Ready Player One is the latest action-adventure blockbuster from Steven Spielberg. This movie has classic Spielberg adventure written all over it. Mixing live action and CGI this movie takes is a roller coaster of a time at the cinema.
Main Characters:
- Parzival aka Wade Watts played by Tye Sheridan
- Art3mis aka Samantha played by Olivia Cooke
- Sorrento played by Ben Mendelsohn
- James Halliday played by Mark Rylance
Setting:Columbus, Ohio | The OASIS, a virtual reality world of pop culture references & Easter eggs
Summary:
- It’s the year 2045 and the world sucks even more than it does now. The only escape from the real world in 2045, is the OASIS, an immersive virtual reality world where most of the world’s population spends their time.
- In the OASIS, you can go anywhere, be anyone – the only limits are your imagination…and some of the unexplained rules of the OASIS.
- The OASIS was built by Steve-Job-esc inventor, James Halliday, who upon his death, left his immense fortune and controlling shares of the OASIS to the winner of a three-part contest he designed.
- 5 years after Halliday’s death, Wade Watts is the first person to beat the first challenge of the contest. He and his friends are thrust into a quest to win the contest and save the OASIS from evil corporate overlords.
Critics/Audience Ratings:
IMDB Rating: 8.0/10
Rotten Tomatoes Score: Critics -74% Tomatometer | Average Rating – 6.9/10
Audience - 80% Tomatometer | Average Rating – 8.0/10*
Metacritic Score: 64
Personal Rating:
- 1 ½ Thumbs Up; entertaining, fun roller coaster ride of an action-adventure-fantasy movie. Enjoyable story of an underdog against the ethic-less corporation. A slightly dull/predictable love story but they didn’t overdo it too much. Good performances by the young and slightly unknown (to me at least) cast members.
What I Liked/Enjoyed:
- Amazing special effects and cinematic visuals; Seemingly perfect CGI and special effects. I especially enjoyed the flow of the effects from CGI to live action.
- Story/Plot of movie; intriguing retelling of the classic knight on a quest story even with the main character naming his avatar after a famous knight. The story flowed from one act to next the act and kept the audience intrigued to follow the main characters on their quest.
- Fun and entertaining; I had a wonderful time at the cinema watching this movie, the amazing visuals and fast-paced action keep me hooked to the screen, enjoying every minute of it (minus a few cringe-worthy dialogue moments).
What I Disliked/Didn’t Enjoy:
- Minimum screen time of the other avatar in the OASIS; there were so many pop culture references in this movie and we barely spent anytime with any of them except the ones the main characters interacted with. I would’ve like for the shots of these references to have been slowed down some to see and enjoy the hundreds of pop culture references.
My Favourite Part:
- Action sequences; the different action and special effect driven scenes (which is most of the movie) we a spectacle to watch. The film is framed in the way to make you feel like you’re just another avatar in the OASIS.
Recommendation: Do I? If so, to whom?
- I would highly recommend this movie because its spectacular visual effects, its intriguing plot and how entertaining it was. I would add that you don’t need to be a huge pop culture buff to enjoy this film either because despite pop culture being an integral part of the movie’s plot and setting, it still is an entertaining and fun action-adventure movie.