The G.I. Joe franchise received a reboot in the form of Snake Eyes, which focuses on the тιтular character’s story before a larger plotline comes to fruition. Henry Golding’s turn as the protagonist was well-received, and the movie also found fans due to the presence of ninja and Samurai-style characters and fight sequences. However, the film was a box office flop, and that meant that the rebooted franchise died on the spot, despite fans later rediscovering it on streaming services.

тιтled Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins, the movie was supposed to help relaunch the franchise, as both G.I. Joe and Cobra were already active when the film took place and this introduced both Snake Eyes and his former friend-turned-enemy Storm Shadow, and set up each of the men on different sides of the law when the film came to an end. With great martial arts action, some serious swordplay, and a mysticism that was a little out of the box, there are a lot of great films fans can watch if they are disappointed they didn’t get to see more Snake Eyes.

10

Ninja ᴀssᴀssin (2009)

A Disillusioned ᴀssᴀssin Wants Revenge Against Their Mentor

The neo-noir flick, starring Rain and Naomie Harris, follows the lead character, Raizo (Rain), as an orphaned ᴀssᴀssin who becomes disillusioned by the workings of his mentor, Lord Ozunu (Sho Kasugi). After Takeshi (Rick Yune) kills the woman Raizo loves for leaving the group, he uses his ninja skills to seek retribution against his clan and former mentor and bring the entire organization down. As the supposed successor of the clan, he has the knowledge and skills to take on this dark, ᴅᴇᴀᴅly task.

Due to the fast-paced action, Ninja ᴀssᴀssin will feel comparable to Snake Eyes. It also features a protagonist similar to the latter movie, along with the hero’s journey arc of realizing the limits of his bloodlust and its cost to his soul. Both films have a ninja warrior choosing to rebel against his mentor. Also, in both cases, the ninja helps the law enforcement agency (in Snake Eyes, it was G.I. Joe; in Ninja ᴀssᴀssin, it was Europol).

9

Jack Reacher (2012)

A Former Military Police Officer Becomes A Nomad

This Tom Cruise film is more sedate than most action movies, with the focus on the mystery behind the plot. Jack Reacher is accused of being connected to a spree killer, following which he seeks to clear his name. As he goes deeper into his investigations, Reacher realizes there are more significant revelations to uncover. Based on the novels by Lee Child, fans complained about the smaller Cruise playing Reacher, who is over 6 feet tall in the books, but the fight scenes and storyline were solid despite the change.

Snake Eyes fans will appreciate the methodical style of Jack Reacher, as the outline of digging deep into the antagonists’ secrets is similar to the G.I. Joe movie but has its own payoff. The two movies also have much in common with the fight scenes, as Reacher is not someone who usually just shoots people, and the hand-to-hand fights in both films were selling points.

8

The Wolverine (2013)

The X-Men Hero Fights Ninjas

Hugh Jackman once again stars as the тιтle character in an adaptation of one of Wolverine’s most popular comic book stories. The plot sees Wolverine go to Japan at the behest of a man whom he saved during World War II when the United States dropped the bomb on Japan. However, once there, he realizes this man wants his healing powers and has become a criminal mastermind. What results is Wolverine battling legions of ninjas with only his claws and his fighting prowess.

Despite the G.I. Joe military connection, Snake Eyes falls under the superhero genre and was even based on the Marvel Comics series, which spun off from the 80s cartoons and action figures. The X-Men hero’s adventure in Japan brings the aesthetic of the backdrop, filled with Samurai warriors and tropes found in the ninja genre. Of course, there’s the appeal of watching Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine in fine form, contending with new villains that are similar to those in movies like Snake Eyes.

7

Ninja (2009)

A Martial Arts Movie With Legend Scott Adkins

This martial arts movie has a straightforward plot. It stars Scott Adkins in the тιтle role of Casey Bowman, an American orphan adopted into a martial arts dojo in Japan. Casey wants to be a master bushido and has to step up when a former student with a grudge against Casey returns to the dojo and kills the sensei. The student steals an armored chest housing the Kōga ninja weapons, and Casey has to head to America to get it back. When he is framed for murder, he has to clear his name and stop his old enemy.

The no-holds-barred fighting style found in Ninja is comparable with Snake Eyes, along with the main character having to be bigger than just a killer to lead into his role as a hero. The simplistic plotline allows the movie to focus purely on the action, making for a breezy runtime that still gives viewers enough reason to be invested in the protagonist’s story. Unlike Snake Eyes, Casey has to fight law enforcement and the villains, and he never reconciles with the police before being sent back to Japan.

6

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019)

The Third John Wick Movie Adds Ninja ᴀssᴀssins

The third entry more than lives up to the lofty standards set by the first John Wick, with Parabellum taking Wick on a globe-trotting journey. After becoming the no. 1 target for ᴀssᴀssins worldwide, John searches for “The Elder” to regain his life while fighting off enemies that come for the bounty. It’s the fighting style that Snake Eyes fans will enjoy in this movie, with Parabellum offering several of these.

Most sequences are solely about Wick’s incredible talents in combat, and the kind of swordplay he displays can even put Snake Eyes to shame. While the first two movies had more gun fights than anything, this one added swords, knives, and even more hand-to-hand combat, making it the best comparison when looking at the Snake Eyes fight scenes.

5

BLACKFOX: Age Of The Ninja (2019)

A Live-Action Spinoff Of The Anime Film

This female-led movie is set in the age of Samurais and Ninjas. The lead character, Rikka Isurugi (Chihiro Yamamoto), befriends a girl named Miya (Maimi Yajima), whose father was killed by the Negoroshu gang. When her friend’s life is threatened again, Rikka joins forces with Miya to avenge her father’s death and free themselves of their enemies. While Snake Eyes has the hero reluctantly accept help, this film sees the two heroes joining forces to take down the bad guys together.

An adaptation of the anime it’s based on (which was released in the same year), Age of the Ninja’s plot will feel familiar to Snake Eyes fans due to the plotline of the characters avenging their father’s death. What’s different here, though, is that the movie also has a genuine dramatic arc, giving enough weight to the emotional quality that the dynamic of the lead duo is felt.

4

You Only Live Twice (1967)

The Fifth James Bond Movie

The plot of the fifth James Bond movie has the тιтular character heading to Japan to follow up on a lead over the tensions between America and the Soviet Union. Bond familiarizes himself with his new environment to combat this unique case. This movie is a huge landmark for the Bond franchise because this was the first time Ernst Stavro Blofeld, the head of SPECTRE, showed up on screen (he had never been seen before). He was working here for an unnamed Asian power hoping to start World War III.

You Only Live Twice should serve as a fun watch after Snake Eyes because it is a movie that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The James Bond outline is always reliable, and the introductions of ninjas and Japanese fighting give this movie an additional layer of entertainment. Bond is in Japan, which is not a normal location for his travels, and while there are not a great deal of martial arts fights, he does team up with Japanese secret service agents in an effort to learn the truth.

3

Batman Begins (2005)

Bruce Wayne Trains To Become Batman In Japan

This reboot, starring Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne, is considered by many as the best Batman origin story and the only one told on the big screen. After the death of his parents, Bruce travels around the world, training in combat, before returning to Gotham and realizing that Ra’s Al Ghul and Scarecrow are plotting to destroy the city. He learned his fighting skills at an Asian dojo run by Ra’s al Ghul. While Ken Watanabe was the decoy Ra’s, the real Ra’s was posing as a man named Henri Ducard (Liam Neeson).

The story here is very grounded, focusing on Batman’s character and his understanding of the skills he uses purely for good. Like Snake Eyes, the theme is overcoming childhood trauma and channeling it into fighting in the name of justice. The two movies are also very similar in that Snake Eyes and Batman were betrayed by their allies they trained alongside – Storm Shadow and Ra’s al Ghul – and they had to defeat them before they took their place as the heroes they became.

2

The Bourne Idenтιтy (2002)

An Amnesiac Learns He Is A Former Highly Trained ᴀssᴀssin

Matt Damon’s long-running Jason Bourne series begins with Bourne, unaware of his idenтιтy due to amnesia, gradually realizing his idenтιтy as a former government ᴀssᴀssin. The series also shows him trying to uncover a conspiracy while his enemies are still out to get him. The later movies took on a more blockbuster feel, but the first was a down-and-dirty fight movie with a lot of hand-to-hand combat and Bourne getting his hands dirty, similar to how Snake Eyes fought in his movie.

Fans of Snake Eyes won’t forget the intense battle sequences anytime soon, and The Bourne Idenтιтy will guarantee that this aspect stays long in the audience’s memory. The movie introduced the shaky-cam fighting style, and this high-octane strategy still holds up today. Also, similar to Snake Eyes, there is a mystery behind the villains’ motives, with the topic of Bourne’s idenтιтy kept under wraps until the end of that first film.

1

G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013)

The Last G.I. Joe Movie Before Snake Eyes

Despite being a reboot, Snake Eyes still has connections to G.I. Joe at large, meaning that watching Retaliation is still relevant. The second installment is about the Joes rallying together after being falsely accused of treason. They set out to stop Cobra Commander and clear their names. Many original team members died to open this movie, but Snake Eyes was not among the deceased, as he remains one of the most popular members in the team’s history.

It’s always worth taking a recap of the series, even if Snake Eyes’ story doesn’t directly tie into Retaliation’s plot. After all, there are still many similar themes, like the presence of the previous Snake Eyes incarnation and the G.I. Joe franchise in general. Both Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow were highlights in the first G.I. Joe movie as well, so watching both of the films is a necessity for fans of these two ninja warriors and their seemingly never-ending battle.