‘Assassin’s Creed’ Takes More Than A Leap Of Faith | Film Review

It’s no secret that there hasn’t been a great movie adaptation of a video game…ever. Yeah, I said it. Sure, “Silent Hill” was pretty faithful to the original property, and “Warcraft” wasn’t nearly as bad as critics said it was. But we have yet to see a single film that manages to capture the magic of the story from a video game and translate it to a two-hour experience that works. I’ll be direct: I’ve been hanging my hat on developer Ubisoft’s “Assassin’s Creed” to be the one to finally bridge the gap between the two mediums. It has a surprisingly deep story, is genuinely clever, and has characters stabbing others in the neck with hidden blades under their wrists. It’s the perfect recipe for an entertaining cinematic experience, so what could possibly go wrong?

Sadly, quite a bit actually. “Assassin’s Creed” has so much potential to be a great movie, but it suffers from its reliance on adhering to a Hollywood formula of storytelling. It takes up a mere two hours instead of weaving a lengthy tapestry that has the luxury of getting its audience invested for more than one sitting. Look, I get it. Video games are a completely different medium than movies; but what’s the disconnect between the two where we can’t have this catalyst to bridge the gaps between them?

So let’s get into it.

Why is this property so near and dear to my heart? Yes, I know, it’s a video game. But there’s more to the appeal than that, believe it or not. The story centers around a classic battle between two groups of historical figures known as “The Assassins” and “The Templars”, which (I’ve learned in my college years) is a real-life feud that goes well into our past. The embellished version of the real story has the Templars pursuing an ancient relic known as the “Apple of Eden” in their attempts to propagate their religious beliefs and eradicate anyone who gets in the way of their thinking. They do so with the help of a technology known as “The Animus”, which connects users to their ancestor’s memories through their DNA. The Templars acquire descendants of the Assassins in order to trace their memories to track down the location of the Apple of Eden.

The story of the film follows this history lesson well enough, but through the eyes of an unlikely source: a convict by the name of Callum Lynch (Michael Fassbender), who has been sentenced to capital punishment. Despite reluctantly accepting his fate at the end of an IV needle, he wakes instead up to find that he is the next subject to be used by this group to uncover the item they desire so badly. Yes, Cal has a history with the feud between these two enemies. Not only does he have an ancient ancestor who was an Assassin, but it turns out his father was also involved with the Creed, a story beat that plays a vital role in this particular plot. Callum eventually agrees to help the Templars in their quest, but things get messy when the other descendants of the Assassins who are also housed at the facility make things interesting.

My biggest complaint with this film is the amount of exposition done throughout. It’s advertised as an awesome adventure during the Spanish Inquisition, yet the majority of the time is spent in present-day instead. Now, I understand that those who haven’t played the games this movie is based on might need to be reminded of the fact that Cal isn’t actually in 1492 Spain, yet every time I saw a shot of the Animus during action sequences, I was taken completely out of the adventure. Show it to me once or twice; no one is going to think that our main character is actually anywhere but inside a machine, and it feels disrespectful to the audience’s intelligence.

Michael Fassbender is obviously the star of this movie, and definitely deserves top billing. His ability to convey a wide range of emotion – from fear of death to badass Assassin – is great and better than anything we saw in the games. Marion Cotillard as Sofia, the scientist in charge of the Animus, succeeds in providing the warmth and tenderness that will make those new to the Assassin’s Creed universe question with which group to side. And how can you not love Jeremy Irons? That voice is so iconic, and his demeanor fits perfectly as one of the seedier higher-ups within the Templar ranks. Outside of those three performances, nothing else really stood out, but three quality actors is more than I expected, so I’m happy.

Here’s where I am mixed with this movie: the production. The modern-setting works just fine, but the reason we came to see this one is to witness the scenes from the Spanish Inquisition. What works the best is the choreography of the action sequences. Flashbacks to the Animus aside, they truly capture the magic of being a member of the Creed. There’s plenty of hidden blades, leaps of faith, and parkour. What threw me off was the attempt to pull the “Wizard of Oz” trick to make sure the audience knows that we’re not in the real world. Spain looked dusty and smoky, to the point of it being a distraction. The audience should be able to easily discern between the real world and that in the Animus; they’re 600 years apart.

There’s a lot to like in “Assassin’s Creed”. I truly believe that there’s a good movie buried beneath a lot of unnecessary traits. It just wasn’t executed as well as I had hoped, and sure isn’t the savior for films based on video game properties. Still, we’re getting closer, and this makes me hopeful for the future of the genre. “Assassin’s Creed” is by no means a bad film, but it’s far from the great one fans have been waiting for.