Peter Berg is getting the ball moving on his adaptation of the strategy board game Battleship. And while we hoped it was blind rumours, it seems that it will infact feature battleships vs aliens.
We Are Movie Geeks grabs tidbits all over the net from various interviews with Peter Berg in which he mentions the project:
* The villain of the film is going to be a race of aliens known as The Regents. They have come to Earth with a specific goal, not just domination or to wipe us out. Berg says their overall goal is similar to BRIDGE OVER THE RIVER KWAI. They will be realized using a prosthetics/CG combination that Berg likens to Davy Jones in PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN.
* The aliens presence and their goal brings them up against a five-ship fleet, the commanding officer of one being the main character of the film.
* Pre-production concepts were shown of the alien ships. They are described as “giant water bugs” with giant legs that allow them to race across the water. ILM is creating them.
* The technology of the alien race is not all that advanced beyond our own, and the film will incorporate strategic warfare in the battle between man and alien. Berg also explained that there will be elements from the board game utilized in the story.
* Someone at some point will exclaim, “You sank my battleship.”
* They are currently casting.
* Berg plans on filming some of the scenes in 3-D, and they are definitely looking at an IMAX release for this one.
Specific goal? Like Bridge on the River Kwai? So they are sent on a specific mission to take out a target instead of invading? Ok. I can buy that. It just means the scale of the film is not outright alien invasion, but rather an isolated encounter. Why remains to be seen.
The only game element I can see bringing this together is if somehow they are blinded by each other’s position and make random stabs at each other until a lucky hit tips them off to a location. Then shoot all around that spot til you find the whole vessel!
Of course someone will say “You Sank My Battleship” because otherwise how could you tie in this completely unrelated plot to the simplistic concept of the strategy board game??
I guarantee there will be a tie in version of the board game that will have one side represented by 5 Alien craft while the other side stays traditional Navy Vessels.
