If you’re an old fart like me you grew up watching the classic G.I. Joe cartoons on television and read all of the cool comic books by Larry Hama. So imagine my surprise when I get the e-mail inviting me to visit the set of the live action version of one of my favorite toys growing up as a kid. I normally don’t geek out over stuff too much, but this was a fantastic opportunity to walk around and see sets that only a privileged few will be able to see. If you’re a hardcore G.I. Joe fan, you are allowed to e-mail me and tell me how much I suck and that I don’t deserve this great honor.
As of this posting, the shoot taking place at Downey Studios in Downey, CA. had some of the biggest sets I think I’ve seen. Production is wrapping up in a day or two for the Prague shoots, but I want to tell you guys a little bit about what I saw. I can’t go into any details though. Knowing isn’t half the battle when it comes to leaking out too much information early on and the people at Paramount are not shy when it comes to breaking into your home at 3 in the morning and kidnapping your loved ones. I’m sure no matter what I write, Paramount will have a laser gun pointed to my head immediately. They’re down like that.
The biggest interior piece we saw was The Pit. But it was a battle ravaged Pit with a large elevator, giant exhaust fans on the sides, and broken scaffolding from explosions. There was also an overturned Jeep.
We also saw interior shots of Destro’s M.A.R.S. (Military Armaments Research Syndicate) headquarters. Think Doom but with a silver tone. More interior M.A.R.S. sets with chairs, control panels and large TV screens. Another set was the exterior ice cavern entrance to Destro’s headquarters and it was enormous.
So where do Vipers come from? They come from the Doctor's lab set complete with a...ah! I can't say what. I wish I could go into more details but I’m sure I’ve said too much as it is.
Speaking of the Vipers, I did chat with one a bit who explained to me the difference between a regular Viper and the NeoVipers. They both look the same, except NeoVipers have silver plating on their chest plate and wear silver helmets instead of black ones. They’re more the personal bodyguards whereas the regular Vipers are more like door security and probably check your ID before you can get into the nightclub. I hear Baroness likes to get down.
As far as vehicles go, we got to see the inside of Destro’s main submarine, and the two manned G.I. Joe Sharc (not spelled with a k) submarines. Heavy Duty pilots one of these small subs.
They built giant armored vehicles called COUGARS and one seemed to be bigger than the next. They either had machine guns on top or actual rocket launchers. They were real vehicles and looked like they could be used in Iraq. The weapons set for M.A.R.S. was enormous and there were missiles everywhere. I also saw a laser generator type room which is to be a set piece for a battle between two of the main characters.
We spoke a lot with producer Lorenzo Di Bonaventura, Channing Tatum, Sienna Miller and Snake Eyes himself, Ray Park. Yes Star Wars fans, I got to shake Darth Maul’s hand. I challenged him to a fight but he kicked my ass before I was even able to finish my sentence. That Ray guy is pretty quick.
We saw a scene being shot with Duke and Baroness and there were explosions and water was being shot everywhere. Stephen Sommers looked like he was having a great time and seemed to really be into it and wanting everything to be perfect.
Unfortunately, that’s all I can say! More details and interviews to come. YO JOE!
Begging for more info e-mails can be sent to: george@latinoreview.com
