6 réponses à ce sujet

[Garompero]

We all know a Mass Effect movie is on the works.

Problem that I have come to think is how would it be possible to condense a 20 hour game into a 2-3 hour movie.
I have come to the conclusion that either they make it 3-4 hours long like each lord of the rings movie or it just can't be made.


So as a fan base I wanted to know who would agree with me that it could be made a tv series instead. Allowing enough episodes for developing characters, explaining the plot in depth and creating bonds between characters and between the audience and the franchise, specially with those who don't know Mass effect....things that would need to be cut from the movie or shortened in such a way it would destroy itself.

Hell, if they do a tv series they wouldn't even need a skilled script writer, the script is already the game itself!


And those of you saying the movie should have nothing to do with shepard or the games, I believe that is wrong because the original story is too deep and eclipses any side story, prequel or sequel, unless you put an enemy far more powerful than the Reapers themselves, which would be silly and specially out of the mass effect universe. A great part of the audience will be the people who played the game, and already knowing the story about the reapers, would seem silly and boring to watch a movie about garrus fighting mercs or the first contact war, it would lack all the epicness the original story has, doesn't matter if any of us wouldn't mind watching a movie about garrus or etc...it would be cool, yes, but not as cool as the original story.




This is what Mark Protosevich (former script writer) was thinking before he bailed, because everyone wanted to do a movie as it is more profitable, while he said it couldn't be done and it would suck, crash and burn.
What he also said and it is in this video:
is that they were working on the movie of the first game. At least they aren't trying to condense all 3 games into a 2 hour movie that would really suck.

He stated that he played the game a bit and that: "It was the first game adaptation I did and it will probably be the only one. They’re hard. I will freely admit it was hard. Because - especially with Mass Effect - there’s just so much material. Narratively, with the game, you’re talking about nine, ten hours of narrative you’re jamming into two hours."
"I hope they pull it off. I’d love to see a Mass Effect movie. I think I did some good work, but even I’ll admit I didn’t pull it off."and that he couldn't make a 2 hour movie out of it without leaving some serious plot holes, characters, and everything that made the story great.[/i]

Quoting gamefaqs forum which suposedly the writers kind of look at sometimes, it was said perfectly: "TV is the best medium for something like this. It's really the best medium for any sort of storytelling now. Movies are expensive and cram a plot into a 2-3 hour package, whereas a series can tell a stronger story over a longer period of time.
Just look at something like The Walking Dead. Zombie movies are a dime a dozen, but they've really hit the nail on the head by turning it into a series. It wouldn't have worked as a movie."

"TV is always better than movies for telling a story. It allows for character to develop longer arcs and lets plots develop longer creating better tension. Look at Breaking Bad. That plot would have worked as a movie and it would have been decent at best. However because it was a TV show, its one of the best ever (For me #2 behind the Wire).
Because the story telling in Mass Effect mirrors that of a TV show, it would of course work better."

But, we are now left with a bunch of money leecher idiots that will turn an ocean into an empty glass of water...
Then people who don't know Mass effect will come by and say "well this movie is meh" or just see it as another sci fi nonsense that came and went and thats it. And the fan base will be raging demanding they get their money back or just cursing and wishing they burn in hell for destroying such a franchise.

What do you think about this.

Modifié par Garompero, 17 janvier 2014 - 06:47 .

[KBABZ]

A TV Series' format is usually better for most video games because of how they're structured. Video game stories are divided up over a number of levels, and TV series' stories are divided up over a number of episodes.

For the movie, the best way to make it work is to merge and remove. Feros to me would be the first to go because the Cipher isn't necessary in a more condensed story; it drags the plot out for little reason and there isn't much that it offers that winds up being significant later. I can also imagine Therum and Noveria being merged somewhat; the characters find Liara as they investigate the Geth and get introduced to her mother, and there would be suspicion to Liara at first as they hear how her mother has been acting. I'm not sure if the rachni should be included, as again they don't have any major part to play unless you move the rachni story to occur on Tuchanka for the ME3 movie. Virmire would remain largely the same, and the third act would be the Citadel-Ilos-Citadel sequence as in the game.

So here's how I'd do it. The opening is Eden Prime, which occurs largely as in the game, but with the removal of most of the civilians except for Manuel and Dr. Warren. The bombs would be around the beacon itself to save time. Shepard gets the vision, etc etc... on the Citadel, jump straight to the meeting in the Council Chambers, and shorten the investigation to remove Barla Von and Harkin, going straight to Garrus and Wrex. Climax of Act 1 is storming Chora's Den and then chasing after Tali. Act 1 ends proper when Shepard gets the Normandy.

Act 2 heads straight to Noveria to investigate the Geth activity, although I think Rift Station should be built into a Prothean Ruin that was used by the protheans to alter the rachni into the savage monsters that we're familiar with, which we know the protheans did. Liara would be found in there, while the Benezia bit and the rachni getting loose happen afterwards in the facility itself. Then we jump to Virmire, which goes largely the same as it does in the game.

Act 3 would play out largely the same as in the game, I'd imagine. Return to the Citadel, get grounded, escape thanks to Anderson (he hacks the terminal for more drama), Shepard leaves for Ilos, romance romance, Mako landing, chase after Saren, encounter Vigil, use the Conduit to arrive on the Presidium, battle of the Citadel, etc etc.

But the fundamental point still remains; a TV Show would have a much greater opportunity to delve into backstory and characters than a movie would. But to be honest, the hardest of the games to adapt would be Mass Effect 2. It is the least linear of the games, all of the squad mates are acquired in entirely separate worlds, and there's twelve of them! No way that would be easily told in a movie without some serious merging and removal.

Modifié par KBABZ, 18 janvier 2014 - 01:56 .

[Garompero]

You are right. A director, I don't remember the name, gave some advise to the writers of the movie, and told them this things and also said that whatever they're gonna do, they are going to have to do "canon" choices despite the ME fan base, and some will not like it anyways, but should not be a concern.

Lets be real, there is a cannon in mass effect, a main story even if there are choices. The story I presume was made before the game and then expanded on choices.
Thats why the canon choices get more dramatic endings:
Shepard default is a sole survivor, and maybe for a movie, adding that the parents died in a raid would be more dramatic. A scarred character.
Liara as a LI, no point in arguing that this is canon.
Letting the council live, and in ME3 shepard then has to rescue the council from Udina's betrayal.
I have read Udina should be the one you choose instead of anderson, but I don't really remember anything to support it as a canon choice.
Miranda has to survive only to die tragically in ME3. As well as the drell assassin.
And as far as I know, Ashley has to die, she mentions during the game she is willing to honor her family (sacrifice herself for a greater good), her death would put Liara and Shepard's canon romance out of danger from herself (skipper stuff and so on. ashley just hits on shepard all the time) and would be more believable also as Shepard decides to save more people (kirrahe and kaidan) in the place of one with an active nuclear bomb next to her. Leaving also kaidan as the always trusted sidekick.
They should make saren shoot himself just before he nearly kills shepard, for a more dramatic outcome.

Another thing they would need to do is mention Cerberus at least once, so that we know they are bad guys and in the second movie we understand whats going on, or mention them at the end like:

I believe if they're going to make a movie, it should end where ME2 starts to build suspense, with the death of shepard.

Maybe some blurry scenes about feron and Liara bringing the body to cerberus.
Or perhaps just make a scene after the credits with shepard's eyes opening at the call from miranda like XMen movies endings.

[KBABZ]

I vouch for the Paragon choices being the canon ones, they seem to fit the world much better than the Renegade ones. The story overall is also very clearly written from a Paragon perspective, particularly in 3 where Shepard is concerned about Earth, the death of the kid weighs heavily on her, and several story arcs that have been set up in ME1 and 2, like the Genophage and the Quarians, get their payoffs in the third game. The Renegade approach feels more and more awkward the closer to the end you get, and at ME3 the Renegade options go from 'pure evil' to 'hard-assed jerk'.

I think the reason why Udina being chosen for Councillor is considered canon is largely due to how ME3 played about; Anderson had resigned at that point out of frustration, rendering the choice ultimately pointless. I think Shepard would choose Anderson anyway though; both Paragon and Renegade Shepard's hate Udina, and it would make more sense for them to vouch for their trusted friend and father figure, Anderson. His resigning would reinforce the plot theme of the other Council members being incredibly ignorant, too, and reminding the audience of that would help to link the three films together.

But as much flack as people will give ME1 for picking a fans perceived 'wrong' choices when the movie comes out, ME2 would be even more. It's very clear that it would be impossible to tell the Collector story, introduce all twelve squad members, make them feel unique and memorable, sort out their Loyalty Missions and do all of that in three and a half hours. It's just impossible. People would complain about how, say, Jack was wasted and Kasumi got no love or screen time. I mean The Hobbit has trouble making all thirteen dwarves feel unique and memorable and it has three films to do that in!

To that end I think ME2 should just axe certain squad members entirely and focus on the essentials. Given the links to ME1 and 3, I'd say the Movie ME2 squad would consist of Miranda, Jacob, Garrus, Mordin, Tali (who is picked up on Freedom's Progress) and Legion. Miranda and Jacob offer the Cerberus presence, Mordin has links to the Genophage plot thread introduced via Wrex and Virmire in ME1 and concluded in ME3, and Garrus and Tali are the old guard from the first film. In the case of Tali she is also a link to the Quarian plot thread, again introduced in ME1 and resolved in ME3. Legion is part of that as well and would offer some serious conflict with Tali due to being a geth (he is also critical to the Rannoch story in ME3).

To continue the subject, ME3's squad would likely stay largely the same, but with the removal of Javik. As cool as Javik is, he ultimately doesn't contribute much to the story except for insight in the Prothean Reaper war, as well as divulging the truth about the Athame religion among asari that the films probably wouldn't have time to properly establish anyway.


ADDENDUM: You know I just remembered that Thane plays a pretty big part in the Ctadel coup in ME3, so he'd have to be introduced as an ME2 squad member as well. This would allow for a visit to Illium, and thus Liara.

Modifié par KBABZ, 20 janvier 2014 - 12:22 .

[0zerocypher0]

I would watch a Mass Effect TV series...but I would rather have Farscape brought back...Mass Effect was obviously influenced by it...

[KBABZ]

0zerocypher0 wrote...

I would watch a Mass Effect TV series...but I would rather have Farscape brought back...Mass Effect was obviously influenced by it...

I've always felt like Mass Effect is Bioware wanting full creative freedom in a sci-fi game after getting a taste for it with KOTOR. I mean biotics is very clearly Mass Effect's version of the Force!

[0zerocypher0]

Farscape had biotics...