10 Video Game Movies You Need To Watch In 2019

When it comes to failed film adaptations of video games, there is nothing more infamous than the first of its kind: Super Mario Bros. Anyone who loves games but hates the movies they spawn has to see this oddity just to witness what happens when Hollywood gets its hands on a popular game.

After Nintendo gave the filmmakers total creative control of the Mario adaptation, the end result was a strange, subversive science-fiction comedy that felt more like a Ghostbusters knock-off with dinosaurs than the live-action version of the plumbers’ fantastical adventures on SNES. It’s a campy, corny, and over-budget time capsule of early ‘90s filmmaking that has to be seen to be believed.  

One name that inspires the most violent reactions in the video game community is Uwe Boll, who is regarded as one of the worst directors of all time. Boll is best known for his abysmal video game adaptations (which may or may not be elaborate tax shelter schemes), with Postal considered to be his best—even if it only scored 7% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Politically incorrect in the most immature sense of the term and blatantly self-indulgent, Postal is Boll’s misguided attempt at making a crass yet meaningful satire in the vein of early South Park—which makes it loyal to its equally irreverent source material. As critically panned as it may be, Postal makes for a fun (drunk) watch if you want to laugh at something that tries so hard yet fails to be offensive.

Frankly speaking, there’s no other video game movie like this.

Paul W.S. Anderson’s Resident Evil may be the strangest video game-based adaptations to exist because of how little they have to do with Capcom’s survival horror series. If the games chronicle the fight against the Umbrella Corporation’s engineered apocalypse, the movies are an ode to the director’s wife and franchise star Milla Jovovich, who plays Alice—a character that never appears in the games.

Because of this, Resident Evil can be viewed as the most expensive and borderline experimental fanfiction around. Each entry explores a different approach to the same premise and characters, giving every chapter of the director-created OC’s (Original Character) war versus Umbrella a distinct style and tone.

Are the movies great? No, as a matter of fact, they’re rather bad—but they work as mindless so-bad-they’re-good schlock.    

Prior to her nuanced modern-day reinterpretation, Lara Croft was an iconic action star of ‘90s video gaming. Her legacy was perfectly realized in the first two Tomb Raider movies that starred Angelina Jolie as the famous gun-slinging explorer. Tongue-in-cheek and without a care in the world, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and its sequel Cradle of Life are unapologetically dumb but fun action movies. Though dated, the Lara Croft movies can still be enjoyed as nostalgic throwbacks to the action genre’s playful past.

The more self-serious and realistic version of Lara’s story can be seen in the 2018 Tomb Raider which follows the games’ reboot. While decent, Lara’s new, self-serious origin lacks the heightened sense of adventure that makes its predecessors entertaining even today.

A common issue with video game adaptations is the lack of passion behind their creation, but this is not the case with Warcraft. Director Duncan Jones is a proud fan of the popular Real-time Strategy (RTS) franchise, and it shows in his cinematic rendition of the fantasy war.

Warcraft boasts the best visuals of any video game movie, beautifully realizing the war for Azeroth through its effects and production designs. Problem is, it works better as an exposition-heavy cut-scene that leads into the actual story and action. Warcraft can be a chore to watch, but it’s nice to see a video game movie with lots of effort and love put into it, even if the final product is adequate at best.

A problem most video game movies have is adapting their source material’s complex mythos, which wasn’t an issue in Rampage due to its simplicity. Thanks to a paper-thin excuse of a plot and some giant animals, Rampage is both a big action-packed blockbuster starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and a fun giant monster romp like the old Godzilla movies.

Rampage feels like an expensive modern-day blockbuster that’s based on a script written decades ago, which is why it works so well. With no pretense and an enormous appetite for destruction, Rampage is an undeniably good time that perfectly embodies the concept of “dumb fun.”    

A young Robin Shou starred as Liu Kang.

Before zombies, Paul W.S. Anderson enlisted legendary fighters to participate in the otherworldly martial arts tournament of Mortal Kombat. Appropriately cheesy, overacted, and over-the-top, Mortal Kombat was a faithful retelling of the games’ lore with entertaining fights. This satisfied fans in the same way that martial arts and wuxia films entertained those who love cult movies.

However, its biggest drawback was a questionable PG-13 rating that all but watered down the games’ signature bloody Fatalities and any hopes of being a true cult classic. With the James Wan-produced reboot about to start production in Australia, this issue may finally be addressed while also giving fans the unrestrained battle for Earthrealm they deserve.

Just don’t mention the 1997 film Mortal Kombat: Annihilation to the Kombat loyalists. 

Initially unappreciated, Silent Hill proved to be an exception to the rule of terrible video game movies with the passage of time. Not only was it a respectful (if loose) adaptation of the first Silent Hill on Play Station, but it was also an effective standalone horror movie that balanced a slow-burning Gothic tale of cults with a creature feature.

With an appropriately nightmarish production design and creature effects, Silent Hill’s biggest asset was its foreboding atmosphere that was brought to life by using Akira Yamaoka’s irreplaceable in-game soundtrack. Series fans will get something out of the adaptation, while it also serves as a good introduction for newcomers.

The sequel, however, is better left ignored.

Without a doubt, Street Fighter is the most iconic video game movie to exist simply because of how enjoyably dumb it is. It’s hammy and overstuffed in all the right ways, making it one of the greatest guilty pleasures to ever grace home video.

Street Fighter owes its lasting legacy to the final and legendary performance of Raul Julia as the megalomaniac dictator M. Bison—a character immortalized in pop culture consciousness thanks to his quotes and charisma. While critically panned on opening week, Street Fighter (and Julia’s time as M. Bison) earned a place in the hearts and minds of gamers who’ve come to love this bonkers cult favorite.

Like Mortal Kombat and Silent Hill, this movie has a sequel that’s not worth mentioning.

This movie’s mere concept—a Pokemon-themed detective mystery starring Deadpool as Pikachu—seemed too crazy to work. And yet, Pokemon Detective Pikachu is currently the best-reviewed video game movie that also enjoyed the genre’s best-ever opening.   

Not only is Detective Pikachu a witty combination of Blade Runner and Who Framed Roger Rabbit but it’s also a coming-of-age story with lots of heart to spare. The Pokemons’ first foray into live-action is compelling and sincere in ways not expected of movies based on Nintendo properties, which helps Detective Pikachu stand out all the more.

Equal parts nostalgic and emotional, Detective Pikachu is a super-effective adaptation of the Pokemon mega-franchise that leaves the door open for future stories while giving its first installment a satisfying ending.