocre summer movie fluff. Sure it is better than TF2 (I've only seen part of it online, but after 20 minutes I had to turn it off), but that doesn't mean it is a good movie.
It was entertaining, I will admit. I think it is slightly better than Van Helsing (wasted opportunity of a cool concept) and Mummy 2, the previous Sommers movies. It really only had a few good things going about it.
1) Sienna Miller. I always liked her in Layer Cake and Cassanova and what little she had in Stardust. I never follow gossip so I don't care who she sleeps with. Accent or no accent, she gave a solid performance. Unlike any other actor, other than #2, she made a character entertaining and charming, as opposed to flat and stilted. She def. has the makings of a movie star where her charisma (and her sexiness) can lift drivel into something engaging.
2) The guy who played Storm Shadow. Yeah Snake Eyes is really cool looking and a silent ninja. But he is sure a dull character to watch in cinema. This actor is the only other to put some personality into the movie and made his rivalry with Snake Eyes kind of entertaining.
3) Just the eye canday. By that I mean the fights and explosions and just the visceral image of Sienna Miller in tight black with dark hair and the girl who played Scarlett filling out her costume....very nicely--also tight black, but with red hair.
Otherwise the movie was mainly noise. There is no coherent storyline. It just rushes from set piece to set piece. It is very disjointed. Quaid looks bored as he picks up his paycheck and Tatum cannot act with a spit. The dialogue, attempting to be humorous, is wooden and dull. The second half of the movie beginning Paris picks up and feels like a live-action cartoon (whether you think that is a good or bad thing is up to you) and becomes pretty entertaining until the credits roll. But there is no passion or suspense to any of the proceedings,, even the Snake Eyes/Storm Shadow showdown just looks cool, it isn't exciting. And the first half of the movie felt like Team America without the delicious crude humor and graphic puppet sex. Team America if Team America wasn't in on the joke.
I mean it entertained me, but I won't see it again. Despite some cool visuals like the Doctor/Commander (who is never explained why he is so evil), etc. it is just eye candy and fluff. T&A and glossy action. The CGI is actually far worse than anything in SM movies or for that matter any big budget actioner since Van Helsing. I cannot imagine why it would be preferred.
I know some people really loved it and I could see if you like the cartoon, despite the international flavor and all black Underowlrd/Matrix suits, it hits the right points. I'm just thinking it isn't a very good movie.
I'd give it a 5.5/10, but due to Miller's charisma and sexiness I'll go up to 6 for the vote.
P.S. This movie gets my vote for worst Scottish accents ever.
So, GI Joe .im surprised to say I loved it. Yes, it was corny at times, but in a fun way! I thought the action sequences were great 10x better than anything in Transformers 2 infact, this is what TF2 should have been. I enjoyed the characters too.
My only complaints:
Snake Eyes having lips bugged me.
Some of the CGI wasnt as good as it could be in a few scenes.
When Cobra Commander finally dawned his mask he SUCKED. His mask sucked. His voice sucked. Luckily, I bet in the sequel (which they are working on now because this movie did so well) we will get the Cobra Commander we know from the comics and cartoon)
Other than that I really enjoyed it. I plan to get the blu-ray and Ill watch it many more times to come.
I think this movie benefited amongst fans from lowered expectations. Following Terminator 4 and TF2 fans would like anything not horrifically bad much better. Indee.d
Finally saw this last weekend. My observations as a huge fan of G.I. Joe in the 80's as a kid (I posted this on another site, but too lazy to rewrite it):
- The CGI is simply out of control! I can understand the nano-whatevers being computer generated, as well as some of the other effects, flying machines and (really stupid) accellerator suits. But when you have Ray Park playing Snake Eyes, there's no need to make him computer animated part of the time. You know they've gone too far with the CGI when they forego Destro's
metallic mask in favor of transforming his actual face into a computer generated silver face
. What the heck?
- I would have gone a completely different way with the G.I. Joe storyline. I would have gone more with the early comics. A small assault group with First Sergeant Duke leading the way. Scarlett, Snake Eyes, Stalker, Gung Ho, Road Block, Rock n' Roll and a few others. On the other side, Cobra Commander, Destro, Baroness, Major Bludd, Storm Shadow and so on. Less broad science fiction fantasy, a little more grit. And the only history between characters would have been between Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow. None of this
Duke, Baroness, Rex
crap.
- Having said that the villains were probably the best thing about the film. Sienna was entertaining as Baroness. Eccleston was decent as Destro. Gordon-Levitt definitely looked like he was having fun as the doctor
/Cobra Commander
. But Storm Shadow comes off coolest, dispite the fact he's dangerously one-note.
- The Joes are a mixed bag. Park as Snake Eyes is perfect. The mouth thing is weird and unnecessary, but not terribly distracting. Quaid's Hawk is fine, Scarlett was merely okay. Wayans wasn't completely vomit-inducing, but if they're going to make him comic relief, I wish the writers had better material. Let's face it, the writing was bad. Finally, Channing Tatum was awful. I've always thought he was miscast as Duke...but at least I was hoping he had become a better actor since his Step Up days. The best I can say is he delivered his lines flatly. God, he was terrible. Which is too bad because (nerd alert) Duke was my favorite character. He was the Joe's First Sergeant and should be in his mid 30's or older. To be played by a miscast actor who isn't even very good leaves a poor taste in my mouth. Maybe to explain his age, they made him a Captain instead. As a former vet myself, I've seen a few young Captains. Oddly enough, in a flashback sequence, they show Duke in his class A's wearing what looks like Major rank on his shoulders. Maybe they'll explain his demotion in the sequel.
Note:
It's kinda frustrating seeing Brendan Fraser wasted in a cameo when he would have made a better Duke. He wouldn't have been perfect for the role, but certainly better.
- What's the deal with
capturing or killing all the baddies (except Zartan)?
They build up to a somewhat climactic moment involving
Cobra Commander and Destro
...only to
capture and incarcerate them minutes later.
The heck, man!
SIGH
I didn't expect much from this anyway. But I was hoping I'd have some fun watching it. Bottom line: It's a mess.
I thought it was a 6/10. Would have got 7/10 if not for Channing Tatum. Seriously, this guy sucks. I'd have rather seen John Cena play Duke than Tatum that's how bad he is.
Saw this last night, thought it was entertaining but a bit amateurish and childish at times, good bit of mindless fun though and i'm not familiar with the characters or mythology but thought Snake Eyes was a great character, as was Storm Shadow, their rivalry and characters were the best part of the movie really, wouldnt mind a sequel to this, thought the action was great.
I know I'm late to the party....but I finally saw GI Joe on its second week out and didn't get to post about it.
4/10
It was awful...I wanted out within the first 5 mins of the movie. Sommers hasn't made a good movie since The Mummy. I, perhaps like many others am a longtime fan of GI Joe...as it is part of my 80's childhood. But from the very first teaser preview (superbowl spot) I figured they had a lot of post production SFX to work on...and pretty much nothing changed. The acting, the costumes, most of the effects...I think I had made up my mind about the movie before seeing it months in advance but, in the coming weeks before its release I was hanging on to a little hope that I would be entertained and feel like a kid again watching some of these characters come to life....the movie is lifeless. And the only great moments of the entire film came from any time Stormshadow and Snake Eyes were on screen...and thats all I have to say about that.
Finally saw this last weekend. My observations as a huge fan of G.I. Joe in the 80's as a kid (I posted this on another site, but too lazy to rewrite it):
- The CGI is simply out of control! I can understand the nano-whatevers being computer generated, as well as some of the other effects, flying machines and (really stupid) accellerator suits. But when you have Ray Park playing Snake Eyes, there's no need to make him computer animated part of the time. You know they've gone too far with the CGI when they forego Destro's metallic mask in favor of transforming his actual face into a computer generated silver face
Well, what else could they have done? Put a faceplate on him so he has NO movement in his face? Yeah, no thanks. They went the right way with the CGI face. it shows how Destro should look without having to risk facial features.
He would look like Dr. Doom with just a regular, ****** mask.
Yes. Let's face it, that was the original concept when they created Destro. His face was originally a Man in the Iron Mask kinda thing. The film's conception is just goofy.
I know I'm late to the party....but I finally saw GI Joe on its second week out and didn't get to post about it.
4/10
It was awful...I wanted out within the first 5 mins of the movie. Sommers hasn't made a good movie since The Mummy. I, perhaps like many others am a longtime fan of GI Joe...as it is part of my 80's childhood. But from the very first teaser preview (superbowl spot) I figured they had a lot of post production SFX to work on...and pretty much nothing changed. The acting, the costumes, most of the effects...I think I had made up my mind about the movie before seeing it months in advance but, in the coming weeks before its release I was hanging on to a little hope that I would be entertained and feel like a kid again watching some of these characters come to life....the movie is lifeless. And the only great moments of the entire film came from any time Stormshadow and Snake Eyes were on screen...and thats all I have to say about that.
Agreed. You know, it really does seem like there weren't many fans of the 80's comic (or even the animated series) behind the film's production. G.I. Joe was never Shakespeare but the filmakers were obviously more interested in making a quick buck than taking the source material seriously.
Sommers did take the source material seriously. He just happens to be a goofy director. I think the problem you really perceive is that no "serious" directors are interested in making movies about toys.
Saw this last night. Coming from a fan of the toon and toys, never got into the comic or sigma6, I took it for what it was, a light rediculous adolescent aimed Hollywood ****fest. It was fun none the less. Yes there were countless questionable choices in the making of this movie but the overall tone is what I expected. Here's hoping they improve upon what they started, add more recognizable Joe's ie. Gung Ho, Flint, Roadblock, improve Destro's CG face, remove Snake Eyes mouth, and for the love of God give CC his friggin hood.
This was the worst movie I've seen this year. An insult to the comic book and even into the light hearted tv series. Regardless they wanted to go in a different direction or give it a new twist for the next generation.
I don't know what I found more insulting. Marlon Wayans as the comedy relief Ripcord trying to do a relationship with Scarlett or the Baroness as a good guy.
Sommers did take the source material seriously. He just happens to be a goofy director. I think the problem you really perceive is that no "serious" directors are interested in making movies about toys.
Agreed. I feel like Sommers did legitamately care about these foks but he's more of a goofy action director than anything. As soon as he was announced, I knew it wouldn't be anything as good or as serious as the comics and I just hoped we'd at least get the cartoon and basically that's what we got so I'm not dissapointed. I loved it.
^I think this movie is the closest thing to a live action cartoon we have had in while, now, it depends on your tastes whether you will enjoy that or not. Personally, I used to watch and love cartoons religiously as a kid, and even occasionally watch them as an adult (though I never watched GI Joe to be honest), so i found this movie very entertaining in a lot of ways.
I just got to see this and was utterly surprised at how much enjoyed it. The SE and SS flashbacks and fight scenes were awesome, and worth the price of admission alone. I still say SS is alive. The nanomites have healing technology after all.....
I don't really like how they watered down the Baroness character, but lets see where it goes in the sequel.
All in all a solid 8/10. Better than TF2 by a long shot.
anyway, one thing i don't understand is how is it that they didn't find cobra's body in the remnants of the building that was blown to bits? how could cobra have escaped from the building without being seen by duke, etc.?
I just saw this, and if I'm grading this film on artistic merit, this gets a very poor grade. Many of the subplots are barely touched upon and the flashbacks and scene shifts are very randomly placed and it feels not very cohesive. However, this film is entertaining. It has a goofy edge, like the cartoon, which I like. I didn't hate this like I thought I would, and I found it enjoyable on an entertainment level. It gets like a 6 from me. Way better than Tranformers 2, and similar to the first Transformers in why I liked it.
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