Console to Screen: Gears of Wars

Gears of War has been in "development hell", but if
it wants to get to the big screen, it should do it right.

After writing “Why Video Game Movies Haven't Worked”, this series will explain what your favorite game franchises must do to avoid the Resident Evil quality... besides not hiring Paul W.S. Anderson. As explained previously, most movies adapted from the video games end up betraying the gamer's beloved story and action, only to fit a style that could have been any generic tale. This week, will focus on the popular XBox series Gears of War from Microsoft and Epic games. What pitfalls could this franchise encounter since the game is already a trilogy with three stories mapped out? Who could play the role of Marcus Fenix? What director can pull it off? How would it be presented?

Story: 

For starters, Gears of War is a trilogy that takes place on planet Sera, 14 years after “E-Day” (stands for Emergence Day, when the locusts surfaced). The Coalition of Ordered Governments send out soldiers to fight the locust horde called “Gears”. Marcus Fenix is a high member of the “Gears” soldiers that was imprisoned for insubordination trying to rescue his father. He was pardoned because the situation of the Sera is getting grim and given his gear by his friend Dom Santiago. As the story progresses, Fenix re-enters the fold of the Army and gets promoted for his good work, even after he has to return to his father's mansion to get vital information about the locust stronghold. On the way, he meets up with his old friend Damon Baird and the famous football player Augustus Cole “Train”.

After the three games, gamers got to care for the Delta Squad.
Hollywood needs to do them justice.

The first installment of the series was a more story driven piece that didn't flush out their characters enough. The second installment of the series did much better. Baird and Cole got more screen time, but the gem was the search for Dom's lost wife Maria. (Don't look below if you're trying to avoid spoilers). The story and gameplay kept gamers intrigued, but movie audiences will need to see the “Gears” soldiers become full characters right away. They can't wait until the sequel to do that. Fenix's quest to clear is family name is key in the series as well, but it wasn't a 100% clear what he happened until the opening of the third game. There were rumors of Kate Beckensale being attached as Maria, but that would be a waste of her time as character that had two scenes in the original story. Now, that's where Hollywood can make a Resident Evil mistake; make a character that isn't in the original story (see Alice of the RE series). There could be a call for a stronger female character in the story, but that develops as Anya (love interest to Fenix) gets more involved with the fighting and not just the look out. If this is to move to screen, it must develop the characters earlier. This series could be a quality trilogy if handled properly.

Who could pull of Marcus Fenix?
Tom Hardy would be a good choice.

Cast: 

Who would be ideal actors for these characters? They're not exactly hard characters to play, but not easy ones either. Baird isn't lovable until late in the series. Fenix has an attitude and Dom could come off as whiney if too consumed with his search for his wife. The look of these game characters are incredibly musclebound and scarred, but don't call in The Rock just yet. Sure the internet has an opinion from every one, how about these:

Marcus Fenix- Tom Hardy doesn't get the nod after playing Bane in The Dark Knight Rises, but after his performance in Warrior as a troubled marine who deserted his unit already makes him ideal. Hardy didn't say much in the film and yet, you felt the darkness inside of him. That's what Marcus Fenix is. John DiMaggio (Bender in Futurama) nailed it in his voice acting and the animators made his mannerisms so perfectly, you wish they could just put it on big screen. With his star shining brighter after every role, by the time Gears gets rolling, Hardy will be a household name.

Dominic Santiago- I'm not sure what actor can take on this role. Dom needs to come off as scared, but strong. A longing determined husband, but not a wimp. Eventually, he has to make a great sacrifice and it drives him into a deep despair. What actor can do that in an action film and look the part? If you can get over the age difference, Benicio Del Toro could be a possiblity.

Damon Baird- Karl Urban already is an underrated action star, but in Star Trek and Lord of the Rings, he proved to be a good supporting actor as well. Urban can lead, but he is also capable of not hogging the screen from the main star. He shared it well with Chris Pine. He could easily share it with Tom Hardy. His wit and charisma would serve best as Baird. 

Augustus Cole “Train”- If it was still the nineties, Michael Clark Duncan would be the perfect choice. Alas, everyone ages. If you scour around, Christopher Judge from Stargate SG-1 could be a viable candidate. Cole “Train” doesn't have to carry a film with his story or his acting. Unlike Dom, he's a secondary piece and can be pushed aside briefly in the first two films (again if this is to be a series), but who wants another face that can't act. Gary Oldman doesn't!

Story structure:

Gears of War is told in 5 Acts per game in the series. If you adhere to the traditional 3 Act structure, two acts would be cut immediately. Let's face it, half the time a video game wants to keep you playing with pointless missions and side tasks. Gears of War limited them, but they're still there. As in any video-game-to-screen transfer, there'll have to be plenty of cuts. However, cutting out sequences certain side sequences can lead to lost side character development like the Strandeds, who are settlements of humans that learned to fend for themselves in the harsh world of Sera. Often, Gears found themselves training with the Strandeds just to get ordinary items like cars. The Strandeds have more weight than a bum on the street and all Gears soldiers knew it.

You have to get introduced to the hierarchy of the COG and even the Locusts. Gamers learned of the Locusts' queen Myrrah well into the second game and only heard her voice at the very end of the first Gears of War. As for her top two Locust henchmen, General RAAM and Skorge, are just two bad ass characters without much substance in the first two games. They will need to be developed for a film to be successful as the “mute aliens” are rarely compelling.

There's an aspect of the Gears story which needs more explaining: the human experiments. It wasn't exactly quite clear in the Gears of War 2, whereas the Lambent Humans in Gears of War 3 were more acceptable. The human experiments drove Tai to kill himself and eventually led to Dom's difficult choice, but- I repeat this a lot- IT MUST BE EXPLAINED EARLIER IN A MOVIE SERIES.

What's already in place:

Gears of War has an outstanding soundtrack originally started by Kevin Riepl, but it has continued well on by Steve Jablonsky. A compelling score can keep people in their seats, get their blood going and hum the tune all the way home.

The game always had an excellent feel like you were living and action movie, but you're not going to watch a 10 hour action film. Most action films really on four action scenes (a first-ten-minute-eye-opener, a first act fight, a second act obstacle and a third act resolution), even the “action packed ones” have five scenes at most. If Gears sticks to their storyline from the first game, that gives you these sequences: escape from prison, evacuating Baird and Cole, the fight at the mansion and the “train ride to hell”. Perhaps, the movie can push for one more, but less is more unless you can find an Inception-style of blending several action sequences together. Now the direction of the action sequences and tone of the story will be important too. Will it he handled like a Sci-Fy movie or an authentic war-like story. That remains to be seen too. Perhaps, Neil Blomkampt can duplicate his successful tone he used in District 9.

Ok, so that's a brief outline of the first Console to Screen. Just remember, just because a game is played well, doesn't mean it'll be viewed well. Keep reading for the next one of this series in August.

The Greatest Comic Book/Graphic Novel Movies of All Time

In honor of The Dark Knight Rises, this week's blog is about the Best Comic Book/Graphic Novel Films ever made. Of course if you look at IMDb, there's no need for this list since EVERY Christopher Nolan movie is in the top 250 of all time, but I hope you won't mind a healthy debate. Read on and argue with me at the end. Quick ground rules: one movie per series.

Blade kicked off Marvel's movie
superiority.

10) Blade (1998) – Marvel didn't have a good film track record until this late 90's Wesley Snipes movie surged through theaters. This film did well even when vampires weren't in every movie. The story of the half-human/half-vampire slayer was done justice by Snipes and Kris Kristopherson. It would spawn two more sequels that never reached their potential, but it was better than Twilight- then again... so are infomercials.

Watch out who you cross
in Sin City?

9) Sin City (2005) – Frank Miller's graphic novels were brought to life in Robert Rodriguez's film by following the framing used in the comic. The story's were done with a serious and slightly campy style that perfectly fit the film noir feel of Sin City. It had good performances by the all-star cast led by Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Clive Owen and Alexis Bledel, but it was the opening story with Mickey Rouke and Elijah Wood that kept your blood pumping throughout the film.

Hanks, Law and Newman
delivered great work.

8) Road to Perdition (2002) – Sam Mendes' encore after American Beauty was a well-crafted, well-written and well acted piece that many didn't know was originally a graphic novel. Tom Hanks plays a hitman whose son witnessed a hit by Daniel Craig and as a result Craig has his family killed. Hanks escapes with his son and is on the run from the mob, including his boss Paul Newman in his final Oscar nominated performance. Jude Law turns in some of his best work as a hitman with a hobby of photographing the dead.

To ignore 1989's Batman is to be
completely ignorant. It was great.

7) Batman (1989)– Tim Burton's blockbuster hit with a surprise choice to play Batman (Michael Keaton) was considered the movie of the decade by critic Rex Reed. It took a very reserved Batman without a stupid voice (hint, hint Christian Bale) and homicidal maniac Joker (Jack Nicholson) to bring it to life. Like Blade, this was not an origin story for it's first segment and has a good debate with Dark Knight on the better Joker movie.

He was the first comic TV show and
the first comic movie.

6) Superman (1978)– Richard Donner's original comic book film from 1978 that didn't see an equal for some time. Christopher Reeve was the best choice for the Man of Steel as well as Gene Hackman's Lex Luthor. It gave us a full history of Superman from Krypton to Smallville and let audience's know, just because you have a ton of ability, doesn't make you a god.

The Best Origin story
ever and a sign of our times.

5) Iron Man (2008)– The Dark Knight Rises was said to mimic our current times, but Iron Man did it better. Weapons manufacturer Tony Stark sees soldiers getting killed by his own creations and decides to turn over a new leaf. Robert Downey Jr. has been sensational in every installment of this series, but this one showed the public at large just how talented he was. Jon Favereau did a great job making the Marvel hero come to life and there's more only to come.

How was it possible to blend so
many heros together? Joss Whedon
found a way.

4) The Avengers (2012)– What makes The Avengers an achievement is blending so many heroes to make one great film without favoring one too much. Joss Whedon took all six heroes and used them like a Long Island Iced Tea- great going down and packs a punch. The action was great and seemless for Hawkeye to Black Widow to Iron Man to Captain America. Go ahead, see this again and not want to clap when Bruce Banner tells Black Widow about his secret technique.

A sequel worthy of greatness.

3) X2 (2011)- Bryan Singer's follow-up to 2000's X-Men was bigger, better and more gripping than the first. The human villain Brian Cox exposed humans as a bigger threat than Magneto (but Ian McKellen quickly reminds audiences that he's the top of the food chain). Every X-Men actor was on point, even the scenes that had to be added for recent Oscar winner Halle Barry. If you don't have a chill down you spine when Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) walks into the lab that put the metal on his bones, you're made of stone.
Honorable mention: X-Men First Class (2011)

How many times did
you see The Dark Knight?

2) The Dark Knight (2008)– Lost in the hype over Heath Ledger's Joker was the fine performance by Aaron Eckhart as Gotham's fallen District Attorney Harvey Dent. Christopher Nolan added the best chapter of Batman in the first film that didn't feature Batman's name in the title. Ledger was terrifying as the sadistic Joker. Bale was strong as the conflicted billionaire that is trying to clean up the streets of his beloved city while people are being killed to force him to quit. It reveals the price of being the hero, but it isn't the best example on this list.

The winner and still champion had it
all. Action, Story, Great Performances and
a hero without a stupid voice.

1) Spider-Man 2 (2004)– No secret, this is the Greatest Of All Time! It isn't as dark as the Nolan Batman's, but it's message of “the price to be the hero” is presented better than any other comic book film. Peter Parker's life is hell as he tries to keep the promise to Uncle Ben by remembering “With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility”. His efforts to be friends with Mary Jane are threatened. His best friend hates him and blames him for his father's death. His aunt thinks he's dangerous. His grades slip. He can't make rent and is barely scraping by at the Daily Bugle, but he tries to soldier on as his powers begin to fade with his own personal resentment of his alter-ego. Eventually, Peter forgoes the life of Spider-Man in an effort to be Peter Parker, but the world needs Spider-Man one way or another and he must don the Spider-Man costume again despite the cost to his own life. When his identity is revealed, Peter thwarts Doctor Octopus, saves Mary Jane, but creates a new enemy from his best friend Harry Osbourne. Peter gives up Mary Jane again, but MJ choses to encounter the pitfalls of being Spider-Man's girlfriend with him as the sequel ends on a high note... then they made #3...

There you have the list. Feel free to debate. I know there's going to be a clamoring for 300, but figured Sin City was enough.

Will It Be Knight Fall?

contains comic storylines, which you could consider spoilers

The Dark Knight Rises
opens July 20th.

In 2008, Christopher Nolan followed up his 2005 film Batman Begins with the super-hyped The Dark Knight. It was the first movie in the long running series that used a title without the name “Batman”, but his nickname was didn't shun audiences as they shelled out over $1 billion dollars worldwide. On July 20^th, The Dark Knight Rises will hit the theaters and promises to be the conclusion to the Dark Knight Saga. Will it deliver the thrill that captivated audiences for the last seven years or fall short like so many other “part three” films have in the past? One more question lingers...how far is Nolan going to take this story?

Bane broke Batman's back
 in the Knightfall series.

This one features Bane, a genetically enhanced super-soldier that dwarfs Captain America with an intellect that rivals Stephen Hawking. Originally, MOVIE audiences got a watered down version of the super villain as a boneheaded one dimensional character in the forgettable Batman and Robin, but some aspects of Bane were true. Bane injects a poison called venom from a tank on his back to boost his strength and even makes him grow in height. Sentenced to serve his revolutionary father's term in a Caribbean prison called Pena Dura, he read as many books as he could get his hands on. His first murder came at the age of eight, growing the hard character's bloodlust. Eventually Bane became the “king of the prison”, which displeased the prisoner's controllers. He was given the experimental drug Venom that killed all the other test subjects and nearly did so to Bane. However, Bane survived and broke out of prison with his unbelievable strength. He sought Gotham because Gotham was ruled in fear, but it was fear of the Batman. In the "Knightfall" series, Bane broke out Arkham's deadliest criminals for Batman to round up. Exhausted from rounding up Gotham's filth, Batman retired back to the Batcave where Bane was waiting for him after concluding he was Bruce Wayne. The battle resulted with Bane breaking Batman's back becoming the man who "broke the bat."

Tom Hardy's Bane will be much better than the
one Joel Schumacher gave us in Batman and Robin.

Now to the films. At the end of The Dark Knight, Batman makes a decision that made him an outlaw in Gotham to preserve the image of Harvey Dent. As a result, Batman goes into hiding and The Dark Knight Rises begins with Bruce Wayne insisting he's retired. It's a time of peace and prosperity in Gotham and you know that won't last. Come on Godzilla eventually has to attack Tokyo, therefore a super-villain will always rise... no pun intended. Shooting Star (better than Rising) Tom Hardy takes on the role of Bane. Hardy has called Bane "meticulous and calculated" as opposed to the crazed and unpredictable Joker audiences loved in 2008. There is no jar of poison on Bane and he is a regular height, fitting how Nolan stayed away from the SUPERNATURAL characters in this series. It's Bane's intellect and ruthlessness that Nolan is showcasing. The trailers show a battle in the Batcave and it refers to this film as the CONCLUSION of the Dark Knight series, but exactly how far is this story going to go? Are they going to cripple the hero? It's hard to imagine ending the series like that, but it's possible. If so, that would be unprecedented! How many superhero movies have ended like that? One thing is certain, Nolan's third part of the series is hyped an incredible amount and is expected to not Spider-Man 3 audiences. 

Best Music in Gaming History

In the genesis of the video games, music wasn't needed to soothe the savage beast. Pong didn't have music, neither did Asteroids or Missle Commander. Hell, even Donkey Kong and many early Nintendo games didn't have music except a bit in the beginning. However, as games evolved into bigger experiences with better storytelling, a great score was needed. Some of these games have scores that blockbuster films would envy and set the mood brilliantly. Sometimes it wrenched your guts and sometimes it keeps you going to the next level. The music of these games inspired the constantly sold out show "Video Games Live", where fans get to hear the music of games they loved.

Let's take a look at ten: (will not include Mass Effect, Halo or Dead Space for lack of experience with them and all Star Wars games are out since their music comes straight from the movies.) 

Mega Man gave you a different
feel for every level.

Mega Man - The theme of different tones for different worlds and characters come up a lot and Mega Man was one of the first that used that tactic well. All of the worlds had a their own traits and their own music, but Dr. Wily's was always most ominous and frantic style. This would not be Capcom's only entry in this blog.

Ninja Gaiden's music was key for
the action as well as the cinema
scenes.

Ninja Gaiden (NES) - Probably the earliest game that used cinema cut scenes, but music drove the engine of Ninja Gaiden. Whether it was in the gameplay- where each stage had it's own identifiable music- or the cinema scenes that used the music to build the suspense during Ryu Hyabusa's search for his missing father. Throughout the game, Ryu encounters enemies, friends, counter-agents and even loss of those friends as they are captured or killed. The twists and turns of the story are all given extra juice by the score.

Arkham City put you in the
Dark Knight's skin.

Batman Arkham City - The Arkham games are the one place that DC Comics have conquered Marvel and it's music was a primary reason. Nick Arundel and Ron Fish create a score closer to the Danny-Elfman style, but it's used more like the Christopher Nolan movies that don't overpower the audience. During gameplay, the music stays in the background, but during fights or predator battles, the music leaps to the forefront as the panicking henchman desperately endure the Dark Knights tactics.

With a new techo-style, Metroid Prime
sparked gamer's adrenaline.

Metroid Prime - Metroid didn't use much music that would be memorable until it hit it's stride in Metroid Prime. With a more techno style by Kenjo Yamamoto, Metroid Prime created the style that made you listen to the game as well get your adrenaline pumping. Take the final fight of the first game against Metroid Prime or the battles with Dark Samus, you can't help but slide to the front of the couch as you attempt to destroy your nemesis. The series continued with great music in Metroid: The Other M and continues to reinvent itself all the time.

Resident Evil's score made you
live in a horror movie.

Resident Evil - The original installment relied on silence and mostly ominous tones, but hauntingly crept when the situation called for it. As the series progressed it used the music in the background effectively in a horror movie style. The music was appropriate; never overpowering and never letting you feel safe. Take the fights with Mr. X or Tyrant, where the music is absent and slowly builds to make you sweat. *Music by Akari Kaida, Makoto Tomozawa and Masami Ueda

The music in Street Fighter was
intricate for every stage.

Street Fighter II - The fighting game that spawned the craze. Sure Karate Champ was first, but this was separated from all others by it's music. Every character had their own home and their own theme highlighting the opponents personality. If you fought Zangief, the music would give you a more Russian flare. If you were in America, rock music would play and so on. Sure, some of these stories (PunchOut is also guilty of it) are comically racist, but that's not what we're talking about here. 

Final Fantasy VII was an epic experience
with an epic score.

Final Fantasy VII - Probably the best example of music enhancing the storytelling. From the into of the game to the end, the Final Fantasy series used music better than most other franchises. The composers didn't treat this like a video game- more like an opera. All the characters had their own music. You could have been blind folded and still known when Sephiroth comes on screen. You felt Cloud's decent into madness, when danger came to the group, or even when the members of the group had romantic feelings for one another (by the way, even Barrett could fall for Cloud). Perhaps on of the best moments in gaming history was the Aeis' death (FFVII), which was largely without music, but when inserted beautifully, made many gamers weep. The epic 60 hour experience was full of great music and few were better than it. *Music by Nobuo Uematsu

Who didn't hum the Mario Bros theme?

Super Mario Brothers - Possibly the most famous of all video game music, but it stuck in many gamers heads when they were done popping quarters in the arcade or when they turned off their NES consoles in 1986. The game had different music for the different worlds you'd visit, different tasks you accomplished (like warping: wa, wa, wa) and especially when you grabbed a star. That sounded like to composer took some cocaine and just went nuts. The only thing Mario didn't have was different music for Luigi...but at that time no one cared. This is the first mention of Koji Kondo on the list, but won't be  the last.

If Gear of War becomes a film,
it already has the perfect music.

Gears of War - Believe it or not, this series produced exceptional music throughout it's trilogy. Kevin Riepl's score made it feel like a blockbuster summer action movie. It made a fire fight with hordes of grubs engulfing and kept you fighting until it you heard that tone signaling the last locus had his head blown off. All that is good, but this series gave you fantastic music during it's cinematic scenes. Whether it was watching Kim get killed by General RAAM or the soul crushing scene of when Dom finds Maria in Gears of War 2, this series pulled you in with it's tone, heightening the peril, exciting you with the danger and even breaking your heart. The booming tones of the series echo in your brain hours after you shutdown the game. If you don't believe me, play the end of Gears of War 3 and try not to hum the theme in the end.

The Best of the Best when it comes to video game music.

The Legend of Zelda - The cream of the crop when it comes to video game music. Koji Kondo created the greatest of all video game themes and adjusted the music from game to game in a way that made every installment unique. In fact, the one time the music for the series was criticized was when they didn't include the famous Legend of Zelda theme in arguably their greatest game (Ocarina of Time). Still, every edition of this series has not just given fans good music- it's been great music. Every aspect of the music accentuated each main (and even most minor) characters, the story, the time of day, the mood and even broke you emotionally. Music has also been a weapon used by Link in every edition of this series. Whether it was saving Zelda, facing Ganon (or Ganondorf in later games) to surprise twists or that tone when you solved a mystery. Most people can tell you exactly what game it is from the first couple bars of the theme. It was so popular that Nintendo gave away a CD of the series popular themes. Most fans would agree that it was worth the extra money for the "special edition".