Video Game: The Movie: Done Right

june gloom on 24/11/2009 at 21:51

Okay so apparently there are video game movies out there, and most (or all, depending on how you look at it) are utter shite. So this thread is dedicated to putting down ideas of how to take existing games/franchises and successfully translating them to film in a way that doesn't come off as something Michael Bay would come up. In other words, how would you translate x "arty" game (this could mean anything to different people but for my purpouses it refers to games that successfully blend gameplay, story and design) into a film?

Anyway. The reason I came up with this thread is because I've been playing Deus Ex lately and it got me thinking again about how I would turn it into a movie. I've long believed that if Deus Ex were to be at all successful* as a movie it would have to be three movies. The first movie would be the entirety of New York. The second movie would be from Hong Kong up until the supertanker blows up, with the scene at the cemetary as a finale. The third movie would encompass Paris to the end of the game.

* By successful I mean telling its story well and being an actual film worth watching, not by how much money it makes in the box office

The first movie would play to the strengths of the setting, turning it into a futuristic film noir, with Denton playing detective as he tracks the Ambrosia through the city and largely keeps out of the fighting in the streets. Characters like JoJo would play a larger role (JoJo's supposed to be an NSF commander, after all) so his much-deserved getting shot in the face wouldn't feel as arbitrary. Denton wouldn't be the kind of person to engage in a firefight, preferring to sneak, or snipe from afar. I would probably cut the generator building scenario and have Denton join in the fight on the NSF warehouse instead- this would mean he, and the audience, gets to see Paul sabotage the raid and thusly help establish closer ties between the two that are more obvious to the audience. What's important is that it must be established that Denton is unsure about UNATCO and suspicious of its motives, as well as curious about his own past- this must be established early on so that his inevitable defection doesn't seem so arbitrary. Daedalus would make his appearance in the MJ12 cells- a true deus ex machina played completely straight, as in the game.

The second movie would be a slight shift in tone. As it's set in Hong Kong with Denton infiltrating Versalife as well as dealing with Triad politics, it would play out more like a spy movie. And because of that, the opening would have to be somewhat action-packed. I would cut the heliport section as it really has very little to do with any other part of the game, and instead have Jock drop Denton off in the middle of an open area like a city square- just in time to watch two groups of opposing gangsters go at each other with swords. This would help establish the setting (gun-free Hong Kong in the grip of organized crime) and also provide a lead-in to resolving the Triad war. Maggie Chow would have a slightly larger role in this, playing the villian for most of the movie until she's eventually killed. The last act of the movie would be a short sequence in New York City where Denton meets Stanton Dowd and finally infiltrates the Supertanker, the climax being his escape from the ship as it blows up. To wrap up the film he would go to the cemetary to meet Dowd, and fights off an MJ12 ambush. Also, I would introduce Icarus much, much earlier, to establish the AI as a sinister villain of sorts that would spy on Denton- and mess with him a bit. Most importantly Icarus and Daedalus would conflict- a little bit at first, but with growing intensity throughout the second and third movies, culminating in the creation of Helios in Vandenberg.

The third movie would be a mix of both the film noir element- he is in Paris after all- and a bit of spy/action towards the end. There are a few sections I would cut for time- first, the cathedral. After the chateau Everett would just put him through a wringer of getting to telephones and subway stations on time- this would keep the action going and include a layer of suspense. I would also cut the missile silo and the ocean lab, again for time. A good chunk of the second half would be the siege on X-51, and from there Denton would head straight to Area 51. As the site hadn't been nuked, he'd have to be more careful in his infiltration. The final sequence would be the bunker proper, and it'd be eerily quiet- except for Walton Simons, who'd of course have to die, and towards the end it'll become apparent that Page himself has control over large parts of the bunker itself, throwing spiderbots at Denton in an effort to slow him down. The final part of the movie would be a sequence of big reveals until finally Denton steps into Helios' chamber and we all know what happens next.

Why did I pick the Helios ending? Firstly because Deus Ex is first and foremost a cyberpunk story. Transhumanism is a big part of cyberpunk, and what's more emblematic of that than becoming the internet? But also the other endings just don't fit with the theme nearly as well. The New Dark Age ending is a disappointment- it almost feels arbitrary. Tong had so little characterization as the kind of person who would buy into that sort of thing that it really could've been almost anyone suggesting Denton blow up Area 51. But even if we do characterize him as such, the ending still sucks because it's utterly nihilistic- like, what the fuck was the point of doing three movies (or a whole game) if we're just going to blow up the whole joint? Even Denton pointed out that it's overkill. The Illuminati ending is a bit better, but in the end the Illuminati were just background- Everett and Dowd attempting to manipulate Denton to their own ends. I just don't see Denton buying into the status quo anymore than he does blowing everything up. The Helios ending is in the middle- it keeps the established structure, but it fixes it. Add to that the cyberpunk element of it all and the Helios ending is the only one that makes sense.

The tl;dr of this is, what game would you moviefy and how would you do it?

Briareos H on 24/11/2009 at 22:16

none

though I acknowledge the already demonstrated potential of adding new interesting elements to something already good, I don't believe remakes from one media to film format are desirable in general, especially when what makes the media interesting in the first place is interactivity

i would enjoy a feature length animated movie in the world of psychonauts though

demagogue on 24/11/2009 at 23:41

I actually read all that. Three movies is a lot to invest as a viewer, knowing you're starting on a plot that won't all come together until two movies later. But hey, Lord of the Rings did it, so anything is possible. And to be fair, DX would be hard to capture in one sitting.

I have to think about what game I'd like to moviefy. Maybe Anachronox, since I loved all the characters, situations, and settings in that game.

We should also crosslink the (http://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=129237) Dark Project Screenplay thread here. I liked reading what was posted; but there's also the argument that if it sticks too close to the game, there isn't enough dramatic drive. But I hope for the best for it.

june gloom on 24/11/2009 at 23:55

The way I have it split up, each section is somewhat self-contained. The first part has to do with the revelation of the conspiracy- Denton escaping from MJ12 and finding himself back in UNATCO would be quite the shocker to the audience if done right. The second, likewise, would be about the secret behind the virus and Ambrosia, and stopping an attempt to infect the United States. The third, of course, uses MJ12 taking over Paris to set the tone for the rest of the film as well as establishing Denton's goal- stop MJ12 by stopping Bob Page- while at the same time, being the end cap of a trilogy, wraps up loose ends from the first two films.

catbarf on 25/11/2009 at 01:48

I like the idea, but I don't see the point. Better to have a fresh start and not be bound by the original work, which is in a completely different medium. I just think that there are things that get lost in translation and you might as well start off with a new idea and not have to worry about staying true to the source.

Scots Taffer on 25/11/2009 at 02:39

Quote Posted by demagogue

We should also crosslink the (http://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=129237) Dark Project Screenplay thread here. I liked reading what was posted; but there's also the argument that if it sticks too close to the game, there isn't enough dramatic drive. But I hope for the best for it.

That's actually pretty decent - personally I think that you need to create different narratives in there to make the story compelling enough for a movie, but I wished him well anyway.

I think 3 movies for the DX movie is overkill, personally. I think you have to strip the movie down to its core and actually tell one part of the story well. The problem (and joy) with DX is its shaggy dog story telling nature. It's okay when you're playing a game for a few weeks, not watching three two hour movies spread over a 3 year period or something. I'm just not sure if it's a story that would hold up well to adaptation.

Videogame movies are generally doomed to fail because the whole point of the game is putting the actions of the protagonist in your hands, unless you create new and compelling narratives and dramatic forces to charge the protagonist you run the risk of just having an iconic-looking character without any real depth running through a bunch of scenarios with an obvious outcome (you win the game).

I start doing one for Half Life in here but stopped after two pages because no one's going to pay me to spec that shit and I'm at work.

henke on 25/11/2009 at 07:00

I liked your idea for the DX movies dethy. I think it could work if you could find a way to wrap up the story by the end of chapter 1, and make it more self-contained. Like, just make it seem like JC and Paul getting out alive is the big triumph at the end of the movie, and the uncovering of the conspiracy a less important un-accomplished secondary goal. Then at the start of movie 2, play up the significance of uncovering the conspiracy again.

Angel Dust on 25/11/2009 at 09:04

Quote Posted by Scots Taffer

Videogame movies are generally doomed to fail because the whole point of the game is putting the actions of the protagonist in your hands, unless you create new and compelling narratives and dramatic forces to charge the protagonist you run the risk of just having an iconic-looking character without any real depth running through a bunch of scenarios with an obvious outcome (you win the game).

I would say the real reasons videogame movies are currently doomed to fail are:
a) they are given to hacks who haven't played the game or even many games at all.
b) the games chosen are based on popularity and not what might actually be a suitable candidate for a film.
Every videogame film I've seen hasn't sucked because it stayed to true to the source material, on the contrary they usually diverge quite drastically, but because they are simply awful films. They added new characters and dramatic forces but just extremely poorly executed ones. I mean games like Grim Fandango, Psychonauts, Silent Hill 2, Thief have great stories and characters that any decent script writer could easily sculpt into a film.

Another thing to keep in mind is videogames are relatively young and still seen as an immature medium by much of the public. Superhero comics have been around for what 60-70 years? They've been many generations of film-makers/writers/actors who have grown up with them and they are very much ingrained into our culture. Conseqeuntly we have talented people interested in and making some good/great films based on them. Eventually I think this will be the same for videogames.

Koki on 25/11/2009 at 09:12

Quote Posted by dethtoll

The tl;dr of this is, what game would you moviefy and how would you do it?

Doom, just imagine 90 minutes of non-stop carnage!

Oh wait

Muzman on 25/11/2009 at 12:43

Over the years of dreaming about this stuff I've concluded that to do Thief justice on screen, in terms of storytelling and theme, the film would have to be so detached from the game it seems the movie came first. That should be the goal of the adaptation actually; make it seem as though the game came second. The fan adaptations I've seen so far stick too close to the rails and spend half the time trying to reference the game at as many points as possible. It might be just me but the voice change when they start introducing new stuff to make it work is very jarring.

I reckon that's true of most video game adaptations too, but only really those where there's a solid story and world to work from. With say Doom they've got to get inventive and it could still end up like Doom (the movie).