Film Review: "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" (2013).

"When all else fails, they don't." This is G.I. Joe: Retaliation. This military science fiction action film directed by Jon M. Chu, written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, and based on Hasbro's G.I. Joe action figures. It is a sequel to 2009's G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, while also serving as a soft reboot of the franchise. The G.I. Joes are not only fighting their mortal enemy Cobra; they are forced to contend with threats from within the government that jeopardize their very existence.

In late 2009, after the financially successful release of The Rise of Cobra, Rob Moore, the studio vice chairman of Paramount Pictures, stated that a sequel was in development. In January 2011, Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick were hired to pen the sequel. In addition, Byung-hun Lee, Ray Park, Jonathan Pryce, Arnold Vosloo, and Channing Tatum would return to reprise their roles. Originally, Stephen Sommers was going to return to direct the sequel. F. Gary Gray and Jaume Collet-Serra were considered to replace Sommers. Ultimately, in February 2011, Paramount Pictures announced that Chu would direct the sequel. In July 2011, the sequel's name was revealed to be G.I. Joe: Retaliation. Chu would later declare that Paramount wanted a reboot that also served as a sequel. By mid August, Dwayne Johnson, D. J. Cotrona, Adrianne Palicki, Ray Stevenson, Bruce Willis, Walton Goggins, Joseph Mazzello, and RZA rounded out the film's cast. At the same time, principal photography commenced, and wrapped in late November. Filming took place in New Orleans, Louisiana, Washington, District of Columbia, and British Columbia, Canada. The film was initially slated for a June 29, 2012 release date. In February 2012, Hasbro confirmed a new toyline. In May 2012, Paramount announced that the film's release was pushed to March 29, 2013. It was pushed forward to March 28, in order to convert the movie to 3D and boost interest in international markets. Despite the movie's release being moved from June 2012 to March 2013, the initial assortments of figures, vehicles, and role-play items were shipped to retailers, and appeared on store shelves in May 2012. Variety revealed that the already released figures had been pulled from the shelves and recalled by Hasbro, although the company's official statement indicated that existing product would be sold through. As late as December 2012, new product shipments were halted by Hasbro, but existing Retaliation figures were available in Target, Wal-Mart, and Toys R Us. In February 2013, the toyline was re-released in the United States.

The cast, and crew, got lost. They tried to get bigger. It's what happens to sequels. It's like, how do you top the first one? You've got to go bigger. Chu went so big that it became too big, and I think you lost the anchor of the movie. You lost a bit of the relationship. Unless you have those relationships, then the movie doesn't matter. Then it's just a bunch of soldiers fighting each other.

G.I. Joe: Retaliation is a noisy, underplotted, and overlong special effects extravaganza that lacks a human touch.

Simon says G.I. Joe: Retaliation receives: