A movie would be dreadful. As much material as there is, the problem is that a big part of the draw is that the world feels personalized. I know for certain that no Shepard design other than the one I set will be acceptable to me, as well as certain choices, love interest, etc. I think that mass effect is one of those cases in which film or television would be a tremendous downgrade.
How to adapt ME1 as a movie?
Débuté par
Reverendtrigster
, avril 29 2013 02:29
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#27
Posté 29 avril 2013 - 10:30
Reverendtrigster
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For those of you that keep on about not wanting an adaptation. I'll repeat what I said in my original post.
So yes. I get it. I don't want it either. But just try and use your imagination for two seconds and think, *if* it is going to be made and *if* there's nothing you can do to prevent it, but you are in a position to make the best of it, what would you do? How would you condense hours of gameplay into just two? How do you serve the story without sacrificing the characters? What are you prepared to loose? What's the real heart of Mass Effect?
^That's why I thought perhaps introducing her alongside Garrus. If ME2 is going to have even half the number of recruitments the game did, then you're going to have to economise. If you want Tali to survive and come into her own for ME3 then she'll need a proper introduction, not a couple shots in a montage.
The kind of phased introduction of main characters I have in mind is similar to how things have and continue to evolve in the Marvel movies. Coulson's introduction in the Iron Man was hardly spectacular. Hell, it was almost forgettable. When he showed up in IM2 he made more of an impression that was built on in Thor and truly flourished in Avengers. Similarly, Rhodey had a certain, very active role in the first film, it was just a prelude to what he'd become later.
Both of those are good examples of how to build up Garrus over three films. The cop, the vigilante, the war leader.
Tali is a bit more tricky. As I said, she's my favourite so loosing her isn't my first choice, but the fact remains that if Liara is to be the big romance character all the way through, then she needs to show up sooner and have more to do beside get flustered and embrace Shepard's eternity.
I suppose you could try introducing both Liara and Tali together? Maybe Tali was helping Liara on her dig as part of her pilgrimage. Maybe hoping she'd be able to find some scrap of viable Prothean tech, or an intact data-disc to bring back to the fleet? Liara found the Mu relay data
Maybe what she found is more than just the Mu relay, but some encrypted data on the crucible too. Maybe the disc is damaged so all they can get out of it are the co-ordinates and something cryptic that'll eventually lead them to Mars in ME3?
Reverendtrigster wrote...
While I'd much rather they not just straight-up adapt the games, but come up with an original story set in the ME universe. Maybe as a prequel (First Contact War seems trite, but still a viable, if unoriginal possibility) or a interquel (is that a word?) like Paragon Lost or a story running parallel with the games. Don't see it happening though. I'd also prefer a femShep movie. Don't see that happening neither.
So yes. I get it. I don't want it either. But just try and use your imagination for two seconds and think, *if* it is going to be made and *if* there's nothing you can do to prevent it, but you are in a position to make the best of it, what would you do? How would you condense hours of gameplay into just two? How do you serve the story without sacrificing the characters? What are you prepared to loose? What's the real heart of Mass Effect?
Salarious wrote...
sUiCiDeKiNgS13 wrote...
The only way this works is if they give it the full epic treatment. I'm talking on the same level as Avatar or LOTR. It cant be half assed just to test the waters. So either make it an Epic or leave it alone.
This, I really believe that the possibility for making a great film is there, it just needs the proper treatment from the right people. Will it get that? Probably not. If you look at the video game landscape there are many titles that studios would jump at before considering a Mass Effect film. That being said, I think you also need people who worked on the game to be involved at least a little bit. If it's a really unfaithful adaptation I think you lose a lot of the stuff that makes it worth adapting in the first place.
P.S. Don't change Tali's role, Just bring her in as a new character in the second installment. Start her story on Haestrom, perhaps have some connection to one of the pre-existing characters so she isn't so out of left field.
^That's why I thought perhaps introducing her alongside Garrus. If ME2 is going to have even half the number of recruitments the game did, then you're going to have to economise. If you want Tali to survive and come into her own for ME3 then she'll need a proper introduction, not a couple shots in a montage.
The kind of phased introduction of main characters I have in mind is similar to how things have and continue to evolve in the Marvel movies. Coulson's introduction in the Iron Man was hardly spectacular. Hell, it was almost forgettable. When he showed up in IM2 he made more of an impression that was built on in Thor and truly flourished in Avengers. Similarly, Rhodey had a certain, very active role in the first film, it was just a prelude to what he'd become later.
Both of those are good examples of how to build up Garrus over three films. The cop, the vigilante, the war leader.
Tali is a bit more tricky. As I said, she's my favourite so loosing her isn't my first choice, but the fact remains that if Liara is to be the big romance character all the way through, then she needs to show up sooner and have more to do beside get flustered and embrace Shepard's eternity.
I suppose you could try introducing both Liara and Tali together? Maybe Tali was helping Liara on her dig as part of her pilgrimage. Maybe hoping she'd be able to find some scrap of viable Prothean tech, or an intact data-disc to bring back to the fleet? Liara found the Mu relay data
Maybe what she found is more than just the Mu relay, but some encrypted data on the crucible too. Maybe the disc is damaged so all they can get out of it are the co-ordinates and something cryptic that'll eventually lead them to Mars in ME3?
#28
Posté 29 avril 2013 - 10:35
Fredvdp
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Mass Effect would structurally work better as a TV series, but this won't happen because of the cost.
In the movie version I'd cut the Therum mission. Liara can join on the Citadel. Since the rachni storyline doesn't go anywhere, I'd cut the Noveria storyline and Benezia entirely. That way Shepard only needs the cipher and the moment they get the second vision on Virmire, Liara knows the Conduit is on Ilos and they get their straight away without having to look for the Mu relay, since it's not missing in this version.
In Mass Effect 2 I'd cut Samara, Zaeed and Kasumi. I'd give Garrus his own ship so that Shepard and Garrus both look for teammates in intercut storylines. Mordin's loyalty mission is dealt with, others are ignored. I'd also intercut to the Alliance preparing for the Reaper invasion. At the end of the movie, Hackett calls Shepard to meet the Fifth Fleet and when Shepard looks out the window, he sees an early version of the Crucible which is already being made. (Similar to the Death Star at the end of Revenge of the Sith.) Edit: I'd change the Human-Reaper so that it's the embryo design that didn't make it into the game. That's much more creepy than the Terminator.
Mass Effect 3 skips the Mars missions, since I made that part of ME2. The ghost kid is removed and his role is replaced by Harbinger. Shepard reasons that the final solution is illogical, since it halts both organic and synthetic evolution. Harbinger is unable to do anything that isn't in his programming, but allows Shepard to pick one of the alternative solutions which the Reapers have built into the Citadel. One is to transfer control of the Reapers and the other rewrites all code to zero, causing synthetic life to end. Shepard chooses that civilizations should evolve along their own paths, as Legion once stated, and decides to destroy synthetic life and render the mass relays nonfunctional.
In the movie version I'd cut the Therum mission. Liara can join on the Citadel. Since the rachni storyline doesn't go anywhere, I'd cut the Noveria storyline and Benezia entirely. That way Shepard only needs the cipher and the moment they get the second vision on Virmire, Liara knows the Conduit is on Ilos and they get their straight away without having to look for the Mu relay, since it's not missing in this version.
In Mass Effect 2 I'd cut Samara, Zaeed and Kasumi. I'd give Garrus his own ship so that Shepard and Garrus both look for teammates in intercut storylines. Mordin's loyalty mission is dealt with, others are ignored. I'd also intercut to the Alliance preparing for the Reaper invasion. At the end of the movie, Hackett calls Shepard to meet the Fifth Fleet and when Shepard looks out the window, he sees an early version of the Crucible which is already being made. (Similar to the Death Star at the end of Revenge of the Sith.) Edit: I'd change the Human-Reaper so that it's the embryo design that didn't make it into the game. That's much more creepy than the Terminator.
Mass Effect 3 skips the Mars missions, since I made that part of ME2. The ghost kid is removed and his role is replaced by Harbinger. Shepard reasons that the final solution is illogical, since it halts both organic and synthetic evolution. Harbinger is unable to do anything that isn't in his programming, but allows Shepard to pick one of the alternative solutions which the Reapers have built into the Citadel. One is to transfer control of the Reapers and the other rewrites all code to zero, causing synthetic life to end. Shepard chooses that civilizations should evolve along their own paths, as Legion once stated, and decides to destroy synthetic life and render the mass relays nonfunctional.
Modifié par Fredvdp, 29 avril 2013 - 01:28 .
#29
Posté 29 avril 2013 - 10:48
KaiserShep
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If anything, the entire thing, human and alien, would be better served as cgi animation. It allows complete freedom over character design, and obviously keeping from constraining the face of the protagonist to whatever celebrity they use.
#30
Posté 29 avril 2013 - 10:49
Reverendtrigster
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Fredvdp wrote...
Mass Effect would structurally work better as a TV series, but this won't happen because of the cost.
In the movie version I'd cut the Therum mission. Liara can join on the Citadel. Since the rachni storyline doesn't go anywhere, I'd cut the Noveria storyline and Benezia entirely. That way Shepard only needs the cipher and the moment they get the second vision on Virmire, Liara knows the Conduit is on Ilos and they get their straight away without having to look for the Mu relay, since it's not missing in this version.
The problem with cutting Benezia is that it robs Liara of motivation and pathos. She'll need a character arc in the first movie, otherwise she'll be relegated to token sexy alien chick who just hangs around and looks exotic.
The way I see it, you smush Feros & Novaria together. Demote the rachni to disposable cannon fodder alongside the geth and the creepers (maybe even some creeper vs husk action?) put Benezia in Shiala's place (or the Thorian's in the queen's?) and just find someway to kill her off after she hits Shepard up with the cipher. That's the "progress and raising stakes" part of the film and should really take place around the mid-point. Virmire is the "setback" and needs to happen pretty soon after.
Even if that were so, I don't think ME is likely to get anywhere near the kind of budget needed for that to be done well.KaiserShep wrote...
If anything, the entire thing, human
and alien, would be better served as cgi animation. It allows complete
freedom over character design, and obviously keeping from constraining
the face of the protagonist to whatever celebrity they use.
Plus, I'm not convinced it would be better. Take a look at how Guillermo del Toro handles exotic creature designs in 'Hellboy 2' & 'Pan's Labyrinth'. Some very alien looking designs made with a combination of old fashioned make-up, costume and animatronics enhanced by state of the art CGI. The characters look very real because they mostly are, but they're just far enough off what should be possible for a human or a puppet to really sell it as a living creature.
Modifié par Reverendtrigster, 29 avril 2013 - 10:56 .
#31
Posté 29 avril 2013 - 11:13
Peranor
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As Fredvdp said; Mass Effect would structurally work better as a TV series, but this won't happen because of the cost.
#32
Posté 29 avril 2013 - 11:24
Mcfly616
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If you're gonna merge the VS, I see no reason to merge any other characters. 5 crew is manageble for a 2 hour film. Obviously certain characters have to play smaller roles than others.
As far as the story goes, I wouldn't change too much of it. I feel that the main reason videogame movies almost always fail, is due to the fact that Hollywood drastically changes the overall story that was told in the game.
As far as the story goes, I wouldn't change too much of it. I feel that the main reason videogame movies almost always fail, is due to the fact that Hollywood drastically changes the overall story that was told in the game.
#33
Posté 29 avril 2013 - 11:42
Sir George Parr
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If anything Liara could already be a member of the crew, as a prothean expert brought along to assist in the recovery of the beacon on Eden Prime. The same can be said for Ashley, cut out Jenkins and she is already part of the crew.As for Jenkins he becomes a fatally wound survivor of the attack on Eden Prime and still dies. Or he just never appears in this version of the story.Fredvdp wrote...
Mass Effect would structurally work better as a TV series, but this won't happen because of the cost.
In the movie version I'd cut the Therum mission. Liara can join on the Citadel. Since the rachni storyline doesn't go anywhere, I'd cut the Noveria storyline and Benezia entirely. That way Shepard only needs the cipher and the moment they get the second vision on Virmire, Liara knows the Conduit is on Ilos and they get their straight away without having to look for the Mu relay, since it's not missing in this version.
In Mass Effect 2 I'd cut Samara, Zaeed and Kasumi. I'd give Garrus his own ship so that Shepard and Garrus both look for teammates in intercut storylines. Mordin's loyalty mission is dealt with, others are ignored. I'd also intercut to the Alliance preparing for the Reaper invasion. At the end of the movie, Hackett calls Shepard to meet the Fifth Fleet and when Shepard looks out the window, he sees an early version of the Crucible which is already being made. (Similar to the Death Star at the end of Revenge of the Sith.)
Mass Effect 3 skips the Mars missions, since I made that part of ME2. The ghost kid is removed and his role is replaced by Harbinger. Shepard reasons that the final solution is illogical, since it halts both organic and synthetic evolution. Harbinger is unable to do anything that isn't in his programming, but allows Shepard to pick one of the alternative solutions which the Reapers have built into the Citadel. One is to transfer control of the Reapers and the other rewrites all code to zero, causing synthetic life to end. Shepard chooses that civilizations should evolve along their own paths, as Legion once stated, and decides to destroy synthetic life and render the mass relays nonfunctional.
#34
Posté 29 avril 2013 - 11:47
Reverendtrigster
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Mcfly616 wrote...
If you're gonna merge the VS, I see no reason to merge any other characters. 5 crew is manageble for a 2 hour film. Obviously certain characters have to play smaller roles than others.
As far as the story goes, I wouldn't change too much of it. I feel that the main reason videogame movies almost always fail, is due to the fact that Hollywood drastically changes the overall story that was told in the game.
It's not just about the number of characters, but what their role is and when they are introduced. You need to get the whole crew together and on mission by about the 45-50 minute mark. All merging the VS really does is simplifies things later on down the road.
So yeah, Garrus, Wrex, Tali, Liara, Ashden & Shepard might be doable, but you need to decide when who shows up, why and what's keeping them on the crew. Also, for the Virmire sacrifice to mean anything and not just be a redshirt moment, you need to spend time with Willenko to establish a bond with Shepard and so that the audience can grow to like them and be pissed off when they get vaporised. This is why Joss Whedon is notorious for character deaths, because he makes you you care about them before that get impailed on a massive spike. So more Kailey means less Garrus, Tali and Wrex.
That's why I think a better use of Garrus would be to have him part of the Citadel investigation, but leave him behind for the rest of the movie (maybe a brief cameo during the final battle) once you have Wrex, Liara and perhaps Tali on board.
XM-417 wrote...
If anything Liara could already be a
member of the crew, as a prothean expert brought along to assist in the
recovery of the beacon on Eden Prime. The same can be said for Ashley,
cut out Jenkins and she is already part of the crew.As for Jenkins he
becomes a fatally wound survivor of the attack on Eden Prime and still
dies. Or he just never appears in this version of the story.
Or maybe Liara is already on Eden Prime and is the witness to Nihlus's murder? It has potential, certainly. Maybe Ash was with her during the attack and you recruit them both at the same time? That way you can establish a bond between those two so their death on Virmire hits Liara just as hard? Either way I'd still make Kaiden & Ash the same character.
Modifié par Reverendtrigster, 29 avril 2013 - 11:52 .
#35
Posté 29 avril 2013 - 12:47
S.A.K
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Giving Liara even more stuff would ****** off a lot of people. Including me!
#37
Posté 29 avril 2013 - 08:11
Reverendtrigster
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S.A.K wrote...
Giving Liara even more stuff would ****** off a lot of people. Including me!
How so? Bare in mind that this is based on the assumption that she is to be the LI. If we presume otherwise then of course things would need to be shuffled around to meet a different set of needs.
Modifié par Reverendtrigster, 30 avril 2013 - 09:42 .
#38
Posté 30 avril 2013 - 07:30
Gulaman
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I don't get these sort of responses. The point of the thread is to discuss HOW you would adapt a ME1 movie - not whether you SHOULD. It's hardly a far fetched concept considering a Mass Effect movie has been on the cards for years now.Greylycantrope wrote...
Simple, don't.
#39
Posté 30 avril 2013 - 08:44
Mastone
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Gulaman wrote...
I don't get these sort of responses. The point of the thread is to discuss HOW you would adapt a ME1 movie - not whether you SHOULD. It's hardly a far fetched concept considering a Mass Effect movie has been on the cards for years now.Greylycantrope wrote...
Simple, don't.
I agree with Grey Lycantrope but I can't help but wonder why someone would want a mass effect movie the games turned out to be an utter disappointment or at least got so bad over the past 2 releases it drags Bioware as a company down even the 2 founders got sick of it and left to shoot beer documentaries...
Thing is ME1 is a good enough story as it is and it won't work because ME1 is open ended, hollywood would demand a neat and closed ending.
If you want to suggest to make this a trilogy like Lord of the Rings, forget it!
The quality of writing after ME1 just isn't there, the first movie would be a great opener ending with the premise that we are fighting reapers only to discover in the first act of the ME2 movie we are fighting the collectors and in the end a huge terminator at the end of that we destroy the collector base and in ME3 we will fight Casper the spaceghost.
The only thing I can imagine working is that at the end of ME1 we are able to reprogram the relays and kil the reapers by transporting them to a dying sun i or maybe a NUKE ( that always seems to do the trick) or make it so that the only way of reapers traveling to our solar system isthe relay and we blow them ( relays) up.
But basically negating everything that happens from ME2 on.
#40
Posté 30 avril 2013 - 08:51
Suron
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Steelcan wrote...
who doesn't want to see a spectacular failure of a film that could kill interest in the series?MassivelyEffective0730 wrote...
AresKeith wrote...
Banul wrote...
The best way to adapt ME into a movie is to not adapt ME into a movie.
The better question is why is our society so sad and pathetic that it looks for something/someone to fail miserably? What does that say about the person in question when they actually WANT something to go down in flames and fail hard?
A pathetic existance really. And a sadly pathetic society overall.
#41
Posté 30 avril 2013 - 09:25
IntelligentME3Fanboy
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what a stupid idea.why make a movie for a mediocre game?
#42
Posté 30 avril 2013 - 10:02
chemiclord
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Gulaman wrote...
I don't get these sort of responses. The point of the thread is to discuss HOW you would adapt a ME1 movie - not whether you SHOULD. It's hardly a far fetched concept considering a Mass Effect movie has been on the cards for years now.
The reason you're seeing these sort of reponses is BECAUSE there really isn't any way to adapt it and do it well. I would dare say, even if you were to rip ME1 (by itself) down to it's barest essentials of story and character development... you STILL have a good 8-9 hours of story to tell... and it would be a very bland and generic space-opera story at that.
Modifié par chemiclord, 30 avril 2013 - 10:25 .
#43
Posté 30 avril 2013 - 10:21
Bleachrude
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13 hour-hour 1/2 OVA series would do it nicely....As much as people hate on anime, the only way to do justice for a ME series would be by animation and by doing it as a series of episodes.
Something which falls right under the expertise of anime writers.
Something which falls right under the expertise of anime writers.
#44
Posté 30 avril 2013 - 10:23
AresKeith
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Bleachrude wrote...
13 hour-hour 1/2 OVA series would do it nicely....As much as people hate on anime, the only way to do justice for a ME series would be by animation and by doing it as a series of episodes.
Something which falls right under the expertise of anime writers.
I thinkk CGI like the Take Back Earth trailer would fit more
#45
Posté 30 avril 2013 - 10:41
DeinonSlayer
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If they make Mass Effect into a movie, I anticipate they'd do Male-Spacer-SoleSurvivor-Soldier-Paragon-Liaramancer who saves the council, destroys the collector base, cures the genophage, sides with the Geth (for drama - not everything can go right) and ultimately chooses synthesis.
Modifié par DeinonSlayer, 30 avril 2013 - 10:41 .
#46
Posté 30 avril 2013 - 10:50
Bleachrude
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CGI is still expensive though...Handdrawn animation is cheaper..but of course, it has the drawbacks that the cheaper it is, the less detail you will get on character models (see Paragon lost with the krogan and the asari)
#47
Posté 30 avril 2013 - 11:55
Exile Isan
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Or you could pick her up on Eden Prime. You know that doctor you meet with Manual, Dr. Warren, yeah instead it could be Liara that you meet and she joins Shepard right then and there.XM-417 wrote...
If anything Liara could already be a member of the crew, as a prothean expert brought along to assist in the recovery of the beacon on Eden Prime.
Modifié par Exile Isan, 01 mai 2013 - 12:03 .
