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Video games and movies have had a tumultuous relationship in the past, and that is putting it lightly. With the release of the movie “Warcraft,” based on the popular video game series of the same title by “Blizzard Entertainment,” the question of whether video games and movies will ever mesh well has been brought up again. If the negative reviews and the estimated U.S. opening of the movie standing at $25 million according to Variety are any indication, it seems not. Based on the strong response from the international sector and fan reactions though, there might be a chance.
As of writing this article, the movie stands at 24 percent at Rotten Tomatoes and the majority of reviews by major publications are clearly not impressed with it. However, international ticket sales over the weekend in just 19 countries have already yielded $19 million according to a MovieWeb article, making it a number one opener in nearly all of them. This was three days ago, and the movie has not even launched in the two biggest movie markets; China and the U.S.
More telling however, is the positive feedback from users based on an analysis by BoxOfficePro, which tracks social media reactions to movies. In the report, “Warcraft” is clearly generating a lot of buzz, though perhaps not as much as “The Conjuring 2” or “Now You See Me 2.”
In any case, perhaps a major driving force in the difference between critical reception and viewer reception with the “Warcraft” movie in particular is the fact that the reviewers have not played the game. As such, it’s much easier to simply continue with the narrative that video games don’t make good movies.
Breaking this cycle is actually one of the reasons for why Duncan Jones decided to take on the movie. Jones is the son of the late David Bowie and also an avid gamer.
"There's been a rough track record of movies based on video games," Jones said in an interview with Engadget. "I do like the challenge. I like the idea of maybe making a film which is way better than anyone expected it to be because I know the expectations are all over the place."
