Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Alcamtar 04-30-08, 06:54 PM	Would you make it at all? For every LOTR quality screen adaptation, there are a dozen other movies that are an embarrassment. Animated, or Live Action? Mystara is very high fantasy, do you think live action would really cut it? Maybe animated would fit the world better. Where would you set it, and what story would you tell? I'm thinking WOTI is an obvious choice, but probably too big for a 2 hour movie. Voyage of the Princess Ark? That would almost certainly need to be animated. I'd probably vote for something straightforward and iconic, like rescuing Aleena from Bargle. For something epic, teh X4/X5 series would make a great quest adventure. So would the Isle of Dread. (what, isn't that already a movie? :)) Who would direct it, and who would star in what roles? This pretty much hinges on the previous question.
Swampskin 04-30-08, 09:59 PM	I'm currently reading "The Tainted Sword" from the Penhaligon Trilogy, so I would definitely vote for a live action version of this story. What's not to like about it? It uses the iconic setting of the Grand Duchy of Karameikos and has enough action to keep the story moving briskly. Who would direct it, and who would star in what roles? It would have to be directed by Peter Jackson! :D An alternative choice would be Ridley Scott who has done good work on historical movies such as Gladiator and Kingdom of Heaven. As for actors, hmmm..... that's a much more difficult question! :confused: How about Russell Crowe as Fain Flinn, Kate Beckinsale as Johauna Menhir (with a red dye job), and Daniel Craig as Lord Maldrake? Frank :D
Cthulhudrew 04-30-08, 11:50 PM	We had a thread (http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=512676) on this several years back that was interesting. I think your idea about X4/X5 would make for a good "epic" Mystara movie, although I can't think offhand of too many other Mystara stories that would work (aside from Skarda's Mirror, which I talked about in that thread.)
Hugin 05-01-08, 09:49 AM	Would you make it at all? Sure I would. If I were doing it I'd know it would be done the way I think is 'right'! ;) Animated, or Live Action? Live action. I love live action fantasy. Where would you set it, and what story would you tell? Night's Dark Terror (B10) would make a cool movie in my mind. Who would direct it, and who would star in what roles? I like Swampskin's suggestion of Ridley Scott for director. I really have no idea who I'd want as actors though. I guess there'd be a full casting process to find them. Skarda's Mirror could be an interesting choice. Castle Amber could possibly be done in a more spooky/suspense style. Saga of the Shadow Lord would be a good possibility as well.
Zacaros 05-01-08, 10:46 AM	i hated jackson's lotr a lot, i really dislike his "style", if you can call it so...anyway Would you make it at all? yes, a good d&d movie could be only a Mystara one, no douts about it Animated, or Live Action? Animated, because animation needs to break new grounds in the west, and leave the japanese standards behind Where would you set it, and what story would you tell? that's the hard part : a whole new story could be a good idea, but i'd like to see a grand-quest, starting in karameikos, xrossing darokin, glantri, thyatis, and even the black sands.Oh and i want to see shadow elves as well...in the end we may need a saga Who would direct it, and who would star in what roles? time for the uncommon, non-spectacular directors :Ralph Bakshi for the animations and for the overall design.Derek Landy could be a perfect man in the perfect setting, but i would add Michele Soavi in the mix, or Terry Gilliam. Anyway i vote the Saga of the shadow lord too.
havard 05-01-08, 01:38 PM	I think an animated movie would be neat actually, maybe even half-reminiscent of the classic D&D cartoons, though more serious. If this was going to be the definitive Mystara movie, taking some ideas from WotI would be interesting, though IMO it would have to be heavily modified to work: * Rethink the way the Immortals are represented. It might be best to simply not give them actual roles in the movie, and have someone like Rheddrian reveal to the heroes that the War is caused by a conflict between the Immortals over something that is draining the magic from Mystara. It is suspected that the Glantrians with their experiments are somehow behind this. The final scene will have Etienne d'Ambreville fighting some immaterial force, before being sucked into the Radience, but Ixion and a possible Old One should be left as abstract forces at best. Rheddrian will explain things at the end, and before that the heroes will have a chance to prevent the Doomsday Device from destroying the entire world, but not unable to save Alphatia, which should be presented as a sad thing. The War should not be seen as black and white. * Simplify the war. Don't bring in the Desert Nomads. Have the war be between Glantri, Thyatis, Darokin and Alfheim on one side, with Alphatia and the Shadowelf on the other. * The cast Fighter: Mentzor, the warrior from the Red Box cover Fighter 2: Morgan Ironwolf Cleric: Aleena Thief: Black Dougal (should die quite early on) Magic-User: A wizard from Ylaruam Elf: Beasthunter Halfling: The halfling from the Five Shires cover Dwarf: some dwarf based on the cover of the Rockhome gaz. * Bargle should also appear, perhaps even killing Aleena, before getting away. * The storyline with Kelter Zerben should be used. * The adventure hook featuring the Hollow World should be skipped to save time. The Hollow World can be mentioned in the introduction, and in the end Alphatia's fate in the Hollow World can be hinted at. * There should be an introductory scene featuring Blackmoor and Rheddrian's backstory if there is any way that can be done without making it cheesy. This is a good place to bring up the Hollow World, perhaps presenting it as a myth about a place within the earth where old civilizations are preserved, saying some believe that Blackmoor was saved there. This will help allude to Alphatia's fate towards the end and let us have a few shots of the HW for kicks :) Havard
Zacaros 05-01-08, 02:01 PM	havard, i choose you as the director of this movie :) really, you know your stuff
Cthulhudrew 05-01-08, 03:31 PM	Thief: Black Dougal (should die quite early on) From a poison trap, no less!
Patrick_Sullivan 05-01-08, 03:55 PM	Interesting topic! To the specific questions... Would you make it at all? I'm unsure. I think the disappointing Dungeons and Dragons, inspired at least in part by Alphatia, was a turnoff in a lot of ways. But there are certainly great examples of fantasy filmmaking out there, and I think Mystara could theoretically be the setting for one of them. Animated, or Live Action? I could go either way. I definitely agree that Anime does not fit Mystara, but I also would not want to see a low-quality animation job, so I think a Disney- or Dreamworks-quality animation effort is needed. Something like the recent Beowulf adaptation would be great, too. On the other hand, live action combined with digital effects could be very effective. Where would you set it, and what story would you tell? Mystara's strengths, in my mind, are its diversity and its ability to function as a real-feeling fantasy world, an immersive setting where things keep on happening whether the camera's rolling or not. I think the right pick is a smaller story in a setting that brings something strikingly different from the medieval Europe fantasy setting. For a lighthearted adventure romp, I like X6, Quagmire!--and it would have to include Enya's Sail Away. The Savage Baronies would make a great setting, mixing Western or Pirate genres with fantasy, but none of the published storylines jump out as especially screenworthy. Other settings that I think are intriguing are the Blacklore Valley, Yavdlom, Graakhalia, Ethengar, or Sind. A Bollywood production of a fantasy musical adventure in Sind sounds perfect! Or maybe a low budget film shot with handheld cameras focused entirely on an encounter with The Malakaz. Who would direct it, and who would star in what roles? That's much more difficult to nail down, and I think a cast of mainly unknowns is probably the way to go. Now, my question is, what's stopping us? YouTube and similar sites are crawling with examples of short film... surely there must be one or two aspiring filmmakers on this board. Why not start uploading Mystara-themed shorts?
Rhialto 05-04-08, 02:25 AM	One big issue with films is that 2 hours is actually an incrdibly short time to tell a story in. Every novel that has ever been turned into a film has had major chucnks and sidestories scrapped to make room. I recall one SF book that was converted faithfully, and it ended up as a 10-hour mini-series. WotI is at least as epic as any novel, if not more. I sincerely doubt it could be made into a movie without buthering the story. It would have to be one of the smaller modules I think. I'm kind of partial to five coins for a kingdom, actually.
Agathokles 05-04-08, 03:53 PM	Would you make it at all? Indeed, it is often better not to do a movie adaptation if one doesn't have the means -- see the D&D movies. Animated, or Live Action? Mystara is very high fantasy, do you think live action would really cut it? Maybe animated would fit the world better. Nowadays, it's almost only matter of how much money you can put into visual effects. Where would you set it, and what story would you tell? I'm thinking WOTI is an obvious choice, but probably too big for a 2 hour movie. Voyage of the Princess Ark? VotPA would obviously make for a great series, but it would be too long/disconnected for a movie. The Blood Brethren and Night's Dark Terror would make good trilogies. For single 2 hour movies, perhaps Davinos' Complaint or Curse of Xanathon. Who would direct it, and who would star in what roles? This pretty much hinges on the previous question.[/quote] Terry Gilliam would be my candidate for director. Cast would depend on the story, obviously. GP
firebee 05-06-08, 12:13 PM	Would you make it at all? For every LOTR quality screen adaptation, there are a dozen other movies that are an embarrassment. Animated, or Live Action? Mystara is very high fantasy, do you think live action would really cut it? Maybe animated would fit the world better. Where would you set it, and what story would you tell? I'm thinking WOTI is an obvious choice, but probably too big for a 2 hour movie. Voyage of the Princess Ark? That would almost certainly need to be animated. I'd probably vote for something straightforward and iconic, like rescuing Aleena from Bargle. For something epic, teh X4/X5 series would make a great quest adventure. So would the Isle of Dread. (what, isn't that already a movie? :)) Who would direct it, and who would star in what roles? This pretty much hinges on the previous question. I would do a live action movie with b-grade television actors (and perhaps even a lame comedian). The setting would be Glantri, Alphatia, or a similar setting where magic-users dominate the society. The story would chronicle the epic quest of young thief and his companions to retrieve a super-powerful artifact that controls dragons, and..... never mind.:weep:
Hugin 05-06-08, 12:33 PM	I would do a live action movie with b-grade television actors (and perhaps even a lame comedian). The setting would be Glantri, Alphatia, or a similar setting where magic-users dominate the society. The story would chronicle the epic quest of young thief and his companions to retrieve a super-powerful artifact that controls dragons, and..... never mind.:weep: You know, the ironic thing about this is that it sounds much like a lot of the games we had as teenagers when I was first playing D&D. As a matter of fact, the movie was probably a lot more accurate a portrayal of many games then we are willing to admit! ;)
firebee 05-06-08, 03:43 PM	You know, the ironic thing about this is that it sounds much like a lot of the games we had as teenagers when I was first playing D&D. As a matter of fact, the movie was probably a lot more accurate a portrayal of many games then we are willing to admit! ;) Too true! Although I've never seen a Beholder used a common guard in any game I've played! I actually do have a special place in my heart for the two D&D movies (the second being only slightly better than the first). It's just that after seeing my favorite super-hero (Iron Man) get a great movie, I was feeling sorry for myself that neither of my two favorite games (Classic D&D and Battletech) have received similar resources and effort. Quick poll: Who overacted the most in the first D&D movie: Jeremy Irons as Profion, or Bruce Payne as Damodar? I tried to come up with an answer myself, but my head almost exploded!
Traianus Decius Aureus 05-07-08, 09:41 AM	Would I make the movie? Yeah, I would. It couldn't be worse than most of the garbage made now. Live Action or Animated? Live action. Director? Depends on the movie plot: Peter Jackson for WotI, X1, X4/X5; Tim Burton for Castle Amber or Palace of the Silver Princess; Ridley Scott for DDA1/2. Casting? Hard to decide on because each different module has a different feel. Somehow I'd work Helena Bonham-Carter and Johnny Depp into Castle Amber (especially with Burton directing). Jessica Alba would be a must-have for Aleena, if she was in the movie.
arvedui 05-07-08, 10:28 AM	I always thought that CM7 The tree of life would be a good movie, or you think it is too much elf-oriented? Regards. AG