‘Rampage’ is at its best when it’s wrecking stuff

I came to a conclusion while watching “Rampage.”

Many cinematic adaptations of video games stink because folks in Hollywood think they know more about good storytelling than they actually do. Although video games have improved immensely over the years as a storytelling medium, movie studios are stuck on the idea that adhering to formulaic plot structures and character arcs is the only way to make the big bucks.

I came to this conclusion because “Rampage” is a movie that’s so full of worn-out, cliched ideas from other movies, that it actually gets tiresome. The same-old storytelling nearly overwhelms the good qualities the movie has, and the result is a mixed blessing. At best.

“Rampage” features primate expert Davis Okoye (Dwayne Johnson) and his quest to save his long-time buddy, a gorilla named George. When George is infected by a mysterious pathogen and begins growing exponentially in size, strength and aggression, Davis teams up with genetic engineer Kate Caldwell (Naomie Harris) and federal agent Harvey Russell (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) to find a cure for George and put a stop to two other giant rampaging beasts that were mutated by the pathogen.

The video game version of “Rampage” has a pretty simple storyline. Three giant monsters, all of whom were human before being mutated, drop in on a series of cities and punch the crap out of everything in sight. Movie executives clearly didn’t think that was enough to sustain a feature-length film, so they crammed the movie version full of cliches to pad it out. There’s a tragedy in space, an evil corporation, a revenge subplot and a single-minded military leader.

Any one of those plot strands could be its own movie if done right. Here, they just seem like a bouquet of cinematic blossoms arranged by someone who didn’t know what they were doing. We lose sight of what we should care about most, the relationship between George and Davis, for long stretches of time because the movie is too busy flinging other plot strands at us. With another pass or two at the screenplay, some of that stuff could have been streamlined and we’d have a better movie.

That’s not to say that there’s nothing in “Rampage” worth seeing. Johnson is always entertaining. He has a combination of charisma, goofy humor, good looks and physicality that really holds your interest when he’s onscreen. Even though he’s playing pretty much the same character he plays in every movie here, he’s still enjoyable to watch.

Johnson gets help from the supporting cast. Morgan chews up scenery like a weed eater chews up quack grass, but he’s so charming as an actor that you just go with it. Malin Ackerman is perfect as the ice-cold executive that runs the movie’s evil corporation. Joe Manganiello shows up for a few scenes, giving a fun jolt to saggy mid-section of the movie.

The other big highlight is, of course, the giant monster fighting. There’s not really anything here that you haven’t seen in a Godzilla movie. And coming on the heels of “Pacific Rim: Uprising,” it seems we’ve already hit the threshold where scenes of mass urban destruction are getting old. Still, there’s a bit of wish fulfillment that comes from seeing powerful, enormous, unstoppable beast take out their frustrations on high-rise buildings and each other. Huh. Wonder what my psychologist would say about that.

A lot of destruction is going on in “Rampage,” and when stuff is getting wrecked, the movie feels like it’s on point and focused. The rest of the time, “Rampage” is a hodge-podge of excess plot strands and mediocre dialogue that feels way longer than it actually is. It’s interesting that this is the best video game adaptation I’ve seen in quite awhile. The tragedy is that it had potential to be much better.

3 ½ Indy Fedoras out of 5 for Dwayne Johnson and the monster fights

2 Indy Fedoras out of 5 for everything else.

MPAA Rating: PG-13