G. I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
Directed by Stephen Sommers
Starring Channing Tatum, Sienna Miller, Marlon Wayans, Dennis Quaid, Ray Park, Rachel Nichols
Rated PG-13
Release date: August 7, 2009

Like many children of the ’80s, I did watch the G.I. Joe cartoon. Don’t ask me what I remember of it though. I watched so many cartoons back then that other than the Joe’s “knowing is half the battle” segments, there is not much of it that I retained over the years. What I do know is that the cartoon was very popular way back when and it was only a matter of time before it got its big screen live-action debut. I mean, if Transformers and even Alvin and the Chipmunks can get that kind treatment, why can’t G.I. Joe?

Based on the popular toy line and cartoon, G. I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra follows soldiers Duke (Channing Tatum) and Ripcord (Marlon Wayans). On a mission to transfer a deadly technological weapon, their convoy is ambushed by a terrorist group. Their collective behind is saved by an elite military led by General Hawk (Dennis Quaid), known as G.I. JOE. In memory of their fallen comrades, Duke and Ripcord team up with the JOEs to safely transport the weapons to their destination and in the process they come across the terrorist group COBRA.

Ray Park will be playing a sword-master sidekick in a new project called The Necronauts, from writer and directed by Kevin Van Hook, who’s doing the movie in conjunction with legendary special-effects master Ray Harryhausen.

Park, who’s best known for his role as the sith Darth Maul in Star Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace, as well as Toad in X-Men, will be seen next as Snake Eyes in the live-action G.I. JOE movie; Van Hook did visual work on Daredevil and I, Robot.

The story for The Necronauts will supposedly be a take on the 1963 Jason and the Argonauts, which featured Harryhausen’s pioneering stop-motion work, but more on steroids where the hero and his group venture into Hades to collect a group of the dead and bring the fight to the God of War, Ares.

Not long ago, I craved more Greek Mythology movies… now, I just can’t keep up with them anymore. The last I checked, a movie called War of Gods was coming, a separate new Jason and the Argonauts is still coming I believe, and also, Brett Ratner was planning to piss all over the video game God of War‘s movie adaptation. So there’s no shortage in Greek Mythology movies being planned; whether they actually become a reality or not is yet to be seen. At least Harryhausen will be a part of this new one.