Video game films rarely work, and there’s evidence to support that; Tomb Raider, Silent Hill, Resident Evil – need we go on? This makes Michael Bay’s decision to take the Ghost Recon franchise to the big screen an even bigger task.
But there was a time when superhero films were generally bad, until the Dark Knight trilogy forced them into the modern era. Now we’re living in a world of brilliant Avenger films, high quality Iron Man trilogies and Man of Steel – the Superman film out this Friday, which is already performing well with the critics. Is now the time that video game franchises translate successfully to movie theatres? The film, which is currently in search for a screenwriter, will see Bay hook up with Warner Bros. for the first time. It’s based around a set of highly skilled, futuristic soldiers, but, according to Ubisoft’s CEO, Jean Julien Baronnet, is grounded in reality and a conception of what future warfare will look like. "These guys don't belong to any specific organisation," Baronnet said of the soldiers. "They're in the field where the US troops are not supposed to be. It's a small team with very strong personalities and very specific skill sets. They're using weapons nobody knows about, but it's very grounded. It's not sci-fi."
Video game movies are bandied around every few months; directors and actors are suggested but movement is rarely made. With franchises like Bioshock, Metal Gear Solid and Deus Ex all ripe for film adaptations, here’s hoping that something like Ghost Recon can pave the way for console gamers to see their heroes on the big screen.
Continue reading: Can Michael Bay Break Video Game-To-Movie Hoodoo With Ghost Recon?
