Watched GI:Joe Retaliation (Spoilers)

[Runestar]

Well, definitely looked better in the trailers.

Not to say it wasn't a fun film, but there was something about the editing which definitely affected the pace of the film. I felt the ending resolution was too hasty, like the director simply wanted to wrap things up and be done with it.

The opening battle scene of Pakistan was quite exciting, though I would rather they just have the Joes bombed at the start of the film and jump right into the plot.

Bruce Willis doesn't have much of a role either, beyond being a 1-stop ammo dump. The Gi Joes don't have that underdog feel either. You were expecting them to claw back against all odds, yet they don't really have much problems defeating the enemy despite being outnumbered and outgunned. If anything, Cobra seemed even more shorthanded themselves!

The zipline battle at the Tibetian mountains was spectacularly choreographed as well.

I would definitely have appreciated a longer, more drawn out tag-team battle with Snake-eyes and Storm Shadow. The showdown with Zartan was quite anti-climatic as well, though in all fairness, the latter wasn't much a fighter himself.

Cobra fell surprisingly fast, you would think they had more firepower and troops at their disposal.

A few plot holes as well (why did they let Storm Shadow keep his throwing stars before lowering him into the containment tank?). Jinx's role was also quite forgettable.

The nuclear standoff amongst all the world leaders was actually pretty cool. Made me wonder, "Why didn't Bush do something like this?"

Overall, didn't really feel it was worth the price of a movie ticket.

[MLai]

Well, how was it compared to GI Joe movie #1? If it's better, then I'd say it's worth the price of a movie ticket.
But then, movie tickets are quite cheap in this country I'm currently in.

[Dr.Epic]

Well, definitely looked better in the trailers.

Well it could have been worse. It could have been two and a half hours and half the film could have been stupid slapstick focusing on someone going to college or looking for a job.

[Soliloquy]

Just going to say that I thought that Storm Shadow was throwing pieces of broken glass from the tank.

[Winter_Wolf]

Oh, this is out already? Seems like I live under a rock sometimes. If it's not worse than the first, I think I can manage it (I actually liked the first one for some reason). If it is worse, then it's probably one of those cable-tv rentals. It'll probably end up that way anyway since I can't seem to manage to get to a movie theater in a timely manner anymore these days.

I was hoping for some crazy Bruce Willis action, but I gather from the posts he doesn't do much in this one? Shame, since he was so prominent in the commercials--well he and the Rock were the only two actors I knew by sight/name.

[MLai]

Just watched it today. Largely agree with the OP.

1. The best part of the whole movie was the beginning. The beginning's plot actually made sense, and had tension. I was actually enthralled during the Pakistan firefight against the rebels. And the buddy banter between Block (it's funny, in the movie they purposely call him "Block", short for Roadblock. And it sounds very similar to, well y'know) and his buddy was actually good.

2. However, once a certain someone died, the plot and characterizations all took a nosedive into cartoonland. And that's why I'm actually sorry that person died. He had good chemistry with Ro... er I meant Block. If he was in the whole movie, it might have been saved by being a buddy cop movie.

3. The plot became nonsensical. OP complained why they let Stormshadow keep his stars when jailing him. I got a better one. If the warden found out Stormshadow was impersonating the actual inmate he was receiving, why'd he go along with it? Isn't there some place he should report that huge discrepancy?? That's just the first of the giant plot holes, if you bothered to follow the plot.

4. Without plot, the movie just became a jumbled sequence of set pieces. Some of the set peices are good (the Himalayas), but they don't string together into a good movie.

5. Stormshadow's turn was completely nonsensical. It's like he suddenly figures out the mystery of his life in 15 seconds. Seriously, count the seconds. Oh, and black man sensei. WTF. Why.

Just going to say that I thought that Storm Shadow was throwing pieces of broken glass from the tank.

That would actually have been cool. If it was the case.

6. Yeah, Cobra was so shorthanded in this movie. CC has the money to make killer satellites, but not enough money to hire more of his named goons to help out.

[Soliloquy]

I will admit I wondered about Cobra's staffing myself, but it was less about the low numbers, and more about the vastly ranging levels of power between the mountain zip-line scene and the rest of the scenes.

Yeah, the 15 seconds scene got me too.

Point of interest: Nanobots. The Nanobots were made in such a way that you could impersonate anybody, but if you cut yourself while shaving, your face would freak out and go all shimmery. Oh, and if you die, they randomly melt off your face, because that could never be a bad idea.

[Hiro Protagonest]

GI: Joe Retaliation? What's that?

[Dr.Epic]

GI: Joe Retaliation? What's that?

Something that's still better than the live-action Transformer films.

[Kitten Champion]

I kind of wanted to see this. I talked myself into watching the Rise of Cobra with some friends who actually liked G.I Joe as kids, and while I wasn't expecting to be over the moon I really did feel let down and I had no nostalgia factor. I thought now that they'd gotten over their rough start they might develop something silly but cool, and maybe I'd feel a little less frustrated with the whole thing.

Sort of like Sam Raimi's Spider-Man got the clunky origin and aesthetics stuff out of the way for a more satisfying sequel.

It sounds like, from the reviews and such, that they created a pretty lazy and forgettable film based around trailer fuel.

[MLai]

It sounds like, from the reviews and such, that they created a pretty lazy and forgettable film based around trailer fuel.

Correct.

And no, GI Joe Retaliation is not this franchises Spiderman 2. The only part of the movie which approaches that, is the Act I which lasts about 1/5-1/4 of the movie. Once you pass Act I, it's Spiderman 3.

[Runestar]

It's funny when you realise that from the posters, it seems like it's 5v4, Joe's favour. However, after Storm Shadow switches sides (and Jinx was one of the good guys from the very start), it really is a 7v1+a few misc mooks slobber knocker, since Zartan and CC didn't really do any fighting themselves.

And it seems my cinema cut the scene where Storm Shadow and Jinx escort CC into the base where Zartan is negotiating with the other world leaders. Saw it in the credits page, which certainly explained how she was there in the very first place.

I also felt they should have just killed Duke right from the very start.

Anyways, the ending sets itself up for a part 3. And I will probably be watching it, for the same reason I still watch "Walking Dead".