We all know that movies based on video games have been mostly negatively received due to the fact that they've all been kinda shit. Many times this is due to too many changes done to the plot, or lack of respect to the source material.

Now, the premise of this thread is that you take a video game-based movie that was already released and show others how you would have made it awesome (or at least good).

Here's what I'm picking:

Movie: Tomb Raider (2018)
Game: Tomb Raider (2013)

While I enjoyed the movie for what it was, I was annoyed that they basically fused the plots of two games into one movie. The plot of the first game was fine the way it was, there was absolutely no need to make so many drastic changes. Also, change the actress from Alicia Vikander to Camilla Luddington, she already has experience with the character by voicing her in the game so she'd be good.

I think that the order of Trinity should have been kept for a second movie and maybe hinted only in a post-credits scene. Removing the supernatural aspect of Himiko and changing it into a virus was some goddamn bullshit that should not have been done either. And revealing that Lara's father was actually alive was a mistake as well.

Now, I'm sure that the plot of the game is too long for a single movie, so some things would have to be removed, like redundant missions etc. But I'd keep the iconic scenes and the most important parts of the plot just the way they were.

 

Honestly, I think movies are just a horrible medium for retelling game stories in general, if you have to retell them at all in other mediums (I think you don't, but whatever).

The biggest problem with VG Movies is cramming too much in too little time leading to a jumbled mess. If you have to tell VG stories in another medium, TV is a much better way of doing it imo.

 

First, we have to kill Uwe Boll.

Second, pick better games to adapt. I don't mean that only shit games have been chosen. I mean pick stuff that makes sense to adapt.

Accept the truth into our hearts: movies ought to adapt not copy paste.

Tell Ubisoft that yes, their shit stinks too. The present-day AC story makes no sense. They have one of the most memorable protagonists in gaming history in Ezio Auditore. The 2016 movie wasn't even bad in terms of story, but it was edited like shit. The screen was either dust or cyan, and I couldn't fucking tell what was happening.

Recognize the achievement when we get something good. Prince of Persia wasn't the Dark Knight of video game movies, but it was pretty, had a coherent story, some good humor, eye-catching action. I enjoyed it. Fite me.

Realize that maybe live action isn't the best choice for everything. I'd watch the shit out of a Mass Effect or Dragon Age animated series if it was done in a style something like that awesome Spiderman animated movie trailer. If Dragon Age, they have to use "This Is The New Shit" in the soundtrack, otherwise it just makes no sense to even try.

 

The problem is that some movies don't even try to adapt. They just change too much to be even called an adaptation.

 

I suspect it's more of a combination of good directors and writers not wanting to deal with video game adaptations rather than an intrinsic problem with adapting video games

 

Not to mention adaptations are hard in general. There are plenty of movies based on books and stage shows that wound up losing whatever made the original story great, and writers/directors have a lot more experience that adapting those mediums into movies.

Video games also bring some unique complications to the adaptation process. Not insurmountable problems, but problems nonetheless. Frex, a Mass Effect of Dragon Age movie would be locked into a plotline when part of the appeal of both games is having the ability to make choices that have a major impact on the plot. I'm not sure if a movie about Paragon or Renegade Shepard would have the same impact as making those choices yourself.

 

Sometimes all we need is 9001 mods to make the game look better and add 79856 hairstyles to character creation and a movie is unnecessary.

 

I'm not entirely sure. For example, while in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic you're allowed to make your own choices, only one path is treated as canon in later works. That being Light Side Male Revan and in KOTOR 2 Light Side Female Exile.

And KOTOR movies would rock, if adapted properly. They'd definitely be better than the Prequels and Sequels.

 

@Andrela "If adapted properly" is the key point. Having great source material wouldn't guarantee something superior to prequels. That's kind of the whole point of your thread.

 

No, but it would at least create the possibility. And let's be honest, it'd be difficult to go below the levels of Phantom Menace or The Last Jedi.

 

I thought Vikander was the right choice as she had the necessary physicality. IMHO the movie's mistake was wasting a lot time at the beginning and not much screen time for the rest. 30 minutes more and a more compressed start would have give the director something to work with.
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I don't think the Prequels had a general script problem. The background story was quite interesting and deep. The problems were dialogues, director, Anakin actor and new digital blue screen production style the actors weren't comfortable with. I'm sure we could have all lived without Darth Binks as we could have lived without the SW VI's Ewoks, both stupid ideas by Lucas. I would have also liked to see more from Qui-Gon and Mace Windu.

The old SW games which probably most here have never played like Dark Forces or Jedi Knight 2 had a lot material for movies too. To this day I still consider JD 2 the best SW game ever released just for its 3/FPS immersion factor and I had a lot fun with Kotor too.

I don't consider any Disney fake and traitorous SW product worth discussing. Let's just forget that they exist and just ignore Disney forevermore.

 

This is why i made my original point about Cinema being a horrible medium to portray games. I don't think the start was without merit, I just think when paired with a regular movie's runtime, a lot of things would seem like fat that needs trimming.

Why arbitrarily constrain yourself to 90 minutes when you can have 900?