So, Ready Player One was different

I'll spoiler the things to save the surprises, but be warned, ye who enter.

So, on the whole, it's an OK movie. It doesn't break the boundaries, it doesn't push the envelope, it's a nostalgia trip for anyone who has ever played a video game, it's nerd bait. It's the ham sandwich, the mild cheddar on a Jacob's, the sweet and sour chicken, the safe bet. That's why I don't like it.

See, the novel itself wasn't a masterpiece, I had my fair share of grumbles with it. The romance was meh, the pacing kinda threw me a little in the middle, and some of the references was fanwank over what the author knew about some classic games - interesting trivia, but the same can be said for the whaling history lesson in Moby Dick. That said, the villain was fantastic - a dark, nebulous threat with a vague face of evil, coupled with an idea that fit perfectly with the notion of freedom that we citizens on the net love oh so much. Delicious. The coy-er references were top notch - being a DnD player meant I was all sorts of hype with the first puzzle. The characters were well done, romance aside, and it was good fun in the end. The message was brilliant as well, it was left open and fan-bloody-tastic.

The film takes this and makes it for the mass market. You know, just like most "nerdy" things are now.

I don't want to come across as a gatekeeper, because I hate those sort of people, but it's incredibly infuriating when you're not introducing a whole new world to an audience as you are watering it down in case they don't like the taste. Don't get me wrong there are some fucking awesome moments such as a Gundam dropping out of Serenity, fighting Mecha-Godzilla alongside the Iron Giant until a pink haired elf kills the pilot with the pulse rifle from Aliens, but they're just filler. The film guts so much nerdy heart out from the book, replaces the villain with a coperate friendly one, and pats you on the head with a "there there, it's ok if you don't understand what's going on. Look, there's 6 Halos. They kill aliens and doesn't afraid of anything."

BUT

This could be the key to so many more people opening their eyes to the things I like, to ask me "Hey, KendallKun, why did you say 'fuck yeah' when that ship appeared?" I want to like this movie as a nerd, just like how I wanted to love the book. They have changed so much that infuriated me, though I understand why they did it. There are some things I won't understand, at least at a personal level (money makes the world go round), but maybe that's just me being a shitty nerd. This could bring a lot to the table, and I'm hoping it does.

In short, if you liked the book you won't be enthused with the film. Take your non-nerdy friends to see it, take your parents to see it, take your younger cousins and kids to see it. I'm pretty sure they'll get a kick out of it.

Spoilers:
One thing I'm super lairy about is how they changed the main romance. Wade is supposed to be the hapless loser we see and shout at, becoming a better person. Something that takes the entire fucking book to do. Him meeting Artemis IRL after it all was brilliant in the book, it gave closure and opened up a whole new chapter. Also, changing Ogg's role was an acceptable choice but it kinda ruined the ending where Aech and Wade finally meet as well as the final battle. Not killing Daito off was bullshit, changing the ambiguous ending was bullshit, changing the challenges was bullshit, changing Aech's IRL character was bullshit, changing the villain was bullshit, introducing a new villain was ok but kinda uneccessary.

That said, HOLY FUCK SERENITY, HOLY FUCK blink-and-you'll miss weapons, and HOLY FUCK the final battle was gorgeous to see.

Comments

[Doomande]

I saw it like 2 days ago, so I am still riding that nerd high. Fuck yea Serenity, I was pretty sure that that was the ship, but with how many other space ships there got mentioned was I not sure if that was it or not.

Both my girlfriend and I loved it, neither of us have touched the book, and with her not being the nerd as I was did she not see the same references as I did. But both of us agreed that it was a damn fine action movie, and looking at it without any nerd knowledge did my girlfriend love it lots, so hey that was nice as well.