By Ned Jordan
I’ve seen plenty of movies based on videogames, and they almost without fail prove to be disappointing. Games with fascinating stories, or even an entire rich fictional universe cultivated over the years in the case of game franchises, somehow only inspire films with weak plots and cliched dialog. Fan service without respect for the fans outside of their money. Hollywood, please never make a BioShock film unless you hand it to Christopher Nolan.
Given this history, Exit 8 was a refreshing surprise for me. The film is based on a small indie game that became somewhat of a viral hit in the gaming world, The Exit 8 (the filmmakers apparently didn’t pay for the rights to include the definite article from the game’s title in that of the film). This is a game with a faceless, unvoiced, and unnamed protagonist, and one that doesn’t provide the player with any kind of story or guidance, but that still manages to generate an unsettling atmosphere and create feelings of psychological apprehension. I expected the blank slate of a story offered by the game to lead to an even bigger script disaster than could be accomplished when videogame filmmakers are handed a ready-made rich narrative. Well, I was in for a surprise.
Exit 8 is directed by Genki Kawamura, who also cowrote the script. Kazunari Ninomiya gives a face and body to the game’s protagonist, with Yamato Kochi taking on the role of the mysterious stranger players encounter in the game. I don’t want to give away anything about the plot – spoilers are a cardinal sin in psychological thriller reviews – but for those who played the game I will say that the film opens on a crowded subway train shortly before the protagonist finds himself at the point at which the game opens.
In homage to the game that inspired it, the movie begins in a first-person perspective, but I’m happy to report to those of you who are prone to motion sickness that once this nod to the videogame experience is complete the film switches to mounted cameras. My wife is continually plagued by the “shaky cam” trend that will not die, and she was able to watch the movie while simultaneously holding down her popcorn. Just past the quarter mark, this century seems to be filled with trends that will not die, but at this point I digress and risk revealing my age. The filmmakers were careful to capture the look of the game’s environments to the point that those who played the game will feel at home, so to speak, but there is more to the film’s sets than you saw on your game screen – which is actually welcome since the price of your ticket will cost you more than that of the game itself, after all. And the filmmakers should be given credit for making so much of the film familiar to the game’s players while also creating an experience that is just as enjoyable to those who never played The Exit 8, or any other game for that matter.
Don’t expect to walk out of the theater with all of the answers to the questions that you had after playing the game – the film leaves its own ending open to interpretation. I’ve been left wanting to see the film again to look for the clues it left behind that may sway my opinion one way after another on how things played out in the film’s aftermath. After watching the movie, the first thing that came to my mind was the ending of Inception and the way it left me thinking about whether “he did or he didn’t” for days after I saw it. Hmm, another reference to Christopher Nolan, I’m starting to feel an urge to watch Memento again.
Exit 8 really sets a standard for videogame movie adaptations. It will be familiar to fans of the game, but rather than presenting a lazy version of the game’s universe it actually enhances it. For those who haven’t played The Exit 8, and even for those who don’t play games at all, it delivers a thought-provoking and haunting tale. It’s the perfect date movie for the gamer/non-gamer couples out there. Or the other combinations of that pairing.
Exit 8 made the film festival rounds and had its theatrical release in Japan last year. It will make its debut in theaters in the US on April 10th in Japanese with English subtitles.
Final Rating: ★★★★½