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GIJOE Retaliation Movie Spoiler Images and Information
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12-07-2012, 10:18 PM
DESTRO
Overlord of Evil
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Philly
Posts: 11,489
Director Jon M. Chu wanted to delve deep into the emotional storyline of the ninjas and the depth of the animosity between the two men who trained side-by-side as brothers. “We really wanted to explore where the human and ninja collide, where the anger and jealousy start to take over and that’s where we find both these characters.”
Korean superstar Byung-hun Lee, who reprises his role of STORM SHADOW, was excited by the possibility to explore the more internal side of the character. “I am really glad to be back in the role and was excited to show more of STORM SHADOW and his different sides,” says Byung-hun Lee.
Fully prepared to dive into the emotional inter-workings of the character, Lee brought a great deal of passion and physical commitment to the role and his approach. “Byung-hun came with strong ideas on who this character is and he spills it all on the screen,” says Chu.
“Byung-hun has an amazing presence,” says di Bonaventura. “He’s doing all these fights himself, but also has an internal strength of character that gives STORM SHADOW great dignity.”
Also an incredibly powerful martial artist and athlete in his own right, Lee did extensive training to reprise the role and was excited to approach the action sequences from a more practical standpoint. “Jon said that he wanted the movie to be more real, so I trained a lot to make my body bigger and more cut.”
“Because we had actors who could really fight, I wanted to show the brutality of their fights and steer away from the uptight ninjas we’ve all seen before,” recalls Chu. “When STORM SHADOW gets hit in the face, I wanted to see the blood seeping through his white mask.”
A new component of the martial arts sequences that is sure to excite audiences is the introduction to the use of sais, the deadly sharp-bladed weapons often seen in the G.I. JOE comics. “I was excited about using the sais as an extension of their punches, like brutal brass knuckles with an extremely sharp edge,” says Chu. “We put them in close quarters where audiences can really experience just how dangerous this is.”
Introduced to the film franchise, but a well-known character within the world of G.I. JOE is JINX, a female ninja and cousin of STORM SHADOW. “JINX is one of the characters I’ve always wanted to see on film,” recalls Chu. “She is sort of the princess of the Arashikage world, but doesn’t want the title. She hates it and wants to fight and do what SNAKE EYES does, but has always felt put in the corner.”
For the role of JINX, filmmakers found their first female ninja warrior in actress Elodie Yung who appeared in the French parkour film DISTRICT 13: ULTIMATUM and most recently in the David Fincher-directed THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO. “Elodie made a huge impression and we just knew she would be perfect for JINX,” recalls Chu. “When she came in, she exuded such a strong presence that made it pretty clear that JINX was already alive in Elodie.”
The classic saying that big things come in small packages certainly applies to Yung, who attacked the role with extreme focus and passion. “Elodie is deceiving because she is a small woman and very elegant, but can kick your butt,” says di Bonaventura. “At first glance, you may worry about her, but you quickly realize that she’s a killer, which is fun because it brings both sides of the equation.”
Although already a black belt in karate, Yung went through rigorous physical training for the role. “We worked for about a month before shooting and focused on my cardio because of how demanding it all was,” recalls Yung.
A large part of that preparation was training in the Chinese Martial Art Wushu, which entails extensive use of sword fighting. “I’ve done other action films before, so I was a bit familiar, but when I arrived here I quickly realized that fighting with two swords is completely different,” laughs Yung.
“I’ve never seen anyone make such a huge leap from knowing nothing about swords to whipping around hitting her marks. It was amazing. You feel her grow as a warrior beyond just her character and I think the audience is really going to enjoy that journey,” says Chu.
A major point of the film involves the fate of the United States Presidency and the highjacking of the Oval Office. Fans of the first installment will recall the President suspiciously whistling ZARTAN’s signature tune at the end of G.I. JOE: RISE OF THE COBRA. This installment confirms that evil forces have taken over the White House and have somehow gotten inside the Presidency. Literally.
Acclaimed actor Jonathan Pryce reprises his role as the American President and was set with the extraordinary task of playing two different characters on opposite sides of the spectrum of good (the real American President) versus evil (the villain posing as the American President).
Pryce approached the opportunity to play opposite sides of one character with great enthusiasm and loved the challenge. “People always ask if it’s more interesting to play the good guy or the bad guy in this one. It was fun to play both someone who is the oppressor and the victim at the same time,” says Pryce.
The role, however, did not come without its challenges. The duality of the character required extraordinary focus to maintain consistency throughout the shoot and Pryce never missed a beat. In addition, Pryce had to manage the technical mechanics required to shoot scenes essentially against himself. “I wasn’t quite prepared for how difficult, technically, it was going to be to talk to myself,” laughs Pryce. “Talking to a piece of green paper on a stick was certainly interesting, but the amazing thing was that we were able to see almost immediate playback and how they could match the two images of me together. I thought it was an extraordinary thing to be able to do.”
Happy to be working with Pryce again, di Bonaventura says, “The movie doesn’t work without Jonathan Pryce. We’re thrilled to have him back because we needed his humor and his sense of gravitas to hold the two sides of the movie together. He has such a presence and great sense of timing. He is able to capture the right balance of the character that is very tricky.”
Sure to be a new fan favorite is the explosive new villain FIREFLY, who is enlisted by COBRA to help break COBRA COMMANDER out of prison and take the stage on their quest for world domination. One of the more evil characters found in the G.I. JOE mythology, is committed to creating chaos and considers the act of destruction as artistic expression. In short, and in his own words, FIREFLY loves to make things go “boom.”
“Firefly sees beauty in the redistribution of energy, so while explosions may seem like destruction to us, he believes he is creating something,” argues Chu. “This almost artistic philosophy made FIREFLY really interesting to me and it went way beyond being merely a cold-hearted killer.”
“FIREFLY only had about six lines when we first read the script, but we quickly realized just how cool the character is,” recalls di Bonaventura. “There is something fundamentally badass about him.”
To flesh out the role of the eccentric madman, filmmakers enlisted the talents of British actor Ray Stevenson, who recently wowed audiences in the films THOR and THE BOOK OF ELI. Stevenson approached the role with intensity and flair that went well beyond expectations. “Ray is such a consummate actor and brought such depth to FIREFLY in such a sinister and sadistic way,” says di Bonaventura. “He brings a certain gravity to the role that really grounds this crazy psychotic character.”
“Ray really built this character from the ground up and gave him this southern swagger and lingo all his own. He was interested in all the details from the type of skin on his leather jacket and the COBRA ring that he wears, to his facial scarring. He had a huge amount of input on who FIREFLY became,” says Chu.
Not an easy feat by any stretch, the filmmakers took into consideration the importance of casting an actor who would be a believable threat to Dwayne Johnson’s ROADBLOCK. “When it came to finding a nemesis for my character, it was important to find an opponent who could conceivably beat me and that’s not an easy thing to do,” laughs Johnson.
“We purposely designed the fights in a way that you could feel that FIREFLY had a real chance to beat ROADBLOCK and actually does in certain parts of the movie,” says di Bonaventura. “These are two big guys facing off and there’s a healthy competition between those two.”
Both actors put forth great effort and commitment to preparing for the brutal combat scenes which at times left them both bruised and bloody. “Pitting these two is great and the fights have been so intense that you felt the walls shake when they hit each other,” recalls Stevenson. “One thing about fighting with Dwayne is that when he blocks a punch it’s like hitting an iron bar. The man is literally made of rock. You don’t walk away from that unscathed and I certainly had my fair share of cuts and bruises.”
In an exciting turn that is sure to thrill G.I. JOE enthusiasts, the filmmakers sought to pay homage to the heart and soul of the G.I. JOE brand by introducing the original Joe Colton to the film franchise. “We wanted to connect all those different incarnations by bringing it back to where it all started with the original 12” action figure Joe,” explains Jon M. Chu. “Joe Colton coming back into the picture was something we thought was really exciting.”
International box-office superstar Bruce Willis makes an appearance in the film as none other than the original G.I. JOE himself, Joe Colton. Producer di Bonaventura felt that there is no other actor better suited for the role. “The original G.I. JOE was an iconic concept and Bruce is an icon in his own right, so putting them together is exciting for those in my generation and those older than me. Bruce was a huge fan of G.I. JOE growing up and played with the action figures, so it couldn’t have made more sense.”
“Who else could embody the soul and spirit of the original G.I. JOE but Bruce Willis?” asks Chu. “Joe Colton is a mysterious character who’s been talked about in some of the comic books but not fully realized. So when Bruce Willis comes here and fills in all the gaps, it became very clear that Joe Colton is a huge presence in the soul of G.I. JOE.”
Equally as excited about Bruce Willis fleshing out the role of the original G.I. JOE was Dwayne Johnson. “Bruce Willis is the ultimate man’s man. He couldn’t have been more perfect for the role.”
Lovers of film or certainly fans of the action genre will be excited about two-seasoned action icons fighting side-by-side. Director Jon M. Chu found himself taken aback when witnessing the two powerful actors in a scene together. “There were only a few moments in the movie where I just stopped and thought ‘I can’t believe this is happening right now’ and when you’re in a room with Dwayne Johnson, Bruce Willis and there’s SNAKE EYES, I was speechless.”
Johnson was grateful for the opportunity to finally work together with Willis with whom he’s shared a friendship over the years. “Bruce and I have been buddies for a long time and I was over the moon when I found out he was going to be involved,” recalls Johnson. “As a fan of action myself, it’s pretty cool to see Bruce and I on the screen kickin’ all kinds of butt.”
ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
With a storyline that travels from the deserts of Islamabad, skyscrapers in Tokyo, the mountain peaks of the Himalayas, a sub-terranean prison in Germany to the streets of D.C., the filmmakers had the extraordinary task of finding a location that could accommodate most of the various elements needed. Unlike many films of this size and scope who rely on CGI-based technology to create their visual worlds, the filmmakers wanted to utilize practical locations as much as possible to stay in-line with the effort and mandate to make the film more reality-based and grounded.
After a meticulous search of various locations with the knowledge that certain key exteriors could be captured with a reduced unit outside of the main unit, the producers found most of the elements needed in New Orleans, Louisiana.
“We realized that we couldn’t do this in all the actual places in the script and looked at a reduced second unit approach and try to base the movie in one place,” explains Executive Producer Herb Gains. “After touring the various potential locations with Lorenzo and Jon, we all agreed on New Orleans and it worked extremely well for us.”
Taking advantage of some of the southern aesthetics, the attractions of New Orleans and the surrounding areas, the filmmakers decided to make a few alterations to the script. Once such adjustment was setting the final sequence of the film at Fort Sumter, a bunker just outside of New Orleans where the first shot of the Civil War was fired. “With some clever screenwriting and without any real loss in terms of storytelling, we found the right location in Louisiana that could serve us well and offer some historical value to elevate the final act of the film,” explains Gains.
The 72-day shoot began outside of Baton Rouge in a massive man-made sandpit that served as the deserts of Pakistan. With the summer heat and humidity reaching well above 100 degrees and virtually no-shade for shelter, the experience brought the cast and crew together in an invaluable way. “Starting off the movie in the sand pit put everyone into a war mentality right off the bat, we were under siege,” recounts di Bonventura. “The temperature and humidity were extreme and it made a common misery and there’s a certain amount of fun that comes from that. We survived the desert together and that bonded the group in a really interesting way.”
For director Jon M. Chu, it was a great way to jump into the fire. “It was the most intense heat I’ve ever experienced and we were all just getting to know each other. On top of that, it’s my first action movie and we were starting with an extensive sequence with huge explosions…it definitely felt like our own boot camp of sorts.”
The unforgiving weather was particularly challenging for the cast, who were outfitted in their full military gear and weaponry and had to trudge up and down the massive sand hills repeatedly over a week and a half. Recalls Johnson, “You’re in the sand and it’s hot, sweaty and muggy and it’s easy to get tired and pissed off, but at the end of the day we were all in it together for the betterment of the team and, ultimately, the movie.”
One of the challenges of filming outside of production-heavy cities like Los Angeles, Vancouver, Sydney or London is the lack of infrastructure needed to support a film of this scope. A huge component to making this film a reality in New Orleans was the NASA Michoud Assembly Facility, which was utilized as the film’s makeshift production facility and housed most of the grandiose sets. The dismantling of the Space Shuttle program allowed the facility to open its doors for the first time to a film production and allowed the creative team to create the various environments and large-scale sets needed for the project.
In addition to the extraordinary amount of acreage available, the massive warehouses offered 250-foot ceiling height built to accommodate assembly of the massive pieces of the Space Shuttle and their fuel boosters. This gave the creative team the ability to construct multiple sets of significant size simultaneously. Throughout production sets were in a constant state of transformation; either being assembled, used or being struck in preparation for the next round of construction. “One of the many things that NASA gave us was space and the ability to expand and contract,” explains Executive Producer Herb Gains. “There were times we had two units filming here simultaneously, sets going up and coming down and probably had up to 700 employees working here at once. Never once did we trip over each other, there was that much space.”
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