G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra: It's okay to admit when you are wrong

The elite multi-national military unit known as G.I. Joe is tasked with fighting to save the day at any cost. However the threat they face in the form of the nefarious arms dealer James McCullen and his shadowy partner The Doctor (a.k.a. Cobra Commander) might be even more than the Joes can handle.

After seeing the trailers for this film, I was thoroughly convinced it would be the worse thing to hit theaters since the last stinker Stephen Sommers (who directed the film) unleashed (the infamous Van Helsing). And while the story was overburdened with too many subplots regarding the different characters and their origins (did we really need the backstory of Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow’s pasts?), the narrative contained no clear direction and the CGI was laughably awful at points (the accelerator suites looked like rejects from Stark Industries and I can hear people complaining even now about how the ice sunk in the climatic final battle between the Joes and Cobra), G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra was surprisingly easy to get sucked into and watch due to its non-stop action. Another aspect that aided in its watchability was the absorbing storyline of the tragic past between Duke and the Baroness which not only held the audience’s attention, but also kept the film moving and allowed Sienna Miller (the Baroness) the chance to give a tremendously over the top and entertaining performance. She simply reveled in being the bad girl, chewing up every scene she was in with a devious smile and delight that the other actors seemed to lack.

It is certainly never going to win any kind of serious film awards but if you turn off your mind and remember that you are watching a film based off of a 1980’s children’s cartoon, then you should be able to enjoy G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra for its action, outlandishness and escapism.

Grade: C+