THE UNPOPULAR OPINION is an ongoing column featuring different takes on films that either the writer HATED, but that the majority of film fans LOVED, or that the writer LOVED, but that most others LOATHED. We're hoping this column will promote constructive and geek fueled discussion. Enjoy!
****SOME SPOILERS ENSUE****
Video game adaptations have a long and painful history. For years, it was a running joke that any movie baed on a video game was going to be a creative void even if it was a box office hit. From SUPER MARIO BROS to RESIDENT EVIL, SILENT HILL to MORTAL KOMBAT, Hollywood has rarely been able to find the balance of box office success with critical acclaim. Hell, in just the last year, POKEMON DETECTIVE PIKACHU and SONIC THE HEDGEHOG have raised the bar, slightly, on what video game movies can be. But, four years ago the benchmark was set by Justin Kurzel's ASSASSIN'S CREED as to what a brilliant director and a top notch cast could do with some creative freedom. Critics were brutal and the box office mediocre, but ASSASSIN'S CREED remains the best video game adaptation of all time.
As with many AAA video games released over the last decade, ASSASSIN'S CREED is a franchise that is already very cinematic in nature. Like God of War, Resident Evil, or Uncharted, playing ASSASSIN'S CREED is like playing a feature film. But, it is not as simple as recreating gameplay with renowned actors in the roles. What ASSASSIN'S CREED did was to create a wholly original story set within the loosely interconnected world of the video game. It also had to accomplish that while explaining the structure of the fictional world to newcomers who had never played the game. The result is a movie that is both somber in tone but jam-packed with some of the best stunts seen on the big screen in years. It is also one of the most beautifully shot films in recent memory.
What ASSASSIN'S CREED had in it's favor was the combination of director Justin Kurzel and stars Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard. Reuniting after their acclaimed Shakespeare adaptation MACBETH in 2015, most didn't expect for their sophomore project to be a video game movie. With the bar set so low, it was not going to be a rousing endorsement to call this the best video game adaptation of all time, but ASSASSIN'S CREED is so much more. MACBETH is a sumptuous movie that added to the iconic play which set it apart from the movies that came before it. It was also a very deliberately paced and dialogue heavy story that lingered on the characters. ASSASSIN'S CREED does the same which has led to many critics and fans calling the movie boring.
ASSASSIN'S CREED is far from boring. There is a jarring disconnect at times as the film moves between rousing action sequences to long conversations between characters. Much like how the video games would send you on missions before giving you a cinematic cutscene, Kurzel's film builds on the convoluted mythology of the Assassins and Templars and creates a streamlined narrative that lets the viewer drop into the action without missing a beat and then absorbing the scale of what these characters are capable of. It also manages to create a dichotomy between a vaguely futuristic 2016 with the rarely seen on screen world of 15th Century Spain. Despite a lot of CGI needed to realize this historical era, Kurzel's visuals are incredibly tangible as are the physical stunts shown on screen.
While most video games do not have to abide by rules of physics, Kurzel and Fassbender approached this film with a desire to make it look as real as possible and that includes the stuntwork. As an example of how far stunts have changed in modern times, the trademark "leap of faith" from the video games was created using stunt performer Damien Walters. The freefall was more than 100 feet and one of the highest such stunts filmed in four decades. Like Tom Cruise's work on MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE, seeing an actual human being make these death defying leaps helps this feel less like a video game than another CGI creation. By giving the audience such grandeur, ASSASSIN'S CREED invites you in to then ponder the loftier philosophical and scientific themes at play here, especially the concept of genetic destiny which is one of the coolest ideas floated in any game or film since THE MATRIX.
Fassbender, who served as producer as well as star, has already shown his ability to handle marquee action films (X-MEN: FIRST CLASS) and genre fare (300, PROMETHEUS) as well as nuanced dramatic work like HUNGER, SHAME, and STEVE JOBS, but his creative chemistry with Justin Kurzel shows that they should do a lot more work together. ASSASSIN'S CREED benefits from a director and star completely in alignment and it shows. Whatever shortcomings this movie may have are overcome by the vision these two share. Add to that a cast of talents ranging from Cotillard to Jeremy Irons and Brendan Gleeson and you have something special. ASSASSIN'S CREED is populated by a cast that most studios would give anything to have. That is then accentuated by Jed Kurzel's score and Adam Arkapaw's cinematography, both of whom also worked on MACBETH, and you can see that this is a creative dream team.
To say that ASSASSIN'S CREED is the best video game movie is an unfair statement to make despite being completely true. This is a breathtaking adventure that is one of the best directed and acted studio blockbusters of the last decade. While the screenplay has some holes and could certainly have been improved on, this is still a well presented entry into the big screen franchise that should have warranted the two sequels that were in development. While Disney may never greenlight a reboot or even a sequel to this movie, ASSASSIN'S CREED still stands as an enjoyable action film and one that shows how to adapt a property like this. Like Disney's own PRINCE OF PERSIA, this is a movie that has it's faults but what works far outweighs what doesn't.
But hey, that's just my UnPopular Opinion. Tell us your take on ASSASSIN'S CREED in the comments below.