In Defense Of GI Joe: Retaliation

A far more fun 80s toy line adaptation than you remember

[GI Joe: Retaliation, Paramount/Skydance]

With the news of Paramount/Skydance successfully beating out Netflix to purchase Warner Bros. Pictures and its vast assortment of media entities, it’s fair to say that a number of folks are concerned about how this will affect the entertainment media landscape in general. Outside of this, the studio behemoth’s focus remains on leveraging the intellectual property already at their disposal, with news breaking that they’ll be trying once again with the GI Joe franchise. They had previously announced the development of two separate treatments to be penned by Danny McBride and Max Landis, although they have since decided to pass on Landis’ treatment. His involvement was particularly controversial given his somewhat blacklisting from Hollywood in light of several accusations of sexual assault against him that came to light during the early days of the #MeToo movement. I certainly wouldn’t begrudge anyone looking at the move as a calculated effort to cultivate outrage in proximity to news of the Warner Bros. acquisition.

In any event, fans of the franchise have already been sounding the horn on what a potential GI Joe reboot could look like. One of my friends even posted an idea revolving around Cobra Commander becoming president of the United States and installing his loyal minions in key positions of the government. Of course they were alluding to the state of our current real life administration in the United States that one could easily believe is filled to the brim with a veritable Chex Mix of cartoon supervillains. Although at this point, I had to inform them that . . . this GI Joe movie already exists!

[GI Joe: Retaliation, Paramount/Skydance]

Directed by Jon M. Chu, GI Joe Retaliation saw the international military special forces organization decimated and framed as terrorists by the United States government, as the president was actually Cobra’s resident master of disguise Zartan, who took the place of the real president at the end of GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra. With only a few Joes left alive, including Roadblock, Flint, Lady Jaye, and Snake Eyes, the team has to stay off the grid and fight to clear their names, as Cobra Commander makes his play for total world domination.

This was a film that rather famously tried to play coy with regard to killing off original lead Channing Tatum, and replacing him with usual GI Joe supporting character Roadblock, here played by Dwayne Johnson. Funnily enough, this was becoming a major trend throughout the 2010s, as multiple franchises were including The Rock in their sequels, including Fast 5, Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, and Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle. And for the most part, all of these films proved to be moderately if not overwhelmingly successful commercially. GI Joe: Retaliation in particular grossed an admirable $375 million dollars worldwide against a $130-$155 million dollar budget, making more while costing less than its predecessor.

[GI Joe: Retaliation, Paramount/Skydance]

To say that I unironically love this movie would be an understatement. Is it an objectively good film? That’s certainly questionable. Was casting The RZA as one of Snake Eyes’ ninja mentors as ridiculous as the old age makeup they used for his character? Without a doubt! Did I geek out during a scene featuring a Cobra HISS Tank rolling up in front of the US Capitol Building? Absolutely! Say what you will, but Chu understood the assignment . . . which makes the pooch-screwing fiasco he delivered with Jem and the Holograms two years later all the more baffling. But that is a story for a different day!

Clearly the goal of GI Joe: Retaliation was to course correct after The Rise Of Cobra needlessly strayed from the source material in ways fans didn’t particularly care for, and general audiences felt were riding on the coattails of CGI-filled blockbusters like the first Iron Man. By comparison, Retaliation scored points with me by feeling far more tactile and grounded. Yes, there is a delightfully absurd scene where Snake Eyes and his protege Jinx are fighting ninjas on the side of a mountain, but this is still GI Joe we’re talking about. Even with such a visual effects-aided portion of the film, a lot of the action in general is practical and it adds to my overall enjoyment. There’s a stronger balance between the gritty military style action you expect from GI Joe and the high tech gadgets and weaponry often on display throughout the toy line and the original animated series. Lord knows the orbital superweapon Cobra plans to use to force the leaders of the world to pledge their allegiance in the film is as cool as it is utterly terrifying when you realize how much it is based in actual science.

GI Joe: Retaliation finds a way to refocus GI Joe to be steeped in American patriotism without feeling nearly as uncomfortably jingoistic as some have criticized the property for being over the last 40 years, after The Rise of Cobra sought to reimagine the concept as an international intelligence organization. That particular move always felt like a transparent ploy to appeal to audiences outside of the United States. This is of course ironic given the overseas box office for Retaliation ultimately dwarfing that of The Rise of Cobra. Of course it stands to reason that the popularity of Dwayne Johnson in the 2010s primarily helped to drive up box office receipts.

[GI Joe: Retaliation, Paramount/Skydance]

If there’s anything the first film did well it was establishing the idea of Cobra being an organization the general public knew absolutely nothing about. As GI Joe: Retaliation opens, they’ve immediately taken advantage of one of their operatives masquerading as the President of the United States, set a trap for the Joes, killing off an overwhelming majority of them, and sold a lie to the public about them being traitors. Then they had the audacity to announce Cobra as a new military defense apparatus for the entire country, and eventually unfurled their banners and planted their flag at the White House with sheer impunity!

All the while Roadblock, Flint, and Lady Jaye have to seek out the original Joe, General Joe Colton, to help them take down Cobra. Naturally, GI Joe’s resident ninja Snake Eyes is off on a side mission with Jinx tagging along, to apprehend Storm Shadow, and treat audiences to a classic GI Joe trope as Storm Shadow ultimately decides over the course of the film to fight alongside the Joes. All of this worked for me, especially the added focus on Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow’s relationship. Fans of the property know all about their complicated past, and I think this film did a fantastic job of highlighting their dynamic. And as someone who was a fan of Elodie Yung in the French action sequel to District B13, seeing her as Jinx made me even more of a fan. Between this and her turn as Elektra in the Netflix Daredevil series, she clearly has a knack for playing ninjas dressed in red!

[GI Joe: Retaliation, Paramount/Skydance]

I also have to give credit where credit is due to Johnathan Pryce and the late Ray Stevenson as President Zartan and Firefly respectively. The two have a few brief moments of antagonistic banter towards one another that I especially appreciated. It’s the kind of energy you want from characters playing support to the main villain. And if GI Joe: Retaliation improves on anything, it’s the depiction of Cobra Commander. Played by Luke Bracey in costume, with Robert Baker providing the voice, we thankfully got a more toy/cartoon accurate visual representation for Cobra Commander, looking runway-ready from head to toe! They made sure to include a scene in the movie just so you could see him strut, and we are all the richer for it.

Write off GI Joe: Retaliation if you want, but an effort was made to more properly capture the spirit and atmosphere of the toys and the original cartoon. Some liberties were taken; some worked and others didn’t. But overall this film was still fun. As I often like to say, It’s not perfect . . . but it’s perfectly watchable. The cast is solid, the look of the film is vibrant and striking when you look at some of the action films we’ve been getting recently, and the villains are giving off this great, “It is so much fun being evil!” energy that you’re never bored. To say nothing of them correcting the egregious error of giving Snake Eyes’ mask lips in GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra! That was legitimate nightmare fuel from concentrate.