There’s not much to say about a franchise that started as Hasbro’s military-themed answer to Barbie. Since Hasbro’s trying to pull a Marvel, in the sense that they have a greater degree of control over their properties, it’s only natural that they’d seek to inject new life into one of their many toy franchises.
In the case of G.I. Joe, it’s an injection that is sorely needed, as the previous film didn’t do too well critically or financially. As the trailers of this film indicate, they are trying their best to distance themselves from the first film.
What may hurt the film’s chances is having the release date pushed down from its original summer 2012 release date so they could shoot more scenes with Channing Tatum. On top of that, the film is being released around Easter, which is pretty much the movie-going equivalent of a no-man’s land. (Remember John Carter?)
The story of the film begins with a surprise attack on the G.I. Joe team after a recently completed mission that decimates the entire unit, leaving only 3 survivors, Roadblock played by Dwayne Johnson, Lady Jaye played by Adrianne Palicki, and Flint played by D.J. Cotrona, who are branded as traitors to the U.S. in the wake of the attack. Their only hope for redemption and the safety of the free world lies in General Colton, the original G.I. Joe, played by Bruce Willis.
The story may seem simple, but it’s not executed really well during the early parts of the film. It takes a while for the film to get to it’s inciting inc and it doesn’t help that there were some strange editing choices and plot revelations that came right out of left field. It also doesn’t help that the film is telling two or three different stories at once until you get to the third act. It’s as if the people making the film thought up a series of action scenes, but forgot to tie them together with a story until the last minute.
One thing I can give the film credit for is that the action scenes are fun to watch. You get some nice martial arts choreography and gunplay with explosions-a-plenty. While other action films would be milking the slow-motion shots, this film keeps things moving at a pretty fast pace.
Overall, this is an entertaining film, but don’t go in expecting Shakespeare. The story is weak and barely coherent with everything getting just downright goofy during the third act. In the end, it’s not a film worth paying the full ticket price for. Wait for it to come to the dollar theaters and don’t bother paying for 3D. On my personal scale, I give G.I. Joe: Retaliation a 3/5.
