Should Valve make a Half-Life movie?

[Nmenth 289]

Lord of the Rings is the only successful line of books that have been made into proper movies imo. Just because one series of movies can achieve it, doesn't mean it should be done with every good book or video game. Sadly, it seems like people are too greedy to care these days.

I disagree, I think a very large number of movies had their origins in book form.

 

Books-to-movies is a completely different relationship than games-to-movies.

[rSquar3d 0]

My point was covered in a certain book I found a long time ago, in relation to the translation of one medium to another.

 

Books to movies is a similar relationship, BUT it is much harder (supposedly) to pull off, since the expectations are much, much greater. Why? First of all, as I keep on saying, a book may have as many imaginary movie versions or visual translations as there are readers. Second, it is certainly subject to lots of interpretation in terms of visuals and characters. Lastly, modifications become a necessity in book to movie medium transition, owing to length (with books, days or weeks are allotted for storytelling; for movies, just a few hours).

 

Games to movies are much easier to pull off. Why? First of all, there are already visuals, vocals, characterizations, etc. which are readily fleshed-out in-game; this makes for a more universal visual interpretation and expectation of a movie. Second, modifications are less necessary, especially in games that are cinematic/storytelling heavy (i.e. Starcraft, POP, Halo); what becomes necessary is the shortening or removal of long gameplay-based sequences (i.e. long firefights that have little narrative, puzzle solving that is dragging and with little dialogue, etc.).

 

The similarities are that the director and the screenplay writers are translating mediums of storytelling that often take hours or even days to tell a story to one that is very different in a sense that you have only a short span of time to tell the same story. Also, a movie which is taking source material from another medium, regardless of which medium, will always have the challenges of heavy expectations and significant constraints; expectations since people want it to be as good as the source material/medium, and constraints due to time, budget, and other movie production-related factors.

 

@Nyerguds, time-filling isn't the only thing that occupies a game. First of all, if there is a long and in-depth story, and a lot of characterization, then that's a lot of material already; good screenplay writers will utilize that. Second, already existent in-game cinematics can be translated to the movie medium effectively, and with possibly longer lengths (though just the right length still) for dramatic effect. Third, puzzle and action sequences (which may be considered filler) can be utilized in the movie, BUT a good editor and screenplay writer will always know to shorten it, keep it related to the overall story. With good direction, screenplay, and editing, as well as a crew familiar with the source material and dedicated to what they're doing, it is more than possible to translate a game successfully into a movie format.

 

@D14810, it's not only Lord of the Rings. Technically and story-wise, the Twilight saga and Harry Potter saga have been translated well (although for the latter, imo, only the first 3 movies were acceptable translations). Also, do not look at just the source material (although that's also important); look at the crew, and what set the LOTR crew apart from others. They were talented, sure, but they were also dedicated, they wanted to make a good movie, they knew what the best translation of the source material into the new medium would be, AND THEY KNEW AND LOVED THE SOURCE MATERIAL. Knowing what material you are sourcing from, and loving that very material, motivates you and gives you an understanding that would enable a very successful translation from one medium to another.

[Gben 20]

er... Sam Bass KNEW and LOVED the source material.

[rSquar3d 0]

Ah, but that's not the only consideration I pointed out (and I think you mean Ralph Bakshi). Yes, he knew and he loved, but did he have the technical know-how (although he did patent a retrospective point-of-view drawing method)? Did he have the talent and potential in the first place (talent meaning in terms of interpretation and potential in terms of personal ability and audience)? Meh, looking back, it seemed to me that some of the locations or themes in Peter Jackson's older movies seemed to be preparations for making LOTR. Also, Bakshi suffered from the fact that the audiences during the time of his LOTR movie was, well, not really interested with LOTR; only the die-hard fanboys really wanted an LOTR movie, and it failed miserably because its interpretation did not really cater to them.

 

In films, along with the translation of one medium to the film medium, there are so many considerations, and I seriously doubt there is one true comprehensive listing of all these. However, I can arguably say that the following are some of the most important ones:

 

• Director and crew's knowledge and passion about the material
• Inherent talent and potential in director and crew, esp. editors and screenplay writers
• Quality of the source material
• Potential audiences, as well as their possible reactions to one version/interpretation or the other
• The technology available
• The actors available and their appropriateness to the roles
• Willingness of the producer to fund the project

 

There may be more that are just as important, although I can't think of any more at this point in time.

[PurpleGaga27 37]

If this Half-Life game had a real full book adapted from the game, yes, it can be turned into a movie. Usually books into movies are better than games into movies.

 

[Guest Stevie_K]

Well. Doom went from game to book to movie. Take a look at how that went.

 

[PurpleGaga27 37]

According to TIME: http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages...1851626,00.html

Here are the top ten worst video game movies of all time:

 

1. House of the Dead (2003)

2. Wing Commander (1999)

3. In the Name of the King (2007)

4. Hitman (2007)

5. Doom (2005)

6. BloodRayne (2006)

7. Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)

8. Double Dragon (1994)

9. Street Fighter (1994)

10. Super Mario Bros. (1993)

 

That still did not include Max Payne and FarCry in which they should be in the list.

 

 

The highest rated video game movies so far (based from Metacritic) are Mortal Combat, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. This still leaves off C&C, HL, Starcraft, Warcraft, and GTA. The Halo movie is developing and is slated for theatrical release somewhere in 2012....with an estimated $100 million dollar budget (according to IMDB). Question is: can a Halo movie beat the others? Most epic games being released into movies turned out to be an epic fail.

 

So far the best movie based video game is Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay.

Edited December 28, 2010 by purplescrin

[Doctor Destiny 41]

I saw the Max Payne movie. It was by no means great, but it wasn't all that bad.

 

And lol at Super Mario Bros. Is it strange that I actually enjoyed that movie? It had nothing to do with anything Mario related except a few names, and yet... I find it incredibly awesome. It's a case of so bad it's good.

[Luk3us 63]

The Max Payne movie was gringe worthy, but it wasn't bad for an 'action' movie. I've seen far worse ones than that.

[Nmenth 289]

And lol at Super Mario Bros. Is it strange that I actually enjoyed that movie? It had nothing to do with anything Mario related except a few names, and yet... I find it incredibly awesome. It's a case of so bad it's good.

I found it rather dull except for the Bob-omb sequence, which was great.

[rSquar3d 0]

I am not that enthusiastic for a Halo movie directly based on the games. Maybe a good spinoff, maybe one from the POV of another character. Again, it suffers from the same dilemma as the HL movie possibility; the main protagonist may end up becoming the best SUPPORTING actor instead, due to his being silent. Especially for Halo, where even the face of the Master Chief is never revealed (although it has been revealed that he is pale and has long hair).

 

@Purplescrin, the most possible epic movie probably based on an epic game would be on Starcraft or Warcraft. Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within was ok, but I would like to point out that it is NOT based on a game; rather, it was based on an American radio drama (why they called it Final Fantasy, I have no idea). The Final Fantasy movie is Final Fantasy: Advent Children, based on FF VII.

 

The best possible direction that a Halo movie will take will be similar to the Halo: Landfall shorts; a story significantly related to the Halo storyline, BUT not that storyline. There will be cameos of characters from the game, but the main cast will be different. That's the best possible direction for a Halo movie.

[Guest Stevie_K]

This new guy really likes Halo.

 

I don't know any game movie that isn't on that list lol

 

 

[rSquar3d 0]

Lol. Yeah, well, Halo and a lot other games; it's just been the one that's consuming my time lately though. That's why it's on my mind. >

 

Btw, many game movies do tend to suck. The producers seem to rely on the fact that most of the games which they are using as source material are big hits.

[Inferno 22]

The Max Payne movie was gringe worthy, but it wasn't bad for an 'action' movie. I've seen far worse ones than that.

Truth.

[Gben 20]

I have never played the Doom games, so I actually enjoyed the Doom movie for what it was. I didn't mind the reboot. Mortal Kombat just has to be my fav game to movie from that list and possibly all time. Well apart from this classic...

 

 

But watching this again reminds me of Tomb Raider... a notable addition not on the list.

[Nyerguds 100]

How about this one?

 

 

The Mortal Kombat movie pissed me off... everyone knows Goro can't be nutkicked.