WRAL Tech Wire

'Max Payne' movie delivers on gaming action

Mark Wahlberg is Max Payne.

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Editor’s note: John Gaudiosi covers the video game industry for Local Tech Wire.

LOS ANGELES — When it comes to videogame movies, it's impossible to appease the movie critics out there. These are the same people who don't play games and look down on interactive entertainment – even as game sales dwarf box office totals. So when I sat in a theater with a bunch of movie critics on the 20th Century Fox lot last Thursday night and watched the Mark Walhberg “Max Payne” movie, I knew an onslaught of negative reviews was coming this Friday. (We weren't allowed to review the film until today, as is standard policy for Hollywood – and game companies, for that matter.)

Mark Wahlberg elevates the videogame film genre with Max Payne, the first adaptation that should satisfy both gamers and mainstream audiences. (Forget about the critics.)

Based on the 2001 PC and PlayStation 2 game from developer Remedy Entertainment and publisher Gathering of Developers (PC) and Rockstar Games (which bought Gathering of Developers before the PS2 game shipped), Max Payne is a dark tale of revenge that sends Wahlberg's cop on the hunt for the men who killed his wife and daughter.

The film follows the atmospheric game and gets a lot of elements right, from the snowswept New York City (Toronto doubled as the Big Apple) to the Valkyr designer-drug-induced delusions. From the very beginning (there are no credits until the end of the film), Max Payne kicks off with violence and keeps the bullets flying – including some "bullet time" slow-motion – throughout.

Where the movie really takes off is when Max takes the Valkyr to save his own life and the fantasy world literally blazes to life. There are hints of the supernatural throughout the film, but gamers know these hallucinations are from the drug. I especially like what director John Moore has done with grounding the film. There are some special effects, but the majority of the film is grounded in reality. Even the Valkyrie were done with traditional make-up (athough they look great). The pacing of the film is also great. The action sequences are big for a $35 million movie, but there are breaks to show the loss and pain Max has undergone with the murder of his family.

Despite being based on a game, Max Payne stands on its own as a taut action movie that packs a lot of ammunition. It's a great way to spend an hour-and-a-half watching the bad guys get blown away. Rockstar recently told me there are no plans for a third game, so the new movie is the next best thing to playing the original two games. And if Max makes a killing at the box office – it's tracking to make $20 million – there's always a sequel potential on the big screen. If not on the game screen.

The good news is that Max Payne legitimizes videogames as great film material. There are over 30 films in development based on games, so any ammo Max can drum up with audiences will only lead to more game adaptations. I also want to go on the record and say that I enjoyed Hitman, especially the Unrated Blu-ray Disc, as well as Silent Hill. Not all videogame movies suck – although Uwe Boll's films always do. There's potential in this medium. It's just a learning curve. Remember how many bad comic book movies there were before The Dark Knight?