Trust us when we say the following: there have been a LOT of bad video game movies. Like a lot, a lot. And every time one of them comes out and is terrible, fans are puzzled. Why? Because given the “power of Hollywood” as well as the acting talents behind some of these films (and yes, there have been A-List talents within these films), you’d think they’d be good, and yet, they’re not. Sonic The Hedgehog was a surprise success back in 2020, and now, Sonic The Hedgehog 2 is shaping up to surpass it in every way. So what are these movies doing right that everyone else is getting wrong?
In an interview, director Jeff Fowler would explain just that:
“I think the trick to making movies based off of video games is to completely forget that you’re making a movie based off a video game,” he said. “Because I think all movies are about character no matter where they come from.”
“Whether it’s a comic book, a video game, a novel, or whatever, I think you really have to approach it like, ‘What’s a great story, what’s a great character story?’ Fowler added. “If someone is sitting in that theater and knows nothing about the video game, are they still going to have a great time, are they still going to be invested in this character and this story? That was our approach.”
But fear not, the movie will also cater to those who have played the games and know the lore:
“[A]s we were sort of setting out to plot Sonic 2, I think we all got excited to pull in that great imagery that all of the fans are going to get excited about when they see it on the big screen and create a cinematic version of the stuff that fans have loved from [the games],” the director said.
So the lesson here is, “know your games, but make it so everyone can enjoy it”. You hear that Hollywood?!?!
Source: Fandom