Warner Bros. Pictures presents Ready Player One which will be released on March 29th, 2018.
In the year 2045, people can escape their harsh reality in the OASIS, an immersive virtual world where you can go anywhere, do anything, be anyone-the only limits are your own imagination. OASIS creator James Halliday left his immense fortune and control of the Oasis to the winner of a contest designed to find a worthy heir. When unlikely hero Wade Watts conquers the first challenge of the reality-bending treasure hunt, he and his friends-known as the High Five-are hurled into a fantastical universe of discovery and danger to save the OASIS and their world.
Directed by Steven Spielberg
The cast includes:
Tye Sheridan as Wade Watts/Parzival
Olivia Cooke as Samantha/Art3mis
Ben Mendelsohn as Nolan Sorrento
Lena Waithe as Aech
T.J. Miller as i-R0k
Simon Pegg as Ogden Morrow
Mark Rylance as James Halliday/Anorak
Philip Zhao as Sho
Win Morisaki as Daito
Hannah John-Kamen as F’Nale Zandor
Ready Player One is the brand new Steven Speilberg movie based on the 2011 science fiction novel of the same name, written by Ernest Cline. Going into this movie I never read the book but after talking to a few coworkers who have read the novel were all excited about the film since the story was a fun, nostalgia adventure. After seeing the trailer I was hooked and that was my only knowledge of movie going into the screening.
The first scene of the movie had me headbanging in my seat with Van Halen’s “Jump” playing in the background. The soundtrack alone was fantastic and is perfect for the Bonehead audience.
My first reaction after the screening was that this movie is the millennials “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.” It’s an action adventure where everyone in the main story are trying to complete a mission in hopes of winning a huge fortune.
I never read the book, so I don’t know how accurate the movie is compared to the book, but I did some quick reading on Wikipedia and looks like the film stayed true to the novel but did make some minor changes. I assume this was done because then it won’t be predictable for fans of the book and have plenty of surprises.
I already told myself I need to see it again and catch as many nostalgia easter eggs that I missed the first time around. The amount of pop culture references, from classic movies, 80s music, video games from over the years. If you grew up in the 70s, 80s or even 90s there is something for everyone. With that being said Steven Spielberg was the perfect choice to direct this movie since he was responsible for a lot of those movies back in the day that this story drew inspiration from.
The characters in this movie worked very well together. All the actors/actresses in this movie had to balance playing live action versions and video games versions of themselves. Tye Sheridan as Wade Watts aka Parzival played the great underdog main character, while Olivia Cooke as Samantha aka Art3mis was the tough female/love interest in the movie. Ben Mendelsohn once again played another villain, this time around as Nolan Sorrento. The rest of the young cast were all fun and I enjoyed when all of them were working together, reminded me of The Goonies. Mark Rylance as James Halliday aka Anorak, his character created the Oasis and after his death left his fortune behind to the winner of his game. James Halliday reminded me a cross between Willy Wonka and Garth from Wayne’s World. I wished we got to see more of Simon Pegg’s character Ogden Morrow in the movie, but I will say this when he does show up through out the movie it’s for an important reason.
My only concern about this film is that anyone under the age of 25-18 might not understand all the references in this movie and how they tie into the larger story. My only hope is that younger viewers of this movie will be inspired to go back and learn some of the iconic movies, TV shows, music and video games their parents grew up with, or they should watch any documentary about the 1980s.
For a two hour twenty minute movie, the pacing was fast. Also, there was a lot of over the top action and special effects, mainly in the Oasis virtual reality world, which at times can be viewed as some sensory overload. I saw the movie in IMAX 3D, it might be easier on your eyes to see it in 2D.
Ready Player One is a fun ride with a ton of nostalgia that hits all the emotions. If you’re a fan of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Tron, The Matrix and The Goonies, all mixed together, then you will love this movie. I appreciate how the story makes it cool to be a fan of pop culture because those people who geek out the most could be the ones to save the day in the future.
I would rate the film: 8.25/10
Go see Ready Player One when the movie hits theaters on Thursday, March 29th.
Watch the first trailer below.
Watch the second trailer below.
Watch the third trailer below.
Watch the fourth trailer below.
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