This article is a follow up from my previous article: Is the new Max Payne movie the saviour for computer game to movie conversions?

So yesterday was the day when I would finally get to see the film which I had hoped would save the computer game to movie conversion genre that seems to all around us in modern cinema. This was the one potential ray of light in amongst the black hole that the category currently finds itself in after atrocities such as the Resident Evil and Alien vs Predator movie franchises.

Was it everything that I hoped it would be? Did it restore my faith in conversions? Was I proud to have backed this horse?.

Simple answer: No.

Max Payne was a very big let down. While it promised so much from the trailer it failed to live up to the computer game's prestigious title. The film wasn't terrible and tried very hard to be true to the game. The only word I can think to sum it up is dull. There were huge gaps during the movie where nothing really happened, and that's all well and good if the story and acting can keep you interested, but it didn't. Mark Wahlberg just didn't seem like he was really into it. His protrayal of Max was questionable. He lacked depth and failed to grasp the character's emotional journey that is so well developed during the games. It should have been darker and more sinister.

Another thing that let the film down was the casting. Mila Kunis was unconvincing as Mona Sax, however perhaps this was because she didn't really appear in the movie anywhere near as much as she should have. Also, I'm sorry if this offends anyone who's a massive fan of this guy but Amaury Nolasco performance as Jack Lupino was awful. Finally, while I liked Ludacris in Crash casting him as Jim Bravura was a big no no.

For all it's faults Max Payne is a step in the right direction for computer game to movie conversions, but it's just not a big enough step for my liking. Perhaps the actors should have played the games before hand. One thing I will say was good about the film was the visuals concerning the imaginary Valkyrs. They were very well executed and looked awesome.

Finally, can anyone who's seen the film tell me what the hell is going on with that polo-neck shirt they had Mark Wahlberg wear during the movie?

5/10

• Funlop wrote ...

• at 15:09, Tuesday 25 November 2008

"I would also like to state that the sound effects were way too loud for film, with the volume either too loud in the cinema or post-mixing.. a shot gun in real life can damage hearing but it shouldn't in a film. The sound effect team should be sued. Or just told off. But you should never feel the need to block your ears in a cinema, unless the person next to you is a total *** .. im looking at you Thelma. "

• Shane wrote ...

• at 15:52, Tuesday 25 November 2008

"5/10 is rather generous for my liking !rnrnI saw this movie about 2 weeks ago and it was by far the most unpleasant cinema experience in my entire life.rnrnThe plethora of pikey bastards talking, singing and fornicating in the back row simply didn't help the matter. This however, was the least of my issues.rnrnI can honestly say that after about 1 hour we had given up and decided to walk out of the cinema. I felt the movie lacked in every way possible. I was a huge fan of the games a few years ago and like most people got sucked in to the awesome trailer.rnrnWhat a let down ! The first time I had ever walked out on a movie before. Fortunately the pikey little shits in the back row was good enough grounds to get my money back ! so all not lost.rnrnSuch a shame this movie could have been great !!"

• Dave Shearn wrote ...

• at 02:03, Friday 5 December 2008

"it was just such a horribly bad yet visually stunning film. an epic fail if you will. and from such a gloriously well thought out game with an utterly convertable plot! oh my what a gigantically big mess."