GI Joe: Rise of Cobra Discussion and Reviews [SPOILERS]

[GuruAskew]

You're barking up the wrong tree by using Nolan as an example of doing things right. I find Nolan's take on Batman to be as hilariously-inappropriate as Joel Schumacher's. Schumacher didn't take it seriously enough but Nolan takes it too seriously and ultimately they both miss the mark. I still think Christian Bale's Batman is one of the great comedic performances of all time.

Every property has its own appropriate tone and apparently Stephen Sommers understands this better than Christopher Nolan. Both G.I. Joe and Batman are dumb popcorn properties but only one of them had a director who tried to make a fun and entertaining movie.

But hey, if you want someone like Christopher Nolan to suck the fun out of some frivolous property by trying to make something serious and deep when it's not then more power to you.

Pretentiousness in entertainment is a grave sin as far as I'm concerned. Nolan is a huge offender and at the very least I respect Sommers for not being pretentious.

 

[Mesa]

Guys, we're getting off track here. Focus now, who's hotter, Baroness or Scarlet?

I really can't decide.

All this movie needed was action, explosions, and some hotties in spandex to make it worth my time.

 

[LOTRFan]

So this flick is pretty violent I've been reading, seeing as how this is based (however loosely) off of children's toys; I am wondering if it is too intense for my 7 year-old?

I am not an overly conservative parent, he watches SW and LOTR, Iron Man etc; there were just a few scenes that sounded pretty graphic.

 

[GuruAskew]

There's a part where a Cobra trooper dude's dead body is rapidly decomposed by nanobots that was surprisingly disturbing but other than that I think it's all pretty appropriate for a kid.

 

[CelticPredator]

That was disturbing. I was kinda shocked....but no, its fine.

 

[LOTRFan]

There's a part where a Cobra trooper dude's body is rapidly decomposed by nanobots that was surprisingly disturbing but other than that I think it's all pretty appropriate for a kid.

Good to know, thanks man!

 

[jye4ever]

So this flick is pretty violent I've been reading, seeing as how this is based (however loosely) off of children's toys; I am wondering if it is too intense for my 7 year-old?

I am not an overly conservative parent, he watches SW and LOTR, Iron Man etc; there were just a few scenes that sounded pretty graphic.

If your son took in LOTR without any nightmares, I think he'll be fine with this movie.

Like Guru mentioned, the melting dude is probably the worse scene but there are also dudes getting needles in their heads.

It's the acting that will scare him....

It was all good fun

 

[Mesa]

So this flick is pretty violent I've been reading, seeing as how this is based (however loosely) off of children's toys; I am wondering if it is too intense for my 7 year-old?

I am not an overly conservative parent, he watches SW and LOTR, Iron Man etc; there were just a few scenes that sounded pretty graphic.

There are also several other shots where arrows and direct hits make it through the eyeholes of masks and their head proceeds to disappear, but without any gore, so yeah, it should be fine for a 7 year old.

I also thought Cobra evolved into a badass on this film.

 

[IrishJedi]

You're barking up the wrong tree by using Nolan as an example of doing things right. I find Nolan's take on Batman to be as hilariously-inappropriate as Joel Schumacher's. Schumacher didn't take it seriously enough but Nolan takes it too seriously and ultimately they both miss the mark. I still think Christian Bale's Batman is one of the great comedic performances of all time.

Every property has its own appropriate tone and apparently Stephen Sommers understands this better than Christopher Nolan. Both G.I. Joe and Batman are dumb popcorn properties but only one of them had a director who tried to make a fun and entertaining movie.

But hey, if you want someone like Christopher Nolan to suck the fun out of some frivolous property by trying to make something serious and deep when it's not then more power to you.

Pretentiousness in entertainment is a grave sin as far as I'm concerned. Nolan is a huge offender and at the very least I respect Sommers for not being pretentious.

But that wasn't what we were talking about. You essentially scoffed at the idea of a talented filmmaker helming a "geek" flick like G.I. JOE. And whether you like his Batman movies and think they're pretentious or not, the fact is Nolan is just one example of a critically acclaimed filmmaker "slumming it" with a genre film. Your original notion that G.I. JOE couldn't possibly attract a filmmaker better than Sommers (who really is one of the worst) is what I am disputing. I think you're wrong. Sadly, now we'll never know, because he'll be back and working from the same flimsy framework he established with this one.

The fact is, G.I. JOE could have been done a lot better without being pretentious high-art and still be damn entertaining. Just not by Stephen Sommers, who only makes one kind of movie (dumb, dumb, and dumb with bad scripts and horrible acting... but lots of action and FX!)

 

[jye4ever]

There are also several other shots where arrows and direct hits make it through the eyeholes of masks and their head proceeds to disappear, but without any gore, so yeah, it should be fine for a 7 year old.

I also thought Cobra evolved into a badass on this film.

He really did become nastier and nastier as the movie progressed.

Finally, villians lethal enough to have sustained my interest.

Yeah the movie might be a stinky onion but I sure enjoyed pulling back on all the layers revealing all the cool action and goofy yet entertaining story elements.

Love it or hate it, this movie is in a league of its own, very few movies it can be compared with.

Just a great amalgation of sorts.

 

[jye4ever]

I would laugh my ass off if it's ever revealed that Chris Nolan loved the GI Joe movie.

I wonder if people would jump off bridges.

 

[EVILFACE]

You're barking up the wrong tree by using Nolan as an example of doing things right. I find Nolan's take on Batman to be as hilariously-inappropriate as Joel Schumacher's. Schumacher didn't take it seriously enough but Nolan takes it too seriously and ultimately they both miss the mark. I still think Christian Bale's Batman is one of the great comedic performances of all time.

Every property has its own appropriate tone and apparently Stephen Sommers understands this better than Christopher Nolan. Both G.I. Joe and Batman are dumb popcorn properties but only one of them had a director who tried to make a fun and entertaining movie.

But hey, if you want someone like Christopher Nolan to suck the fun out of some frivolous property by trying to make something serious and deep when it's not then more power to you.

Pretentiousness in entertainment is a grave sin as far as I'm concerned. Nolan is a huge offender and at the very least I respect Sommers for not being pretentious.

Praise Sommers and slam Nolan? There went any credibility you might have had giving a film review.

 

[tomandshell]

So this flick is pretty violent I've been reading, seeing as how this is based (however loosely) off of children's toys; I am wondering if it is too intense for my 7 year-old?

I am not an overly conservative parent, he watches SW and LOTR, Iron Man etc; there were just a few scenes that sounded pretty graphic.

I got back home after two weeks out of town and took my son for his 8th birthday. He covered his eyes during the (multiple) needle scenes and some other parts. (He has not seen LOTR as it freaks him out too much still.) There was a little bit more profanity than I usually like for him to hear, but all in all he was OK with the movie.

I was pleasantly surprised with the film--it is the kind of Big Dumb Summer Popcorn Movie that I was expecting with Transformers 2, but I enjoyed this one more. The action scenes were more fun--and far more intelligible. There was at least a minimal amount of interest in the characters and plot, which Transformers lacked. I know what to expect from Stephen Sommers, and this movie met and even surpassed those expectations. I expect more from Michael Bay, which magnified my disappointment with T2. It's easier to surpass low expectations than high ones. (Granted, calling this a better film than Van Helsing is faint praise.)

I am not a hard core G.I. Joe fan, but the movie really brought back memories of watching the cartoon show in the afternoon after school. The tone, the tech, the vehicles, etc. This is what I expected from a movie version of a childhood cartoon show--not T2's Mother Witwicky stoned and tackling college students and telling anyone who will listen that she spied on her son while he was losing his virginity.

Show me any scene that horrible in G.I. Joe...

 

[Silent December]

Guys, we're getting off track here. Focus now, who's hotter, Baroness or Scarlet?

I really can't decide.

All this movie needed was action, explosions, and some hotties in spandex to make it worth my time.

why do you have to make me choose Scott? can't I have both?

 

[jye4ever]

I got back home after two weeks out of town and took my son for his 8th birthday. He covered his eyes during the (multiple) needle scenes and some other parts. (He has not seen LOTR as it freaks him out too much still.) There was a little bit more profanity than I usually like for him to hear, but all in all he was OK with the movie.

I was pleasantly surprised with the film--it is the kind of Big Dumb Summer Popcorn Movie that I was expecting with Transformers 2, but I enjoyed this one more. The action scenes were more fun--and far more intelligible. There was at least a minimal amount of interest in the characters and plot, which Transformers lacked. I know what to expect from Stephen Sommers, and this movie met and even surpassed those expectations. I expect more from Michael Bay, which magnified my disappointment with T2. It's easier to surpass low expectations than high ones. (Granted, calling this a better film than Van Helsing is faint praise.)

I am not a hard core G.I. Joe fan, but the movie really brought back memories of watching the cartoon show in the afternoon after school. The tone, the tech, the vehicles, etc. This is what I expected from a movie version of a childhood cartoon show--not T2's Mother Witwicky stoned and tackling college students and telling anyone who will listen that she spied on her son while he was losing his virginity.

Show me any scene that horrible in G.I. Joe...

Excellent review.

 

[nash]

Just got back from the movie. I rate it the same as TF2. I walked out pleasantly surprised as I guess I was expecting something completely terrible.

 

[ShazBo]

I felt ripped off. I've saw this movie back in 2005 when it was called Team America: World Police. I'm not f-ing joke with you.

Watch this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIiForGd5VE

Not that great once you take out all the jokes huh?

All I got to say is Trey Parker and Matt Stone can sure tell the future. How can two dudes make a spoof of a movie that didn't even come out till NOW.

And boy did they ever f-cked up Scarlett and Baroness' Back story. Atleast Snake-eyes story semi-resembles the original... semi. Marlon Wayans wasn't that bad but why was he playing Ripcord (a white dude pilot) instead of Stalker (black dude Ranger)?

 

[p!tu]

I felt ripped off. I've saw this movie back in 2005 when it was called Team America: World Police. I'm not f-ing joke with you. It's not that great once you take out all the jokes.

Watch this:
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All I got to say is Trey Parker and Matt Stone can sure tell the future. How can two dudes make a spoof of a movie that didn't even come out till NOW.

And boy did they ever f-cked up Scarlett and Baroness' Back story. Atleast Snake-eyes story semi-resembles the original... semi. Marlon Wayans wasn't that bad but why was he playing Ripcord (a white dude pilot) instead of Stalker (black dude Ranger)?

That video is funny!

 

[RichAlot]

Just saw this and as a fan of G.I. Joe who knows the characters and their back-stories, the more appropriate title for this would have been G.I. Joke. I felt like I was watching a Star Wars prequel movie with all the forced bad jokes, sub-par CGI and laughable family/romantic ties. I'm surprised Rachael Weisz wasn't cast as Baroness since this was a soup kitchen for everyone else from The Mummy. I know the cartoons are campy and cheesy, but this was a really weak movie for such an iconic brand. They didn't tap into the rich character base and history and went off to do their own thing. It has a lot of holes and it doesn't work.

 

[ShazBo]

That video is funny!

OMG It's P!tu!

I love your movies!