Dino Crisis is a cult classic that needs a movie adaptation…
We take a look at the 1999 survival horror game, analysing the story, the themes it explores and how a movie might be cast.
Transcript
Dinosaurs and horror are two things that seem like an obvious recipe for success. I mean you’ve got literal demon lizards of all shapes and sizes, and you’re telling me this hasn’t been milked into oblivion for spooks? I still don’t get it, but at least there are a few notable examples, like Dino Crisis.
Ah, Dino Crisis – Capcom’s little problem child. While Resident Evil has been a cultural phenomenon for nearly 30 years, touching almost all mediums of entertainment, DC hasn’t even had a whiff of a re-release.
If you’ve not played it, it’s essentially what would happen if you smashed Resident Evil up with Jurassic Park and slurped up all the delicious, prehistoric survival horror pixels. This makes a lot of sense as it and Resi were both helmed by Shinji Mikami.
The plot follows Regina, a member of a special operations team sent to Ibis Island to recover a rogue scientist. What starts as a seemingly straightforward mission spirals into a fight for survival against dinosaurs, brought to the present through experimental time-travel technology.
Basically, if you stretched out the nail-biting kitchen scene in the original Jurassic Park into a whole story.
Now there’s been a tonne of articles, videos and general chatter on why Dino Crisis needs a sequel or a remaster in the same vein as the recent Resi ones. But I’m going a step further.
For context, my buddy Drew recently did a video on our UDS Films channel on why the endings of every single Paul W.S. Anderson Resident Evil movie doesn’t make sense. And it got me thinking about how many bloody chances that franchise got to get it right, with probably a generous 7% success rate.
And it got me thinking, why has Resident Evil had chance after chance, when Dino Crisis hasn’t had one crack of the whip?
Ok, so I’m going to go into more detail on the plot of the game, and please, pause this video and comment if at any point you think this wouldn’t make a dope movie. Also, very obvious spoiler warnings, but this game came out 25 years ago – you’ve had time.
The game kicks off with a covert operation involving a special forces team sent to investigate a remote island research facility. The team, comprised of Regina, Gail, Rick, and Cooper, is tasked with locating Dr. Edward Kirk, a genius scientist presumed dead for three years. However, intelligence reports suggest he’s alive and continuing his research on the island. The team parachutes onto Ibis Island under the cover of night, but things go awry almost immediately. Cooper is killed by an unseen creature, foreshadowing the dangers that lie ahead.
Upon regrouping, Regina and her team find the facility abandoned and in disarray. It becomes clear that the island is not merely a scientific outpost but a breeding ground for something far more sinister. As they delve deeper, they encounter their first dinosaur, revealing the true nature of their mission: survival in a place overrun by prehistoric creatures brought to the present by Dr. Kirk’s experiments with “Third Energy.”
The team splits up to cover more ground, with Regina tasked with restoring power and unlocking doors to facilitate their search for Kirk. Along the way, she uncovers documents that hint at the unethical nature of Kirk’s experiments and the catastrophic potential of Third Energy. Despite the ever-present threat of dinosaur attacks, Regina successfully locates Kirk, only to find him uncooperative and dismissive of the danger his work poses.
As the plot thickens, Regina and her teammates discover not all is as it seems. They encounter a survivor, Tom, who reveals a government conspiracy to weaponise Third Energy. It also becomes apparent that there are traitors within their own ranks, because of course there would be.
In the climax, Regina and her team formulate a plan to escape the island while stopping Kirk’s experiments from causing further damage. They confront Kirk, who, in his hubris, fails to see the error of his ways, leading to a final showdown. Regina manages to capture Kirk and the team heads to the extraction point, only to face one last obstacle: a bloody T-Rex.
The game can end in multiple ways, but in the canonical ending, Regina and her team escape with Kirk in custody, leaving the island. It’s later destroyed by a missile strike intended to bury the Third Energy project in a classic act of cover up.
THE END!
Tell me it wouldn’t make a great motion picture! The blend of dinosaurs and technology would make for a fresh take on the creature feature genre. If anything, it’d have more in common with Aliens than Jurassic Park, and that’s like saying it’d have more in common with cookies than ice cream. You can’t go wrong.
The game’s environment would also make for a great set. Who doesn’t love an isolated research facility with a dark secret? It would absolutely provide the perfect setting for a tense, atmospheric thriller that can explore themes of human hubris, the ethics of scientific experimentation, and the unpredictable consequences of playing god. I hope Daddy Ian is proud of me after that one.
But for real, Dino Crisis really does tackle themes that are both timeless and profoundly relevant today. It delves into the dangers of unchecked scientific advancement, the ethical considerations of genetic manipulation, and the environmental impact of human intervention.
A film adaptation could further explore these themes, offering a commentary on contemporary issues like climate change, biodiversity loss, and the ethical boundaries of scientific research. Or it could just be a dumb spooky horror film, I’m not picky.
Obviously, I had to start fantasy casting Dino Crisis the Movie, and you’ll now see why I don’t have the imagination to be a casting agent.
So we’ve got Regina, our fiery-haired protagonist, and the immediate thought goes to someone like Bryce Dallas Howard. She’d probably do a good job, but she also played one of the leads in the Jurassic World trilogy, and we’re already playing a dangerous game with a title like Dino Crisis, it does give ‘Billy and the Clone-asaurus’ vibe. So let’s give the role to Jessica Chastain, why not?
Then you’ve got Gail, the tough-as-nails leader of the team with a mysterious past. As this is what I want to happen and not what I think’s going to happen, I’m bringing a young Kurt Russell back to the future to bring the perfect blend of charisma and intensity. Give some of the quiet command of Mac or Snake Plissken and I think we’re on to a winner.
And what’s a good horror film without a good villain, so who can we get to play Dr. Edward Kirk, the genius behind the Third Energy experiment and the reason behind the team’s mission on Ibis Island. Logic would suggest someone talented enough to convey the ethical ambiguity of his actions, providing a compelling antagonist whose motives blur the lines between right and wrong. Someone like Benedict Cumberbatch or Ralph Fiennes…
I’m going with Bruce Campbell.Â
But let’s be honest, the real stars of the shows will be the dinosaurs. We know the technology’s there to make them look almost lifelike, but with the right creative force behind the designs, they could be truly horrific. Imagine Tom Savini’s take on a Raptor, chomping down on some sweet giblets.
I was wondering if we should do the whole Jaws ‘keep things out of sight ‘cause it’s scarier thing’, but frankly I want a full blown splatterfest.
As for the director, I don’t know, give it to Alex Garland. He normally does great stuff. As long as it’s not Paul W.S. Anderson I think we’ll be ok. Maybe Uwe Boll, that’ll be fun. You can see why I leave the movie channel to Drew.
But seriously, I really don’t know why Dino Crisis has been left to gather dust as a cult classic. Perhaps a feature length movie is a bit much to ask at this point (frankly I’d take Switch port), but a man can dream, a man can dream.
But have you ever played Dino Crisis, and would you like to see it made into a move? Please let me know in the comments below, I’d love to read your thoughts. And while you’re down there, don’t forget to like and subscribe for plenty more on all things gaming, check out UDS Films to get your movie fix, and you can always visit upsidedownshark.com to keep up with everything else going on.
Until then my name is Tom, this has been UDS and we’ll see you next time.
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Tom Baker
I like Star Wars, heavy metal and BBQ Pringles.
I definitely like the idea of Ash being in a Dino Crisis movie, but disagree with the other casting idea’s. Regina should be a 24 ish year old woman, definitelyone with a great butt lol, and for Gail we’d obviously need someone else, as unless we get time travel by then (which we aren’t lol), we can’t have a younger Kurt Russell, though he’d have been good 15-20 years ago, so would the guy who played the general in the 1st Avatar. So long as they had greying hair, and looked like a real man, they’d be good. Don’t know who could be Rick, but he’d have to be early 20’s and cocky, maybe the guy who was in Fallout, but preferably a new actor. Get some new unknown factor in there.