History Film / Stormbreaker

** Subverted. One ''almost'' happens to Alex when he calls Sayle a psychopath. [[spoiler:Mr Grin hurls a knife at him and it just misses his crotch. Alex says it was a good shot. Sayle disagrees, saying it was a near miss.]]

The possibilities granted by [[TheShowOfTheBooks a television format]], however, did leave room to pick things up, and a second adaptation of the novels now exists in the ''Series/AlexRider'' programme, which premiered in 2020.

* CallBack: [[spoiler:Yassen kills Sayle the same way he killed Ian: shooting at him with duel-wielded pistols, upside down, hanging from a wire attached to a helicopter]].

* DisneyVillainDeath: [[spoiler:Sayle, even though his fall occurred after being shot by Yassen, meaning he was already dead.]]

** The mobile office that Alex sent down the hill goes over the edge of a cliff and into a lake, but before it lands in the water, it abruptly cuts to a sugar cube landing in a cup in Blunt's office.
** We only hear the sound of [[spoiler:Sayle]] hitting the ground, but judging by reactions, it's not a pretty sight.

* AvoidTheDreadedGRating: Inverted, the film got a PG rating in the UK and was LighterAndSofter than the book, much to Creator/AnthonyHorowitz [[CreatorBacklash chagrin]].

* PokeInTheThirdEye: Alex checks his bedroom in Sayle's headquarters for bugging equipment, using the Nintendo DS. When he finds one in the snout of a stuffed boar's head, he flicks it, causing a loud noise that causes Nadia to remove her headphones in a surveillance room.
* ProductPlacement: Delivered in blatant fashion by featuring a UsefulNotes/NintendoDS as one of Alex's most indispensable gadgets. This is driven home in the scene in which Stephen Fry's character introduces the console to him, giving him games that are actually varying spy mechanics. The game ''VideoGame/MarioKartDS'' is also mentioned in the same scene (it's not a mechanic, it's just an actual game), and its case held up to the camera for a generously long amount of time.

[[ExactWords The possibilities granted by]] [[TheShowOfTheBooks a television format]], however, did leave room to pick things up, and a second adaptation of the novels now exists in the ''Series/AlexRider'' programme, which premiered in 2020.

The film follows Alex, a teenage boy recruited by UsefulNotes/MI6 after his uncle Ian (Creator/EwanMcGregor) -- who claimed to him that he was a bank manager but is actually a secret agent -- is killed in action. He is sent to investigate the distribution of free megacomputers codenamed ''Stormbreaker'' to schools across Britain by billionaire Darrius Sayle (Creator/MickeyRourke), who may have less-than-amiable motivations.

Horowitz eventually [[DisownedAdaptation came to regret his overconfidence in the idea and admitted that the movie was a "mistake"]], but has also attributed at least some of the film's failure to [[ExecutiveMeddling its lack of sufficient distribution in America, namely not getting a wide release]]. He would also state that since he believes the novels [[HardToAdaptWork don't translate well]] to a cinematic format, he does not foresee any plans of future films.

* MoodDissonance: One select fight scene (between Jack and Nadia) is intercut with surprisingly appropriate footage of movies and cartoons.

* NearMissGroinAttack: When Alex is tied to a chair, he calls Sayle a psychopath. Mr Grin hurls a knife at him and it just misses his crotch. Alex says it was a good shot, while Sayle calls it a near miss. Alex gulps.

* SoundtrackDissonance: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXHa1KjMSC8 Alex's training scene]] is given the song choice of Music/{{Gorillaz}}'s "Feel Good Inc.", which seemed to have only been included as it was one of the biggest hit songs at the time of the film's release. Many have especially taken the music choice to task considering that [[Music/DemonDays the album]] that song is on also contains the more thematically fitting tracks "Dirty Harry" (which is ''explicitly'' about war) and "Kids with Guns" (which is about the influence of violence on children).

* TheResolutionWillNotBeTelevised: The graphic novel adaptation of the film continued to adapt later books in the series even though no more films were made, and have reached the sixth book as of 2020. Most importantly, they answer the question of how Sabina would have been used in the later films, as her AdaptationalEarlyAppearance would have caused what would have seemed to be an insurmountable ContinuitySnarl in ''Eagle Strike''.

* CoversAlwaysLie: Sayle is holding a small dog in the US poster despite the fact that the dog never appears in the film.

* AdaptationalNationality: In the book, the villain is from Lebanon or Egpyt and his name is Herod Sayle. In the film, he is an American named Darrius Sayle.

* AdaptationNameChange: [=MI6=] agent John Crawford was called Crawley in the original novels, but the makers of the film were contacted by the real [=MI6=] asking them not to use the name "Crawley" in the film.

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

''Stormbreaker'' was intended to be the first in a series of ''Alex Rider'' films that was promoted with the hopes of being the next ''Film/HarryPotter'', with Horowitz even writing a screenplay for the next book in the series, ''Point Blanc'', before the film came out. However, its poor critical and commercial performance [[StillbornFranchise led to the series being cancelled]].

Horowitz eventually [[CreatorBacklash came to regret his overconfidence in the idea and admitted that the movie was a "mistake"]], but has also attributed at least some of the film's failure to [[ExecutiveMeddling its lack of sufficient distribution in America, namely not getting a wide release]]. He would also state that since he believes the novels [[HardToAdaptWork don't translate well]] to a cinematic format, he does not foresee any plans of future films.

* BareYourMidriff: The outfit Sabina is wearing in her first appearance is this.

''Stormbreaker'' was intended to be the first in a series of ''Alex Rider'' films that was promoted with potential of being the next ''Film/HarryPotter'', with Horowitz even writing a screenplay for the next book in the series, ''Point Blanc'', before the film came out. However, its [[BoxOfficeBomb poor box office returns]] and [[SoOkayItsAverage lukewarm-at-best critical reception]] [[StillbornFranchise effectively dashed all hopes of a sequel, let alone a series]].

The blame for the film's outcome has retrospectively spread over multiple parties. Horowitz [[CreatorBacklash came to regret his overconfidence in the idea and admitted that the movie was a "mistake"]], but has also attributed at least some of the film's failure to [[ExecutiveMeddling its lack of sufficient distribution in America, namely not getting a wide release]]. He would also state that since he believes the novels [[HardToAdaptWork don't translate well]] to a cinematic format, any plans of future films are dead and gone.

* SoundtrackDissonance: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXHa1KjMSC8 Alex's training scene]] is given the song choice of Music/{{Gorillaz}}'s "Feel Good Inc.", which seemed to have only been included as it was one of the biggest hit songs at the time of the film's release. Many have especially taken the music choice to task considering that [[Music/DemonDays the album]] that song is on also contains the more thematically fitting songs "Dirty Harry" (which is ''explicitly'' about war) and "Kids with Guns" (which is about the influence of violence on children).

* AdaptationalNationality: In the book, the villain is from Lebanon and his name is Herod Sayle. In the film, he is an American named Darrius Sayle.

The film follows Rider, a teenage boy recruited by UsefulNotes/MI6 after his uncle Ian (Creator/EwanMcGregor) -- who claimed to Alex that he was a bank manager but is actually a secret agent -- is killed in action. He is sent to investigate the distribution of free megacomputers codenamed ''[[TitleDrop Stormbreaker]]'' to schools across Britain by billionaire Darrius Sayle (Creator/MickeyRourke), who may have less-than-amiable motivations.

''Stormbreaker'' (titled ''Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker'' [[MarketBasedTitle in the U.S.]]) is a 2006 spy action film directed by Geoffrey Sax, based on the first installment of Creator/AnthonyHorowitz's ''Literature/AlexRider'' young adult novel series, with Creator/AlexPettyfer starring as the title character.

''Stormbreaker'' (titled ''Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker'' [[MarketBasedTitle in the U.S.]]) is a 2006 spy action film directed by Geoffrey Sax, based on the first installment of Creator/AnthonyHorowitz's ''Literature/AlexRider'' young adult novel series.

The film follows Alex Rider (Creator/AlexPettyfer), a teenage boy recruited by UsefulNotes/MI6 after his uncle Ian (Creator/EwanMcGregor) -- who claimed to Alex that he was a bank manager but is actually a secret agent -- is killed in action. He is sent to investigate the distribution of free megacomputers codenamed ''[[TitleDrop Stormbreaker]]'' to schools across Britain by billionaire Darrius Sayle (Creator/MickeyRourke), who may have less-than-amiable motivations.

''Stormbreaker'' is a 2006 spy film directed by Geoffrey Sax, based on the first installment of Creator/AnthonyHorowitz's ''Literature/AlexRider'' young adult novel series. [[MarketBasedTitle In the U.S.]], the film was promotionally named ''Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker''.

''Stormbreaker'' was intended to be the first in a series of ''Alex Rider'' films that was promoted with potential of being the next ''Film/HarryPotter'', with Horowitz even writing a screenplay for the next book in the series, ''Point Blanc'', before the film came out.

[[TemptingFate Then the film actually did come out]], and its [[BoxOfficeBomb poor box office returns]] and [[SoOkayItsAverage lukewarm-at-best critical reception]] [[StillbornFranchise effectively dashed all hopes of a sequel, let alone a series]].

The blame for the film's outcome has retrospectively spread over multiple parties. Horowitz [[CreatorBacklash came to regret his overconfidence in the idea and admitted that the movie was a "mistake"]], but has also attributed at least some of the film's flopping to [[ExecutiveMeddling its lack of sufficient distribution in America, namely not getting a wide release]]. He would also [[WordOfGod go on record]] stating that since he believes the novels [[HardToAdaptWork don't translate well]] to a cinematic format, any plans of future films are dead and gone.

[[ExactWords The possibilities granted by]] [[TheShowOfTheBooks a television format,]] however, did leave room to pick things up, and a second adaptation of the novels now exists in the ''Series/AlexRider'' programme, which premiered in 2020.

* MoodDissonance: One select fight scene (between Jack and Nadia) is intercut with footage of cartoons. No, seriously.

* ProductPlacement: Delivered in blatant fashion by featuring a UsefulNotes/NintendoDS as one of Alex's most indispensable gadgets; driven home in the slightly cringe-inducing scene in which Stephen Fry's character introduces the console to him, giving him games that are actually varying spy mechanics. The game ''VideoGame/MarioKartDS'' is also mentioned in the same scene (it's not a mechanic, it's just an actual game), and its case held up to the camera for a generously long amount of time.

* SoundtrackDissonance: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXHa1KjMSC8 Alex's training scene]] is given the questionable background music of Music/{{Gorillaz}}'s "Feel Good Inc.", one of the biggest hit singles at the time of the film's release. Many have especially taken the music choice to task considering that [[Music/DemonDays the album]] that song is on also contains the more thematically fitting singles "Dirty Harry" (which is ''explicitly'' about war) and "Kids with Guns" (which is about the influence of violence on children).

The blame for the film's outcome has retrospectively spread over multiple parties. Horowitz [[CreatorBacklash came to regret his overconfidence in the idea and admitted that the movie was a "mistake"]], but has also attributed at least some of the film's flopping to [[ExecutiveMeddling its lack of sufficient distribution in America, namely not getting a wide release]]. He would also [[WordOfGod go on record]] stating that since the novels [[HardToAdaptWork don't translate well]] to a cinematic format, any plans of future films are dead and gone.

[[ExactWords The possibilities granted by]] [[TheShowOfTheBooks a television format,]] however, did leave room to pick up where the film left off, and a second adaptation of the novels now exists in the ''Series/AlexRider'' programme, which premiered in 2020.

* DisneyVillainDeath: [[spoiler:Sayle, even though his fall occurred after being shot by Yassen, meaning he was already dead]].

* SoundtrackDissonance: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXHa1KjMSC8 Alex's training scene]] is given the questionable background music of Music/{{Gorillaz}}'s "Feel Good Inc.", one of the biggest hit singles at the time of the film's release. Many have especially taken the music choice to task considering that [[Music/DemonDays the album]] with that song also contains the more thematically fitting singles "Dirty Harry" (which is ''explicitly'' about war) and "Kids with Guns" (which is about the influence of violence on children).

-->'''Alex:''': My uncle, he's never gonna set the world on fire because he's got a real boring job. [[spoiler: Cut to him on a motorbike blazing out of the Sayle Enterprises factory ahead of an explosion.]]

** To the ''Film/JamesBond'' series. The security guard in Sayle Tower is clearly supposed to nod to Oddjob, with Alex [[Film/TheManWithTheGoldenGun kicking him mid-bow]].

* SoundtrackDissonance: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXHa1KjMSC8 Alex's training scene]] is given the questionable background music of [[Music/{{Gorillaz}} "Feel Good Inc."]].

* SuspiciouslyAproposMusic: As Alex sneaks past the security guard in the wrecker's yard, "I Predict A Riot" by the Kaiser Chiefs is heard on the radio. Foreshadows the fight Alex has with the men who work there after he escapes from the crusher.
* TookALevelInBadass: Alex. Partly helped due to his training in the Brecon Beacons with the soldiers in K Unit.