An ancient Japanese clan called the
Arashikage welcomes tenacious loner Snake Eyes after he saves the life of their
heir apparent. Upon arrival in
Director: Robert Schwentke
Cast: Henry Golding, Andrew Koji, Úrsula
Corberó, Samara Weaving, Iko Uwais
Release Date:
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi,
Thriller
Rated PG-13 for sequences of strong violence
and brief strong language
Runtime: 2 h 1 min
Review:
Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins is a busy film
serving as an origin story and franchise starter. The fact that its serving multiple masters
should be a recipe for disaster but Robert Schwentke’s still manages to deliver
some enjoyable ninja action. Schwentke’s
film harkens back to cult 80’s ninja films like American Ninja with a glossy
exterior. The action sequences are well
staged with a keen visual outside of some questionable overuse of shaky came. The choreography of them is top notch and
those sequences are the high points of the film. Henry Golding and Andrew Koji make for an
intriguing duo onscreen and their relationship drives the entire film. Golding possess leading man charisma but you
get the sense he could have used a tad bit more depth to make him more
interesting than his counter part. Andrew
Koji performance and character is terribly intriguing as he plays him with a
silent intensity that always makes him the most interesting character on
screen. Some fun supporting turns from Úrsula
Corberó, Samara Weaving & Iko Uwais add some strong female punch to the
proceedings with the latter two there to set up the larger G.I. Joe
universe. The film’s biggest issue is its
script that doesn’t take advantage of its cast.
Everything plays out in a perfunctory manner while it checks certain
boxes since its primary goal was to put pieces in place for future
installments. Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe
Origins ends up being forgettable fluff that might have excelled had it
possessed some tighter scripting and direction.
C+
