8 Huge Concerns About Hyped Upcoming Movies
7. Assassin's Creed Is Making Every "Video Game Movie" Mistake
The quest for a truly brilliant video game movie is sort of similar to chasing the whale in Moby Dick. At this point it seems practically impossible to tackle it successfully, but the attempt is important. It says something about human nature - about never giving up despite insurmountable odds.
Right now, all eyes are on Justin Kurzel's upcoming Assassin's Creed film. Surely this is the one, right? How can it fail? It's got two amazing lead actors in the form of Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard, and that's not to mention Jeremy Irons and Michael K. Williams.
The problem is that for all it has going for it, Assassin's Creed is making every "video game movie" mistake in the book. The main offenders are obvious: focusing on the aesthetic over depth, showing off the "epic" action set pieces rather than convincing viewers they've got a tight grip on great storytelling.
Each subsequent trailer is focused more and more on sweeping, CGI shots of fifteenth century Spain and intricately choreographed fight scenes (one shot sees half a dozen men fighting on a rooftop at sunset). Sure, it all looks cool, but Prince Of Persia looked cool, as did Hitman, Max Payne, Silent Hill... We've seen no evidence that Assassin's Creed is getting that central flaw correct: strong, compelling storytelling and good characters.