Based off the video game of the same name (which in turn is based on the first part of the Divine Comedy), the game is essentially retelling the story of Dante's Inferno, imagining Dante as a Templar Knight. A good concept and certainly worth a look at. The film itself was used as a companion piece to this movie, I guess to boost sales.
Now, as a general rule of cinema, video game adaptations to movie don't do so well, for whatever reason. Sadly, this film is no exception.
First of all, the good points. It follows the storyline of the game very closely, in the sense that Dante gets to travel through the nine circles of Hell to fight demons. So if you've played the game, you'll probably be pleased at how closely it follows the general way the game is done. Next, the voice acting is actually pretty good. Dante is voiced by Graham McTavish (mostly known for his work in British TV), and he does a pretty good job - though his voice is usually limited to talking quietly or screaming. The other actor worthy of note is Steven Blum as Lucifer. Blum is a brilliant voice actor who has an extensive career mainly includes animation and video games. He has a real deep voice which is suited to villain roles - so he's great for this part.
Now, the bad parts. Firstly, the nine circles of hell themselves. While the overall design of them is great (and they keep in the major encounters from the game), they don't really develop them in the way they do in the game. As this is a 70 min movie, the general execution feels rushed and we don't get a chance to really soak in the atmosphere of each circle, so in the end it doesn't really give the feeling of dread and terror that the game does.
But my biggest problem is the animation. Six studios did the animation for this film, each taking on a different part of the story. The problem with this is that the characters designs change with each animation. And the animation itself ranges from the mediocre to the just plain ridiculous. Dante and the others characters are constantly changing and it becomes really jarring. I think the worst case of this are the last two sections, where Dante and the devil just look terrible! Another problem with this is that the continuity suffers. Example, in one section, Dante remembers how he murdered a group of prisoners during the war. When it changes to the next animation studio, they play out the exact same scene almost word for word! Another part remembers Dante's father as greedy, evil man, but later on, it shows Dante's father trying to protect her, claiming her to be innocent. This just makes the story hard to follow and, to be honest, it becomes really boring after a while.
And don't even get me started with the lip sync. Sometimes the characters mouths don't even move at all and they still talk! It's such a shame as this could have been a good film, but these little things ruined it for me. If you're a fan of the game, then you can check it out for yourself, but personally, I'd stay away from this one. It's a wasted opportunity.
Now, as a general rule of cinema, video game adaptations to movie don't do so well, for whatever reason. Sadly, this film is no exception.
First of all, the good points. It follows the storyline of the game very closely, in the sense that Dante gets to travel through the nine circles of Hell to fight demons. So if you've played the game, you'll probably be pleased at how closely it follows the general way the game is done. Next, the voice acting is actually pretty good. Dante is voiced by Graham McTavish (mostly known for his work in British TV), and he does a pretty good job - though his voice is usually limited to talking quietly or screaming. The other actor worthy of note is Steven Blum as Lucifer. Blum is a brilliant voice actor who has an extensive career mainly includes animation and video games. He has a real deep voice which is suited to villain roles - so he's great for this part.
Now, the bad parts. Firstly, the nine circles of hell themselves. While the overall design of them is great (and they keep in the major encounters from the game), they don't really develop them in the way they do in the game. As this is a 70 min movie, the general execution feels rushed and we don't get a chance to really soak in the atmosphere of each circle, so in the end it doesn't really give the feeling of dread and terror that the game does.
But my biggest problem is the animation. Six studios did the animation for this film, each taking on a different part of the story. The problem with this is that the characters designs change with each animation. And the animation itself ranges from the mediocre to the just plain ridiculous. Dante and the others characters are constantly changing and it becomes really jarring. I think the worst case of this are the last two sections, where Dante and the devil just look terrible! Another problem with this is that the continuity suffers. Example, in one section, Dante remembers how he murdered a group of prisoners during the war. When it changes to the next animation studio, they play out the exact same scene almost word for word! Another part remembers Dante's father as greedy, evil man, but later on, it shows Dante's father trying to protect her, claiming her to be innocent. This just makes the story hard to follow and, to be honest, it becomes really boring after a while.
And don't even get me started with the lip sync. Sometimes the characters mouths don't even move at all and they still talk! It's such a shame as this could have been a good film, but these little things ruined it for me. If you're a fan of the game, then you can check it out for yourself, but personally, I'd stay away from this one. It's a wasted opportunity.