G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, marketing, and patriotism

Paramount's unusual pitch for its new action movie 

Paramount Pictures is taking G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra "directly to America's heartland," said Claudia Eller and Ben Fritz in the Los Angeles Times. The production company's new action movie "is embedded in the Kid Rock and Lynyrd Skynyrd concert tour, advertised at the Country Music Television Awards and excerpted on giant video screens at Minnesota's Mall of America." The "subtext" is clear: "If you're a flag-waving, NASCAR-loving American, it's practically your patriotic duty to see this movie" (watch the trailer for G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra).

Paramount's marketing approach "can only really be summed up as redneck pandering," said Josh Tyler in Cinema Blend. Unless you "hang out at gun ranges," it's unlikely you'll see an ad for G.I. Joe, and Paramount is only screening the movie for "critics most likely to praise it." This is a huge mistake—"marketing a movie to only a tiny segment of the population rarely pays off," and "I'm predicting failure."

Don't be so sure, said Christy Lemire in the Associated Press. G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra "has a lot in common with the highest-grossing film so far this year," Transformers: Rise of the Fallen. Transformers also appealed "to a sense of patriotism nationwide," was trashed by critics, but then drew "massive crowds." And by "withholding" G.I. Joe from mainstream critics, Paramount seems confident that it "can succeed at the box office without them."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us