Ready Player One
I am not the right person to write this review. I do not
play video games, nor do I know the culture. This movie is targeted to gamers
and probably those under 40. The movie is based on a book of the same by name Ernest
Cline. In the gaming/sci-fi genera it is a classic. The movie is like a video
game. A super rich (first trillionaire) game creator hid a virtual Easter Egg
in a virtual world called the OASIS. The winner gets his fortune and control of
the OASIS.
The movie switches back and forth between the real world and
the virtual world. Maybe I do not have the attention span of a teenager, but
the swapping was disconcerting. The Lego movie was more enjoyable since for the
most part it stuck to one reality. This movie gave homage to other some movie
classics. Scenes from The Shining were prominent and the Iron Giant made an
appearance. The film is littered with
other gaming icons which are above my head. For some reason every time a
virtual bad guy losses a limb coins gush out him. Mario was not in the movie; him I would
recognize.
The plot is convoluted (in my mind) and simple. Win the egg
and make sure the bad guys don’t and you get the cash and the OASIS, whoops spoiler
alert. There are A listed actors and lots of B’s. Mark Rylance plays James
Halliday the creator of the OASIS. Simon Pegg has a small part and not screen
time. Other actors are recognizable and other not. This picture is not about
acting, it about the “experience” which the aficionados buy in.
This is a $175m plus advertising (could be 50% of production
cost) production cost. To date the box office looks OK, especially with
overseas tickets. Spielberg needs a win and not another goose egg (The BFG).
No comments:
Post a Comment