Video game movies are making progress, that much is clear, but it would appear that they still have a lot of proving yet to do since some of those that have come along in recent years have still been flops while others have been decent to great. When one hears that Eli Roth is attaching himself to one of the more well-known video games currently on the market however it’s usually cause to think that things might be looking up again. If you’re wondering where you’ve heard the name Roth before you might have seen the movie Hostel, which is in some ways the kind of movie that some folks might be expecting since the story of Borderlands is kind of brutal. Ever notice how the name Pandora is brought about for various projects in a manner that just wreaks of foreshadowing? Well, that’s the name of the planet that this story will take place on and the desperate rush of the main characters to gather as many resources as they can find while keeping others from said resources and from simply taking them is bound lend itself to Eli’s style and sense of violence that has helped to make him such a noted storyteller. There are other elements within the game that will make for a great story as well no doubt, but the violence that is inherent within the story is something that is likely to be attractive to a lot of people. Eli had this to say about the chance to make the movie, as per Ryan Scott of MovieWeb:
“I’m so excited to dive into the world of Borderlands and I could not be doing it with a better script, producing team, and studio. I have a long, successful history with Lionsgate, I feel like we have grown up together and that everything in my directing career has led to a project of this scale and ambition. I look forward to bringing my own energy, ideas, and vision to the wild, fun, and endlessly creative world of the game. Randy Pitchford and everyone at Gearbox have been incredibly supportive of my ideas, it really feels like a perfect storm of creators coming together. We are out to make a new classic, one which the fans of the game will love, but also one which will find new audiences globally.”
It could be said that one major problem with video game movies is that they aren’t all that well known to everyone but in reality this could be said about a lot of movies based on books, comic books, cartoons, or any other niche that a lot of people don’t get into. Borderlands isn’t too tough to figure out really, it’s kind of like a space-faring Mad Max story in which the characters are attempting to gather as much as they can to survive and do whatever they can to keep those around them from stealing what they have. There are obviously several differences that make this story unique but one would almost have to speak with a gamer to figure out why Borderlands is so popular and why it’s become one of the newest options to be made into a movie. One very big obstacle that hopefully won’t be able to trip Eli up will be the always-present hurdle of the transition from the gaming world to the big screen since as a lot of people have already seen throughout the years this isn’t always the smoothest operation in the book no matter how much one wants it to be. Anthony D’Alessandro of Deadline has more to say on the subject.
As a scif and action movie though Borderlands at least has a chance since it does have a great director already on hand and an audience that has grown used to and are responding well to stories set in space and those that set rival factions against each other for the sake of resources. In a big way this is an old theme presented in a new way that should be able to interest the audience just enough to get them talking and to get them hoping that it will hold up to any scrutiny. The stigma that video games have had since Super Mario Bros. went live action is still around unfortunately and it hasn’t dimmed so much that people don’t roll their eyes when they hear that there’s a new movie coming out that’s based on a video game. But the great surprise usually happens when the movie is actually good enough to surpass that stigma and even at times exceed expectations when it comes to the game. That last part is rare since gamers are every bit as demanding as many fans but it is possible as a couple of movies have done it in the past. All in all though, for a story that can get violent in a hurry, Eli Roth is the right guy for the job.
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