G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (PG-13, 2009)
common sense media says
Too violent for kids, too childish for grown-ups.
parents & educators say
- 63% say violence is an issue
- 28% say language is an issue
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this relentless action adventure inspired by the '80s cartoon/toy line is filled with extreme (albeit minimally bloody/gory) violence. Kids will want to see it because they're the ones who play with the toys, but there's no end to the parade of characters who are slashed, stabbed, shot, or dispatched invarious other ways (it's important to note that, unlike in the similarly inspired Transformers movies, most of the victims here are people, not machines). There's also a lot of potentially scary medical imagery -- needles, scalpels, painful-looking procedures, and more -- and some intermittent strong language (including "s--t"). And Hasbro, the company that makes G.I. Joe toys, co-produced the movie -- meaning that the story doesn't contain product placement so much as the product placement contains a story.
Positive role models:
Duke and the other G.I. Joes are depicted as hard-fighting-yet-sensitive warriors who are focused on their mission and protecting each other. Their Cobra enemies are painted as wholly villainous (no complex bad guys here!).
Violence:
Constant extreme -- though generally bloodless -- action violence. A man has a white-hot metal mask affixed to his face. Characters are shot, decapitated, and stabbed and slashed with swords and throwing stars. Characters fight both hand-to-hand and with firearms, and there are intense martial arts sequences. People fall from great heights. Planes, ships, and other vehicles fire on each other with a plethora of weapons and missiles. Lots of general mayhem and destruction. In flashback, children engage in brutal violence involving frying pans, flames, martial arts weapons, and more. A child murders a teacher -- it's off-screen, but the body is seen. Surgical imagery.
Sex:
Some kissing, cleavage, and discussion of "touching."
Language:
Some moderate strong language, including "s--t," "bastards," "piss," "a--holes," "damn," "hell," "bitch," "crap," "goddamn," "oh my God," and more.
Consumerism:
The film is based on a cartoon series that itself was based on a toy line (and the movie was actually co-produced by Hasbro, which makes those toys), so you could argue that the whole thing is an exercise in product placement. Other brands visible or mentioned include Hummer, Mercedes-Benz, Double Bubble, and Cisco.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
A super-soldier serum lets people "feel no pain" and has implied adddictive and narcotic effects.
More on G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
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Review It
Based on 40 parent & educator reviews:
- 63% say violence is an issue
- 28% say language is an issue
Most useful reviews by all members
kid, 12 years old
whatever the critics say i enjoyed this flick!!!!!!!
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whatever the critics say i enjoyed this flick!!!!!!!
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kid, 11 years old
whatever the critics say i enjoyed this flick!!!!!!!
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Movie Man
adult
adult
Enjoyable, Intense, Cartoonish Action Thrill Ride.
I really enjoyed this film; I did. But it was quite violent. Cartoonish; campy, but violent. The Paris action sequence was my favorite. The ending felt a little weak and it was anticlimactic, but that just means there's probably a sequel on the way.
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CSM Screen ...
parent of 15 year old
parent of 15 year old
Violent PG-13 Action Thriler good for 13+
Parents should know that although there's no blood, there's heads getting cut off, and a ton of action scenes throughout. Lots of fights, explosions, weapons, and punches. Weapons include missile launchers, swords, guns, etc. Kids will want to see it, and that's okay for ages 13+, because there's no blood. However, be warned, this stretches the limit of PG-13.
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BLACKVENOM500
kid, 13 years old
kid, 13 years old
yo yo yo, my name is G.I Joe!
PLENTY of destruction sequences. the eifel tower is dissentegrated and falls and crushes paris. car chases, smashes, explosions, and ninja combat scenes are quite intense. there are long, sloppy kisses from duke, ana, and mcullen. uses of s*** and d***. one use of a**hole. military violence and guns. a character gores another character, his brother. the theme of a weapon company might be a little too disturbing for some people
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Dziko
teen, 16 years old
teen, 16 years old
Meh.
I'll admit it: I watched this movie solely for Joseph Gordon-Levitt. The most fun I had while watching was trying to figure out which character he was (since I had no idea), joking sarcastically about how he was totally the creepy scientist, and then realizing a few seconds later that-- alsdkfjlkdsf-- he WAS the creepy scientist. Anyway, the movie was otherwise lame jokes and violence. I might have appreciated it more had I not been staring at poor JGL's messed up face.
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action man
adult
adult
it is ok
it is not xtrame volint.but your kids will find it a bit boring becuse it does not resemble the older gi joe.the characters are not like gi joe.it has the name gi joe but it has nothing to do with.i recomend gi joe spy troops or gi joe valor vs venom or sigma 6.
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cinnamonrolls
kid, 12 years old
kid, 12 years old
good movie
pretty good entertaining movie
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OldBob13
teen, 16 years old
teen, 16 years old
2 hours of dumb, brainless fun
G.I. Joe was a great toy. So now, like Transformers, they make a movie out of it. But this is a violent and jarring thriller that will make kiddies upset and will disappoint older viewers. The special effects are cool enough, but the script is heinous, the acting is horrible (besides a genuinely creepy performance by Christopher Eccleston), and the story is brainless. Still, it is very fun to watch, just make sure to keep the young ones at home and turn off your brain.
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JamesFord92
adult
adult
It's pretty violent through out, but none of it is done any sort of a realistic way, so most kids in the 11-13 age range can probably handle it.
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jabanero
parent of 12 and 16 year old
parent of 12 and 16 year old
Not to my expectations.
There we go again. Hollywood trying to hook (again) boomers, theirs kids (X gen)and their children with nostalgia of the action (figures) which some played before, except that then it was more imagination and less sitting down in the movie theater. Too many obvious computer generated special effects that were not cleverly disguised. Role models?: good/straight arrow against evil/corruption. Do all the ladies in the army/special forces dress with the front buttons open or with tighter than usual clothes? I don't think so. Wayans brother to include some funny comments? Please do not include any say from "their" movies". On the other hand, there was more showing of future technology: 3-4 movies showing holograms. That will be in our everyday future in the next 4-5 years. Lets just be careful what they want to show us/our children/our grandkids in holographic images.
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coldmiser
adult
adult
If you let your kids watch Iron Man, then you should be ok with this.
While I agree this movie has tones of violent action, there is little blood and most of the violence is over the top and cartoon-ish.
The decapitations are, for the most part implied, and never actually seen (no rolling heads, and no extended or clear shots of the bodies). These happen so fast my son didn't even notice them.
My two biggest concerns that parents might have are with the very begining...a man has a hot iron mask put on him and while we only hear him scream and see his eye wide with terror, it could be scary for smaller kids.
Another is another scene where a dead mans head sort of melts. It's brief, but again could bother younger kids.
Over all this is a fast paced film that will keep most 9+ engaged for the the very quick 2 hours this movie runs.
If you had no problem with Iron Man or Transformers 2 (G.I. Joe doesn't even come close to the languange Transformers 2 used btw), then you won't have a problem with this. Totally fun ride!
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thegodfather123456
teen, 16 years old
teen, 16 years old
so bad............
I have many concerns for this film. That is that the plot is cliche, these actors cannot save anyone's dang lives by acting, and pretty much every other aspect of the film. The ONE good aspect of this piece of trash is Joseph Gordon-Levitt who gives a very good performance as the villain.
WOW. This movie is so stupid! The writing is absolutely horrible and is so hard to believe. Yes, these 2 people are in excelerator-suits (what a dumb name), which make you run about 5 times as fast as you would run regularly, and these 2 people still fail to stop a lady that's blowing up the Eiffel Tower for no reason at all.
The effects are also extremely incredibly cheesy, and the action sequences are stupid.
They try to make the film dramatic, with love-triangles that are so corny... I hated this film. The script is also some of the worst I've ever heard in my life.
Watch this film if you want a good laugh, to laugh at how bad it is.
GI Joe gets 1/5 stars
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Razorback
parent of 12 year old
parent of 12 year old
This movie is VIOLENT!
This constantly shows people getting shot in the eye with arrows (since they are in body armor), impaled on knives, or killed in another fashion. My entire family was appalled.
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8colony8
teen, 15 years old
teen, 15 years old
Super violent, super cool!
First, this is a very good movie and I have no idea why people say its so bad! There is some language including hell, d--n, b--ch, and s--t. One female character wears a sort of innapropriate outfit. There is lots and LOTS of action violence. A guy has a hot metal mask put on his face, a man is bitten by a snake, cars are flipped and crushed, half of Paris gets wrecked, vehicles are blown up, people engage in swordfights, hand to hand, firefights, underwater fights (in subs), and chopper fights. Some might think the surgery scene is gross, where a man gets needles put in his face and it starts warping. The only gory part is where a man is eaten from the inside by little nanomites, and his face melts into a bloody mess. Great movie 12 and up! Please don't listen to what CSM or other people say, its worth watching!
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ace333
kid, 12 years old
kid, 12 years old
violent!
this movie is super violent this guys face blew up!!!
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