From the Central Asian mountains to the deserts of Egypt, through the crowded streets of Paris to beneath the ice cap of the North Pole, the elite team of operatives known as G.I. JOE journeys on a non-stop adventure as they use the latest in next-generation spy technology and military equipment to fight the duplicitous arms dealer Destro and the growing threat of the mysterious Cobra organization from plunging the world into chaos.

It is what it is. This is a term used quite frequently in the sports world but the term easily fits movies as well and GI Joe is what it is. It is a loud, action packed, CGI spectacle, blockbuster film and I am ok with that. Not every movie needs to be a thinker, or stir your emotions or reach a deeper level sometimes we just want to be entertained and that is was GI Joe does it entertains. I mean if you were looking for deeper meaning from a movie that was based on a television cartoon that was designed to sell toys I don’t know what to tell you. But GI Joe was a fun, entertaining movie that finishes of the big summer season of blockbuster spectacle films and while it was no masterpiece it was something worth going to.

I have to admit I don’t remember the cartoons that well, I watched them when I was a kid and even had a few of the action figures but the cartoon wasn’t my favorite of that era of cartoons so I have little recollection of the series and its storylines. I get the feeling they changed quite a bit from what I do remember I don’t think how the character of the Baroness ends up playing out was anything like the television series. Many hardcore fans might have a problem with this but I found the changes ok even if they were a little hokey at times.

I am not a fan of Channing Tatum and I found him to be a very weak Duke the central character of the film but other than that most of the casting was pretty good. Then again a film like GI Joe isn’t about the casting and is more about the action and CGI and the casting just acts as a backdrop for most of the film. Some of the CGI was clearly and obviously fake like the chase through Paris but it is what sells the movie and makes it so fun and entertaining. GI Joe is a film that is just fun to sit down and watch, shut your brain off an enjoy and while the critics may not like it the geek universe will love it.

Grade: B+