Ready Player One: My Movie Review

Ready Player One is a 2018 American film directed and produced by Steven Spielberg categorized into a science-fiction adventure. This movie is written by Zak Penn and Ernest Cline, which was also based from Cline’s 2011 novel of the same title.

This movie was premiered on March 11, 2018, at South by Southwest, an annual conglomerate of film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas, United States. It was theatrically released by Warner Bros. Pictures in the USA on March 29, 2018, in 2D, Real D 3D, IMAX, and IMAX 3D. 

With a running time of 140 minutes and from a production budget of $175 million, it grossed $581 million worldwide, making it the 5th highest-grossing film of 2018 up to date. 

WARNING: Spoilers Ahead!

The film takes place in a very distant future of the year 2045 when humanity uses the virtual reality software called OASIS to escape their desolation in the real world. An orphaned teen named Wade Watts discovers hidden clues to a mysterious game inside a program which promises full ownership of OASIS upon winning the game. He joined several allies to complete the game before Nolan Sorrento, a powerful businessman can do so.

American actor Tye Sheridan (Cyclops of X-Men: Apocalypse/ Richie of Friday’s Child/ Conrad Stevens of All Summers End/ Harper of Detour) played his role as Wade Watts aka Parzival, a gunter (egg hunter) and one of the “High Five”, who wishes to win the Quest so he can leave the stacks where he live. British actress Olivia Cooke (Laine Morris of Ouija/ Emma Decody of Bates Motel/ Becky sharp of Vanity Fair) played the role of Samantha Cook aka Art3mis, a famous gunter and also one of the “High Five”, who works with various allies to ensure the OASIS is kept free and out of the hands of IOI. 

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Australian actor Ben Mendelsohn (Sheriff of Nottingham of Robin Hood/ Danny Rayburn of Bloodline/ King George VI of Darkest Hour/ Orson Krennic of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story/Viceroy Hegep of Exodus: Gods and Kings/ Dagget of The Dark Knight Rises/ Captain Dutton of Australia) played his role as the antagonistic businessman named Nolan Sorrento. He is the recently appointed CEO of IOI (Innovative Online Industries), who seeks full control over the OASIS. He also leads the Sixers, an army of indentured servants in the OASIS.

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American actor T.J. Miller (Weasel of Deadpool/ Erlich Bachman of Silicon Valley/ Gene of The Emoji Movie/ Fred of Big Hero 6/ Tuffnut of How to Train Your Dragon/ Lucas Flannery of Transformers: Age of Extinction/ Rolling Stone receptionist of Rock of Ages/ Dan of Gulliver’s Travels) cast as  i-R0k, a magic item and freelance weapons dealer, and bounty hunter, who is often employed by IOI. 

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American writer and actress Lena Waithe (Denise of Master of None/ P. Ninny of Dear White People) played the role of Helen Harris aka Aech, also a gunter and one of the “High Five”, who is male in the OASIS and longtime friend of Wade’s. She runs a virtual garage in her free time to create and fix various vehicles and items.

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English actor Simon Pegg (Benji Dunn of Mission Impossible/ Buck of Ice Age/ Montgomery Scott of StarTrek/ Unkar Plutt of Star Wars: The Force Awakens/ Thompson of The Adventures of Tintin/ Reepicheep of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader/ Shaun of Shaun of the Dead) played the role of the Curator and Ogden Morrow, a co-creator of the OASIS, who eventually left the company due to personal reasons. 

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British actor and Oscar Award Winner for Best Supporting Actor for the movie Bridge of Spies, Mark Rylance (Mr. Dawson of Dunkirk/ BFG of The BFG/ Rudolf Abel of Bridge of Spies) cast as Anorak aka James Halliday, the deceased co-creator of the OASIS, who includes an Easter Egg hidden in the OASIS after his passing that grants control over the OASIS to its winner. 

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Chinese-looking American actor Philip Zhao played the role of Sho/Zhou, a gunter and one of the “High Five”, who is, in fact, an 11-year-old in the real world. Japanese-looking Burmese actor Win Morisaki (Junichi Sato of Sherry) played the role of Daito, also a gunter and one of the “High Five”.

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British actress Hannah John-Kamen (Nahlab of The Ark/ First Order Officer of Star Wars: The Force Awakens/ Rosa Persaud of The Tunnel/ Omela of Game of Thrones/ Sonja of Black Mirror/ Dutch of Killjoys/ Sophie of Tomb Raider/ Ava of Ant-Man and the Wasp) played the role of F’Nale Zandor, the head of IOI’s operations in the physical world, as well as their indentured servitude programs.

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The film has received generally positive reviews, with critics praising its visuals, brisk pacing, and as well as Rylance’s performance. The film was noted to have significant differences from the book, with some critics calling the film’s plot an improvement over the source material.

According to IMDb, the world’s most popular and authoritative source for movie, TV and celebrity content, it scored 7.7/10 for its star rating based from 146,588 votes. 

On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 64 out of 100, based on 54 critics, indicating “generally favorable reviews”.

On Rotten Tomatoes, one of the most famous review aggregator websites, the film holds an approval rating of 735 based on 331 reviews, and also got an average rating of 6.9/10. The website’s critical consensus reads, 

“Ready Player One is a sweetly nostalgic thrill ride that neatly encapsulates Spielberg’s strengths while adding another solidly engrossing adventure to his filmography.”

On an A+ to F scale, audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of “A–”, while PostTrak reported filmgoers gave it an 82% overall positive score and a 65% “definite recommend”.

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IndieWire’s Eric Kohn characterized the film as,

“an astonishing sci-fi spectacle and a relentless nostalgia trip at once” and praised both The Shining sequence as well as Penn’s screenplay, particularly with respect to Mendelsohn’s character. Nevertheless, he remarked that the film “drags a bunch in its final third”.

In my own review, this movie is indeed relatable to those who love cybergaming. Another one of Steven Spielberg’s magnum opus, a movie mixed with the pop culture where he fused reality and virtual world as one connecting story. If you like a movie that’s brimmed with actions, quests, adventure and a jumble of various fictional characters from the different genre, then this film is really a big enticement for you to watch with. You will be surprised by characters that seem to be appearing in this movie, plus packed with heart-pumping thrills and fantastic graphics that will bring you astonishment. A movie also good for kids, but needs still parental guidance for some very few minor details of gore and violence, but all in all, this is generally rated for all ages.

I give my 8.8/10 for this movie. Certainly one of the best films I’ve ever watched this year. Truly extraordinary praising one of Steven Spielberg’s best films so far. Must-watch!

“Reality is the only thing that’s real”

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If you haven’t watched this movie yet, here’s the official trailer below in courtesy of FilmSelect Trailer YT channel:

Featured Image: source