More than 25 years after its original release, Shenmue continues to leave its mark on creators far beyond the world of video games.
In a recent interview with Polygon, filmmaker Bassam Tariq, director of the upcoming Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, starring Mahershala Ali, discussed some of the video games that have influenced his approach to storytelling. Among them was none other than Shenmue.
When asked whether video games influenced the way his latest film moves between major life events, quieter moments and combat, Tariq revealed his love for both Chrono Trigger and the original Shenmue.
Tariq explained that what particularly resonated with him was the emotional journey of watching Ryo Hazuki develop as a fighter while simultaneously experiencing the much more ordinary aspects of his everyday life. It is that contrast between the mundane and the extraordinary that Shenmue fans will know only too well.
Speaking about the experience, Tariq said he was moved by seeing Ryo “learn how to fight” while also experiencing “the banality of his every day.”
Here’s the quotation from Polygon in full
Do you think about video games when you make a movie like this? As much as movies? It’s only dawning on me now the way that this movie elegantly slides from big life moments to combat kinda has a lot to do with “open-world” storytelling.
Absolutely. My favorite game is Chrono Trigger. I also loved that game on the Dreamcast that everyone really hated… Shenmue? I loved the first Shenmue. I had to get a pirated version of Shenmue 2 because it never came out, or only came out in Europe. It was such an emotional journey to see this character learn how to fight. Then to also be in the banality of his every day. And that was something that I was really moved by.
Damn, I think you made a good version of a Shenmue movie.
Here’s something that’s really great about Shenmue: It takes place in the ’80s, I think? But it’s trying to go back to this lore that’s back in the day, very fantastical, but everything’s still very grounded. In Shenmue 2, you’re in Hong Kong and so much of it is working a job, on a forklift. And it’s like… what am I doing here? I love that. Because then there’s something that then pays off that when the fights happen, and they actually feel so alive, you’re so invested.
It is fantastic to see that philosophy continuing to resonate with filmmakers and creators so many years later.
Shenmue’s influence on modern gaming has been discussed countless times, but moments such as this demonstrate that its legacy extends much further. More than a quarter of a century later, creators are still finding inspiration in the way Shenmue approached character, pacing, world-building and the quiet moments between the action.
Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother is directed by Bassam Tariq and stars Mahershala Ali, with its theatrical release beginning on September 25.
