The Movies proves an accessible and fun game, a deep tycoon experience and a movie-maker you'll keep coming back to.
However, if you must compare, I would say it most echo's Peter Molyneux's own "Theme Park" series, with a smattering of "The Sims" with a healthy injection of "Windows Movie Maker" or some other movie making application. There are two very distinct ways of playing The Movies, with a tycoon game that tasks you with creating a profitable Movie Studio from the dawn of film (and into the near future), as well as a powerful Movie Maker, allowing you to create your own masterpiece.
After installing and watching the cute opening movie, I chose to begin a new game, with 2 choices on offer, "New Game" and "Sandbox". These are self explanatory, but it is worth noting that more is unlocked in Sandbox via play in the feature game. There is also a very impressive Tutorial (which is backed up by helpful tips on the web and an excellent manual) which will ease you into play gradually. This is a good thing, as the simplistic and light hearted feel belies a game brimming with ideas, possibilities and difficulty.
The very start of a film usually begins with a Script, so you need to hire scriptwriters and a facility in which to house them to create a script for you. Choose one of the five core genres (Horror, Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi and Action) and get them scribbling away. Writing a script in this hands-off manner is simple, and can produce better than average films, but for those who want a higher degree of control, you can also write your own.
After the completion of a Script, it will sit at the Casting Office, where you must hire a Director, Star, Extras and Crew. This is easily accomplished, with movie hopefuls lining up at the appropriate buildings dreaming to be the next big hit. After rehearsals, its off to the Sets. Creating sets is simple enough, though it requires Builders to create (again, easily hireable) as well as maintain. Your Studio Lot also requires maintenance and beautifying, which can be done by hiring Janitors.
Given the choice of both hands off and hands on film making is highly intuitive. Films given your own personal touch generally do better upon release, and can be saved and shared online. You may even download and inspect others works of art, and given the short time since The Movies has been made available, its surprising to see just how good some Movies already are.
Producing and Post Production complete, you may release the film to the expectant public. You receive reviews and helpful criticisms upon release, helping you understand where you may go better. On occasion, you're stars may not have good on screen chemistry, and so may need more time together. This might make you place them in a Bar, but be careful, as some Stars may get a little carried away on the Alcohol. Not only must you tend to a well weathered Studio, but your Stars have their own needs, and if left stressed or frustrated, will bring your movies down. New age medicine, Liposuction and even a trip into the local Rehab can help straighten your Stars out, and more prospective Employees (even from rival Studios, if your Movie Studio does well) will continue to show up.
It's a lot to deal with, so it's good to note that the interface and game alerts are simple, and the game itself usually forgiving. Given a 3D overlap of your studio, you can zoom in and out and around with ease, however, most of your time playing as a Tycoon will be spent Zoomed out, zipping around your various Sets and facilities. It is worth noting that Film releases tie in with world events, with the race to the moon being a boon for Sci-Fi Film making, and the Seventies making easy money off Comedies and Musicals.
Like the Tycoon play in The Movies, making films is easy and intuitive, with a excellent tutorial and scaled difficulty. You can have just the amount of control you think you'll need. You can choose to go the entire way, adding voiceovers and sound effects of your own design if you wish, and creating a 5 star film is truly satisfying (and hard, but practice helps). While making your own machinima is a great deal of fun, the reviewing of your own content is rather standard, and so it's thankful that The Movies easily allows you to export the films through a variety of common video formats, and share online. Competitions are beginning to show up as well, and it's always fun to see what others are creating.
The Movies is not without flaws though, and there are few that can spoil the gameplay. The steep learning curve will all but alienate the casual player, and the very hands-on approach needed to coax your films into blockbusters is more tiring than fun. The Awards Ceremonies are a good chance to give the player a goal to strive for - but you can win awards using all the same tactics in play. Realistically, you can recreate your film over and over again, with one different camera change and win an award.
If you are to take a hands-off approach, you would be suprised as too just how many films can be made, the large writing staff will constantly churn out titles for you. But unfortunately, they are scripted to only the sets you have built, and in many cases, there is a feeling of sameness after some time. There is no on location shooting either, you are held at your Studio, so many times your films have a feeling of being stuffy and unrealistic. I didn't have the patience to create films with all the tools available, and while this hands off approach makes for some fun films, the stunted nature and contrived atmosphere was off-putting. Similarily, I was bored by many of the films I created.
Graphically, The Movies is pretty impressive - with well animated Stars and Directors. These 2 groups also have distinct personalities, and seeing that these are what you will be spending the majority of your time with, makes you appreciate the amount of depth involved. The other groups, Builders, Scriptwriters and so on look a little similar, and are more automatic in nature - as such, you wont care for them like you treasure your talent (just like in the real Hollywood, regardless of how professional these people are). Facilities and Sets are pretty basic, but are easily acceptable. Moving people around the Lot and placing them in individual sections of your Buildings is simple, you will have no problem getting used to the game's mechanics, and really begin to enjoy yourself.
Sound wise, it's the effects that shine. One of my personal favorites was the stretching/pulling sound accompanied whenever you were required to put a person somewhere else (a common event). This is brought down a little by the music, which reflects the different periods of time in which the game plays out. Several different Radio Jocks throughout the ages also chime in with Events outside your studios, helpfully giving you hints into what the Public is interested in seeing. The Jocks range from being standard to very low standard, they never excel and their lines are very wooden, spoken without conviction and meaning. In game jokes are very poor, however, it can be important to hear what they say.
Overall, The Movies is an incredible achievement. Two very distinct play styles are on offer here, feeding one another and your own creativity. For those interested in creating your own movies, or believe they can do better than Hollywood, here is your chance. In the meantime, you will also get a dense, complex and just plain fun tycoon game that sets itself up for some great laughs and never takes itself too seriously.