Review: G. I Joe

This movie is everything Transformers was not. To sum it up in one sentence, it is A live action cartoon adaptation that is not afraid to admit to its cel drawn roots.

Unlike Transformers, the producers and director of G I Joe know that it is, afterall, a live adaptation of an 80s CARTOON. Instead of going for a real-world contemporary setting, they decided to push the storyline years into the future; allowing the rather far fetched technology like Plasma weapons and nanobots to not seem so far fetched.

"WTF why are they using plasma cannons??"
"lasers?"
"What the heck kind of aeroplane is that?"
"drilling machines and an underwater base? That is so lame"

It is so surprising to find Amnesia so contagious.
laser guns, high tech weaponry, underwater bases and futuristic vehicles HAVE ALWAYS BEEN constantly featured in the G I Joe cartoon. In the very first episode, we have the heroes and the villians fighting over "mass teleportation" technology.

For better or for worse, this entire movie is a tribute to the classic action adventure Saturday morning cartoons that thrilled an entire generation of children. Unlike Michael Bay's "wild abandon" when it comes to action scenes(with little else beyond that), Stephan Sommers manages to balance great moments of "wow" with more subtle scenes, then throw in the right amount of humour, an easy to follow story and very likable characters. I'll have to admit that the story was a little too straight forward at times and the characters, though very likable, are a little one-sided......which is exactly like in the original cartoon. Good guys are good guys, bad guys are bad guys. The heroic guy is always heroic, the comic relief is always funny, the diabolical guy is always devious etc etc. What saved the characters from being dull was the excellent script and chemistry that each character had with the others. The acting is natural, the dialogue flows perfectly, the humour is clever and witty without resorting to any sexual innuendo(yes Transformers im looking at you again). Thanks to all that, It becomes so easy to just immerse yourself into the movie and forget that those are just actors playing parts.
Reactions i see in the cinema proves that you don't have to throw in dirty references and toilet jokes for dialogue to be funny.


A romantic sub-plot was thrown in for good measure but don't expect anything too sappy. Again, the romance comes across as very typical of a Saturday morning cartoon. Nothing dirty, nothing lovey dovey, a little contrived at times but it really takes one back to more innocent times of old. Flashbacks are used frequently throughout the film for certain characters to establish their background and their motives. A superb decision to help in characterization but the placement of some of the flashbacks sort of "takes us away" from the build up of story, "spoils the mood" of some of the scenes.

Stephan Sommers knows how to do an action movie, and this one just reaffirms my claim. The shots are clear and easy to follow; we know who is chasing who or what is getting blown up where. Wide shots and the right camera angles make each battle scene such a pleasure to watch, with the mandatory tight close up once in a while for variety(but those are used very sparingly, thankfully). Chase scenes are thrilling, edge-of-your-seat, rides, and slow-mo is used at all the right moments to accentuate the impact of, say, an explosion or a "wow" moment. All the action however, doesn't overshadow the underlying themes(again, we all know what other cartoon adaptation movie im talking about that is guilty of this travesty). Themes like the importance of teamwork and trust are universal enough for anyone to understand. More subtle themes like the amorality of technology and the classic "it is the soldier, not the weapon, that will win the day" prevail throughout the running narrative, adding to the "heart" factor of the show.

The one thing about this movie that is unlike the original cartoon is how competent the villains are. In the original cartoon, the villians constantly come up with over the top, and sometimes utterly absurd world domination plans that fall apart with a single episode. And somtimes the entire plan goes to pieces due to the villians' own bumbling. In the case of the movie, G.I Joe is constantly outsmarted, our maneuvered and out gunned by the villains McCullen and the Baroness. There is even a scene where Stormshadow takes on RipCord, who was fully geared up in his strength enhancing exo-armour, and still manages to best the G I Joe member even though he was unarmed. The "evil plot" by McCullen is no where near the simplistic "destroy something and hold the world for ransom" plots in the cartoon, but one that actually seems well planned out and realistically feasible. Little things fall into place beautifully over the course of the show until the final plan is revealed in its entirety; like dominos in a line.

G I Joe is an example of how live action adaptations of cartoons should be done. A blend of everything that made the cartoon a classic, without flying into overdrive on the action footage. It is an action adventure blockbuster WITH HEART. I know some viewers would not take too well to the simplicity of the whole show, but it is such simplicity that made the cartoon such a great hit with the kids back then. Being able to re-capture the spirit of a Saturday morning cartoon shows how faithful to the original this movie is.

People of all ages will enjoy this exciting thrill ride of a movie. Great cast( both in terms of chemistry and eye candy), awesome action(the underwater mini-subs battle was definitely something not often seen in movies) and great fun for the whole family. All my initial bad expectations were shattered and G I Joe has won itself a new fan today, me.

A little note: The trailers for this movie are very misleading. Don't believe what you see in the trailers. The Exo-suits are just featured in one chase scene and are not a staple of the entire movie. Also, the scenes in the trailer are NOT in chronological order. stupid trailer led me to think that this thing was a shallow poor man's Transformers. Which it is not.