LuckyWillPC and Console Games as Movies?
September 22nd 2006 06:46
Why has it never worked?
We have adaptations from comics, autobiography’s, cartoons, television series, books, paintings, poems etc that all work successively in terms of critics or the audiences praise, but not for adapting games to movies.
Is it due to the assumption that only teenage males play console or pc games? Are they just a sideline recreation for the lazy, uncreative or geeky person to indulge in to pass the time unproductively? Is it a minority industry that shouldn’t enter or coincide with the film industry?
Inflammatory questions to ask to some, but nevertheless a valid one to others of the population. Arguably the latter are not part of a sweeping consumer culture that’s revolutionizing the entertainment industry argues economist.com.
“Global sales of games will total $17.5 billion this year (2002), predicts Goldman Sachs, comparable to the film industry's box-office takings and catching up with sales of music CDs (see chart 1)”
Similarly retailindustry.com had further suprising statistics on the phenomena. “Annual 2004 U.S. retail sales of video games, which includes portable and console hardware, software and accessories, reached more than $9.9 billion - a decline of less than one percent when compared to $10 billion in the previous year.”
So, according to both websites, sales of games to movie adaptations should correlate with at least some of these overwhelming profits. The opposite is almost true. Can you think of one decent movie that was originally a game title? Let’s look at a sample of popular games to unpopular movies...
Super Mario Bros: Featuring Bob Hoskins as Mario, John Leguizamo as Luigi and a laughable Dennis Hopper as King Koopa in a Bowser’esque character. Ridiculous. What were they thinking?
IMDB User Rating 3.5/10
Doom: The Rock as the protagonist. Fighting aliens on Mars. Meh.
IMDB User Rating 5.3/10
Resident Evil: Two chicks – Milla Jovovich and Michelle Rodriguez – blasting zombies.
IMDB User comment: Bland
IMDB User Rating: 6.2/10
Resident Evil Apocalypse: Milla Jovovich returns to waste the zombies (again)
IMDB User Rating: 5.7/10
Streetfighter: (…) Groan-worthy. For some reason (probably involving physical harm I can only guess) Raul Julia got involved with a production with Jean Claude Van Damme and Kylie Minogue! Difficult to believe, harder to watch.
IMDB User rating: 3/10
Mortal Kombat: Like Resident Evil was directed by Paul W. S. Anderson (he’s a glutton for punishment) also featuring Christopher Lambert in a contextual nod to his Highlander films – one guy with super powers, almost immortal, situations of other-worldy affairs. A great concept though hard to produce.
IMDB User Rating: 5/10
Lara Croft: Tombraider: The film which teamed pubescent boys with the modern film audience. Pairing the then B grade celebrity – Angelina Jolie - with her father Jon Voight in a movie that traveled across the world to find hidden treasures as Lara likes shiny objects.
IMDB User Rating: 5.2/10
Lara Croft Tombraider: The Cradle of Life: More of the same albeit without Jon Voight. The estranged father could not return for the sequel due to it a) being lumpy b) cause his daughter (Jolie) wouldn’t allow him.
IMDB User Rating: 5.2/10
Though I haven’t seen Silent Hill that’s on at the movies now, nor have I seen the pseudo porn/vampire flick Bloodrayne.
Have you seen a great games to film adaptation, or disagree with my rants?
Additionally, do you have a reason why they don’t work when crossing over to ‘la-la land’?
We have adaptations from comics, autobiography’s, cartoons, television series, books, paintings, poems etc that all work successively in terms of critics or the audiences praise, but not for adapting games to movies.
Is it due to the assumption that only teenage males play console or pc games? Are they just a sideline recreation for the lazy, uncreative or geeky person to indulge in to pass the time unproductively? Is it a minority industry that shouldn’t enter or coincide with the film industry?
Inflammatory questions to ask to some, but nevertheless a valid one to others of the population. Arguably the latter are not part of a sweeping consumer culture that’s revolutionizing the entertainment industry argues economist.com.
“Global sales of games will total $17.5 billion this year (2002), predicts Goldman Sachs, comparable to the film industry's box-office takings and catching up with sales of music CDs (see chart 1)”
Global sales in the entertainment industry
Similarly retailindustry.com had further suprising statistics on the phenomena. “Annual 2004 U.S. retail sales of video games, which includes portable and console hardware, software and accessories, reached more than $9.9 billion - a decline of less than one percent when compared to $10 billion in the previous year.”
So, according to both websites, sales of games to movie adaptations should correlate with at least some of these overwhelming profits. The opposite is almost true. Can you think of one decent movie that was originally a game title? Let’s look at a sample of popular games to unpopular movies...
Super Mario Bros: Featuring Bob Hoskins as Mario, John Leguizamo as Luigi and a laughable Dennis Hopper as King Koopa in a Bowser’esque character. Ridiculous. What were they thinking?
IMDB User Rating 3.5/10
Doom: The Rock as the protagonist. Fighting aliens on Mars. Meh.
IMDB User Rating 5.3/10
Resident Evil: Two chicks – Milla Jovovich and Michelle Rodriguez – blasting zombies.
IMDB User comment: Bland
IMDB User Rating: 6.2/10
Resident Evil Apocalypse: Milla Jovovich returns to waste the zombies (again)
IMDB User Rating: 5.7/10
Streetfighter: (…) Groan-worthy. For some reason (probably involving physical harm I can only guess) Raul Julia got involved with a production with Jean Claude Van Damme and Kylie Minogue! Difficult to believe, harder to watch.
IMDB User rating: 3/10
Mortal Kombat: Like Resident Evil was directed by Paul W. S. Anderson (he’s a glutton for punishment) also featuring Christopher Lambert in a contextual nod to his Highlander films – one guy with super powers, almost immortal, situations of other-worldy affairs. A great concept though hard to produce.
IMDB User Rating: 5/10
Lara Croft: Tombraider: The film which teamed pubescent boys with the modern film audience. Pairing the then B grade celebrity – Angelina Jolie - with her father Jon Voight in a movie that traveled across the world to find hidden treasures as Lara likes shiny objects.
IMDB User Rating: 5.2/10
Lara Croft Tombraider: The Cradle of Life: More of the same albeit without Jon Voight. The estranged father could not return for the sequel due to it a) being lumpy b) cause his daughter (Jolie) wouldn’t allow him.
IMDB User Rating: 5.2/10
Though I haven’t seen Silent Hill that’s on at the movies now, nor have I seen the pseudo porn/vampire flick Bloodrayne.
Have you seen a great games to film adaptation, or disagree with my rants?
Additionally, do you have a reason why they don’t work when crossing over to ‘la-la land’?
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Comment by Ahmed
techy.Bytes
Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks
Qwerk
Cinema Three
But uh, yeah, reason why game movies suck is that they are cashins, movie games suck too cos they are cash ins...
You forgot to mention uwe bolls poor efforts, you haven't seen a bad movie until you have seen uwe boll.
Comment by Justin
I think so too. Some movie games are good though - the Lord of the Rings games spring to mind, a very select few of the Star Wars games are quite good. X-Men games are mostly good. There's some awful ones out there too - Braveheart, Superman and a whole bunch of forgettable titles..
Uwe Boll? Hmm, can't say that I have.
Comment by Ahmed
techy.Bytes
Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks
Qwerk
Cinema Three
Comment by Justin
Glad I haven't seen that games- to-film adaptation.
Comment by Ahmed
techy.Bytes
Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks
Qwerk
Cinema Three
Comment by Stanley
Comment by Ahmed
techy.Bytes
Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks
Qwerk
Cinema Three
Comment by Ragin Cajun
Observer's Post
Death By Myopia
Comment by Justin
Otherwise for camp value "Starship Troopers" comes to mind.
Comment by Ahmed
techy.Bytes
Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks
Qwerk
Cinema Three
Its god vin deasel starring in it, both the game and movie. WIll be ineteresting to see how it works out...
Comment by Justin
One blog had a news story about it somewhere..
Comment by Ahmed
techy.Bytes
Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks
Qwerk
Cinema Three
Some people wrote a script and tried to get (of all people) Uwe Boll to direct/produce it. Since they didn't have the rights they had to ask Kojima who (quite understabdly if he knows ANYTHING about uwe boll) refused to give the rights for a movie.
There was also supposed to be a metroid movie, it was to have a budget of what? 200 million dollars, and to be directed by John Woo, should have been released this year, but its been canned...