Please, no Spielberg. He's lost his touch. Not to mention, this is R movie material. i just don't see him doing this any justice at all. Still crossing my fingers for Blomkamp. Yeah I know that won't happen now, but still....
@Westender: You're right. Spielberg directed Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and that one mistake means his movie career is basically over. He's never directed an R rated movie...except Schindler's List, Munich, and Saving Private Ryan.
Look, I hate to be the pessimist, but the story, while good enough for a video game, doesn't really have much to translate well to a movie, no A-list actor is going to sign up for a movie where he's wearing a helmet for 90% of the movie, and no studio will sign up for the massive special effects required to make it good. And if Jackson couldn't do it post-LOTR, then likely not even Spielberg has a shot. I think it's better if this never gets made (which is likely) than made crappily.
@TemporalSword: you haven't read the books at all have you? Yes the story in the game at least the first one, and most of the second one, was not really well fleshed out enough to make into a great movie. However if you have read the books they do flesh things out a lot more, and in a very good way. The book Fall of Reach, which they plan to make the movie based on, is more like a prequel to the game. It tells the story of where the Spartans come from, and who Master Chief really is.
@TemporalSword: I wouldnt really say that, look it it more like Darth Vader...they have a guy that can play the part in the costume and a brilliant VOICE ACTOR which came together as one of the most iconic characters in sci fi and movies ever
@TemporalSword: I think the problem is that the Bungie guys aren't terrific storytellers. Believe me, I was skeptical, but I finally caved and read Eric Nylund's "The Fall of Reach" and have since read every novel in the series. There's some good stuff here.
@TemporalSword: yeah, because who would want to make a movie of a game franchise that has sold almost 25 million copies worldwide? No one's going to be interested in buying a ticket for that. I know this is the internet and we're supposed to hate everything, but for the moment, I'm going to defer to the guy with decades of experience and success in both the movie and video game industries.
As for finding an actor willing to take on the role, well, first of all if you've read the book the script is adapted from, he's not wearing a helmet for "90%" of the movie. Secondly, there's recent precedent for actors taking on roles in which they are almost, if not totally obscured, like Hugo Weaving in V for Vendetta, Ray Park in LOTR and GI Joe, Joseph Gordon-Leavitt in GI Joe, and Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight (I still can't watch that movie, see Joker, and recognize Ledger.) Now, obviously, those aren't typical A-List actors, but would the Master Chief character require one? He's conscripted into the UNSC at age 6, so he has no past. After training, his entire life consists of his job. There's no wife, there's no kids, he only interacts with military personnel, the Cortana AI, and hordes of soon to be dead aliens. I don't need to see who he is, it's not relevant. Master Chief isn't an alter-ego and the MJOLNIR armor isn't a costume to hide his identity, it's who he is.
Hell, Darth Vader, one of the most iconic characters in movie history, was David Prowse in the suit, James Earl Jones doing the voice, and Sebastian Shaw in his dying moments. You could even throw in Bob Anderson for all of the lightsaber fight scenes. Still not going to count Hayden Christensen though...
Edited by Don't Make Me Ang Lee. You wouldn't like me when I'm Ang Lee. at 08/10/09 8:04 AM
Don't Make Me Ang Lee. You wouldn't like me when I'm Ang Lee. was starred
Don't Make Me Ang Lee. You wouldn't like me when I'm Ang Lee. was unstarred
@TemporalSword: I have a solution to the helmet problem. Just shoot the whole movie from a first person perspective. Pew pew pew! It will be a whole new genre; they will make billions! As for the story - who needs it? Just make the explosions bigger.
@hardcache: No, not familiar with the books. If the Fall of Reach is really that good, and they can stick to it close enough, then perhaps there is hope, at least on the story.
@grimdeath9740: Sorry, but your logic doesn't apply. Neither of the actors playing Vader were given any billing at all, and Jones wasn't even credited for his voice when Star Wars originally came out. That Vader came to be so iconic was accidental; I'd say Master Chief has already achieved that status (at least to video gamers) and is the main protagonist, so it'll be a big deal whomever should be cast in the role. Movies are marketed far different than when Star Wars came out.
@grimdeath9740: while your optimism is laudable i don't think it is realistic, in the year 2009, to expect a studio to accept a brilliant voice actor as the lead in a title this large. they want an A list in the spotlight and they want their face to be on the posters because that's what they think sells tickets.
@Don't Make Me Ang Lee. You wouldn't like me...: Are these the same ticket buyers who made Street Fighter (either one) a huge success? Or Doom? Max Payne? Bloodrayne? Tomb Raider? Oh, right, none of them were. If anything, I'd say these people have discriminating taste and avoid the dreck based on their favorite properties. So I ask again, would you rather see a crappy version of Halo, or none at all? Although, I suppose if there was one guy in Hollywood who could maybe pull it off, it would be Spielberg.
@tetracycloide: Sorry, I should have specified that I was referring to their efforts on the Halo games, which have disappointed me in terms of storytelling. I'll throw in an "IMO" for free.
@hardcache: or who ever was responsible for that abortion of a scene in Doom, the movie.
Now that a I think about it, there wasn't much good about anything in that movie, but that scene was the worst!
@TemporalSword: First off, none of those franchises sold as many copies as the Halo series have (I assume - been looking for numbers and can't find much to go on), secondly, those movies got made because they were able to hire little-known directors to work with recognizable actors and low to medium budgets. Now, if it's Mark Wahlberg as Master Chief with Uwe Boll directing, then no, I'm not going to be in line for that. At this point though, it's pointless to speculate on that because no one has been named to any roles, nor have the rumors even been confirmed. But saying it can't be done because Peter Jackson couldn't do it is pretty silly. In my opinion, which is the only one that matters to me, having Spielberg attached if the rumors are true is enough for me to think it will be potentially good, rather than just dumping on something without any indication that it should be...even if having Spielberg probably means having Shia...
Edited by Don't Make Me Ang Lee. You wouldn't like me when I'm Ang Lee. at 08/10/09 9:16 AM
Don't Make Me Ang Lee. You wouldn't like me when I'm Ang Lee. was starred
Don't Make Me Ang Lee. You wouldn't like me when I'm Ang Lee. was unstarred
@TemporalSword: I think you meant this to be a reply to me, the Gawker system still has some bugs though.
I'm pretty sure I remember seeing Prowse credited in the movies, though I could be mistaken, and I still have to disagree with you about Chief - yes, he's one of the most iconic video game characters today, but all he really is, is a voice of a guy in a suit. Maybe I'm an outlier, but as a fan of the Halo series (games/books/etc) I really don't care who the actor is, I'm okay with it being some random guy in a suit with someone else, the big name if necessary, doing a voice.
@crazydave_w: i belive that's more a function of halo not being a bungie title, but a bungie, subsidiary of microsoft, title. i feel very confidant that, had bungie not been purchased and halo hijacked, the story telling element would have made a much more roboust presence akin to myth and marathon before it.
@TemporalSword: "I'd say these people have discriminating taste and avoid the dreck based on their favorite properties."
so you think GI Joe is a great movie? After all, it's #1 at the moment and saw a considerable leap in sales from Friday to Saturday. I thought it was alright, but I also think of the people who bought those 25 million copies of the games, there's enough who will go see it regardless to make it worthwhile in the eyes of the studio to release it.
@mr_dude: Master Chief was never a chick. You're talking about one of two things. The first being, that it's the Spartan known as Nicole that was written exclusively for the storyline of Dead or Alive 4. Most likely though, is that you're referring to the same character, Nicole, who was fighting Metroid in one of Monty Oum's videos called "Haloid", he's since released more stuff called Dead Fantasy and they are great.
It was all in jest, I was highlighting the fact that we don't need a movie that provides flashbacks to the Chief's formative years or a love story (where one participant isn't an AI). But Hollywood...
And of course the helmet coming off was in reference to one Samus Aran. It was a painful revelation back in the days when girls couldn't be cool.
Prediction: This movie will blow but make $500 mil worldwide and spawn countless sequels and spinoffs.
I know. I went out on a limb.
One (seemingly) good thing has come from this mess though: District 9. The mech catching the rocket out of the sky is still one of the coolest things I've seen. I hope it exceeds my expectations.
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i hope that y'all like pork, cause speilberg is about to ham it up
this shit will be soo corny
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That's just not kosher.
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As for finding an actor willing to take on the role, well, first of all if you've read the book the script is adapted from, he's not wearing a helmet for "90%" of the movie. Secondly, there's recent precedent for actors taking on roles in which they are almost, if not totally obscured, like Hugo Weaving in V for Vendetta, Ray Park in LOTR and GI Joe, Joseph Gordon-Leavitt in GI Joe, and Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight (I still can't watch that movie, see Joker, and recognize Ledger.) Now, obviously, those aren't typical A-List actors, but would the Master Chief character require one? He's conscripted into the UNSC at age 6, so he has no past. After training, his entire life consists of his job. There's no wife, there's no kids, he only interacts with military personnel, the Cortana AI, and hordes of soon to be dead aliens. I don't need to see who he is, it's not relevant. Master Chief isn't an alter-ego and the MJOLNIR armor isn't a costume to hide his identity, it's who he is.
Hell, Darth Vader, one of the most iconic characters in movie history, was David Prowse in the suit, James Earl Jones doing the voice, and Sebastian Shaw in his dying moments. You could even throw in Bob Anderson for all of the lightsaber fight scenes. Still not going to count Hayden Christensen though...
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Now that a I think about it, there wasn't much good about anything in that movie, but that scene was the worst!
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I'm pretty sure I remember seeing Prowse credited in the movies, though I could be mistaken, and I still have to disagree with you about Chief - yes, he's one of the most iconic video game characters today, but all he really is, is a voice of a guy in a suit. Maybe I'm an outlier, but as a fan of the Halo series (games/books/etc) I really don't care who the actor is, I'm okay with it being some random guy in a suit with someone else, the big name if necessary, doing a voice.
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so you think GI Joe is a great movie? After all, it's #1 at the moment and saw a considerable leap in sales from Friday to Saturday. I thought it was alright, but I also think of the people who bought those 25 million copies of the games, there's enough who will go see it regardless to make it worthwhile in the eyes of the studio to release it.
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And I just couldn't stand to have the helmet come off and find out Master Chief is a chick. Once was enough.
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It was all in jest, I was highlighting the fact that we don't need a movie that provides flashbacks to the Chief's formative years or a love story (where one participant isn't an AI). But Hollywood...
And of course the helmet coming off was in reference to one Samus Aran. It was a painful revelation back in the days when girls couldn't be cool.
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I know. I went out on a limb.
One (seemingly) good thing has come from this mess though: District 9. The mech catching the rocket out of the sky is still one of the coolest things I've seen. I hope it exceeds my expectations.
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