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[Salsa]

http://www.vulture.com/2013/03/sam-raimi-on-oz-and-two-huge-films-he-never-made.html

Robert Rodat was working on the script, and it was taking a long time. I think they were getting a little antsy at Legendary, the production company. Actually, what happened was even more complicated, so let me go back a little bit. First, they asked me if I wanted to make it, and I said, “Yes, I love World of Warcraft, and I think it would make a great picture.” So I read a screenplay they had that was written by the guys at [Warcraft developer] Blizzard, and it didn’t quite work for me. I told them I wanted to make my own original story with Robert, so we pitched it to Legendary and they accepted it, and then we pitched it to Blizzard, and they had reservations, but they accepted it. Then Robert wrote the screenplay, and only once he was done did we realize that Blizzard had veto power, and we didn’t know that. And they had never quite approved the original story we pitched them. Those reservations were their way of saying, “We don’t approve this story, and we want to go a different way,” so after we had spent nine months working on this thing, we basically had to start over. And Robert did start over, but it was taking too long for the people at Blizzard, and their patience ran out. Honestly, I think it was mismanagement on their behalf, not to explain to us that the first story was vetoed long ago. Why did they let us keep working on it? Were they afraid to tell me?

Pretty interesting.

 

[Voice of Reason]

I'm thankful of Blizzard then. It would have been horrible. Did they scrap the movie altogether at least?

 

[EightBitNate]

That is one movie theater I do not want to sit in.

 

[Salsa]

I'm thankful of Blizzard then. It would have been horrible. Did they scrap the movie altogether at least?

nope. Duncan Jones is doing it

 

[strafer]

Thank you based Blizzard.

 

[Napoleonthechimp]

nope. Duncan Jones is doing it

... the fuck? I'm a fan of his but I can't imagine that he'd be a good fit for a movie like this.

 

[Pie and Beans]

Raimi gets this a lot it seems. Dudes gotta think at some point maybe he needs to change his approach to these licensed property dealios.

 

[Soule]

Heh, I don't mind that they vetoed it seems a good decision but how they did it seems pretty douchey. Just let them keep working on something for 9 months you already know you won't accept, or am I reading this wrong?

 

[Flying Toaster]

I'm thankful of Blizzard then. It would have been horrible. Did they scrap the movie altogether at least?

They should scrap the movie altogether, the Warcraft universe is interesting but it is not feature film worthy.

 

[RiccochetJ]

How could he have not known that Blizz had veto power? You'd think that would be one of the first things laid out on the table from the get go.

 

[Salsa]

... the fuck? I'm a fan of his but I can't imagine that he'd be a good fit for a movie like this.

he seems to really play and love games at least, if his twitter is anything to go by

 

[Voice of Reason]

nope. Duncan Jones is doing it

Holy shit, that's even worse.


EDIT: Maybe not if he actually plays the game.

 

[Eppy Thatcher]

Raimi gets this a lot it seems. Dudes gotta think at some point maybe he needs to change his approach to these licensed property dealios.

quoted for dealio - my favorite non word.

Also - Why o why wouldn't blizzard just make this themselves? Seems like a chance for their story/art/CG trailer dept. to really flex and make something huge.

 

[Retro]

A chimpanzee could churn out a better storyline than Chris Metzen has, so Blizzard snubbing a professional screenwriter's efforts (especially Rodat, who did Saving Private Ryan) is hilarious.

I can't see myself sitting through 90 minutes of a WoW Movie without getting muscle aches from all the cringing. Especially if they try a tongue-in-cheek semi-ironic approach by including stuff like Leroy Jenkins references or lines like "pwn" and "noob".

 

[Salsa]

Also - Why o why wouldn't blizzard just make this themselves? Seems like a chance for their story/art/CG trailer dept. to really flex and make something huge.

because making a game/intro CG sequence and a feature film require completely different skill sets? not to mention money?

I can't see myself sitting through 90 minutes of a WoW Movie without getting muscle aches from all the cringing. Especially if they try a tongue-in-cheek semi-ironic approach by including stuff like Leroy Jenkins references or lines like "pwn" and "noob".

it's Blizzard, they have some common sense. Specially if they are this careful (according to Raimi) about what happens on the screen

 

[Blader]

... the fuck? I'm a fan of his but I can't imagine that he'd be a good fit for a movie like this.

It still won't happen anyway, I just hope he doesn't waste too much time on it before it gets canned.

 

[we.are.the.armada]

Wrong, just wrong!

Actually, their MMORPG has been organic, somewhat progressive, and always topical. This type of game doesn't need a traditional film, it needs a concise series. They could stick to the internet, familiar territory of their demographic, and release short yet high visual quality narratives telling short stories of the WoW lore.

I think that limiting it to a 1:30h movie isn't the best fit for WoW.

15 to 20 minute CGI vids that cover a group of characters from vanilla, throughout the expans, into a marketing push for the final expan would be ideal.

 

[frontovik]

Well, Blizzard's creative development team has always been a joke since WoW. Just look at Metzen and his retcon shenanigans.

 

[GlassBox]

Has Metzen always been in charge of Blizzard's lol storytelling? Or were previous games written by others? I'm still trying to figure out if Blizzard's always been a joke in terms of storytelling (for some reason I have fonder memories of the original StarCraft) or if it all went downhill because of Metzen?

 

[Principate]

Wrong, just wrong!

Actually, their MMORPG has been organic, somewhat progressive, and always topical. This type of game doesn't need a traditional film, it needs a concise series. They could stick to the internet, familiar territory of their demographic, and release short yet high visual quality narratives telling short stories of the WoW lore.

I think that limiting it to a 1:30h movie isn't the best fit for WoW.

15 to 20 minute CGI vids that cover a group of characters from vanilla, throughout the expans, into a marketing push for the final expan would be ideal.

Umm why, that'd still be extremely expensive unless they're trying to sell those. Those things only really work for advertising a seris with a new game coming up. Otherwise seems kinda pointless.

 

[Whompa]

Wow it sounds like Sam Raimi was trying to make it into his own thing and Blizzard's reps were just like, "Jesus you were making a shitty script"

I know Blizzard hasn't recently been on it's game in the writing department but they at least know their own content better than anyone else does.

Shame it wont be happening at all. I wish Raimi would just take what was fed to him and rolled with it incorporating it into his own style...I feel like Raimi would have churned out a shitty translation tbh.

 

[Dawg]

Why do people always talk about this movie like they're making a movie out of World Of Warcraft?

World Of Warcraft is a MMO. They're not making a movie out of a MMO. They're making a warcraft movie, not a world of warcraft movie.

 

[Salsa]

Why do people always talk about this movie like they're making a movie out of World Of Warcraft?

World Of Warcraft is a MMO. They're not making a movie out of a MMO. They're making a warcraft movie, not a world of warcraft movie.

because that is how they choose to call it whenever someone officially mentions it?

every production company/director/person involved has called it "the World of Warcraft movie"

 

[Retro]

Why do people always talk about this movie like they're making a movie out of World Of Warcraft?

Because it has always been referred to as a "World of Warcraft" movie?

Besides, it's not like the lore magically improves between the Warcraft RTS games and the MMO.

 

[ZealousD]

Has Metzen always been in charge of Blizzard's lol storytelling? Or were previous games written by others? I'm still trying to figure out if Blizzard's always been a joke in terms of storytelling (for some reason I have fonder memories of the original StarCraft) or if it all went downhill because of Metzen?

Brood War's story was credited to Metzen as well. I think he just got worse.

 

[GuitarAtomik]

... the fuck? I'm a fan of his but I can't imagine that he'd be a good fit for a movie like this.

You should read some of his interviews. He actually sounds like a really good fit.

“I’m very cynical of the number of directors who say they’re actual gamers,” Jones told me. “When you meet a lot of them in person, they’re not really gamers. I’m a real gamer and I think there are less real gamers involved in directing only because you have to spend so much time making films that there’s no time to be a hardcore gamer. I’m just slightly insane and I stay up all night playing games. In the day I’m working and at night I play games."

“I think we’re waiting for the right project,” he said. “I really believe it. I definitely think there is an intangible aspect of video games in the interactivity that a film is never going to capture. But that is not what a game adaptation needs to be. A good game adaptation is where you find the story or the emotional aspect that’s at the heart of a computer game and you replicate that on film. It doesn’t mean you need to have first person perspective or try and capture the mechanics of a game. If you’re going to make a film of a game it’s got to be about the essence of why you, the audience, care what’s going on. There are certain games where that will work, and there are certain games where it doesn’t.”

And that right project? “I’m hugely jealous of Sam Raimi,” Jones told me. “I really believe World of Warcraft could be the launch of computer games as good films. And from the little I’ve read of interviews with him the way he’s approaching it makes so much sense. It’s what I was talking about - it’s not worrying about how the game plays, it’s about creating the world of the game and investing the audience in that world.”

As for what games Jones plays? He’s a PC gamer mostly, although he also has a PS3 and a Wii. As you can tell from his love of Warcraft he’s a bit of a Blizzard partisan. “I love everything Blizzard is doing. I can’t wait for Diablo 3. I played through Starcraft 2. I’ve been playing a lot of Call of Duty: Black Ops lately. I used to be involved with a clan back in Britain for Call of Duty.”

http://badassdigest.com/2013/01/30/Warcraft-Movie-Duncan-Jones/

 

[Axspell]

Sounds like Blizzard did what no other dev has been willing to do with their movie adaptations. Good on them.

 

[Oersted]

They dismissed the writer of Fly Away Home and Saving Private Ryan? And Raimi was fond of the game? They missed a great chance.

Btw, what happened to the MGS movie?

 

[rdrr gnr]

You should read some of his interviews. He actually sounds like a really good fit.








http://badassdigest.com/2013/01/30/Warcraft-Movie-Duncan-Jones/

Fuck, that's great. I'm pulling for him.

 

[Schweinehund]

Wonder how many times thrall or go'el was written in the original script.