Ready Player One

This review may contain spoilers!

Steven Spielberg manages to reclaim the magic of the late 80s to 90s family film while maintaining a visual style that was extremely impressive. I would give Ready Player One a 7.5/10.

This is a story about a video game world; in which we see several famous characters from all corners of pop culture and a number of fantastic settings that exist in this virtual universe. The film deals with an Earth that has become enraptured with virtual, interfaceable gaming; throughout Ready Player One, we see a number of characters detached from the world around them to spend time in this place known as, the Oasis. The main hero, Wade, is a protagonist who is very easy to connect with and it's clear that he feels comfortable escaping into this virtual world rather than live in the real one. However, the strength of the film is how well the character of Wade develops alongside his friends and the dangerous struggle they face at the hands of the ruthless IOI corporation. The cinematography is a real treat and Spielberg pulls out all the stops to show you every inch of this fantastic world he has created, this film has an excellent flow and the motion of the camerawork ensures this is a feature with a great pace. The real strength of this particular film is the special effects, I struggle to believe that any film is going to outdo this one for the sheer levels of imagination poured into creating an appealing and standout virtual setting and characters.

Tye Sheridan, who played Wade/Parzival, is an incredible leading protagonist; Sheridan does a great job at balancing the initial insecure role we meet with fairly grounded, charismatic hero he develops into. Ben Mendelsohn, who played Sorrento, is actually quite the fitting actor for the shifty business tycoon antagonist; I enjoyed that the film took some risks and didn't play this role too stereotypically, even affording him some comedic moments. T.J. Miller, who played I-R0k, is the best source of comedy throughout the entire feature; Miller's dark and brooding figure is really contrasted nicely by the generic gamer persona he lends to the role. Mark Rylance, who played Halliday/Anorak, is such a charming, awkward role that you feel a great deal of compassion for thanks to Rylance; I enjoyed the gentler nature of the role prevailed even in scenes where he played an almost mythical version of his character in the guise of Anorak. Philip Zhao, who played Sho, has some brilliant comedic delivery in his scenes; Zhao is entertaining as one of the more abrasive members of the High Five protagonists.

However, the best performance came from Olivia Cooke, who played Samantha/Art3mis. Cooke is such an interesting lead protagonist; one who presents her role's vulnerabilities extremely openly, all the while remaining guarded against forming relationships with others. She is an avid risk-taker and blazes the path for rebellion against the corporate antagonists. Cooke is probably the most impressive action hero in this feature, she has such a willingness to take charge within the conflict that you can't help but remain fixated on her. I really liked how this role developed an interest in the emotional background of the Easter Egg hunt which leads the film, it grounded the character and made her easier to connect with.

The film struggles once it transitions into the second act, the film has to make up some lousy excuses to involve more live-action in the film which results in some scenes that don't really feel natural. In particular, the romance subplot between Wade and Samantha fall flat once the two leads begin to interact in the live-action setting; attempts to make the characters' insecurities emerge results in a distinct lack of romantic chemistry throughout. There are some strong moments of comedy throughout but they can occur infrequently, robbing the film of its tension as it moves towards the end of the feature. The score for the film is probably intended as an homage to several films referenced throughout but it instead feels like a complete imitation of original scores from those exact films. Furthermore, the soundtrack of the film is quite a hodge-podge selection and tells of someone choosing songs they desired rather than songs fitting for Ready Player One.

Lena Waithe, who played Helen/Aech, is pretty poorly voiced when it comes to her video game character; Waithe's reveal later in the feature feels more like a novelty rather than a surprising twist. Simon Pegg, who played Ogden Morrow, falls into the background a surprising amount and doesn't suit such a serious, strained role; Pegg is only ever afforded the opportunity to make quite dry jokes and seems out of place in this film. Win Morisaki, who played Daito, is a bit over the top in his exuberance at meeting and greeting his friends; Morisaki's 'big moment' of the film in which he unleashes Gundam is a little cheesy and a bit of a typecast to say the least. Hannah John-Kamen, who played F'Nale Zandor, is quite a generic henchman antagonist who never amounts to more than a minor thug role; John-Kamen really only exists to bring a bit of conflict to the live-action story. Ralph Ineson and Susan Lynch, who played Rick and Alice respectively, are just abrasive roles that are only here to be bad 'parent/guardian' roles; you don't learn anything about them beyond the fact they're unpleasant people because the plot doesn't invest in them as characters.