• Assassin's Creed Movie (2016)


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    Assassin's Creed (2016)

    Assassin's Creed Career criminal Callum Lynch is rescued from his own execution by Abstergo Industries, the modern-day incarnation of the Templar Order. Upon reawakening from his “death”, Lynch is forced to participate in the Animus Project and relive the memories of his ancestor Aguilar de Nerha, an Assassin during the time of the Spanish Inquisition. Through the Animus, Lynch experiences Aguilar's memories, and he begins to gain the knowledge and skills necessary to confront the Templars—age-old enemies of the Assassins—in the present day.



    Meanwhile, in the past, Aguilar de Nerha has joined the Spanish Assassin Brotherhood. Taking his vows and sacrificing a finger as a symbol of devotion to the creed, he and the rest of the Spanish Brotherhood set out to protect a young Prince who is sought after by the Templars in Spain. Set against the backdrop of the Spanish Inquisition, Aguilar also begins their search for the famed Apple of Eden, an ancient artifact that has been sought after by the Assassins and Templars for centuries, in order to protect it from those who would use its power to control the world.



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    This is going to be a different review compared to what I normally do, but I feel like a movie such as Assassin’s Creed warrants a different approach. Fair warning, however...I am a complete and utter fanboy of this franchise. I will never claim that my bias for this franchise has not affected my review of this, but as always I strive to be as objective as possible for my reviews.

    As a movie, Assassin’s Creed shines in several aspects. The movie has absolutely incredible visual appeal throughout its runtime. In fact I would argue the visuals are among the strongest aspects of the entire movie. From chase scenes towards intriguing representations of the mythos, the movie does not lack at all on the visual storytelling front. The production values are quite good for a relatively modest budget, and I feel that having Ubisoft in control of the production really helped on this aspect of the movie. The fight sequences are really fun to watch, and the choreography is really spot on for assassinations and just overall fighting between the Assassins and waves of poor guards that are forced to fight them. The soundtrack is quite awesome, if misused in some places, and really added much to the atmosphere and the story, much like the soundtracks in the games which I have always praised in my reviews. I also felt that the decision to use Spanish with subtitles in the scenes from the past was an interesting choice that helps with the authenticity, though it does fly in the face of how the Animus works in the games since it automatically translates. Finally, I would argue that while the movie suffers from some issues in storytelling, the plot is fairly simple to follow, though that could honestly be because of my knowledge on the greater mythos of the franchise.



    Negatives abound, however, if one just looks at this as a regular movie. The movie suffers from many pacing problems and I assume that a lot of scenes were cut out of the finished product. It is unfortunate as I feel like that is happening a lot this year and movies are suffering for it, but this one in particular is bad as the movie feels rushed in some places and slow in others. This could easily have been a more fully fleshed out movie at two and a half hours but at a runtime of just under two, it feels like it ends too quickly and awkwardly. The three act structure in particular feels uneven, and the final act, climax, and conclusion are exciting yet at the same time feels like it could have been built up better. In addition to this, the movie suffers from nearly no characterization nor development for the main characters. Flat out, the characters are kind of boring, and you feel almost nothing for them or their plights. Even the two antagonists, the Rikkin’s, are fairly one dimensional, though Sophia becomes a bit more interesting towards the end as something is revealed about her story. The acting, considering the caliber of the main cast, is also kind of underwhelming, though a lot of that could have been the bad dialogue and writing in general. Another large issue that I feel could have been easily fixed was the location of the past scenes; the Spanish Inquisition. While an interesting time period, virtually none of the politics of the time period is explained nor elaborated on, so in a sense the whole time period was wasted. It really could have been set in any time period with the story we got and the result would have been the same.


    The editing is also a mess in places, I feel, particularly when switching between the animus and real world. Related to that, I think is worth mentioning is the representation of violence. In the action scenes it switches often between showing Lynch fighting in the past as Aguilar and making the same movements in the present in the Animus, as mentioned before. While cool, the movie used this to cut out some of the violence in the film to keep it rated PG13, and there was little to no bloodshed in the movie despite the actions committed on screen. I feel like limiting it to this rating was a mistake, as the game series is absolutely full of violence that would have been fun and more interesting to see it represented on the big screen. These are some major problems with the movie as a whole, but overall I would say on the movie making front it could have been much worse with larger problems; it is a solid effort from a new endeavor by Ubisoft.



    Then there is a second factor to consider with this movie: does it represent the Assassin’s Creed franchise faithfully? I would argue that, again, the movie does a pretty good job adapting the spirit of the games faithfully to the big screen. Some things had to be changed and I completely understand why they changed them. The representation of the Animus for sure is a big change from the games; instead of a chair that the subjects sit in to relive their memories, the Animus in the movies actually is a moving apparatus that allows the subjects to act out the memories as they relive them. This contributes heavily to the visual appeal of the movie, as sitting and watching a guy in a chair for a while would have been boring. The movie’s representation of the bleeding effect is also a good representation of the game, though it is still different from the source material. In terms of showcasing the war between the Assassin’s and Templars, the movie falls a bit flat, however. The minor antagonist, Sophia Rikkin, states near the beginning of the film that they are working to eliminate violence from the world, while her father Alan shows that they are more trying to eliminate free will. This is true to the spirit of the games but I feel it is also an oversimplification. The incorporation of the Apple of Eden is a fantastic link to the games as well, though they barely go into its true power.



    There are other, minor things as well, but one of the primary complaints about the movie that I would like to address is the modern day scenes versus the scenes from the past. I do believe that the story would have been better served by showing us more of the past in the animus, as the characters and the story there are sorely underdeveloped. I understand that from a storytelling perspective it might have made sense to focus more on the modern day, but that has always been one of the least liked aspects of the games. Focusing on the modern story while virtually neglecting the past is the exact reverse of the games, so in that way the movie does fail as an adaptation. Does it completely ruin the movie? Of course not, but it does not help it either, especially since many fans wanted to see the Spanish Inquisition in full swing. There are also some interesting easter eggs for the most knowledgeable of fans, including direct references to other characters in the franchise as well as the greater mythos if one is paying attention, which help elevate the movie slightly.



    The third factor that I have considered for this movie is the most problematic: what is the place of this movie in the overall Assassin’s Creed mythos and franchise? Without going too much into the details of where the gaming part of the franchise is now, it feels like this movie is either contradicting the games or just starting a new story altogether. In the games, there are multiple Pieces of Eden, including many Apples of Eden. These magical and powerful artifacts are the objects of desire for both the Assassins and Templars in the movie and games, and are basically at the core of the franchise in terms of story. But in the movie, it acts like there is only ONE Apple, while in the games five different Apples have been encountered by various protagonists and multiple other ones have been mentioned. But in all honesty that does not really matter, as at this point in the games (2016), the Templars are no longer hunting for the Apple of Eden, and are instead looking for other Pieces of Eden in order to use them for their war against the Assassins. The Animus has also been largely replaced by a new device called the Helix, which is basically an upgraded version of the Animus that only requires the DNA of someone to use, rather than a living breathing person. There are other issues as well, but for the most part the problem is just that it is simply unclear what to consider this movie as; an awkward piece of the overall story that started with the very first game, or a start to a brand new one. That uncertainty does not help the movie in my book, and while it does have many links to the games it still is a problem for the movie as a whole.



    So overall, how did the movie do? It is tough to say, to be honest. There are a lot of problems with the movie as just a movie, and I would be foolish to ignore them. As a movie it was just adequate, and I feel they could have put in more effort into making it come to life. Considering its place in the franchise, I feel they stumbled again, with me and many others being confused as to whether this is a new story or a piece of the story in the games, the latter introducing some major consistency issues. The movie does its best when considered as an overall representation of the games, I feel, as it captures the true spirit of the franchise and translates it decently to the big screen. This, in my opinion, saves the movie from being a trainwreck in many ways. It may not be saying much, but I feel this is the best movie adaptation of any game so far, with a close second being Prince of Persia, another Ubisoft title. This is not a great movie by any means, but I would be lying if I said I was not enjoying it as I watched. Others may disagree, but I feel this movie was a pretty good starting point for a future franchise, but I hope Ubisoft will make it clear in the future what to consider this movie as; a continuation, or a new story. Either way, I hope the next movie, and I hope there is a next movie, will be much better than this one.


    6.5/10



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    Comments 7 Comments
    1. Shankbot de Bodemloze's Avatar
      Shankbot de Bodemloze -
      I assume this was written by you GC?

      Great review! Coming from someone who played up until AC3 I don't know whether to go and see it or just wait until its done in theatres. Interesting point about it's place in the larger story and if it's new start or a continuation... I assume then they haven't released a game that shares the same setting of the Inquisition?

      As a movie, if someone hadn't heard or played any of the AC games would say its worth a watch, or do you need to have a basic knowledge of the games to make it enjoyable?
    1. TheDarkKnight's Avatar
      TheDarkKnight -
      As I said in the thread in the Arts, I think it's worth a watch if you are a fan of the series.

      If not, I would say still watch it, but perhaps wait for a rental.
    1. Reno Melitensis's Avatar
      Reno Melitensis -
      Enjoy the movie every body going to see it. Many shoots where filmed here in Malta, around the Medieval Fortifications and in the old city of Mdina.

      Cheers
    1. TheDarkKnight's Avatar
      TheDarkKnight -
      That's pretty cool Reno. The locations looked pretty real and not like sets so I figured they were either real or based on someplace real.

      I actually saw the movie again today with a friend cause I had a free ticket.

      I liked it more on a second viewing. I will keep my review score the same but I think knowing about it more on a second viewing helped it a lot.
    1. TheDarkKnight's Avatar
      TheDarkKnight -
      That's pretty cool Reno. The locations looked pretty real and not like sets so I figured they were either real or based on someplace real.

      I actually saw the movie again today with a friend cause I had a free ticket.

      I liked it more on a second viewing. I will keep my review score the same but I think knowing about it more on a second viewing helped it a lot.
    1. Dutch-Balrog's Avatar
      Dutch-Balrog -
      As someone who has never played Assassin's Creed (crazy, right?) i must say that this movie was enjoyable, but overall average at best.
    1. TheDarkKnight's Avatar
      TheDarkKnight -
      Quote Originally Posted by Dutch-Balrog View Post
      As someone who has never played Assassin's Creed (crazy, right?) i must say that this movie was enjoyable, but overall average at best.
      That's a pretty fair summation of my thoughts as well, Balrog. Average...not great, but not nearly as terrible as people are calling it. People calling it the worst movie of 2016 haven't seen Suicide Squad