Ready Player One

[Psychotic]

It was a fun little romp with some neat visuals and I don't regret going to see it, though if you're looking for classic Spielberg storytelling with heart then you're going to be disappointed. The characters were likeable enough but pretty shallow. I've always hated the "but the book is better!" crowd because, well, of course the book is going to be better but it was very hard not to join them on this. It makes sense that the original really would not translate well to the big screen. It's just very, very different.

Obviously it's crammed full of references to pop and gaming culture which is the premise of the thing and I found myself enjoying them. I did think it was odd that it kept most of the references to the book's key era the 80's, so think John Hughes and Duran Duran, but then all of a sudden, look, stuff from Minecraft and Overwatch! Not going to deny that even my inner fanboy got a little bit excited when there was a GoldenEye N64 reference in there!

Also, Mark Rylance kills it. Fucking kills it.

[Mr Gashtacular]

the book was actually hugely disappointing. it started off with such a good premise and idea (the near-future cyberpunk world, the "stacks", fat kid hero, the OASIS etc) and turned into into endless lists of nerd references. quite embarrassing. all i can think about is the south park member berries.

the movie can only be better because i assume it trims away all the crud. i haven't seen it. i won't go out of my way. but it seems like its a spielberg feel-good which are never BAD and usually look great, so i might check it out. one day.

[Freya]

But the book wasn't that great either haha

I thought the movie much improved on many of the pitfalls of the book.

I do like that they gave artemis the IOI adventure. I was very disappointed in her characterization in the book. So it helped flesh her out more. After also reading his second book, Armada, it seems to me that female characters are just a really weak point of Cline's. Spielberg fleshed the secondary characters out much better, in my opinion overall.

The movie was a fun adventure and I enjoyed it more than Pacific Rim 2 from the week prior. Spielberg is still the leader in fluid action scenes!

[Psychotic]

Yeah, I know there's a lot of dislike of the book because of Parzival's dorky Nice Guy act with Art3mis, but, like, that's exactly how dorky boys who have never interacted with a girl act!

[charliepanayi]

It was empty calories, but as empty calories go it was pretty entertaining. It's certainly a lot more dynamic than the book. Ben Mendelsohn is always fun hamming it up as a bad guy and I loved the Shining bit and the Chucky F-bomb

I do note they omitted the bit in the book about Aech being a lesbian, I wonder if the studio insisted on that?

[Psychotic]

I do note they omitted the bit in the book about Aech being a lesbian, I wonder if the studio insisted on that?You're right that they didn't say it outright, although in the Shining room she did begin to come onto the naked bathtub lady before she became naked zombie lady so it was kind of implied.

[Denmark]

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[Mirage]

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I feel like this tells me everything I need to know about this movie/book.

[Example]

I get that the references are supposed to be the ultimate nerdgasm but they did nothing for me, it just felt tacky and shallow. Besides that, the plot is the same "trapped in a video game" hero's quest scenario that's been done to death in countless movies and TV shows. The characters were pretty bland and one-dimensional to boot, including the main ones. The CGI was pretty well done though. Overall mediocre movie.

[Darkhero]

I was never interested in watching it in theaters, and what I've been hearing about it confirms that. Maybe once it's out on video and streaming services I'll give it a watch out of curiosity.

[Skyblade]

I enjoyed it and so did my whole family, including those who aren't particularly geeks (like my aunt) or gamers (like my mom and sister). It is not a unique story, but it's solid. Basic love story, and a main plot that is essentially "gamers vs EA". The characters do a well enough job to hold it together. There are a few stand outs, mostly the supporting cast. Mark Rylance's performance is absolutely perfect, and Ben Mendelsohn plays a corporate douchebag flawlessly. The soundtrack is full of choice selections used in just the right places.

The movie is drowned with references, but none of them really feel out of place. I mean, anyone who's been around gamers for any length of time knows how dedicated we are to their particular nostalgia trips and favorite franchises and characters. Just look at the current Smash Bros. speculation to see so many people wanting a chance to bring characters old and new to life again. Or heck, look at this website. Look at how many of us will argue for hours on end about the merits of one Final Fantasy over another, or one character over another. In an ultimate MMO sandbox, it WOULD be inundated with references to anything and everything. There's no way we wouldn't have one person choose to ride Cloud's motorcycle wielding a Buster Sword, or someone else piloting a piece of Magitek Armor. Bull feathers. In a VR game where you can build or find anything you want, the references would be nigh limitless.

Usually movies about gamers get a lot wrong. Motivations, priorities, personalities, and even their level of obsession or what we geek out about... This movie feels right, at least to me.

Plus, in what other movie will you see a Gundam on the big screen at all, let alone in a battle against Mechagodzilla?

[Del Murder]

I got through one chapter in the book and threw that trash away. Terrible writing.

The concept is cool though and it's Spielberg so if it got enough ringing endorsements I might try it.

[Kibbs Kibbard]

I like reading others peoples opinion's on movies, it doesn't make me decided to see a movie or not but I get your perspective and then eventually see it, ya know because kids tend to cost money for random things.

Anyways, I'm looking forward to seeing this movie eventually, and I am one of the few that did enjoy the book apparently. I'm a huge fan of MMO's and most of these references I lived through and grew up with due to my older brother by 5 years (he was born in 82, myself 87), Thanks to him I still got to see some of the greatest shows and games of both of or times, love it!

Thanks for the heads up though!

[Spuuky]

I watched this movie because MoviePass/free/etc but I have to say that all things considered, this might have been the single worst movie I have ever seen. I thought it was unbelievably bad, and my expectations were already quite low.