As Tuffcub’s recent series points out, there are a lot of games getting big screen adaptations. They may not all come to fruition, but movie studios are clearly interested in giving our favourite characters a movie outing. With so many bad videogame movies out there, stretching all the way back to Super Mario Bros., it is understandable that some people are a little hesitant about it all.
Jim, for example, feels that despite watching quite a few movie versions of games, none have really impressed him, while Teflon goes even further, feeling that “they’re so universally derided… I don’t give them my time.” These are both quite reasonable views when you look at the history of films, although I do have a very special place in my heart for Street Fighter, but is there anything good out there, or on its way?
It’s here that we must turn to Tuffcub, who actually has positive views on a series that many are more than happy to malign: Resident Evil. Personally they didn’t really grab hold of me, but Tuffcub feels they’re “underrated”, and praised the way that “all of the movies manage to bring something new to the very tired genre movie. The second is a rescue mission, the third goes Mad Max, the fourth is a Prison Break, and the fifth goes sci fi with clones. They are all quite different, and I’m looking forward to the sixth and final episode.” It’s not a point I’ve considered before, but by giving the series a bit of variety while also drawing from the source material, the Resident Evil films do appear to be trying at the very least.
I’m in a similar camp to Tuffcub when it comes to the Tomb Raider films. While many hate them, and I’m more than willing to admit they’ve got their fair share of issues, they actually work rather well in my opinion. Not only are they fun action movies, but they probably put more effort into fleshing out Lara Croft than half of the games before the reboot did.
However, it’s hard to look to the past and find much that’s good. As Aran points out, many adaptations are “cheap, lazy cash-ins”, but he’s hopeful for a future that moves past this. Both the upcoming Assassin’s Creed and Warcraft movies have him somewhat excited, the latter of which has peaked Jim’s interest too. He is, however, worried that the film may “completely tank under the pressure of having to be commercially viable at the box office”.
In Jim’s view, things are much better when you take a step away from the blockbusters. Fan-made films and online series seem to do a much better job in his opinion, with both “the series done for Mortal Kombat’s 2011 reboot [and] Halo’s Unto Dawn mini-series” managing to stay “a lot more grounded and faithful to the source material” than most films do.
I have to agree with Jim here. When you look at official shows like Halo: Unto Dawn or the series of animated short films that make up Halo Legends, they tend to stack up much better than the huge budget titles from major film studios. Even the old Sonic cartoons have things to recommend in them, although they never really set the world alight.
Finally, I’d like to leave you with some sage words from Teflon:
Videogame movies need to be good movies in their own right, rather than fixate on stupid gimmicks like Doom’s first person shooter moment or whatever the hell the thought process behind the Mario film’s litany of terrible ideas was.
It’s hard to argue with him there. Movies based on games don’t need to be particularly gimmicky, and they shouldn’t overly pander to the source material if it’s going to harm the film. However, as Tef points out with Mario, there’s no reason to go to the other end of the scale and make a film that creates its own, weird narrative instead of drawing from the games that it’s supposed to be based on.
So what do you think of movies based on games? Are there any that you love in particular, or are they universally terrible? Are you hopeful for the future?
JustTaylorNow
What makes a good videogame movie? Well it’s simple really & the answer is, don’t try to be like the video game, create a new world based on the game but still touch upon the game elements, acknowledge where the source material comes from. It’s impossible to make a game into a movie.
I want my videogame movie to be original & not try to be the game, re write the game into 90 minutes.
JR.
I love the first Tomb Raider movie but the second one is a chore to sit through. Far too long.
I don’t mind the Resident Evil movies. I can watch them if they’re on but they’re throwaway movies.
The silent hill movie was ok but I only watched it once because being burned alive is my worst fear ever. I love the movie Kick Ass but that one scene really ruins it for me. It’s like when I watch the Green Mile, I have to mute the sound during the botched electrocution scene and check my emails on my phone for five minutes.
I am really looking forward to the new Ratchet & Clank movie but the animated videogame adaptations don’t seem to be affected the same way. The animated Resident evil movies were ok I guess and Final Fantasy Advent Children was decent. I think maybe with the animated adaptations, they know it’s quite a niche audience they’re targeting. They’re making movies for the hardcore fans of the games. Whereas with the big live action adaptations, they’re trying to target fans of the games and general movie goers. Do they make a movie that pleases fans and makes very little money at the box office? Or do they make a movie that isn’t 100% true to the source material but appeals to a wider audience and makes them lots of money…
More money.
The Lone Steven
Easy, don’t rehash the same story and try to condense it into a film. It doesn’t work most of the time. Look at the source material, get the developers involved, avoid giant BLACK HOLE SUES THAT MAKE EVERYTHING ELSE CRAP BECAUSE YOU WANT YOUR WIFE TO BE THE GODDAMN HERO IN EVERY FECKING FILM! Hence why i refuse to watch Resident Evil past the third one.
Use the world the game is set in and be friendly to it’s lore. If you’re creating a new character, don’t make them the main character if you are going to half ass the other characters. Also, don’t let Paul Anderson write the scripts.
Basically, put a lot and i mean a lot of effort into it. Or just do it in the CGI format, get the voice actors in and a few members from the developer.
Ratchet and Clank will either prove that the developer involved way works or will make no difference. Only time will tell.
Kevatron400
I think the best video game movies will be those that use an IP with a fantastic universe but with scope to tell the stories of characters we don’t know.
Think of the incredible sci-fi epic that could be made from the Mass Effect universe, or the the stories that could be told within Borderlands’ expansive narrative. Fallout too could be quite good, but I’ve never played so I couldn’t say for definite.
Ooh ooh. They should make a movie of Star Wars battlefront.
aaronsalazar
Good video game movie is possible only if creators are not afraid to go too far from the actual plot of the game. Here are some more “secrets” (why are they not obvious too movie-makers?): take a world created, make a right cast choice, and be sure to include some game peculiarities and neglect features that do not fit the script. I would probably write something on it for http://thetermpapers.net/buy-term-paper/.