A Portal movie is getting closer: Backrooms director Kane Parsons visited Valve. All the facts about the possible film adaptation of the science fiction classic.
Agreed. A funny and entertaining story in one medium does not necessarily translate 1:1 to a different medium. However, there are things that cinematic storytelling does differently (arguably better, though that’s a personal preference) than experiential storytelling. One area that an adaptation of Portal could focus on which was (intentionally) de-emphasized by Valve is the potential for mind-bending visual trickery and bonkers shot compositions. Not that these things were totally absent from the game, but Valve’s longstanding refusal to move away from a limited first person perspective put a hard ceiling on what they could accomplish visually. A filmmaker who doesn’t have that same bugaboo could probably do some pretty cool stuff with the concept.
Of course, interesting visuals don’t mean the adaptation will be good, but at least there’s an avenue for doing something with the property that the games did not explore.
Agreed. A funny and entertaining story in one medium does not necessarily translate 1:1 to a different medium. However, there are things that cinematic storytelling does differently (arguably better, though that’s a personal preference) than experiential storytelling. One area that an adaptation of Portal could focus on which was (intentionally) de-emphasized by Valve is the potential for mind-bending visual trickery and bonkers shot compositions. Not that these things were totally absent from the game, but Valve’s longstanding refusal to move away from a limited first person perspective put a hard ceiling on what they could accomplish visually. A filmmaker who doesn’t have that same bugaboo could probably do some pretty cool stuff with the concept.
Of course, interesting visuals don’t mean the adaptation will be good, but at least there’s an avenue for doing something with the property that the games did not explore.