Welcome to Bollywood.
I remember as a kid loving the absolutely silly movies that channels like USA would show on their Up All Night program late at night. They had hilarious premesis, shoestring budgets and actors that would probably fail a high school drama class. However, their absolutely fantastical, off-the-wall plots would keep me enthralled from beginning to end.
However, it seems that this sort of silly movie has gone by the wayside in favor of serious dramas, truly vapid action and comedy movies, and reality TV. Focus group testing has all but killed the free spirit of those crazy B movies of the 80s and 90s, and I for one shed a tear.
However, in recent years, a new hero has emerged, riding a white stallion made out of paper mache and wielding a jevelin that he bought at Toys R Us and painted with silver Krylon.
Yes, it's Uwe Boll, director of such "masterpieces" as House of the Dead and Bloodrayne, and he somewhat recently released a trailer for FarCry, which looks to be the same nonsensical trash he always puts out. The enemy of hardcore gamers everywhere. But are we giving him too hard a time? Yes, his movies aren't all that great. OK, they're terrible by today's standards. And yes, they don't exactly live up to the games they're based on. However, let's remember that he's not exactly using top-tier gaming properties to begin with. Granted, I know someone who's going to rush in and defend Alone in the Dark, but look at the games he's made movies based on: Bloodrayne, House of the Dead, Dungeon Siege, and now FarCry and Postal. These aren't exactly the best game stories that the industry has to offer (granted, I liked Bloodrayne, but I like it for what it is - cheesy camp). It's not like he's taking cherished gaming properties and pissing all over them like what happened with Super Mario Bros. back in 1993, or the way Steven E.de Souza did with Street Fighter in 1994. He's taking B-tier games and pumping out B-tier movies with them. Nothing wrong with that, I say.
If anything, I think we need more of that B-movie mentality in storytelling in general. So much focus is put on being serious and "artistic" ("art" being whatever old white guys cling tightly to while they snub their noses at popular culture, but that's another blog post). Maybe I'm off base, but I think the gaming industry, as well as the movie industry, could benefit from a more balls to the wall approach with regards to story. Give me silly and unrealistic. Give me the aliens staring at a sunbathing young woman from a telescope and getting all excited that she's about to take off her "breast protectors," who later on have their ridiculous fur shaved off to reveal strapping young studs. Let's not worry about realism so damned much, and lets' get away from anime convention as well! Worry less about artistry and more about just being creative for its own damned sake!
However, it seems that this sort of silly movie has gone by the wayside in favor of serious dramas, truly vapid action and comedy movies, and reality TV. Focus group testing has all but killed the free spirit of those crazy B movies of the 80s and 90s, and I for one shed a tear.
However, in recent years, a new hero has emerged, riding a white stallion made out of paper mache and wielding a jevelin that he bought at Toys R Us and painted with silver Krylon.
Yes, it's Uwe Boll, director of such "masterpieces" as House of the Dead and Bloodrayne, and he somewhat recently released a trailer for FarCry, which looks to be the same nonsensical trash he always puts out. The enemy of hardcore gamers everywhere. But are we giving him too hard a time? Yes, his movies aren't all that great. OK, they're terrible by today's standards. And yes, they don't exactly live up to the games they're based on. However, let's remember that he's not exactly using top-tier gaming properties to begin with. Granted, I know someone who's going to rush in and defend Alone in the Dark, but look at the games he's made movies based on: Bloodrayne, House of the Dead, Dungeon Siege, and now FarCry and Postal. These aren't exactly the best game stories that the industry has to offer (granted, I liked Bloodrayne, but I like it for what it is - cheesy camp). It's not like he's taking cherished gaming properties and pissing all over them like what happened with Super Mario Bros. back in 1993, or the way Steven E.de Souza did with Street Fighter in 1994. He's taking B-tier games and pumping out B-tier movies with them. Nothing wrong with that, I say.
If anything, I think we need more of that B-movie mentality in storytelling in general. So much focus is put on being serious and "artistic" ("art" being whatever old white guys cling tightly to while they snub their noses at popular culture, but that's another blog post). Maybe I'm off base, but I think the gaming industry, as well as the movie industry, could benefit from a more balls to the wall approach with regards to story. Give me silly and unrealistic. Give me the aliens staring at a sunbathing young woman from a telescope and getting all excited that she's about to take off her "breast protectors," who later on have their ridiculous fur shaved off to reveal strapping young studs. Let's not worry about realism so damned much, and lets' get away from anime convention as well! Worry less about artistry and more about just being creative for its own damned sake!
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