Several years ago, EA announced that it was working with producers Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey to turn their sci-fi/horror video game series Dead Space into a movie series with D.J. Caruso (Taking Lives, Disturbia, The Disappointments Room) acting as director. Since then, EA has stated that it is committed to making this a reality, although that was back in 2013, so who knows what’s going on with that. At one point, John Carpenter even stated that he’d love to direct an adaptation.
It’s a sad tale of yet another film entering development hell because…who knows? That’s the worst part! If we could get word as to why a movie isn’t progressing, it’d make the pain all the more bearable and even passable. But when something is promised and then it disappears without a word, well that just rankles at my mind.
Here’s the problem with Dead Space not getting a movie adaptation: sci-fi and horror are two genres that blend so well together, it’s amazing we’re not seeing more of it on a regular basis. Since cinema began, there have always been movies that aimed to terrify and ones that dared to dream of the future, whether it be exciting or cataclysmic. So when you marry those two styles together, you have the foundation for some absolutely phenomenal and fascinating storylines.
Some of the best and most recognized horror films have strong elements of sci-fi contained within. There are the obvious choices, like Alien and The Thing but we shouldn’t forget about Frankenstein, The Fly, Pitch Black, Re-Animator, It Came From Outer Space, and Event Horizon, amongst others. Even the often overlooked yet incredibly solid Pandorum is well worth your time as it is probably the closest we’ve gotten to a Dead Space film yet. These films show the wide range of applications a filmmaker can apply to a sci-fi/horror blend, from using it sparingly to making it the entire backdrop of the story.
What sets Dead Space apart from other games or films is how richly detailed the story and universe is. Not just content with an obsessive religion, a strange archaeological discovery, and government conspiracies, the game also uses mental illness, grief, loss, and other human emotions to weave a complex narrative that only expands with the sequel. It also doesn’t limit the story to the USG Ishimura, instead making this story cross planets and eons. As if that weren’t all enough, the game then brings forth some truly disgusting and haunting enemy designs, each more grotesque and intimidating than the last.
All of this matters because an adaption of Dead Space into a movie would allow some of these elements to be further explored in a place that the games didn’t allow: anywhere that Isaac Clark, the main character, wasn’t. In all three games, we’re tied like a noose to Isaac and all of his experiences. A film would allow us to see other characters, other scenarios, and other stories that all add to the world that EA created.
Furthermore, it’s been a while since we’ve had something really fascinating and terrifying take place on a spaceship when it comes to sci-fi/horror films. Almost always the story takes place on a planet, which means that there is a whole world to escape to OR a spaceship by which the character’s can leave. With Dead Space, it’d be much like Alien and the “haunted house” scenario.
Finally, cutting through the bullshit, I just really want something cold, scary, and gory to hit the screen. I want a movie where there don’t have to be a lot of lines, where the action takes priority over unnecessary characterizations. I want a movie that doesn’t hold the audience’s hands every step of the way, where we are allowed to put the pieces together ourselves. I want to see madness and science fiction come together in something terrifying once again.
It’s been several years since EA announced Dead Space would become a movie. Maybe it’s time they brought that project back to life.
