8 Years Ago, A Beloved Arcade Game Finally Made It to the Big Screen (But Forgot the Most Important Part)

by

The Super Mario Bros. Movie is again a huge success worldwide, mirroring the performance of its first release. For years, movies based on video games were known for being bad, but recent successes like the Mario films and the critically acclaimed Fallout TV series suggest that Hollywood is finally learning how to adapt games into compelling stories. Just a decade ago, these adaptations consistently failed. Films like Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Need for Speed, Hitman: Agent 47, Warcraft, Assassin’s Creed, and Tomb Raider were either terrible or, at best, unremarkable.

Despite a rocky period, the late 2010s saw a resurgence in this type of movie. 2018’s Rampage and 2019’s Pokémon Detective Pikachu were both exciting, well-acted, and genuinely enjoyable adventures. And speaking of Rampage, it’s celebrating its eighth anniversary today, April 13th!

What Makes Rampage Work?

Brad Peyton, who previously directed Dwayne Johnson in films like Journey 2: The Mysterious Island and the blockbuster San Andreas, also helmed Rampage. Peyton understands what makes a Dwayne Johnson movie successful: a script that showcases both his charisma and physical strength, exciting action sequences, and a tone that’s fun for the whole family without being overly childish or mature. Rampage delivers on all of these fronts, featuring giant, genetically-altered animals – a flying wolf, a gorilla the size of King Kong, and a massive crocodile – causing chaos.

The movie’s monsters – creatures that would fit right into a MonsterVerse film – have a different backstory than in the original arcade game. In the film, George the gorilla, Ralph the wolf, and Lizzie the crocodile are mutated after being exposed to dangerous pathogens from containers made by a suspicious company called Energyne.

The game characters still transform, but the reasons are different, and surprisingly, they were all originally human. George became a gorilla not by birth, but through experimental vitamins. Lizzie was a woman who turned into a giant, Godzilla-like creature – though the movie simplified her into a mega crocodile. And Ralph? He became a huge werewolf because of something added to his food.

Overall, the Rampage movie doesn’t really follow the plot of the games. And honestly, it probably wouldn’t have worked to have the characters transform into giant monsters like King Kong, Godzilla, and a massive werewolf, only to shrink back to normal and be left without clothes. The movie does share the idea of a large, unethical science corporation being involved, although the name ‘Scumlabs’ from the games was a bit more memorable than ‘Energyne’.

Ultimately, Rampage is a silly, enjoyable movie perfect for a lazy afternoon. It’s not something you’d watch repeatedly, but it definitely delivers on the giant monster action in its final act and gives Jeffrey Dean Morgan a memorable supporting part. Plus, it features an early performance by Jack Quaid, just before he became known for his role as Hughie Campbell in The Boys, which is currently finishing its run.

While many game fans weren’t thrilled with the movie, that’s understandable. However, it’s similar in style to other big-budget action films Dwayne Johnson made around 2010-2019, like Hercules, San Andreas, and Skyscraper. They aren’t masterpieces, but they all showcase Johnson’s strengths and offer a reasonably fun way to pass the time.

Did you catch Rampage when it came out in theaters? Do you think the movie would have been better if it had followed the story and style of the original video game more closely? Share your thoughts in the comments below and join the discussion in the ComicBook Forum!

https://comicbook.com/movies/news/monsterverse-best-kaiju-ranked/embed/#

Read More

2026-04-13 20:11