Movie Review - Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins

I loved the G.I. Joe cartoon and toys growing up. I enjoyed the live action movies from a decade ago. So I was excited to see a new movie and a new take on the franchise.

Snake Eyes is a 2021 live-action action movie based on the G.I. Joe toyline. It is rated PG-13 for violence and language, and is appropriate for teens and up.

The Good

Second Half. This movie was pretty boring and pointless with no direction until the second half when a story is finally introduced and something other than random fighting begins. It action becomes interesting and I started to care about the characters and what would happen to them.

 

The Bad

Casting & Acting. The movie was poorly cast and just as poorly acted. The actors didn't really fit the characters they were playing. And everyone was so stone faced and unemotional about everything. I had a hard time caring about what was going on when the characters seemed to care just as little.

Snake Eyes is the Bad Buy. For some reason the filmmakers decided to make Snake Eyes the bad guy and then quickly redeem him in the end in a very unbelievable twist that everyone magically accepts. I understand the idea of wanting a character arc where the character learns and grows, but this was just sloppy writing.

More About Storm Shadow. While Snake Eyes appears in almost every scene, the movie is really Storm Shadow's story. It follows his rise and fall. The film should have been titled Storm Shadow.

Changed the Mythology. I don't have a problem with filmmakers taking liberties with the source material and making changes if those changes are interesting and make a better story or lead to more compelling characters. I do have a problem with making changes that don't improve on the source material. This movie did not improve upon the source material.

Fights & Action Scenes. The fights were pretty mediocre and badly filmed. And then halfway thru the characters suddenly developed the power of flight after a fairly realistic and grounded take. And the flying didn't even look good.

 

What I Would Like To Have Seen

I wish they would have stayed truer to the mythology and done a better job casting, acting, and story writing.

Overall

Snake Eyes is a 2021 live-action action movie based on the G.I. Joe toy line. It is rated PG-13 for violence and language, and is appropriate for teens and up. This movie was pretty boring and pointless with no direction until the second half when a story is finally introduced and something other than random fighting begins. It action becomes interesting and I started to care about the characters and what would happen to them. The movie was poorly cast and just as poorly acted. The actors didn't really fit the characters they were playing. And everyone was so stone faced and unemotional about everything. I had a hard time caring about what was going on when the characters seemed to care just as little. For some reason the filmmakers decided to make Snake Eyes the bad guy and then quickly redeem him in the end in a very unbelievable twist that everyone magically accepts. I understand the idea of wanting a character arc where the character learns and grows, but this was just sloppy writing. While Snake Eyes appears in almost every scene, the movie is really Storm Shadow's story. It follows his rise and fall. The film should have been titled Storm Shadow. I don't have a problem with filmmakers taking liberties with the source material and making changes if those changes are interesting and make a better story or lead to more compelling characters. I do have a problem with making changes that don't improve on the source material. This movie did not improve upon the source material. The fights were pretty mediocre and badly filmed. And then halfway thru the characters suddenly developed the power of flight after a fairly realistic and grounded take. And the flying didn't even look good. I do not recommend this film and give it 2.5 out of 5 Boxes of Popcorn.