The Assassin's Creed Movie is Getting Bad Reviews
By Kyle Sledge 19 December 2016
Several days ahead of its theatrical release, Ubisoft’s forthcoming Assasin’s Creed movie starring Michael Fassbender receives bad reviews from numerous critics.
With the Assassin’s Creed movie’s release date being just a couple of days from now, there are surely plenty of fans of the action-adventure video game franchise wondering whether or not it would be worth the money to purchase a ticket for the theatrical experience. If the reviews are to be believed, though, it seems as if the film doesn’t show much promise in the realm of being a solid piece of entertainment, as Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed movie has been generally panned so far by lots of critics.
Despite the fact that most of the early reviews for the Assassin’s Creed movie range from being mixed to generally unfavorable, Ubisoft is keeping the faith when it comes to winning over fans of the franchise. As it happens, last week, Assassin’s Creed brand director Azaïzia Aymar declared that the upcoming film would be a “milestone” for video game movies, with the company’s opinion being that the theatrical release would dodge the notion that movies inspired by the gaming medium are typically bad.
As far as the Assassin’s Creed movie’s plot is concerned, the main character in the film, Callum Lynch (Michael Fassbender), will experience the adventures of his assassin ancestor Aguilar in 15th century Spain after he’s hooked up to the Animus, which unlocks the protagonist’s genetic memory. However, the majority of the film is going to take place in its present day setting, with creators confirming that the movie differs from the video games by spending roughly 65% of its running time in the present timeline and only 35% in the 15th century Spain. So, without further ado, read on to find out what the critics think about the Assassin’s Creed movie.
GameSpot (Tony Wilson)
“Moment to moment, it’s a fun action flick; as a whole, it’ll leave you feeling shortchanged. And you just might get more, as Assassin’s Creed blatantly sets itself up for a sequel in the final moments. Perhaps a second entry will solve a lot of these problems, but as it stands, it’s hard to recommend this film unless you’re willing to put up with a lot of sloppy plot development for a few genuinely good action scenes.”
Collider (Perri Nemiroff)
“Assassin’s Creed often does look fantastic, especially the costume design and the chase sequences that take place in the 15th century. But all the riveting rooftop running and hand-to-hand combat in the world won’t make a movie worthwhile if you don’t give a damn about the characters.”
The A.V. Club (Jesse Hassenger)
“Assassin’s Creed is most compelling when Fassbender and Cotillard whisper at each other in close proximity. Both actors have such adult intensity that their participation in a juvenile fantasy (replete with simultaneous hood-flipping and at least a half dozen dramatic dives from great heights, along with the aforementioned self-satisfied libertarianism) becomes a source of bizarre fascination–for a little while, anyway. Assassin’s Creed pushes their charisma to the limits, then stabs it bloodlessly and jumps off a building.”
IGN (Lucy O’Brien)
“As Assassin’s Creed struggles towards its conclusion–and a nonsensical heel turn from a major character–one can’t help but feel disappointed in a film that got the style of the series so right, yet its heart so wrong.”
TIME (Stephanie Zacharek)
“The 15th century wasn’t a great time to be alive, and it’s not even such nice a place to visit. We went all the way back in time with Assassin’s Creed and all we got was this lousy apple. It’s not even a real one.”
Variety (Owen Gleiberman)
“How is this video-game movie different from all other video-game movies? It’s got classier stars, but it’s really the same old sludge.”
The Guardian (Peter Bradshaw)
“It’s rare to see a film quite so lacking in animus. It exists only to gouge money out of gamers. They might well want to stick to the game.”
The Hollywood Reporter (Harry Windsor)
“Assassin’s Creed is resolutely stone-faced, ditching the humdrum quips that are par for the course in today’s blockbusters. But this is almost two hours of convoluted hokum that might have benefited from a few self-deflating jabs.”
Although the verdict is not completely in when it comes to the Assassin’s Creed movie, if the above reviews are truly representative of the quality of the film, then most people might want to sit this one out altogether. However, critical reception won’t necessarily sway some fans’ opinions, for even though the Warcraft movie received generally negative reviews, there were still some gamers who enjoyed the film.
Nevertheless, it seems as if the Assassin’s Creed film will do little to stop the general consensus that video game movies are bad. Even though this is the case, it’s quite possible that the rest of Ubisoft’s movies could eventually end the trend, by having a film based on a game that ends up being relatively well-received by fans and critics alike. After all, the source material for the publisher and developer’s next theatrical releases in The Division and Watch Dogs have plenty of promise when it comes to being adapted from the gaming world to the big screen.
The Assassin’s Creed movie releases in theaters on December 21, 2016.
