Nostalgia! The Movie! Again.
Science Fiction author Ernest Cline’s love letter to 80s pop
culture tells the story of a young nostalgia obsessed hipster by the name of
Wade Watts, who finds himself on a “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”
style adventure to uncover an Easter Egg hidden within the cyberspace depths of
the online video game, “The Oasis,” granting its discoverer total control over
the game.
Unfortunately for Wade, “The Oasis,” interfaced with its players
via virtual reality equipment with sensory feedback, is not so much a game
but a way of life in a dystopian world of societies actively seeking to ignore
their problems rather than deal with him, so his competitors in this quest
happen to be political and financial superpowers.
While the novel is filled with the potential to address
issues such as the detachment from reality of an internet obsessed society, the
effects of obsessing with the past on our ability to move forward with the
future, and the potential dangers of total freedom and anonymity that the
internet provides, it opts to ignore this in favor of being a cynical, self
indulgent, ego stroking of the properties, people, and trends of culture that
defined a decade that is in desperate need of retirement from a culture
toxically obsessed with nostalgia.
Although its film adaptation unfortunately fails to
actualize on that potential with a cautionary science fiction tale depicting
the relatable tragic consequences of a world forgetting the importance of
cultivating human relationships, “Ready Player One” does manage to fortunately
succeed in being a fun and inclusive love letter to geek culture through the
lens of the best aspects of gaming that feels infectious and sincere in its
reverence despite its unevenness.
As is to be expected, Steven Spielberg brings his A-game to
a movie that may not have the appeal its studios are after nor the same level
of effective craftsmanship as his own blockbuster classics but at least knows
exactly the type of thrill ride it wants to be to make its 2 hour runtime fly
by.
While all of the actors turn in solid performances, despite
their underwritten characters and the underdeveloped future that they inhabit,
the true draw of the film is “The Oasis.”
The setting is simultaneously disgusting in its splendorous
overindulgence in the creative excess of those seeking escapism yet so flashy
and alluring that you almost hate yourself for wishing that it was real half
way through the film, and when it is placed front and center, “Ready Player
One” never ceases to be an absolute blast.
After nearly nodding off to sleep following a roughly 7
minute exposition dump regarding Wade’s awful surroundings and why people would
rather live entirely virtually rather than stomach the troubles of everyday
life, I was kickstarted awake by the start of a race for the first key to the
Easter Egg so rich in visual detail and carnage that it would have been a riot
and a half to watch even if it weren’t also virtual and composed of dozens of
characters and vehicles from various fictional licenses, utilizing other
fictional characters as course obstacles.
This is to say nothing of the climax of the movie, which is
so overloading and worth the price of admission alone that I almost bought 2
more tickets on the way out of the auditorium just to be able to catalogue how
many fictional combatants and hidden details that I missed; a number that could
easily tally up into the hundreds.
“Ready Player One” is perhaps the most popcorn that a film
could possibly be, fittingly delivered by the man that played a hand in
creating the modern blockbuster film as we know it. Despite lacking in
substance, the sheer levels of apparent joy and passion that the filmmakers
clearly had in assembling the movie while being unafraid to remind its audience
to be able to step away from it for a spell beats the pants off of the majority
of its typically more lavish summer contemporaries.
The Smartest thing the movie was able to do is frame the passion of its nostalgia in a battle against the corporate entities that couldn't care less about these properties beyond the paychecks they receive for their meddling. Try not to be a geek that appreciates that on some level.
The Smartest thing the movie was able to do is frame the passion of its nostalgia in a battle against the corporate entities that couldn't care less about these properties beyond the paychecks they receive for their meddling. Try not to be a geek that appreciates that on some level.
7 Ludicrously Geeky Cameos out of 10
No comments:
Post a Comment