G.I. Joe: The Movie (1987)

G.I. Joe: The Movie (also known as Action Force: The Movie in the UK) is a 1987 American direct-to-video animated military science fiction action film produced as a sequel to the 1983 animated series G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, based on the original Hasbro toyline. It was produced by Sunbow Productions and Marvel Productions and was animated in Japan by Toei Animation Co., Ltd.

Plot

While Cobra Commander and Serpentor blame each other's stewardship of Cobra as the root cause of the organization's failures, Pythona, a woman from the secret civilization Cobra-La, infiltrates the Terror Drome. While there, she reveals to Serpentor that Cobra-La was responsible for inspiring Doctor Mindbender to create him through dream manipulation. At her urging, Serpentor plans to capture G.I. Joe's latest weapon, the Broadcast Energy Transmitter (BET).

Cobra assaults the Joes as they test the BET in the Himalayas. The Joes use the BET to activate their automated weapons systems. Serpentor is captured and Cobra Commander orders a retreat. Cobra Commander leads his troops into Cobra-La, the hidden underground city that serves as their headquarters.

As the Joes celebrate their victory, a new group of rookie Joes are brought onto the team. The newcomers include the allegedly clumsy female ninja Jinx; military police officer Law (and his dog Order); former basketball player Big Lob; EOD specialist Tunnel Rat; undercover officer Chuckles; and Duke's reckless half-brother, Lt. Falcon, a Green Beret.

In Cobra-La, seven of the Joes are ambushed and detained within the Lovecraftian living environment. The Cobra soldiers are met by the civilization's leader Golobulus, who has Pythona and his other henchman, Nemesis Enforcer, arrest Cobra Commander. While there, Cobra learns about their history: 40,000 years ago, Cobra-La was a prehistoric civilization that ruled Earth. However, the Ice Age, the evolution of humans and their development of scientific technology resulted in Cobra-La's survivors being forced into caverns within the Himalayas. Cobra-La rebuilt their society in secret as centuries passed. Golobulus vowed to destroy humanity so that his people could reclaim the earth. He eventually discovered a nobleman who was working on biological weapons. The nobleman later became Cobra Commander, charged with conquering the world for Cobra-La. However, Cobra Commander's repeated failures caused Golobulus to use a Psychic Motivator on Doctor Mindbender to create Serpentor.

Meanwhile, a disguised Zarana uses Falcon to infiltrate Serpentor's holding cell. Falcon is put on guard duty by his older half-brother Duke as a punishment for skipping the training earlier. Falcon abandons his post to flirt with Jinx, while the Dreadnoks and Nemesis Enforcer free Serpentor, injuring Alpine, Bazooka and Gung-Ho in the process. General Hawk lectures Falcon on dereliction of duty and confines him to his quarters until court-martial.

In Cobra-La, Cobra Commander is tried and Golobulus reveals his plans to launch spore pods, filled with mutative spores into space and use the BET to hatch them thus dooming humanity. He punishes Cobra Commander for his repeated failures following his trial by exposing him to the spores, which transforms Cobra Commander into a snake. He flees and makes his way to the Joes' camp with Roadblock.

Convinced by Duke to spare Falcon from a harsh punishment, General Hawk reassigns Falcon to the "Slaughter House" where he is to be retrained by Sgt. Slaughter and his "Renegades" consisting of ex-Viper Mercer, former football player Red Dog, and former acrobat Taurus. On a weaponless recon mission in the Terror Drome, the five learn of Cobra's plans and that the Baroness has discovered the location of the BET. As Falcon and the others destroy the Terror Drome, Cobra launches an assault on the Joes. The Joes launch a counterattack on Cobra, but the BET is stolen. Serpentor attempts to kill Falcon, but Duke intervenes and falls into a coma.

Falcon, the Renegades and the new recruits head to the Himalayas to stop Cobra-La. The G.I. Joe team is led to Cobra-La's lair by Cobra Commander. The new recruits prove themselves valuable soldiers as the Joes rescue their captured teammates. Falcon, Jinx and Sgt. Slaughter confront Golobulus, Pythona and Serpentor. The ensuing fight culminates in Jinx and Slaughter sending Pythona and Nemesis Enforcer falling to their apparent demise. Finally, Falcon sends Serpentor out of Cobra-La and reconfigures the BET to incinerate the spore pods in space and destroying Cobra-La as Golobulus escapes. Immediately following the battle, the strike team receives news that Duke has come out of his coma and is recovering.

Voice cast

Production

The writers did not originally intend for "Cobra-La" to be the name of the rival civilization. "Cobra-La" was merely a placeholder name in the script's drafts (borrowed from the 1933 novel Lost Horizon by James Hilton which featured the fabled city Shangri-La), which the writers intended to change. However, Hasbro executives fell in love with the Cobra-La name and forced the writers to keep it.

In the film's original script, Duke dies in battle after receiving a wound from a snake spear hurled by Serpentor. After this event was written into the script, it inspired the death of the Autobot leader Optimus Prime in The Transformers: The Movie while both films were in production. However, Optimus Prime's death sparked a severe backlash among both fans and parents, and Hasbro reversed their decision on allowing Duke's death. While the scene was kept, replacement dialogue was inserted stating that Duke had gone into a coma. In the film's ending, it is stated that he had come out of the coma. Writer and story editor Buzz Dixon said in an interview with JoeHeadquarters.com, "[If] you watch the visuals and don't listen to the soundtrack, it's obvious Duke dies." In the original script, the Joes also held his funeral prior to the final battle.

Release

Created at the height of the G.I. Joe craze in the 1980s, G.I. Joe: The Movie was intended as the third theatrical release of a Hasbro-produced film after My Little Pony: The Movie and The Transformers: The Movie. Following unexpected production delays and the poor box office performances of its predecessors, it premiered direct-to-video instead on August 25, 1987. It premiered on television in syndication—as early as September 4, 1987—first in feature-length format and later split into a five-part miniseries format as part of the series' syndication package. The film was followed by the 1989 animated series G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, which takes place after the events of the movie.

Rhino Entertainment first released the film on DVD on June 20, 2000, with 5.1 remastered and remixed “Rhinophonic” sound and contains some extra features. Shout! Factory released a remastered special edition on DVD and Blu-ray on July 27, 2010, featuring audio commentary from story consultant (and series writer) Buzz Dixon, and a printable copy of the original screenplay.

In 2022, it was announced that Fathom Events would finally bring the movie to theaters for a special two-day event to commemorate its 35th anniversary. The screenings also contained exclusive behind-the-scenes and interactive content.

References

External links

G.I. Joe: The Movie at IMDb