The Meg (Quick Review)

Shark films are definitely one of my popcorn pleasures.

Video Game Film Reviews Directory:

Video Game Film Adaptations:
(Click on Picture to be Directed to Review)

The Happytime Murders (Quick Review)

The Happytime Murders is a hodgepodge of different stories.  It’s a P.I. film noir, with a buddy-cop adventure, combined with an adult satire of The Muppets and Sesame Street (think Avenue Q but with more straightforward, crude humor), and a prejudice subplot thrown in.  Does the film work?  Yeah, but not to the extent the trailers built it up.

Wing Commander (Film Review)

Director(s): Chris Roberts

Release Date: March 12, 1999

Wing Commander.  Last of the 1990s video game film adaptations.  Unlike the previous adaptations, I knew absolutely nothing about Wing Commander’s video game series.  I didn’t even know it was a video game series until learning about this film.  While there’s nothing wrong going into an adaptation blind (though with adaptations like Mortal Kombat, its best to know the source material) I decided to read up on the series and watch some informative let's plays.  From what I collected, the video game series (at least the early 90s ones) looks really fun and impressive—with clear effort and passion put behind it.  When learning that Wing Commander’s creator also directed its film adaptation, I grew hopeful for a positive experience, followed by my hopes crashing and burning up after seeing the finished product.

Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (Film Review)

Director(s): John R. Leonetti

Release Date: November 21, 1997

The 1990s video game film adaptations had a habit of ending in a similar way.  The good guys save the day and everything is at peace, yet a looming threat threatens to disrupt such harmony on their next adventure.  Super Mario Bros, Double Dragon, and Street Fighter all end this way, setting up for a theatrical sequel that would never see the light of day.  Mortal Kombat follows the same trend, ending with its victorious protagonists preparing (aka posing) for a sudden new threat.

The only difference here is Mortal Kombat got its sequel.

Christopher Robin (Quick Review)

Deep in the Hundred Acre Woods, where Pennywise the Clown plays.

Seriously, who didn’t think that when Winnie the Pooh walked through a misty forest with a red balloon?

Mortal Kombat (Film Review)

Director(s): Paul W. S. Anderson
Date Released: August 18, 1995

The film’s CGI has not aged well at all.  Reptile looks especially bad in his creature form and…

…Oh, sorry, is me jumping into the thick of the review without a proper introduction confusing?  Because Mortal Kombat seems to believe that’s the most efficient way to start a film.

Here’s a video game film adaptation that is designed to appeal to the series’s fans, and only them because anyone new to the series will be thoroughly confused throughout.  It’s a film made for those wanting to see their favorite violent characters duke it out on the big screen with all sorts of game references—from the series's kickass theme to signature attacks to iconic phrases like “Flawless Victory” or “Get Over Here!”  Does it succeed at satisfying series fans?  Eh, somewhat.  With certain characters, the film delivers a satisfying recreation and screen time, while other characters get the short end of the stick.  Sometimes the action is fun and engaging, and other times its lackluster and bland.  It all depends on what a fan desires to see.  As a story driven film with characters and development, however, Mortal Kombat fails big time—arguably the messiest video game adaptation made at that point, and that’s including Super Mario Bros.

Street Fighter (Film Review)

Director(s): Steven E. de Souza
Date Released: December 23, 1994 (United States)

Street Fighter released a little over one month after Double Dragon’s poorly received debut.  Like Double Dragon, Street Fighter was most likely created as a cash in on the rising video game craze.  The films even share similarities as video game adaptations, such as both having a wise-cracking, martial arts duo—one of Asian descent and the other Caucasian (though, unlike Double Dragon, Street Fighter's ethnicities are more accurate to their video game counterparts).  Now, I’m not too familiar with Street Fighter’s video game lore, but from what little I do know it’s apparent Street Fighter the film doesn’t stay faithful to its source material aside from names thrown on similar—or not so similar—character designs.  It didn’t come as much surprise then to learn Street Fighter was poorly received by fans of the game, as well as being panned by critics just like Double Dragon and Super Mario Bros. before.

Yet unlike its adapted predecessors, Street Fighter did surprisingly well at the box office—raking in nearly three times its production cost.  This marked the first time a video game film adaptation made a box office profit, but why was that?  Was it because the then popular Jean-Claude Van Damme had a starring role?  Perhaps it was because the film’s action-adventure war setting appealed to a wider audience, as opposed to Double Dragon’s teen-focused angle or Super Mario Bros’ fantasy setting?  These possibilities may have played a part in Street Fighter’s profits, but I like to believe there was another reason for its commercial success—one critics missed and fans were blinded to notice.

Street Fighter is a whole lotta campy fun.

Ant-Man and the Wasp (Film Review)

It has been a roller-coaster lately with the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).  It went up with Thor: Ragnarok, down with Black Panther, up again with Avengers: Infinity War, and now back down with Ant-Man and the Wasp.