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Which Movies Were Game Changers?
Hollywood has been mining literature for source material for years, often with excellent results — 11 literary adaptations were nominated for Academy Awards in 2012 alone — and comic books have inspired several of the most popular and successful movies in recent years. Video games, on the other hand, have proven to be difficult to successfully translate to film. Gamers are often more interested in a game's graphics or the ability to earn achievements than in its plot, so there is often little for the screenwriters to draw upon. As Corey May, co-founder of Sekretagent Productions explained to CNN, "It often comes down to money, as movie studios frequently choose to make films based on the franchises that sell the best, not those with the most cinematic potential."
Still, the success of the Resident Evil franchise — $893 million worldwide and counting— and the prospect of enticing the hundreds of millions of gamers around the world to turn out to see a movie based upon their favorite game keeps Hollywood going back to the video game well for more. Only days ago, it was announced that Ubisoft and New Regency's Assassin's Creed adaptation is moving forward with Michael Fassbender headlining, and there are dozens of other adaptations currently in development, which should be great news for movie fans and video game fans alike. Have there been some turkeys? Absolutely. More than a few, but, despite what CNN's video game expert may think, movies based on video games don't all "stink". In fact, some of them are downright badass. Help us select the video game movies that defied expectations by entertaining us instead of making us groan.
Rate the Top 10 Best Video Game Movie Adaptations >>
Posted 10.26.12 by BrentJS -
Last week, writer/director Michael J. Bassett's (Solomon Kane) sequel, Silent Hill: Revelation 3D reportedly added newcomers Adelaide Clemens (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) and British actor Kit Harington (HBO's Game of Thrones) to the cast alongside the returning Sean Bean (Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring). In a press release, Silent Hill's Radha Mitchell and Deborah Kara Unger were also announced to be returning for the sequel. Said Bassett in the press release:
It wouldn't be the same without some of the original Silent Hill cast. Sean, Radha and Deborah's return will certainly thrill fans of the franchise and compliment Revelations stars Adelaide and Kit.
more about Revelation >> Posted 03.17.11 by Ryan -
The cast is coming together for director Michael J. Bassett's (Solomon Kane) sequel, Silent Hill: Revelation 3D, just in time for production to begin.
Variety reports that Australian actress Adelaide Clemens (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) and British actor Kit Harington (HBO's Game of Thrones) have both been added to the cast of Revelations, a sequel to 2006's Silent Hill and based on the third game of the Konami video game franchise.
Revelation gets a familiar face >> Posted 03.09.11 by Ryan -
Michael J. Bassett (Solomon Kane) was recently announced as the director of Silent Hill: Revelation 3D, the sequel to 2006's Silent Hill, at the American Film Market. The brief synopsis for the sequel that was revealed with the announcement seemed to hint that Revelation would follow the story of the Silent Hill 3 video game, something that Bassett confirmed in an interview with Empire.
It's early days, and I'm keeping details of the plot secret for now, but it's going to be a sequel to the first film whilst trying to remain true to the plot of game 3, and will also work as a stand-alone movie for people who don't know the series.
Bassett to bring the scares >> Posted 11.10.10 by Ryan -
Looks like Silent Hill 2 is on track to confusingly scare audiences soon. ShockTillYouDrop reports that director Michael J. Bassett was announced as the director at the recent American Film Market. Bassett, who recently directed Solomon Kane, will take over for French director Christophe Gans, who helmed the 2006 original but chose not to return for the sequel.
Titled Silent Hill: Revelation 3D, the script for the sequel has been in the works for a while, experiencing a small setback when screenwriter Roger Avary was incarcerated for gross vehicular manslaughter in October of 2009. In the recently released press release, it looks like Bassett will take over scripting duties.
read the synopsis >> Posted 11.06.10 by Ryan -
Producer Don Carmody's career has been spent making genre movies, including comic book adaptations like Whiteout and video game adaptations like Silent Hill and the upcoming Resident Evil: Afterlife. Afterlife is the fourth installment in the successful franchise and will be the first to be released in 3-D. Worried that Resident Evil movies may have worn out their welcome, Carmody told FEARnet that 3-D was part of the decision to go forward with another sequel.
read what Carmody had to say about both movies >> Posted 05.08.10 by Ryan -
With Silent Hill 2 starting producition in 2010, more details about the sequel are emerging. ShockTillYouDrop spoke to Silent Hill producer Don Carmody about what is lined up for the sequel, which Carmody says will be different from its predecessor.
I think we need to make it a little more accessible to the movie-going public. Silent Hill is not a blockbuster game like Resident Evil or the other games out there. It's a connoisseurs' game. It has its own, rabid fan base. They're not cheap, these things. You have to appeal not only to the gamers, you have to appeal to a wider audience. So we have to get some story in there that helps explain a bit more. I think that's all happening. Of course, [the story] is going to happen years later and the main character — without giving too much away — is much older and representative to the movie-going public which is in that age group.
While Silent Hill actress Radha Mitchell's return is uncertain, Carmody says that director Christophe Gans likely won't be back.
I don't think he wants to come back. He'll have some input forsure. In his mind, I think he wanted to do the first one and for this he's very happy to consult, but I think he wants to direct somethingnew.
The only problem that remains is getting the script from screenwriter Roger Avary, who was recently sentenced to a year in prison.
Well, we have had a bit of a hiccup with Roger. We're just debating whether we can wait for him. He's writing the script for sure.
Posted 11.20.09 by Ryan -
ShockTillYouDrop stopped by the set of Resident Evil: Afterlife where Silent Hill's special makeup effects designer Paul Jones gave an update for the upcoming sequel, saying production could begin as early as next year.
I was working on storyboards for that around the same time last year. It's going to be pretty crazy. There's a lot of cool stuff in there. Roger [Avary] has some awesome ideas and hopefully we're going to bring that to fruition sometime next year.
Avary wrote the original Silent Hill and was hired to write the sequel right before he was sentenced to prison for gross vehicular manslaughter. A judge allowed Avary to enter a furlough program that allowed him to continue to write the script for Silent Hill 2. Jones would not comment on whether the script was complete.
A 2010 start date may be a little generous considering Silent Hill 2 currently has no director or cast attached. The original Silent Hill, based on a video game series of the same name, opened in 2006, raking in $97 million in worldwide box office.
Posted 11.13.09 by Ryan -
Screenwriter and director Roger Avary, who won an Academy Award for co-writing Pulp Fiction with Quentin Tarantino, was sentenced to one year in prison this week after pleading guilty to gross vehicular manslaughter for a fatal car crash that occurred last year. Avary was driving at speeds of around 100 mph while under the influence of alcohol before his car crashed into a telephone pole. Both Avary and his wife, Gretchen Avary, were injured; the other passenger was killed.
Avary was recently hired to write the screenplay for the upcoming sequel to Silent Hill. The judge sentencing Avary allowed the Rules of Attraction director to be entered into a furlough program that will allow him to write Silent Hill 2 and his other screenwriting commitment, Return to Castle Wolfenstein.
After serving his sentence, Avary will perform five years of probation after his release. He has reached a settlement with the widow and family of his fatally injured friend.
Posted 10.01.09 by Ryan