Pook's Place

Yu-Gi-Oh! The Live Action Movie 2

Showdown in Battle City!

            Greetings all!  As some of you may remember, a few months ago I posted a series of articles detailing how I personally would like to see a live action Yu-Gi-Oh! movie made (remember, these were all my ideas, not based on any real movie news/rumors).  So, I decided that, in honor of the first animated movie’s release in America, to revisit my old ideas and move them forward to the inevitable Hollywood sequel!  Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Battle City!

            Rather than say the exact same things that I said last time, I figured I’ll just concentrate on the new aspects of the Battle City movie.  For the most part, the original cast would more than likely return (this would be aided by having them sign a two-picture deal when signing for the first one, a la X-Men).  This would help keep continuity (everything the same between the two movies).  Fans don’t like to see parts recast…::cough::Batman::cough::  Anyways, we’ve got some new roles to fill this time around, so here are my thoughts:

            Marik Ishtar – this will surely be the most sought-after role in the movie, being the main villain and all.  The thing is that you need someone with the right look.  Remember the movie Stargate?  The young guy who played Ra has the right kind of look for Marik, but I’m sure he’s too old now, and I don’t even know his name.  So, I’m going to go with David Anders (a.k.a. Sark on Alias).  He’s done crazy, he’s the right age and build, plus he’s an up-and-coming actor.  He’d just need to get a really good tan.  Add some Egyptian looking eye makeup, and you’re set. 

            Odion – this is another prime role.  In the anime, I don’t think they fully establish the age difference between Marik and Odion, so they might be able to get away with a slightly older actor.  Naturally, the first person who comes to mind is Arnold Vosloo – a.k.a. Imhotep, The Mummy himself.  He’s got the look, we’ve seen him bald, plus he’s really cool.  Sure, it’s an easy pick, but I’m sticking to it.  

            Ishizu Ishtar -   alright, last time around I said she’d make for a good Mai Valentine, but I think Ishizu would suit Keira Knightly better.  Keira’s got that exotic look, plus she is just slightly younger than David Anders, and they probably could pass for brother and sister.  Ishizu seems very poised and proper, overall, and Keira would certainly bring that to the character well. 

            The Rare Hunters – for the characters of Umbra, Lumis, and Arkana, it could really be anyone.  They wear masks so just get a decent actor to play them.  As for Strings, he doesn’t really say anything.  Another random actor would work fine – most big name people won’t take a role without lines (except for Boris Karloff, who played the Monster in the original Frankenstein). 

            Serenity Wheeler – ah, the damsel in distress.  I can see Lindsey Lohan (Mean Girls) in this role, but she’s all of a sudden become a major Hollywood player (i.e. won’t do the small roles).  But she’s got the right look for it, and she can act really well, so I’m sticking to her as my pick. 

            I decided to leave out Duke Devlin, because there wouldn’t be time for the Dungeon Dice Monsters storyline, so he’d just seem thrown in there for no reason – however, to appease the fans, he could make a cameo, like in a crowd shot or have his name mentioned over a loudspeaker – the kind of stuff they did in the X-Men movies to compensate for the fact that they couldn’t include every character. 

            As for the plot of the movie, it’d take place just before the start of Battle City, when everyone visits the Egyptian exhibit and Yami Yugi finally starts to realize who he is.  This could cover that part of the story, as well as Ishizu giving Kaiba his Obelisk the Tormentor (the best named card in the entire world – I want to be a tormentor!)  This would lead to the Battle City tournament, the Rare Hunters attacking people, everyone getting kidnapped, and ultimately, the showdowns on the blimp and the finals.  No, the Noah and the digital world sub-plot will NOT be included in this movie – I always thought that didn’t work, even in the anime (sure, some cool stuff, but in the middle of the other storyline?  Come on!).  It’s all really straightforward.  The only issue would be the pacing. 

There are so many events in Battle City, such as Yugi vs. the rare hunters, Joey vs. the villains of Duelist Kingdom, the 4 person duel, Serenity’s adventure, Joey vs. Yugi, etc.  The movie would be like 5 hours long.  So here’s what you do – simplify.  Rather than showing Joey battle everyone, include snippets of the duels, just to explain how he wins all of the new cards.  Then, in order to give him more, have him take on 1 or 2 of the rare hunters instead.  That way, Yugi and Kaiba could still have the 4 person duel with Umbra and Lumis.  During his duel with the Rare Hunters, Joey could be kidnapped, leading to him dueling Yugi – again, you don’t have to show him dueling everyone.  Forgive me, but I don’t remember when Yugi gets Slifer, but in this, he could just get it from Umbra and Lumis.  After Yugi vs. Joey, move to the semi-finals on the blimp, take care of those duels, have them land, let the finals take place.  The end.  It’s still going to be a longer movie than the first one, but there is a lot of story to get done, and I don’t think that the fans want this split into two movies – that would take away so much from it. 

Well, there you have it.  Remember, all of these ideas are original, so don’t contact movie sites saying “Hey, I’ve got this scoop about a live action Yu-Gi-Oh! movie!” because you don’t.  Also, no hate mail on the casting/story or whatnot.  Last time around, I got some good suggestions for casting, so if you want to give me feedback rather than angry emails, feel free to.  Additionally, I’d like to say that I’ll be seeing the movie in theaters this weekend, but sadly, not only don’t I have anyone to go see this with, I’m going to be very busy drooling over Alien vs. Predator, so I’m sorry but I probably won’t be posting a review of the movie.  That is, unless someone treats me to a screening.  Happy dueling.