Video game adaptations were once one of the most cringeworthy things in all of Hollywood. The only exceptions were when it came to animated projects, like certain cartoons with Sonic The Hedgehog, not to mention the various series featuring Ash Ketchum and his Pokemon. However, every time that things went into the realm of live-action, things almost certainly fell apart. There were a few exceptions, but the keyword was “few.” Fast forward to today, and things had finally gotten better, and there was hope for the future. Then, the Borderlands movie had its reviews drop, and it feels like we’re back in the age of those terrible video game movies.
Just how bad is it? According to reviewers, it was so bad that it got the infamous 0% rating when it first got aggregated for Rotten Tomatoes:
Admittedly, it has gone up since then, but by the time we’re writing this, it’s only at 4%, which is not much of an increase at all. What are the reviewers saying about this? First, many reviewers noted that the tone of the film is off in all the ways that matter. One reviewer even compared it to someone trying to impress the “cool kids” with what he thinks the franchise is about. Obviously, that person failed to impress said kids.
The casting was also questioned, with one reviewer stating that it was more of actors being in cosplay than trying to be a part of a video game movie. To that end, it seems like the movie was more focused on making bad jokes “one after another” than trying to make a cohesive plot that showed off the characters and world that they were in. Multiple comparisons to the Guardians of the Galaxy group were made, while noting that the Borderlands movie made a FAR worse attempt at that “connection.”
One of the few positives that was spoken of was Cate Blanchett, who apparently brought something to the film, it’s just that the film wasn’t the “right vehicle” for her to finally show off her action chops. Many blasted director Eli Roth for not being able to make this film shine despite its “edgy” content, and some even labeled it as one of the worst movies of the year!
What does this all tell us? Simply put, it shows once again that just because you can make a video game adaptation doesn’t mean you should unless you KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING!
