Top 5 Video Game Movie Adaptations
Warcraft (2016)
Description
About Warcraft (2016)
The film is based on the Warcraft video game series and novels set in the world of Azeroth. The film follows the story of Anduin Lothar (Travis Fimmel) and Durotan ( Toby Kebbell), leaders of the humans and orcs, respectively, as they attempt to find a way to stop the war that is tearing their world apart.
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Writers: Charles Leavitt (screenplay), Duncan Jones (story) and Chris Metzen (story), Charles Leavitt (screen story)
Rating: PG-13
Awards: Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Visual Effects, Visual Effects Society Awards for Outstanding Animated Character in a Live-Action Feature Motion Picture
Worldwide Box Office: $439 million
Our Take
What we think about Warcraft (2016)
The best movie based on a video game is undoubtedly Warcraft. The film was directed by Duncan Jones and it is based on the Warcraft video game series. The movie follows the story of Anduin Lothar and Durotan, who are two warriors from different worlds who have to fight together to protect their people. The film was praised for its stunning visuals and for staying true to the video game series. What makes this the best video game movie adaption is that it was able to attract gamers and non-gamers alike. As the first film based on a video game to have won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, Warcraft is the best video game movie of all time.
Detective Pikachu (2019)
Description
About Detective Pikachu (2019)
Detective Pikachu is an action-mystery-adventure film directed by Rob Letterman and written by Dan Hernandez, Benji Samit, and Nicole Perlman. It is based on the Pokémon franchise, specifically the Detective Pikachu video game. The film stars Ryan Reynolds as the voice of Detective Pikachu, Justice Smith, Kathryn Newton, Ken Watanabe, and Bill Nighy.
The story follows Tim Goodman (Justice Smith), a young man who teams up with Pikachu to find his missing father. This leads the two on an adventure where they must unravel the mystery surrounding his father's disappearance. One of the things that makes this movie so unique is that Detective Pikachu speaks in the film. This provides a lot of comedic relief and makes for an interesting dynamic between Tim and Pikachu.
Genre: Adventure, Comedy
Writers: Nicole Perlman (story) and Alex Hirsch (screen story), Rob Letterman (screenplay)
Rating: PG-13
Awards: Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Visual Effects, Visual Effects Society Awards for Outstanding Animated Character in a Live-Action Feature Motion Picture
Worldwide Box Office: $433 million
Our Take
What we think about Detective Pikachu (2019)
Detective Pikachu was an interesting choice for a movie. Based on all the available content in the Pokemon universe, Detective Pikachu wasn't on top of our radar for a live-action theatrical movie. The excellent visuals, dramatic action sequences, and humorous elements, among other things, helped us understand why the tale was a must-have for Hollywood writers. Ryan Reynolds as Pikachu was a great call as he showed how the character's limited vocabulary and mannerisms could be spiced up with his voice acting. Combined with great CGI, Detective Pikachu was a movie that everyone could enjoy.
Mortal Kombat (1995)
Description
About Mortal Kombat (1995)
Mortal Kombat is an American martial arts action film directed by Paul W. S. Anderson and written by Kevin Droney. It is based on the video game series of the same name that follows the Mortal Kombat fighting tournament to save Earth from Shao Kahn (Brian Thompson), emperor of Outworld. The film stars Christopher Lambert, Robin Shou, Linden Ashby, Bridgette Wilson, and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa with Ian Anthony Dale playing the role of Scorpion.
Genre: Action
Writers: Kevin Droney (screenplay)
Rating: R
Awards: Kids' Choice Awards for Favorite Movie Actor (Christopher Lambert), Streamy Award for Best Fantasy Cinematography, Golden Raspberry Award for Worst New Star (Linden Ashby)
Worldwide Box Office: $122 million
Our Take
What we think about Mortal Kombat (1995)
The reimagined Mortal Kombat released in 2021 was a big step forward as far as visuals are concerned. However, the storytelling and acting from the original 1995 release of Mortal Kombat are hard to reimagine. What made Mortal Kombat so memorable was that it was the first attempt at making a video game adaptation into film. While there are noticeable flaws, Mortal Kombat served as an example to other companies on how to and not to do a video game movie.
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Tomb Raider (2018)
Description
About Tomb Raider (2018)
Tomb Raider is an action-adventure film directed by Roar Uthaug and written by Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Alastair Siddons. It stars Alicia Vikander as Lara Croft, Dominic West, Walton Goggins, Daniel Wu, Kristin Scott Thomas, Derek Jacobi, and Hannah John-Kamen.
The story follows Lara Croft as she sets out to finish her father's research and uncover ancient secrets to clear his disgraced name. During her adventure, she becomes tied up with a shady organization that seeks to use her work for its agenda. With this knowledge, Lara must fight back against their continuous attacks in order to keep her friends and family safe.
Genre: Action, Adventure, Thriller
Writers: Geneva Robertson-Dworet (screenplay) and Alastair Siddons (story by), Evan Daugherty (screen story), Mark Fergus (screen story), Hawk Ostby (screen story), Marti Noxon (screen story)
Rating: PG-13
Awards: Critics' Choice Awards for Best Costume Design, Denver Film Critics Society for Best Score, Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association for Best Actress (Alicia Vikander), Academy Award for Best Sound Editing
Worldwide Box Office: $274 million
Our Take
What we think about Tomb Raider (2018)
The action sequences and visuals of Tomb Raider were fantastic. However, we felt that the plot could have been better as it seemed to focus too much on the action and Lara's journey instead of using those elements to explain or expand upon her character. While this may seem like a great way to keep viewers entertained, we feel that they needed a better story to match the mythos and legacy of Tomb Raider. Still, we think the overall quality of the movie makes it a top 5 must-see video game movie.
Sonic The Hedgehog (2020)
Description
About Sonic The Hedgehog (2020)
Sonic the Hedgehog is an American-Japanese computer-animated action comedy film produced by Paramount Animation and iTheatrics. It was directed by Jeff Fowler based on a screenplay by Patrick Casey, Josh Miller, and Oren Uziel. The story centers around Sonic (Graham Phillips) as he teams up with Tom Wachowski (James Marsden) to defeat villainous scientist Doctor Robotnik (Jim Carrey).
Genre: Action, Adventure
Writers: Patrick Casey, Josh Miller and Oren Uziel (screenplay), Evan Susser & Van Robichaux (story by), Ian Pocketle (original character created for the film)
Rating: PG
Awards: Golden Trailer Award for Best Animation/Family, Las Vegas Film Critics Society for Best Animated Feature
Worldwide Box Office: $146 million
Our Take
What we think about Sonic The Hedgehog (2020)
Although we didn't get to see all of the characters we know and love, we were happy with how they decided to portray Sonic. Sonic The Hedgehog had a great mix of humor and nostalgic references that gave fans a true sense of who Sonic is as a character. We also feel that the film's plot was really strong for an animated movie, especially considering that they were trying to fit in many characters and storylines.
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