The cinema release of the Borderlands film adaptation is getting closer and after the first premieres there are some first impressions from the visitors and they don’t sound so exciting.
Video game adaptations can work, as The Last of Us and Fallout have proven. Does that also apply to Borderlands? Well, there was a lot of skepticism beforehand, there were doubtful looks when the actors were announced and after a few twists and turns during production (supposedly a whopping seven writers worked on the film, phew) the doubts didn’t diminish.
There have already been a few screenings and premieres, not unusual before a cinema release, so that the press is already in the picture, and what the audience is saying doesn’t sound all that good.
Let’s start with the positive impressions. The attention to detail is convincing in that video gamers have a lot to discover and some of the actors, especially Cate Blanchett and Jack Black, come off well, despite the characters apparently being rather poorly developed. The rest of them, not so much.
The old-fashioned humor or even the lack of it, the mass of clichés, cheap-looking CGI scenes, and an uninspired story are all criticized. One critic even describes the film as a rip-off of Guardians of the Galaxy, and not in a positive sense, while another does not shy away from the term “disaster.” Phew, it almost seems as if you could save your money for the cinema and watch the film on a stream sometime on a boring evening.
Film critic Edgar Ortega wrote, “Borderlands feels like what an aloof executive thinks the ‘cool kids’ would find attractive.” And continued, “There isn’t a single serious character moment, just insufferable lines that seem dated as soon as they come out of the actors’ mouths. It’s not even so bad that it’s good, it’s just a complete mess.”
We’ll spare you and ourselves any more quotes, because they almost all point in the same direction. What about you? Will you give Borderlands a chance and watch it despite low expectations and bad reviews? After all, we’ve seen a few times that critics and viewers don’t share the same opinion.
Borderlands – The final trailer before the cinema release
The film adaptation of Borderlands with Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart and many others will be released in cinemas on August 9th and there is a final trailer to get you in the mood.
