Video Game Movies

[filkertom]

Slashdot has a post about why video game movies are so awful. The central point is that games use a very different storytelling structure than movies, which does make sense... but there are usually central stories which I think could be properly distilled into a movie script. Shrug.

The post does have a particular coolness, though -- a pitch trailer for a cinematic reboot of Mortal Kombat. Yes, that is Jeri Ryan as Sonya, and Michael Jai White as Jax Briggs. Almost eight minutes long, including a visceral fight scene that truly feels/sounds like a battle to the death (WARNING: very violent, NSFW, possibly squicky as hell):

Do you like any video-game films, or moments from video-game films? Even though it got panned, I'm fond of Double Dragon. And nobody's getting my copies of Dead or Alive or Doom. (Hm. What's with the alliterative "D" thing...?)

Comments

[poly-scott.livejournal.com]

I must admit, I'm looking forward to the next installment in the Resident Evil series. I felt that they did a good job of translating those to the silver screen. They stand up for me as good examples of post apocalyptic / zombie movies.

[stormsdotter.livejournal.com]

Ugh. That video hit a number of my squick factors. I will NOT be seeing the movie.

I enjoyed the Prince of Persia movie. The acting was reasonable for an action flick, the story had continuity and the dialog was fun. Also, the architecture was gorgeous.

[scifantasy.livejournal.com]

Well, there's Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, but that's not quite the same thing...

[filkertom.livejournal.com]

Not exactly, no, but a lot closer than The Spirit Within....

[filkertom.livejournal.com]

Sorry 'bout that. Just noted the possible squick above.

[eleri.livejournal.com]

Waiting not so patiently for the Book of Ti'ana. Mysteriacs on PoP movie, and implications for Myst movie

[stormsdotter.livejournal.com]

Thank you kindly! Violence is fine, but dismemberment gets me.

[ladystarblade.livejournal.com]

Okay, I have to admit to a sorta-love for the first Mortal Kombat movie in '95...Christopher Lambert as Rayden was pure win.

"I have looked into their souls... and yours. One of you three with determine the outcome of the tournament. The fate of billions depends upon you. Heh, heh, heh!" *pause* "Sorry."

[markbernstein.livejournal.com]

There are none that I can name personally, but it seems, from an outside perspective, that the horror-oriented titles have been a bit more successful. In addition to the already-mentioned Resident Evil, I know that cadhla was fond enough of Silent Hill to write a song about it.

(Wow, I really can't name any. Here's IMDB's list of video game-based movies, and I haven't seen a single one.)

[shockwave77598.livejournal.com]

Videogames are interactive. Movie watching is passive.

Videogames often have many possible outcomes. Movie watching has but one.

Videogames allow the user to explore. Movie watching traps the viewer into the directors vision and nothing else.

And the big one... Videogames aren't usually plot or story centric. Stories are crucial to moviemaking whether the studio execs want to admit it or not. Most videogame movies are graphic eye-candy with some poorly thought out piece of excrement story idea tac-welded onto it over a weekend. The studios count on X number of people seeing the movie just because of the name. If it gets made cheaply enough, even a bomb still makes a profit for them.

Tomb Raider movies weren't horrible

[pickledcritter.livejournal.com]

I liked the Tomb Raider movies - sure they were essentially Indy ripoffs, but then the *game itself* was just "Indy with boobs" - but for popcorn movies, they were perfectly fine - no staggeringly bad acting and the action scenes were over-the-top enough to be fun.

Hitman was pretty good as well.

I think one thing the article should have touched on a bit more is that the reverse is true 90% of the time as well - video games based on movies(or just about any licensed product, with a few exceptions) tend to suck as well - although that's probably more due to compressed development timelines so the games make a designated launch window.

[mouser.livejournal.com]

I, too, am a fan of Resident Evil. Sadly, it's about the only one (series) that I like.

Interesting, the reverse has a better rate of non-suckage, but only when they let the games people have some slack. The tighter they control the "Must be close to cannon!" the less I like the games.

(Seriously, remember the early Star Wars games where Lucas wouldn't let anyone have lightsabers?)

[palenoue.livejournal.com]

Best video game movie _ever_!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHY8NKj3RKs

[technoshaman.livejournal.com]

I stumbled across Transformers in the local Fry's and actually kinda liked it. Not much of a plot, but for your basic gee-whiz cgi-enhanced popcorn flick? Not bad.... what got my attention initially was the vocals. The guy who did Optimus sounded a LOT like James Earl Jones, and that voice carries across a busy store, especially through good speakers... and then the wee yellow Autobot whose name escapes me... sounded like a very old Leonard Nimoy. Crazy reason to watch a movie, but sometimes voices do do the trick... what was it a number of girls say about good voices, "I could sit and listen to him read the phone book"? :)

[insane-ian.livejournal.com]

Video Games and Video Game Movies are my bread and butter. Always have been, always will be.

That sad, I saw this trailer yesterday, and it's amazing. I like the RESIDENT EVIL series of films, but other than the first one, they have virtually NOTHING to do with the games...ad that actually bothers me a bit. I like the movies that are as close to the game as possible.

Doom is good, but Silent Hill is probably the most accurate, as far as "close to source material". Then again, I also enjoy the ones that are fairly bad...Double Dragon is laughable in a so-bad-it's-good way, but the films of Uwe Boll are maddening.

However, a lot of the fan-made stuff is AMAZING. Check out these:

Street Fighter: Legacy




Mega Man

"MegaMan"-Fan Film (http://vimeo.com/11554824) from Eddie Lebron (http://vimeo.com/user3094285) on Vimeo (http://vimeo.com).

[louisadkins.livejournal.com]

This looks like it could be fun. I liked the original MK movie (though not the sequels) but this looks like it will a good one, as well. (I also liked the Street Fighter and Super Mario movies, in an MST3K type of way)

Video game movies are hit or miss, since you're trying to snag an already-existent fan base.

[alverant.livejournal.com]

I liked the first movie too. Lambert was awesome. He played the role perfectly.

"Yes!" thumps Evil Minion in the arm when Cage hits Goro in the crotch. Then whispers "Sorry."

The second movie was awful though.

[alverant.livejournal.com]

I would disagree that video games aren't usually plot centric. Any sandbox or RPG has a plot which is very important to the game. I'd even say some FPS and fighting games have a plot. But in a game the plot is stretched out over hours on end while a movie has to do everything in 2 hours at most. That's why video games based on movies have to add so much extra stuff.

The plot is what drives the main character forward. It doesn't matter if it's a movie or a game.

[alverant.livejournal.com]

Excuse me, did you say sequelS for the MK movie? I thought there was just one.

I thought Street Fighter was one of the better movies. It was able to work many of the characters in and give them logical roles without resorting to a shoehorn. It did proper tribute to the game but didn't treat the game like a straight jacket or holy book. (well for the most part, there may be some exceptions)

[alverant.livejournal.com]

I did like the first MK movie and the Street Fighter movie. Their cartoon series were OK. Not something I'd buy (maybe torrent if I'm bored). The Street Fighter V anime series was pretty good in retrospect.

Double Dragon was amusing. Super Mario was just awful. I haven't seen (nor do I want to see) Doom or Resident Evil. I don't like horror. I'd probably give this MK movie a pass too. Can't believe Johny Cage got killed again. At least this one seems to be all villains.

[berimon.livejournal.com]

Tom, your IMDB link is broken, surprised no-one has noticed it.

[louisadkins.livejournal.com]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortal_Kombat:_Annihilation#Sequel (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortal_Kombat:_Annihilation#Sequel)

I actually typo-ed there, but there is a sequel sequel that has never been made - My opinion of the second movie was that it was two movie scripts crammed together, anyways.

Loved the first one, though.

[ladypoetess.livejournal.com]

I third this. Christopher Lambert has long been one of my favorite actors, and I loved him as Rayden.

[maikujaku.livejournal.com]

While DoA didn't particularly stay true to the game, it was certainly worth the watch for some really funny moments.

[gardnerhill.livejournal.com]

The reason the movies suck? They're made for 15-year-old boys, who get itchy and upset if plot and/or characters interfere with the SFX and explosions for 30 seconds.

Still, my roommate was right - the "Super Mario" movie didn't suck nearly as bad as I thought it would. And, well, Bob Hoskins...

But since I don't play/didn't play video games (cheap bastard with my quarters when I was in college), and my Asperger's/autistic nephew won't. goddamn. stop. talking. about. his. goddamn. games, I have no real reason to want to see any of the movies. Oh golly wow, another deafening 3-hour SFX session, what a surprise. Nope, no one in the movie I give a rat's ass if they survive or not.

[maikujaku.livejournal.com]

Me and my friends did make fun of his accent in that though, we MST'd the movie on a few occasions

[maikujaku.livejournal.com]

If that's the SF film I think it is I have a friend in it.

[breakmanz.livejournal.com]

Amen to that. If they didn't tack on Final Fantasy, it would have been an okay sci-fi movie...but they did, they raised the expectations of the fans, then watched as said expectations crashed and burned in a flaming wreck.