The Five Most-Watched Video Game Movies To Add To Your Watching List
As a big-ticket Hollywood screenwriter, one of the toughest jobs you can have is turning video games into coherent movies.
For starters, video game stories are designed to be interacted with during the gameplay, which means writers must change the medium the concept was designed on when adapting a film. Additionally, video games run for 30-60 hours and making a movie that long would be inherently ridiculous.
That’s all to say, decent video game films are hard to come by, but several writers have defied the narrative by creating engaging video game adaptation films that have raked in millions. Here are five most-watched game adaptation movies worth adding to your watch list.
Uncharted (2022)
Staring award-winning actor Tom Holland, Uncharted has had a lot going for it. Holland plays the role of leading adventurer Nathan Drake, with Mark Wahlberg co-starring in the film. While many feel the movie is only half what it was supposed to be, it’s a fun action film worth watching. The movie is relentless, and the adventure moves quickly, which critics believe affects the film’s plot and characterization.
Mississippi Grind (2015)
While the Mississippi Grind isn’t essentially based on a video game, it’s among the best casino games movies you can watch. The American comedy-drama written by Ana Boden tells the story of two gamblers on the best trip of their life. This movie boldly reveals the up and downs of gambling while effectively conveying the misery of gambling addiction. It features stars like Ben Mendelsohn, Ryan Reynolds, Lio Tipton and Sienna Miller.
Tomb Raider (2018)
Following Angelina Jolie’s lukewarm reception of the franchise, Tomb Raider seemed it would never reach its full potential. The game series is extremely cinematic, and despite its burdensome sexism and exploitation, it offers what could prove to be a solid female-led Indiana Jones-type of film series. Fortunately, Alicia Vikander aced it on this more realistic and much darker version of Tomb Raider, released in 2018.
Sonic the Hedgehog (2020)
Despite months of production problems, Sonic the Hedgehog proved to be an incredible success and a surprisingly fun outing for the fastest blue guy on the planet. The 2020 action-adventure comedy movie based on a Sega video game series by the same name was among the last movies to hit the theatres before the lockdown, raking in $320 million at the box office.
In this live-action comedy, the blue guy (Sonic) teams up with his new friend Tom to defend the world from the evil mastermind Dr. Robotnik. Directed by Jeff Fowler, the movie stars Ben Schwartz as Sonic, James Marsen and Jim Carrey.
Mortal Kombat (2021)
While the Mortal Kombat reboot doesn’t go to the bloody heights of its 1995 predecessor, it’s still a great treat for video game players. The fight kicks ass, with gore and fatalities to excite any Mortal Kombat enthusiast. That explains why the movie is R-rated, although it has received mixed reviews from fans and critics.
Here, and anywhere, to watch films and think about them too deeply.