TOP 12 FAVORITE FILMS OF 2018: #6-4

Welcome back to Rhode Island Movie Corner’s annual end-of-the-year list where I’m counting down my Top 12 Favorite Films of 2018. We are now halfway through the list, and today in Part 3 of this 4-part series, we’ll be delving into films 6-4. If you missed my 6 Honorable Mentions and films 12-7, just click the links below to be directed back to Parts 1 and 2. Thus, with all that out of the way, it’s time to once again get back to the list…

PART 1

PART 2

To start off the second half of this list, we have an admittedly controversial pick at #6 because it’s a film that’s based on a rather polarizing bit of source material. In the case of the film, though, I’d argue that it did manage to alleviate some of the issues that audiences have had with its original incarnation.

6. READY PLAYER ONE

Ready Player One was the first film of 2018 that I saw twice in theaters. After the second time, I then proceeded to download the audiobook of author Ernest Cline’s original novel off Audible, and in doing so, I began to understand why it’s been rather controversial. While Ready Player One did do well with critics and audiences when it was first published in 2011, it’s since attracted a more polarizing response from those who feel that it’s nothing more than a hodge-podge of pop cultural references. And to be fair, it’s easy to see how it could’ve been just that given that the story revolves around an advanced VR system that allows its users to live through all their various pop cultural related fantasies, whether it’s climbing Mount Everest with Batman or driving a DeLorean from Back to the Future. As such, while I tend not to get into discussions about the long-standing debate of ‘book vs. film’, there are various reasons why I find that this is one of the cases of book-to-film adaptations where the film is indeed better than the book. For starters, it helps that the film was directed by someone as revered as Steven Spielberg who, along with co-writer Zak Penn, managed to streamline some of the more aggressively nerdy aspects of Cline’s story. Most specifically, they managed to tone down a lot of the ‘leetspeak’ that dominated much of the novel and has arguably dated it. Sure, there are still some very cheesy one-liners here and there (e.g. “a fanboy knows a hater”), but at the same time, we probably should be thankful that we didn’t have to watch a Spielberg film that featured phrases like ‘Suxorz’, a derogatory term used to describe the main antagonist’s army of indentured servants.

But easily the biggest improvement over the novel is how the film portrays its characters. Even with that said, though, several critics have noted that one of the biggest shortcomings of the film is that it’s quite lacking in terms of character development… and they’re not entirely wrong about this. Aside from main protagonist Wade Watts/Parzival, his ally/love interest Samantha/Art3mis, main antagonist Nolan Sorrento, and Wade’s best friend Helen/Aech (albeit to a lesser extent due to the film not delving into the full reveal of Aech’s identity as a young lesbian woman), every other character in the film has a very limited role in the plot. But if there’s one upside to this, it’s that the film manages to make these characters a lot more likable when compared to the novel. Because of the novel’s heavy use of ‘leetspeak’, the main characters frequently came off as being rather unpleasant, with a lot of their interactions consisting of them just lobbying geek-related insults at each other. Wade Watts, especially, was quite obnoxious when it came to some of his narration. Thankfully, this isn’t as big of an issue in the film as Tye Sheridan does a very nice job of making this version of Wade a lot more down-to-earth. And while the book does spend a lot more time focusing on the formation of Wade and his friends’ clan, the High Five, their camaraderie feels a lot more natural in the film. Sheridan has solid chemistry with Olivia Cooke as Samantha/Art3mis and I do appreciate that the film has them meeting in person a lot earlier than in the book, which didn’t see them interact outside of the OASIS until the very end. And while the other members of the High Five obviously don’t get as much to work with by comparison, Lena Waithe (Aech/Helen), Win Morisaki (Daito/Toshiro), and Philip Zhao (Zhou/Sho) all get to have their own unique standout moments in the film, like when Daito enters the final battle manning one of the mechs from Mobile Suit Gundam.

In conclusion, despite all that I’ve said about this film, I do still recognize why Ready Player One has been such a controversial bit of media. At their core, both the book and film rely heavily on their various references to pop culture, and because of this, they can also serve as a representation of some of the more unpleasant aspects of fandom that, as I’ve noted before, have sadly become a lot more prominent this past year. But when it comes to the film, it thankfully manages to tone down some of the more extreme elements of its source material. Simply put, Steven Spielberg turned this full-blown tribute to 80’s pop culture (something that he himself had a prominent hand in creating) into the kind of film that he was known for making at the time like E.T. and the Indiana Jones series. And while I’m not saying that this is necessarily ‘as good’ as those films, I have the feeling that it would’ve been a lot more like the book (which, to reiterate, wouldn’t have been a good thing) had a different filmmaker been involved. Heck, Spielberg even went as far as to limit references to his own filmography save for one moment with a T-Rex and a few nods to Back to the Future (which he only produced). And because of all this, that trademark Spielbergian magic is on solid display here in a visually stunning sci-fi adventure that boasts some fantastic visual effects that help bring the world of the OASIS to life. Highlights of this film’s impressive visuals include an incredibly thrilling race through the streets of a virtual Manhattan that sees racers deal with everything from wrecking balls to King Kong and an almost pitch-perfect recreation of Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 horror classic The Shining. In short, while I don’t ‘hate’ Ready Player One the novel the same way that a lot of people on the internet do, I ultimately prefer the film adaptation because, if anything, it proves that you really shouldn’t underestimate one of the most prolific filmmakers in the industry.

My Number 5 pick is a lot like Solo as it’s another film that truly deserved to do better than it ultimately did at the box-office. Thus, it’s quite sad that both ended up being undone by some incredibly moronic bits of controversy.

5. FIRST MAN

As you might have guessed from the title, First Man tells the story of the iconic Apollo 11 mission where Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first people to walk on the moon. More specifically, the film focuses on Armstrong (it is, after all, an adaptation of his 2005 biography of the same name) and the emotional state that he was in prior to launch. Thus, for most of the film, Armstrong may come off as a blank slate to most people as he spends a lot more time preparing for the mission than he does interacting with people, whether it’s his NASA co-workers or even his wife Janet and their two sons. However, the film ultimately reveals why this is the case during the final moments of the film after Armstrong and Aldrin manage to land on the moon’s surface. While Aldrin heads off to jump around on the surface, Armstrong, in a moment of solitude, stands before the Little West Crater and proceeds to drop a bracelet into it that belonged to his daughter Karen, who tragically died at a young age from a brain tumor. Now to be clear, there hasn’t been any official confirmation that this moment ever happened, but as the filmmakers have pointed out, it’s still a reasonable conclusion to come to as it’s been said that it wasn’t uncommon for astronauts to leave family mementos on the moon. But in the context of the film, it does work to explain what Armstrong was going through at the time and why he ultimately decided to focus more on his work than his friends and family. In doing so, it provided him an outlet where he wouldn’t be distracted by his grief, and the eventual success of the Apollo 11 mission allowed him to have that final moment of emotional catharsis and officially move on from the loss of his daughter. It’s a beautifully executed emotional moment thanks in large part to an excellent performance by Ryan Gosling as Neil Armstrong.

Aside from the film’s emotional poignancy, director Damien Chazelle also manages to craft some genuinely tense sequences whenever a spaceflight is involved. Whereas most films of this nature tend to rely on grand exterior shots of spacecraft traveling through space, most of this film’s spaceflight sequences stick within the cramped confines of the ships themselves. In doing so, it helps to illustrate the fact that what these astronauts are trying to accomplish is incredibly dangerous, and the film certainly doesn’t gloss over this little factoid. Whether it’s the near-disastrous Gemini 8 mission that Neil Armstrong was involved in or the devastating fire that killed the crew of Apollo 1, it’s clear that many risks were taken to get a man on the moon. But once the film finally gets to the grand finale that is the Apollo 11 mission, that’s where things start to change. Compared to previous spaceflight sequences, more exterior shots are used (while still primarily focusing on interior shots) and said shots are generally held for longer periods of time whereas previous sequences featured more rapid cuts. And, of course, once Armstrong and Aldrin step out onto the moon’s surface, all lunar sequences were filmed with IMAX cameras, and while we weren’t granted the chance to see this film in true 70 mm like some of Christopher Nolan’s recent films, this is still one of the best uses of the format. Simply put, this was the very definition of a film that was a must-see in IMAX… a shame, then, that not many people went to go see it in IMAX because the film didn’t do so hot at the box-office. While it wasn’t an outright flop, it just barely managed to gross over $100 million worldwide… and if you follow film-related news, then you’re probably aware of one of the reasons behind this.

It all started when the film premiered at the Venice Film Festival this past August, where it was reported that it did not include a scene where Armstrong and Aldrin plant the American flag on the moon’s surface. Chazelle and Gosling (with further support from Armstrong’s sons Rick and Mark) noted that this was because they wanted to focus more on Armstrong’s story, but nevertheless, this attracted tons of controversy that mainly came from the conservative side of the political spectrum. And while I know that some will argue that there was a bit more to it than just that, it’s clear that this debacle played a considerable factor in the film’s commercial underperformance. Because of this, I must ask the following… was the planting of the American flag really the most important aspect of the Apollo 11 mission? Yes, it’s true that a lot of what led to Apollo 11 was due to the Space Race that was going on at the time between the U.S. and Russia, something that the film does properly address. And yet, this whole controversy seems to imply that simply one-upping Russia was the only thing that mattered during this moment in history, thus ignoring all the achievements in human engineering that helped make it possible. Plus, if there’s one thing that was overlooked during this debacle… it’s that the flag does appear in the damn film… granted, it’s only seen from afar, but the point still stands. This is nothing but a completely fabricated bit of controversy, and if you ask me, it’s way more offensive to the legacy of the Apollo 11 mission than what it was trying to implicate. Thus, I do hope that First Man becomes one of those films that gains a greater audience in the years to come, as it’s another excellent outing from Damien Chazelle that shows that there was much more to Neil Armstrong than just the fact that he was the first man to walk on the moon.

And now we return to the controversial claim that I made back in Part 2 where I noted that this year’s Best Animated Feature winner, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, was not my #1 animated film of the year. Instead, it’s my Number 4 pick, which I’d argue was a worthy follow-up to its beloved predecessor even with all the expectations that it had to overcome.

4. INCREDIBLES 2

Calling Incredibles 2 one of the most anticipated films of the past year would be a massive understatement. Pixar’s 2004 classic The Incredibles is easily one of the studio’s most beloved outings. Plus, it’s quite arguably the only Pixar film not named Toy Story that fans legitimately demanded a sequel to given that it ended on a cliffhanger that teased a new villain. And while it may have taken 14 years for it to happen, the continuing adventures of the Parr family have finally seen the light of day. Now, obviously, the superhero film genre has changed quite a bit since the original Incredibles, namely thanks to the introduction of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And if anything, it’s clear that writer/director Brad Bird was well-aware of this as this film continues to focus more on its characters than its superhero-related hi-jinx. Sure, this film does feature some more excellent superhero action sequences, but at the end of the day, it’s all about the Parr family and their strong dynamic. With that in mind, though, some felt that this film heavily rehashed the plot of the first film by having one of the parents go off to fight crime while the other stays behind. And while it’s true that the plot of this film sees Helen Parr AKA Elastigirl head out to fight crime while Bob Parr AKA Mr. Incredible becomes the stay-at-home dad, there’s a bit more to it than that. The first film was mainly about Mr. Incredible overcoming a severe mid-life crisis, which ultimately ends up helping him reaffirm his devotion to his family.

As for the sequel, it sees Bob and Helen undergo a switcheroo regarding their parental roles. Helen, who had become a homemaker since the outlawing of superheroes, finds herself having to leave her family during a crucial time in their lives even though what she’s doing will help ensure their future. Bob, meanwhile, must swallow his pride and let his wife do all the superhero stuff while he tries to understand the ins and outs of being a stay-at-home dad, which includes everything from him trying (and failing) to fix his daughter’s dating woes to asking the age-old question when it comes to helping his son with his homework, “Why would they change math?”. In other words, this does a nice job of tying into what is arguably Bob and Helen’s greatest character arcs in these films, with Bob having to learn that even someone as strong as him isn’t invincible and Helen rediscovering her identity as a superhero after spending several years trying to move on from such a lifestyle. Meanwhile, their kids (i.e. Dash and Violet) continue to play vital roles in the plot, and yes, for those who were eager to see how this film would follow up on the previous film’s finale, it doesn’t disappoint when it comes to showcasing the full extent of infant Jack-Jack’s various powers (e.g. the scene where he fights off a raccoon). Thus, as I noted before, the strong dynamic from this family of supers is easily the best aspect of the film, but they are matched by a solid villain in the form of the mind-controlling Screenslaver, who’s revealed to be tech-savvy Evelyn Deavor. However, this also happens to be one of the more contentious aspects of the film for many people for various reasons that range from the rather obvious reveal that she is the villain to the argument that she’s just not as good of a villain as Syndrome was in the last film. Once again, though, I’d argue otherwise as both Incredibles films do a good job in giving us villains who serve as a critique on the concept of superheroes.

In the first film, we had Syndrome AKA Buddy Pine, Mr. Incredible’s highly enthusiastic #1 fan who turns to the dark side when his idol rejects him (in other words, toxic fandom in a nutshell). His plan is to use the various inventions that he has created to grant those without superpowers the chance to be superheroes themselves. As he puts it, “when everyone’s super… no one will be”. In the case of the sequel and Evelyn Deavor, we have a villain whose motivations are based on the public’s dependence on superheroes. As revealed by her brother Winston in a flashback, their father was such a big fan of superheroes that he even had direct landlines to two of the Supers, Gazerbeam and Fironic. And yet, unfortunately, this ends up costing him his life as he couldn’t get into contact with them while he was dealing with burglars because of the Supers being outlawed. Thus, while Winston works to “bring supers back into the sunlight”, Evelyn secretly aspires to get rid of them for good. In short, both Incredibles villains work excellently within the context of their respective film’s plots. And thanks to its strong emotional depth and phenomenal animation that, dare I say, is often on par with Into the Spider-Verse when it comes to replicating the comic book style, Incredibles 2 is an excellent follow-up to its iconic predecessor. However, I’m not going to compare these two films to determine ‘which is better’ because I feel that this would be a bit unfair to the sequel as I obviously have a lot more experience with the original Incredibles. It was one of my favorites as a kid (and yes, it still stands as one of my all-time favorite Pixar films to this day) and I even still remember going to see it in theaters back in 2004. But because the sequel is just as well-made by comparison, I’m happy to say that those who didn’t ‘grow up’ with the original now get the chance to witness everything that made The Incredibles an undisputed classic of my generation.

And that concludes Part 3 of Rhode Island Movie Corner’s list of my Top 12 Favorite Films from 2018. Thanks for following along and be sure to check back in tomorrow for the big finale where I delve into my Top 3 Favorite Films from the past year.

2018 Midyear Recap

Well, we’re now halfway through 2018 and on this blog, you know exactly what that means. That’s right, folks, it’s time for Rhode Island Movie Corner’s annual Midyear Recap, where I go through all the major films that I’ve seen this year from worst to best. This is basically the only time of the year where I’m able to go through every film that I’ve seen in theaters (though this year will have one notable exception by having a film that premiered on a streaming service). By year’s end, I only end up covering my Top 10 Least Favorite Films of the Year and my Top 12 Favorite Films of the Year, meaning that I don’t do a second recap post for all the films that I saw from July through December. Still, this has been a tradition of mine on this site ever since I first started it back in May 2012, so there was no way that it would be forgotten about this year. Now for those who are new to this site, this post is basically just my current ‘rankings list’ of every newly released film that I’ve seen in 2018. We go from the current #1 Worst of the year for me all the way up to my current Top 5. In other words, for those who follow me on the film fan website Letterboxd, this is basically the complete version of the always-updating list that I do every year to keep track of everything I’ve seen, something that I admittedly never did prior to joining that website. With that in mind, obviously, these rankings are not set in stone and will see quite a few noticeable changes by the time that I get to my End of the Year lists. But I’m getting off track now, so without further ado, here’s my current list of everything that I’ve seen in 2018 as far as new film releases are concerned, from some truly legendary superhero epics to long-awaited continuations of some of the most beloved films of all-time.

Just a quick warning, though, there will be a few major spoilers for a few of these films, so if you haven’t yet seen any of these, just be wary going forward…

WORST FILM OF THE YEAR (SO FAR)

RED SPARROW

Despite being the latest collaboration between Jennifer Lawrence and director Francis Lawrence (no relation), who previously worked on the last three installments of the Hunger Games franchise, Red Sparrow is an unfortunately underwhelming spy thriller that ends up being undermined by a lackluster narrative. The film’s plot starts off decently enough, but then it ends up falling flat with a predictable ending where the main protagonist makes one big power move that best ensures her survival. In other words, if you saw last year’s similarly-structured thriller Atomic Blonde, you can guess where this one ends up, and it also doesn’t help that the film tends to drag a lot at times. Granted, it is one of those ‘slow burn’ thrillers, but there are quite a few moments that could’ve been cut out of this near two-and-a-half-hour film that wouldn’t have affected the plot in any way. It’s a shame, really, because from a technical perspective, the film isn’t poorly made or anything. Francis Lawrence brought on several of the same crew members who worked with him on the Hunger Games films to work on this film, resulting in some nice wintry cinematography and some solidly-filmed action sequences. And to her credit, Jennifer Lawrence does do an excellent job in the lead role as does Joel Edgerton in the role of her character’s main love interest. But really, it’s not saying that much if the most positive thing that I can say about this film… is that at least it’s not as bad as Mother. I mean, if anything, I can at least guarantee you folks that, unlike Mother, this will not be my #1 worst of the year by the time we get to December. Believe me when I say that Red Sparrow is not ‘that’ bad.           

OTHER NOTABLE ‘STOINKERS’

THE CLOVERFIELD PARADOX

Anticipation was high for this film when it was announced that it was to be the third installment of producer J.J. Abrams’ Cloverfield anthology series. Sadly, this doesn’t quite reach the same great heights of 2008’s found-footage monster flick Cloverfield or 2016’s Hitchcockian thriller 10 Cloverfield Lane. Despite the potential of a plot that was going to answer some of the biggest mysteries about the former, this film ultimately feels like a knock-off of other films, namely Alien given its premise about a group of astronauts who are hunted down by a mysterious force. Because of this, these characters are quite flat (save for Gugu Mbatha Raw as the main protagonist, Ava), thus wasting a solid ensemble cast that includes the likes of Daniel Brühl, Elizabeth Debicki, and David Oyelowo. And while I didn’t mind the ways in which the film explored some of the first film’s mysteries, specifically the reveal of what crashed into the ocean in the final scene, these answers feel just as undercooked as the plot itself. In short, perhaps the fact that this film was ultimately relegated to being released on Netflix, debuting the very night its first trailer aired during the Super Bowl no less, was a telltale sign that this wasn’t going to end well. From what I’ve read, it seems as if Paramount simply lost faith in the project, especially due to it sporting a higher budget compared to the previous films. And J.J. Abrams couldn’t do anything about it because of his commitment to Star Wars: Episode IX.  With that said, though, like Red Sparrow I don’t think this film is as bad as some say it is. It’s well-shot, at least, for a film that was once slated to be released in IMAX and features a nice score from 10 Cloverfield Lane composer Bear McCreary. Thus, while it’s easily the weakest of the Cloverfield series, hopefully, this doesn’t end up killing this highly promising anthology series three films in.

TOMB RAIDER

Now many of you will recall that I gave this film a 3/5 rating in my original review of it a few months back. Sadly, like Unfriended back in 2015, this is one of those cases where my thoughts on the film haven’t exactly improved since I saw it. While not outright terrible, this new adaptation of the classic Tomb Raider video game franchise just ends up being a mediocre action-adventure film. For one thing, it starts out on a very slow note, and while things do improve once Lara gets on the island of Yamatai, it still isn’t enough to keep the film from being a ‘by-the-numbers’ action flick. Despite some nice action set-pieces that mirror the biggest moments from the 2013 series reboot upon which it’s primarily based, this is ultimately nothing more than a basic origin story where Lara uncovers some secrets about her long-lost father. And it’s a shame because Alicia Vikander proves that she is clearly up to the task of portraying the iconic video game heroine Lara Croft. Not counting a few instances where she falls victim to some questionable decision-making, Vikander manages to nicely convey the traits of the reboot era Lara, who isn’t heavily defined by her sexual appeal like in her earlier incarnations. This, of course, includes the times where she was played by Angelina Jolie in the franchise’s previous film adaptations from the early 2000’s. Ultimately, though, while I do have more experience with the recent Tomb Raider games, Jolie’s films, for as silly as they are, are still the superior take on their source material, even if it’s not really saying that much given that it’s still a part of the video game film adaptation genre. But as for this film, I’ll give it credit in that it at least tried a lot more compared to most other video game film adaptations.

WORTHWHILE RECOMMENDATIONS

RAMPAGE

Despite not being as familiar with the Rampage video game franchise as Tomb Raider, I was surprised to find that I enjoyed its film adaptation a lot more than Tomb Raider. Now granted, these two films do have quite a few things in common, namely a similar plot structure in which all their big action sequences are reserved for their third acts. Plus, if there’s one advantage that Tomb Raider has over this film, it’s better faithfulness to its source material. While Rampage does at least maintain its series’ premise of giant monsters causing all sorts of destruction, it does make a few narrative changes here and there, namely by not having the monsters be humans who were transformed after being subjected to experimentation. Instead, the three monsters from the original Rampage arcade game are just animals subjected to a pathogen, with the gorilla George being the misunderstood friend of the film’s main human protagonist Okoye. Despite this, though, something about this film just made it work a lot better than Tomb Raider. While it’s an undeniably mindless action flick, it never really goes too far with trying to maintain a serious tone throughout despite the plot being based more around Okoye and George. Because of this, the film benefits from having consistent pacing, and the finale, where the monsters rampage through Chicago, is an enjoyably over-the-top array of action sequences. And then, of course, there is Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson. While this is far from being his best film, he still gives it his all and once again proves why he’s one of the most charismatic actors in the business. Thus, while neither this film or Tomb Raider ended up breaking the dreaded curse of poorly-received films based on popular video games, it is at least better than most of the other films in its genre.  

UNCLE DREW

As I noted in my admittedly short review of this film a few days back, Uncle Drew is not the kind of film that you go into expecting award-caliber writing. After all, this is a film that was based on a series of Pepsi commercials about an elderly man named Drew who taught ‘youngbloods’ how to ‘get buckets’. But even with that said, this film is a genuinely enjoyable little sports comedy. Oh sure, like several other films in its genre, this film’s plot is incredibly predictable, especially with certain plot-lines regarding conflicts that the main characters must overcome. There’s the old rivalry between two former friends that was caused by a love triangle, an embarrassing moment from the main protagonist’s past that he gets to do over, etc. But once the titular Uncle Drew rounds up his former teammates, the film doesn’t miss a lot of beats when it comes to its humor. A lot of this is thanks to its collection of NBA stars, with Kyrie Irving doing quite a nice job in his feature film debut as the title character. He also works well alongside Get Out breakout star Lil Rel Howery in his first major leading role as main protagonist Dax. Ultimately, though, the biggest compliment that I can give this film is that I appreciate its unabashedly nostalgic attitude; in other words, this is very much a film that celebrates the game of basketball through the eyes of a bunch of characters who truly respect it.

EARLY MAN

The wonderful folks at Aardman Animations (specifically Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park) returned to the big screen this year with their latest Claymation-animated flick, Early Man. True to studio form, this film gives us a delightfully wacky premise in which cavemen invent the game of soccer and must beat a Bronze Age era soccer team to save their home. Now, like Uncle Drew, this is a sports film, meaning that you’ll know exactly what’s going to happen in it going in. However, even if it’s not the most sharply-written film to come from the minds at Aardman, that doesn’t mean that the studio’s trademark charm was lost in the process. There are still plenty of great moments of British humor throughout the film and it does benefit from a likable collection of characters. It’s all led by the excellent lead trio of Eddie Redmayne as the lovable main protagonist Dug, Maisie Williams as Dug’s badass ally Goona, and Tom Hiddleston as the delightfully over-the-top main antagonist, Lord Nooth. And just like many Aardman classics, this film’s stop-motion animation is quite excellent. After a few years in which the studio’s feature films were computer animated, Aardman has since returned to the animation style that made them famous in the first place, which is quite the welcome turn of events. Thus, while Early Man isn’t exactly the best feature film that either Aardman or Nick Park has done, it’s still a delightful little animated flick that sadly didn’t do so well at the box-office when it was released this past February. This is partially evident from the fact that I was literally the only soul in the theater when I went to go see it even though it was just two weeks into its run.

PACIFIC RIM UPRISING

Due to his commitment to last year’s Best Picture winner The Shape of Water, the legendary Guillermo Del Toro couldn’t return to direct the follow-up to his 2013 cult classic, Pacific Rim. Instead, Steven S. DeKnight (creator of the Starz series Spartacus and showrunner for the first season of Marvel’s Daredevil) was behind the camera for this installment; all in all, he did a nice job of taking over for Del Toro. Sure, this film doesn’t necessarily have the same visual finesse of its predecessor, but it still features the same great epic action sequences involving fights between giant mechs and giant monsters while also sporting a brighter color palette to help it stand on its own when compared to the first film. As for the writing, though, it’s just like the first film in that there’s not much there in terms of plot and character development. Plus, fans of the original might not like some of the ways in which this film handles some of its returning characters (e.g. supporting ally Newt becoming a pawn of the Kaiju, protagonist Mako Mori’s unceremonious death, etc.). But this is thankfully redeemed, for the most part, by this film’s new main protagonist Jake Pentecost, son of Idris Elba’s Stacker ‘CANCELLING THE APOCALYPSE!’ Pentecost from the previous film. Simply put, John Boyega is superb in the role, and if the fact that he was one of this film’s producers wasn’t enough proof of it, he’s clearly committed to this franchise. Because of this, I do hope that we at least get one more sequel despite this film faring about as well as the original at the box-office; not to mention some of the extremely negative responses that it got from critics/audiences. And speaking of not-so-positive reactions to the latest installment of a popular Universal film franchise…

JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM

The cycle of Jurassic Park sequels not being as well-received compared to the original continued this year with Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, which currently sports the second worst RT score of any film in the franchise at 51%. But as I noted in my review of it a few weeks back, I’ve never really held those lofty expectations against these sequels as I didn’t necessarily grow up with the original, which I do still regard as one of the all-time greats. Thus, I’d say that, at the very least, it’s not like Fallen Kingdom doesn’t try as a follow-up to 2015’s global phenomenon Jurassic World. For one thing, it’s quite arguably the best-looking and best-shot entry in the entire series, with some truly gorgeous cinematography that wonderfully captures the chaos of Isla Nublar’s volcanic destruction. As for the writing, while it is your typical ‘dinosaur carnage’ plot that the series has become known for at this point, director J.A. Bayona does a nice job of utilizing his horror genre roots to produce some impressively frenetic action sequences. This is then paired nicely with a solid ensemble cast headlined by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, who are both great once again in the roles of returning protagonists Owen and Claire. But perhaps the most notable aspect of this film is the way that it ends, with the surviving dinosaurs who were saved from Isla Nublar’s destruction being unleashed out into the world. This will surely pave the way for an exciting sequel that’s set to come out in 2021 under the direction of Jurassic World director Colin Trevorrow. Until then, though, we have J.A. Bayona’s entertaining contribution to the legendary film franchise that is Jurassic Park.

MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE

As I’ve noted before in previous posts, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed 2014’s The Maze Runner. Despite having never read the book that it was based on, it was a solidly-made thriller with an engaging mystery plot and a nice ensemble cast of general unknowns. Because of this, I was incredibly hyped for its first follow-up, 2015’s Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials. But as I’ve also noted before, while I didn’t feel that the film was ‘bad’, it was quite the underwhelming affair due to a general lack of both plot and emotional attachment to any of the characters aside from main protagonist Thomas. In other words, it was basically what many people feared the film adaptation of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers would end up as; a middle chapter that lacked focus. And as for the series finale, The Death Cure, while some may find it to be a bit bloated due in part to it being the longest installment of the series at nearly two and a half hours long, it at least manages to boast stronger moments of character development compared to its immediate predecessor. This is especially the case for Teresa (who was straight up given the short end of the stick in The Scorch Trials despite it being the entry where she turns on the group) and Newt, who gets the biggest emotional moments in the entire film with his tragic death scene and the goodbye letter that he writes to Thomas, who reads it at the very end. But perhaps the best aspect of this film is that unlike other franchises that were based on young-adult novels, this is truly the final installment of the series and not just the first half of a two-part finale. Sure, it doesn’t necessarily answer all the series’ biggest questions, but it does end on a generally definitive note. Thus, like the best parts of The Scorch Trials, Maze Runner: The Death Cure ultimately serves as proof as to how far this series has come since the first film and director Wes Ball’s own evolution as an up-and-coming action director.

A WRINKLE IN TIME

Well, the overall response to director Ava DuVernay’s adaptation of Madeleine L’Engle’s classic novel A Wrinkle in Time hasn’t exactly been that positive. While critics weren’t necessarily that ‘harsh’ towards it, it faced a lot more scrutiny from audiences as evident from the fact that it bombed quite hard at the box-office. It’s a shame, though, because I’ll openly admit that I quite enjoyed the film. I’ve never read the original novel before, but I think that DuVernay and screenwriter Jennifer Lee did a nice job of attempting to adapt this supposedly ‘unfilmable’ novel. Really, the only major issue that I have with the film is that it kind of rushes through its narrative despite all the things that it needs to set up for its universe. Despite this, though, the two still manage to capture just enough of the emotional poignancy of this story about a young girl who embarks on a perilous journey to rescue her long-lost father. The film also benefits from being one of the most visually-stunning blockbusters of the year thanks to both its grand CGI visuals and stunning cinematography. And its all backed by a terrific ensemble cast headlined by the trio of Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling, and the one and only Oprah Winfrey as the three celestial beings who help the main protagonist Meg Murry (played excellently by newcomer Storm Reid) on her quest. In short, like another recent live-action Disney blockbuster that sadly flopped at the box-office (2015’s Tomorrowland), hopefully, A Wrinkle in Time will end up gaining more of an audience in the future.

OCEAN’S 8

Arguably the most surprisingly effective franchise revival so far this year came with Ocean’s 8, a spin-off of director Steven Soderbergh’s trilogy of heist films that began with the 2001 remake of Ocean’s 11. And while I’m sure that this film faced some backlash from the same crowds who got upset over the female-led reboot of Ghostbusters back in 2016, it ultimately ended up being the best film yet from this series. Simply put, this film abandons quite a lot of the smug atmosphere that was one of the most common criticisms about the original trilogy. Sure, it’s still just as much of a ‘glitz and glamour’ heist film as the previous films, but this one flows a lot smoother by comparison. It also helps that the film sports an outstanding collection of female leads; Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Mindy Kaling, Helena Bonham Carter, and that’s just to name a few. And to be perfectly blunt, the chemistry between these ladies is far superior to what we got from the protagonists of Soderbergh’s trilogy. Now don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy Ocean’s 11 and Ocean’s 13 (like many others, I can do without Ocean’s 12), but overall, there’s a greater sense of confidence to this film’s proceedings because of how well these actresses work together. All in all, veteran writer/director Gary Ross does a nice job of following in Soderbergh’s footsteps. Because of this, I’d love to see another film centered on Debbie Ocean and her crew. With that said, though, if it ever happens, let’s just hope that this band of thieves has a much better second outing than Danny Ocean’s band of thieves.

DEADPOOL 2

As I’ve noted before, while I did enjoy the first Deadpool, I didn’t quite see it as the ‘game-changer for the superhero film genre’ that everyone regarded it as. Sure, it was an entertaining, funny superhero flick with a terrific lead performance from Ryan Reynolds, but it ended up abiding by a lot of the same genre tropes that it was intentionally mocking. Thankfully, that’s not as big of an issue with Deadpool 2. Director David Leitch takes a lot more chances with the superhero genre satire and it leads to a lot of great payoffs, especially in the film’s hilarious mid-credits sequence. The only risk that didn’t quite work out is the big twist at the beginning where Wade Wilson’s girlfriend Vanessa is killed. Sadly, this means that her character is once again given the narrative shaft despite Morena Baccarin’s terrific chemistry with Reynolds. And yet, it also somehow works in a way as it’s one of the primary things that drives Deadpool’s actions throughout the rest of the film. In other words, while this twist does produce some rather jarring tonal shifts, it still manages to give this film a stronger emotional core compared to its predecessor. And of course, like the previous film, the humor is strong throughout thanks in large part to Ryan Reynolds’ continuously excellent turn as the ‘Merc with a Mouth’. He’s also joined in this film by some great newcomers, including Josh Brolin (in his second major superhero film role of the year; and yes, that other role will be coming up soon…) as the time-traveling soldier Cable and Zazie Beetz as the lucky mercenary Domino. Because of this, I’m happy to say that I did enjoy Deadpool 2 a lot more than the first film. Granted, I still don’t necessarily consider it to be one of the best superhero films ever, but it’s certainly one of the most entertaining.

A QUIET PLACE

A Quiet Place has been quite the success story for director/star/co-writer John Krasinski, and rightfully so as the film is up there with It and Get Out as one of the best horror films in recent memory. As I noted in my review for the film, it and those two films ultimately serve as a prime example of what I personally feel to be the most important aspect to a successful horror film, endearing protagonists. Sure, films like this can have as much fun as they want with their horror moments, kills, scares, etc., but I find that it ultimately doesn’t matter if I don’t give a crap about the main characters. And in the case of A Quiet Place’s main protagonists, the Abbott family, you do care about them. A lot of this is thanks to the film giving them some excellent bits of character development, from the family’s deaf daughter Regan struggling to overcome the guilt that she has over a previous family tragedy to the son Marcus having to grow up faster than he’s supposed to so that he’s prepared to deal with the alien menace that’s threatening them. And these aliens are quite the imposing threat because while they are blind, they can sense their prey through hearing, thus setting up the main premise of the film in which the Abbotts must go about their daily lives in almost-complete silence to avoid being hunted by them. Thanks to Krasinski’s excellent direction, the film handles this concept brilliantly, allowing for some highly effective tension-filled moments throughout. But like I said before, it all comes back to the Abbott family, portrayed excellently by Krasinski, his real-life wife Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds, and Noah Jupe. Because of this, A Quiet Place is truly a modern horror masterpiece.

TOP 5 OF THE YEAR (SO FAR)

5. SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY

The Star Wars fandom kind of sucks right now… I’m sorry for being so blunt right out the gate, but it’s become clear that because last year’s The Last Jedi was so damn polarizing, it has created a rift that has unfortunately brought out the worst in some people. Just look at all the abuse that The Last Jedi star Kelly Marie Tran has gotten to the point where it may have even forced her off social media. And sadly, this has affected the franchise’s latest installment, Solo: A Star Wars Story, namely by it underperforming at the box-office due to a very stupid boycott. Though, of course, a large part of this is also due to the film having one of the most infamous film productions of recent memory, with original directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller getting kicked off the project halfway through production due to creative conflicts with Lucasfilm. Thankfully, the legendary Ron Howard manages to keep the film from becoming the disaster that all its critics thought it was going to be. We may never know what Lord and Miller’s version of the film was going to be like, but Howard does a damn fine job at seemingly mirroring what the two were going for; in other words, a sci-fi western with snappy dialogue. And against all the odds of having to live up to the legacy of Harrison Ford, Alden Ehrenreich proves to be a suitable successor in the role of the legendary Han Solo. He’s also joined by an excellent supporting cast that includes Donald Glover as young Lando Calrissian, Emilia Clarke as Han’s love interest Qi’ra, and Woody Harrelson as his mentor Tobias Beckett. In short, Solo: A Star Wars Story is far from being the best installment of the Star Wars franchise, but that’s not even remotely a bad thing given the quality of the installments that have been released under the Disney banner. And contrary to what sites like Geeks + Gamers and World Class BullS****ers may claim, this franchise is doing just fine and couldn’t be in better hands. Deal with it, haters…

4. BLACK PANTHER

Marvel Studios has struck gold time and time again with their high-quality superhero flicks, and this trend continued this year with Black Panther, the highly-anticipated solo film for the titular king of Wakanda. And as soon as it hit theaters, it became one of the most critically-acclaimed films of both the MCU and 2018 in general and one of the biggest box-office hits in recent memory. And why not? In a franchise that has always been known for having some great emotional moments involving its main characters, Black Panther is easily one of the most emotionally-driven installments of the MCU. From the titular hero struggling to learn how to be the ruler of his home to the main antagonist Erik Killmonger’s tragic backstory, this film will hit you right in the feels. At the same time, though, it also gives you everything that you love about the MCU while also being one of the best overall representations of that at the same time. Killmonger is one of the MCU’s greatest antagonists to date, with Michael B. Jordan practically stealing the whole damn film thanks to his magnetic screen presence. But, of course, Chadwick Boseman is also spectacular once again as T’Challa AKA Black Panther along with other notable supporting players like Danai Gurira as the badass Dora Milaje warrior Okoye and Letitia Wright as T’Challa’s genius sister Shuri. Simply put, writer/director Ryan Coogler (Fruitvale Station, Creed) knocks it out of the park on this one, giving us a landmark entry in the superhero genre and yet another critical/commercial success for Marvel Studios. But as we’ll soon see, this wasn’t going to be the only landmark film that Marvel Studios produced this year.

3. READY PLAYER ONE

Since seeing this twice in theaters, I have read the original novel that it’s based on by Ernest Cline (or, to be more specific, I’ve been listening to it on Audible). Because of this, I feel that the film manages to be a superior take on this story. Now, for the record, I don’t ‘hate’ the book like I know A LOT of people do; it’s just that the film manages to avoid some of the more ‘annoying’ elements of the book, specifically its use of ‘gamer slang’ that often gave it a rather immature tone. To put it simply, the one and only Steven Spielberg managed to streamline the narrative to make it more ‘Spielberg-esque’. In doing so, it also fixes another issue with the novel by making the main characters, ESPECIALLY main protagonist Wade Watts, a lot more likable. Because of this, I found myself truly sucked into the film’s virtual world, the OASIS, and the main plot of an average kid embarking on a grand adventure to ensure a bright future. Now with that said, I do understand why this story still doesn’t gel well with some people. While Spielberg does manage to make it more appealing to audiences, Ready Player One is still primarily defined by its numerous pop cultural references that practically litter the screen 95% of the time. At the same time, though, I wouldn’t call this film as being nothing more than a series of cameos and in-jokes. Call it cliched, but I felt that this film carried that Spielberg magic throughout that has helped to make him the icon of film that he is today. And while this film thankfully managed to not underperform financially like some of his recent outings (e.g. The BFG), it’s still a shame that internet fandom seems to be taking his reputation for granted nowadays. I mean, yes, I get that Ready Player One is quite the polarizing bit of media, but the fact that people weren’t at least giving it the benefit of the doubt due to Steven Spielberg directing it is surprising.  

2. INCREDIBLES 2 (Quite fitting having this at the #2 spot, isn’t it?)

To call Incredibles 2 one of the most anticipated films of all-time would be a massive understatement. Ever since the first Incredibles ended on a big cliffhanger that made it one of the few Pixar sequels that fans genuinely demanded a sequel to, expectations were high for the long-awaited follow-up to one of Pixar’s most beloved films. Thankfully, it seemed like these expectations were met for the most part with this highly satisfying follow-up. Despite all the major changes that the superhero genre has gone through since the release of the first film, writer/director Brad Bird does not lose sight of the one thing that made The Incredibles the classic that it is today, its family dynamic. Amidst all the fun action set-pieces, this is still a story about a family of superheroes struggling to adapt to life in the real world, perhaps best illustrated by one of its biggest plot threads in which Mr. Incredible must go out of his comfort zone and be a stay-at-home dad while Elastigirl is out doing all the superhero work. This helps to keep the film from being a ‘carbon copy’ of its predecessor without losing any of its charm and atmosphere. And, of course, like any Pixar film, Incredibles 2 boasts excellent animation, which does an even greater job compared to the first film in terms of capturing the comic-book style that had influenced Bird in the first place, with some sequences even giving off a cool 2-D vibe. Because of all this, Incredibles 2 was certainly worth the wait for fans of the original. But for those who weren’t around when the first film hit theaters back in 2004, this serves as a nice way of experiencing everything that made the original one of the best animated films of all time.  

1. AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR

Avengers: Infinity War is the incredibly satisfying culmination of one of the most rewarding cinematic experiences in recent memory. For the past decade, we have witnessed the awesomeness that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which has given us a complete collection of entertaining superhero flicks that have been a perfect combination of awesome action sequences, quotable humor, and a deep emotional drive that's bolstered by their layered protagonists. And it all comes together nicely in the third Avengers flick which, like all previous MCU films, gives us everything great about the franchise in one epic package. There’s the great humor mixed in with all the wonderful character interactions, from Iron Man and Doctor Strange to Thor and the Guardians of the Galaxy, and the phenomenal action sequences. But then the Russo brothers take it one step further by ramping up the emotional depth of this franchise to unprecedented levels. First, there’s the film’s amazing main antagonist, Thanos. Even against all the expectations that had been surrounding him since he first appeared in the mid-credits scene of the first Avengers, the Mad Titan manages to live up to all that hype as one of Marvel Studios’ greatest villains, with Josh Brolin making him the most emotionally-driven villain that the series has seen yet. But perhaps the biggest high that this film achieves is the fact that it ends with Thanos… winning. Yes, the Mad Titan succeeds at his plan of wiping out half the universe, resulting in several of our main heroes evaporating into dust; Black Panther, Doctor Strange, most of the Guardians, and even Spider-Man. Yeah, I know that parts of this ending will probably be reversed in next year’s Avengers 4, but in the moment, this sequence is handled perfectly by the Russos. Thus, while I usually hate to make over-exaggerated claims about films, I can safely say without a shadow of a doubt that Avengers: Infinity War is a truly legendary affair that perfectly represents everything that’s great about the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

And that concludes my 2018 Midyear Recap. We certainly have a lot of exciting films coming out these next 6 months. There’s the last major MCU film of 2018, eagerly-awaited follow-ups to franchises like Mission: Impossible and Fantastic Beasts, promising new outings from the likes of Damien Chazelle and Robert Zemeckis, and of course, that’s just to name a few. Until then, thanks for following along and be sure to sound off in the comments below with your own personal Top 5 Favorite Films of the Year as of July 4^th, 2018.

Ready Player One (2018) review

There’s no denying the fact that Steven Spielberg is one of the most legendary filmmakers in the history of cinema. Since his career first took off in the early 70’s, he’s given us an endless array of cinematic classics. He’s directed everything from iconic blockbusters like Jaws, E.T., and the Indiana Jones series to critically-acclaimed dramas like Schindler’s List, The Color Purple, and Saving Private Ryan. With that in mind, one could say that it’s only fitting that he’d be the one to direct a film that honors the current era of geekdom that he had a major hand in creating. And thus, here we are now with his latest directorial effort, Ready Player One, a film adaptation of author Ernest Cline’s best-selling novel of the same name from 2011. Upon its release in August of that year, this story of a teenager who embarks on an epic journey within the expansive world of a virtual reality game received solid reviews from critics and ended up becoming a New York Times bestseller. But in the years since, however, the novel has started to attract a steadily growing backlash from those who weren’t too keen on its over-reliance on pop cultural references. Nevertheless, seven years after its release, Cline’s novel now comes to the big screen under the direction of the one man who was undeniably one of Cline’s biggest influences. And because that man is Steven Spielberg, he manages to avoid making this film nothing but an endless barrage of Easter eggs (in this case, pun intended…) and instead gives us an entertaining sci-fi fantasy adventure that fully immerses us within its fantastical world.

In the year 2045, most of humanity finds itself living in slum-like communities due to everything from overpopulation to polluting. This includes teenager Wade Watts (Tye Sheridan), who lives in ‘The Stacks’ (named for its collection of trailer homes stacked on top of each other) in Columbus, Ohio. Like everyone else, Wade escapes the gloom of reality by immersing himself within the virtual world of a computer simulation known as ‘the OASIS’. Within the OASIS, one can do anything, go anywhere, and be whoever they want to be from the world of pop culture. However, things get a little more interesting when OASIS users learn of a quest set up by the service’s creator, the late James Halliday (Mark Rylance). Whoever manages to complete this quest, made up of three challenges tied directly to Halliday’s favorite aspects of pop culture, and find the secret ‘Easter egg’ that Halliday has hidden within the OASIS will earn Halliday’s shares of his company along with complete control of the OASIS. Wade, who adopts the username of ‘Parzival’, soon finds himself performing well in Halliday’s challenges thanks to his extensive knowledge of Halliday’s life. However, this also begins to put him in direct competition with Innovative Online Industries (IOI), led by CEO Nolan Sorrento (Ben Mendelsohn), who is also seeking the Egg to take over the OASIS by any means necessary. Thus, with the future of the OASIS on the line, Wade teams up with several other Gunters (‘Egg Hunters’), including Samantha Cook AKA Art3mis (Olivia Cooke) and his best friend Helen AKA Aech (Lena Waithe), to complete the challenges so that they can collect the Egg first.

Well, there’s really no way of beating around the bush on this one; one of the most definitive aspects of Ready Player One is its wide array of cameos and bits of dialogue that reference almost everything from the world of pop culture. There is so much of that in this film that it’ll legitimately require multiple viewings just to spot them all. At the same time, though, doing so would allow you to marvel at this film’s impressive visual effects. Obviously, everything within the OASIS is CGI, but thanks to the excellent work by the legendary Industrial Light and Magic, this film boasts some of the crispest CGI in recent memory. But fear not, as this film is much more than just a bunch of pretty visuals. Now, of course, this film does emphasize all the various cultural references that it has to offer; everything from Wade/Parzival riding a Back to the Future DeLorean in the OASIS to him using the ‘Holy Hand Grenade’ from Monty Python and the Holy Grail in combat. Despite this, though, Spielberg’s great direction makes it so that it ends up being more about the story and its characters than whatever figure from a popular video game or film happen to pop up on screen from time to time. After all, Spielberg, well-aware of how big of an impact he made on pop culture in the 80’s, purposefully decided to not directly use anything from the films that he directed so that this wouldn’t become an extreme case of vanity. And while the film does celebrate pop culture, it also offers some commentary on the instances where that love can go a bit too far. While Halliday’s challenges are primarily influenced by his favorite bits of media, Wade and company soon realize that another key influence behind them all are some of Halliday’s biggest regrets in life that occurred due to his overall lifestyle. This, along with several other aspects of the plot, helps to give the narrative a solid amount of heart which, given some of his previous films, is something that Spielberg is quite good at doing.

This entertaining adventure is further backed by its excellent ensemble cast. In the lead role of Wade/Parzival, Tye Sheridan exhibits solid charisma while also having some excellent chemistry with Olivia Cooke as Samantha/Art3mis. And while Wade is the main character of the story, Samantha is just as well-versed as he is when it comes to the OASIS and Halliday’s tendencies while also being the one who keeps him out of trouble with IOI, making her much more than just a typical ‘love interest’. Speaking of IOI, CEO Nolan Sorrento proves to be a solid villain thanks in large part due to Ben Mendelsohn being given plenty of time to interact with Wade and company; in other words, he isn’t as underused from a narrative perspective as he [sort of] was in Rogue One. Finally, closing out the film’s core group of leads is Lena Waithe in what will surely be a breakout role for her as Helen/Aech, who has a strong camaraderie with Sheridan while also playing a major part in some of the best moments in the film (i.e. a sequence that involves their group going through a recreation of a classic film that she hasn’t seen). And while these four characters do end up getting the most attention plot-wise, meaning that some of the supporting characters end up being a little underutilized as a result, there are still plenty of memorable supporting roles in this film aside from them. Mark Rylance (who, given his roles in both Bridge of Spies and The BFG, is quickly becoming a new Spielberg regular) makes the most out of his brief role as Halliday and his OASIS avatar Anorak as does Simon Pegg as Halliday’s former business partner, Ogden Morrow. And while the two of them end up being the least focused on of the main group, who are known as the ‘High Five’ due to their shared success at beating Halliday’s challenges, brothers Akihide/Sho (Philip Zhao) and Toshiro/Daito (Win Morisaki) do get to partake in some of the film’s most standout moments.

Now for the record, I am very much well-aware of some of the main reasons why Ernest Cline’s original novel has been getting a considerably substantial amount of backlash in the years since its release. The main reason why is simple, as some have taken issue with Ready Player One’s heavy emphasis on nostalgia and the various facets of pop culture that society has been treated to over the years, especially things that came from the 80’s. But because I’ll admit to not having read the novel beforehand, I didn’t really care about that going in. I mean, sure, in basic terms, this film is an amalgamation of numerous bits of pop culture; everything from The Iron Giant and Akira to Overwatch and Minecraft. But if there’s one person who could make all that work without going overboard on all the pop cultural references, it’d be the man who served as a direct influence on the original story itself, Steven Spielberg. Under the confident direction of one of the industry’s quintessential filmmakers, the film adaptation of Ready Player One is a delightful cinematic adventure that boasts some of the most stunning visuals in recent memory along with a fantastic ensemble cast headlined by the terrific lead duo of Tye Sheridan and Olivia Cooke along with memorable supporting turns from the likes of Lena Waithe and Ben Mendelsohn. In other words, under the eye of a ‘lesser director’, this probably could’ve turned out exactly like its critics thought it would be based on their overall thoughts on the book. But if there’s one thing that I hope we all can agree on, it is that Steven Spielberg is not ‘a lesser director’.

Rating: 5/5!