Director Uwe Boll’s adaptation of the horror video game,Alone in the Dark, was released in 2005 and has gone down in history as the worst video game movie ever made with an abysmal score on Rotten Tomatoes. Originally developed by Infogrames in 1992, theAlone in the Darkvideo game franchise typically follows private investigator, Edward Carnby, who spends his time searching for undead creatures who pose a threat to humanity. The video game franchise has seen the release of several sequels and a2024 reboot of the originalAlone in the Dark, which was met with positive reviews.
Since the 1990s, several movies based on popular video games have been released, which have seen varying degrees of critical success. Recent movies such asDetective Pikachu(2019), theSonic the Hedgehogfranchise (2020), andThe Super Mario Bros. Movie(2023) have been ranked assome of the best video game movies ever made, due to their faithfulness to the original source material and performances. Others, such asUncharted(2022) andA Minecraft Movie(2025), have received mixed reviews but were financially successful. Despite the improvements,2005’sAlone in the Darkranks as one of the worst horror moviesever made.
Alone In The Dark Is The Lowest-Rated Video Game Movie On Rotten Tomatoes
Alone In The Dark Was Directed By Uwe Boll
The 2005 movie adaptation ofAlone in the Darkstarred Christian Slater as Edward Carby, alongside Tara Reid and Stephen Dorff. The movie depicted Edward Carby teaming up with his former partner, Aline Cedric, and Commander Richard Burke, to investigate the works of a mysterious tribe called the Abkani that disappeared centuries prior. The group is also forced to deal with attacks from supernatural creatures connected to the tribe.AloneintheDarkwaspannedbycriticsuponreleaseand ranks as the lowest-rated video game movie onRotten Tomatoes, with a score of only 1%.
2005
1%
2003
House of the Dead
3%
2009
2007
4%
Uwe Boll
Alone in the Darkwas heavily criticized for its confusing plot, lackluster acting, Boll’s direction and production, poor horror sequences, and lack of faithfulness to the source material; many critics have cited it as one of the worst movies of all time. In an interview, the screenwriter,BlairErickson,revealedthathisoriginalscriptwasmorefaithfultothevideogamefranchise, but Boll was “angry” with the result and demanded multiple changes (viaSomethingAwful).Alone in the Darkwas alsoone of several video game movies that bombed at the box office, grossing only $12.7 million off a budget of $20 million.
Alone In The Dark Somehow Got A Sequel 3 Years Later (And It Was Just As Bad)
Uwe Boll Served As Producer On The Sequel
Despite its critical failings and its poor box office results,Alone in the Darkreceived a sequel in 2008. The role of Edward Carnby was recast to Rick Yune after Christian Slater chose not to return and the squel depicts Carnby teaming up with a former witch-hunter named Abner Lundberg (Lance Henriksen) to track down a witch, Elisabeth Dexter (Allison Lange), who intends to steal the soul of a young woman named Natalie (Rachel Specter).UweBollreturnedtothemoviefranchiseasaproducer, while both Peter Sheerer and Michael Roesch served as co-directors.
Similar to its predecessor,Alone in the Dark IIproved to be a disappointment with viewers and was criticized as a dull and unnecessary sequel to a poorly rated movie. However,thesequeldidreceivepraisefromcriticsforbeingmorefaithfultotheoriginalgames, its production and the performance of Rick Yune as Edward Carnby; it has been considered to be significantly better than the original movie (viaIGN). The 2005 movie,Alone in the Dark,has since been recognized as a “so bad, it’s good” adaptation of the popular video game franchise.
Sources:Rotten Tomatoes,Something Awful,IGN
Alone in the Dark
An intense supernatural thriller that follows Edward Carnby, a paranormal investigator drawn into a world of ancient evil when artifacts from a lost civilization are discovered. These artifacts unleash deadly creatures and dark forces that threaten humanity. Teaming up with archaeologist Aline Cedrac, Carnby uncovers a sinister conspiracy tied to these ancient relics. As they battle terrifying entities, they must unravel the mystery behind the artifacts to prevent a catastrophic invasion. Combining action, horror, and mystery, the film explores the intersection of science and the supernatural in a race against time to save the world.
