I write this in preperation of the upcoming sequel, G.I Joe: Retaliation. This is by no means a review. But, I merely examine the film and give my opinion on if this is truly as bad as a lot of people claim. First, there is one complaint I wanna shoot down right off the back.
Channing Tatum as Duke
This is one complaint I see over and over and over. Channing Tatum is not a bad actor by any means. Actuallywh, he's a very good actor. Films like Magic Mike, The Vow, Dear John and 21 Jump Street that whether it's a good movie or not (personally, I really enjoyed all of those movies) that he can actually act and is a big reason it's worth watching. While, as I stated in the teaser. I'm no die hard G.I Joe fan by any means but I do respect the source material and I knew that Duke and the Baroness where never together and that she was never the sister of Cobra Commander. They did that to simply add drama and for me as a general audience member, it worked. Channing Tatum to me is Duke, for the basics needed to play Duke. He had the requirements and it payed off. If they do truly kill him off in the first act in G.I Joe: Retalation, I won't be a happy camper. Cause every fan wants to see Cobra Commander and Duke go toe to toe. Channing Tatum a bad thing in G.I Joe? Hell no.
Accelerator Suits
This is another complaint I see frequently. To be honest with you, I thought this was pretty cool. I'm not sure if this was actually in the mythology and the lore of the comics for G.I Joe but again, it worked for the movie. If anything, you can't say the chase through Paris wasn't cool and that the banter between Marlon Wayans and Channing Tatum didn't help make it even more enjoyable. The accelerator suits helped make the action that much more fun to watch, plain and simple.
Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow
This is one thing no one can deny that they got right. Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow are as famous of enemies as Scorpion and Sub-Zero. Everyone knew if there was one thing that they absolutely HAD to get right was, the bitter rivlary between Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow. Okay, so the costume in Retalition is a million times better than it was in The Rise of Cobra, as far as Snake Eyes goes. But, you really going to let the costume ruin the movie version of the character for you? I think not.
Visual Effects and Cobra Commander
A lot of people didn't like the visual effects and thought it was too cartoony. I never got that vibe, especially when no one complained about giant alien robots at war on earth being too cartoony. Also, the look of Cobra Commander did bug me at first. But after awhile, it looked alright. But, that's another thing Retaliation improved upon. They nailed the look of Cobra Commander. But again, shouldn't ruin the experience for you.
Rest of the cast
I thought the entire cast did a great job. Even had a cameo from Brendan Fraser was a cool thing to see. I am gonna miss seeing Denis Quaid in G.I Joe cause he was probably one of my favorite things about the first film. You can't simply go from Denis Quaid to Bruce Willis. Sure, Bruce Willis is a great actor and action star. But, you can't just simply replace Denis Quaid. Denis Quaid has the commanding presence that Bruce Willis simply just doesn't have.
Final thoughts: To be honest, The Rise of Cobra really isn't that bad of a movie. Sure it does have flaws but I listed the positives that should over power the flaws. If you have a problem with the movie then, it's not my place to try and change your mind. Quit frankly, I'm a little bit iffy on Retaliation. I think they should have done a straight up sequel cause it being a partial reboot (most of the cast isn't returning) just ruins it for me cause I really liked and really enjoyed The Rise of Cobra. I do want to see Retaliation and I looks like it'll be a fun action movie like the first one was but the trailers doesn't have that sort of "pop" that sells it to me like the first one did. I feel The Rise of Cobra had a more fun feel to it. What happened? Ah well. Sound off below with your comments and thoughts on both The Rise of Cobra and whether Retaliation is on your list of films to see this year.