“SKumm’s Thoughts” - READY PLAYER ONE

“SKumm’s Thoughts”

READY PLAYER ONE (2018, PG-13, 140 minutes, AMBLIN ENTERTAINMENT/WARNER BROTHERS)

Many directors have a style you can sense a mile away—sometimes that is a good thing in that it reassures you, like an old familiar book you have read a dozen times.  Other times, it’s crappy, as in “oh, goody, another Michael Bay film that moves at the same pace as a coked-up squirrel running on no sleep and way too many Red Bulls and exploding metal”.

Steven Spielberg is one of the consistently stylish ones; he creates a sense of wonder from a child’s perspective.  He doesn’t insist that you believe, but rather assumes you will find the proceedings as magical as he does.  Mr. Spielberg may have had a few misses in his career (ADVENTURES OF TIN TIN, anyone?), but his visual style of storytelling is one that feels comfortable and reliable and altogether amazing.  And his latest is no exception.

READY PLAYER ONE, based on the book by Ernest Cline (who co-wrote the screenplay), has a sweeping narrative which switches from the virtual reality of The Oasis, an online and fully immersive digital universe, and actual reality, where the consequences are even more perilous than losing one’s avatar.  The story follows Wade Watts, aka “Parzival” (played by Tye Sheridan, whose performance in 2012’s MUD was absolutely heart wrenching), as he hunts for a vast fortune and control over The Oasis itself.  It seems that upon his death, the creator of The Oasis hid an Easter Egg somewhere within the game, and the first to find it inherits it all.  Parzival’s online friends are also hunting for the prize, as well as every other gamer on the planet—including an evil corporation that wishes to seize control just so it can begin charging people to play The Oasis.

What ensues is a life-or-death chase that occasionally sees the fantasy blending with reality, although Mr. Spielberg and Mr. Cline want you to know that there is a distinct line separating the two.  Having an escape from the real world is fine, but that real world is still there waiting for you when you log out of the system.  Whether you are looking at the online world of the game, or the seedy underbelly of real-world Columbus, Ohio, each depiction is fully realized and equally beatific and gritty.

Of course, there are going to be differences from page to screen, but having Cline co-write the screenplay helps ensure that the geeky glee of the book is kept alive and virtually kicking onscreen.  Whereas some things would not translate well from the book (for instance: to win the contest, the players must collect three keys, which give them clues to the next stage; some of the ways those keys are collected in the book, like playing a video game against a monster, or acting out an entire film from the eighties, would not translate well to the big screen), the author is there to guide the story along.  For the most part, this works.

However, there are two key sequences in the film that do not work quite right, and therein lies the only real problems I have with the film.  Wade’s romance with Samantha (known online as “Art3mis”), played with a staunch resolve by Olivia Cooke (ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL), falls flat.  This happens mainly because there isn’t enough time to convince the viewer of their passion, but also because, in books, the structure is allowed to linger on Wade’s thoughts and emotions.  The other sequence that felt off to me (no spoilers!) is their face-to-face meeting in the real world.  Sometimes deviations from the source material are necessary, but there is a way to make them more believable, and this makes for an unfortunate stumbling point in the flow of the story.

But did I mention that there are Battle Toads?  And an alien?  And a gremlin?!?  The magic of the book, which translates beautifully to the screen, are all of the pop culture references; from BACK TO THE FUTURE to a certain haunted hotel, there are characters and music and visuals from the eighties and nineties that should bring more than just a smile to your mug.  The use of avatars from video games (and I’ll not get into specifics, as there are far too many to catch during one screening, and I wouldn’t want to distract you by making you look for certain ones) and characters from other films is never overwhelming, but used more to accentuate the storytelling.

And in the hands of an already quite capable teller of tales—who was insistent that none of his prior creations appear in this film, although the post-production staff did manage to sneak one in—you should feel confident that what you will be witnessing is a director getting back to his roots.   

           

Grade: A-

-- T.S. Kummelman

‘Blu-ray or Bust’ - STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI

‘Blu-ray or Bust’

STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI (2017, PG-13, 160 minutes, LUCASFILM LTD/DISNEY)

Having already written a review of this film, I find it necessary to approach the Blu-ray release a bit differently. 

In recap, writer/director Rian Johnson (who previously provided the cinematic world with the astounding debut BRICK, and followed it up with one of the better films about time travel, LOOPER) attempts to pull off an EMPIRE STRIKES BACK of his own.  Following up Abrams’ shiny THE FORCE AWAKENS seems a daunting task, and the only way to try and up the ante is to provide a fresh look at an old, yet necessary, trick: raising the stakes and creating a darker vision.  The Resistance (this era’s version of Rebels) are on the run, albeit slowly, and without much fuel in their tanks—literally.  The First Order has them scrambling for cover, and what seems like a basic premise (a space chase between a few big-ass turtles and a few tiny ones) becomes quite complicated as the story unfolds.  Don’t go looking for many surprise revelations in this one; whereas EMPIRE was all about crippling truths, JEDI concerns the roles people play in our lives, and what makes them tick.

Also, Mr. Johnson ups the ante on power of the Jedi; after watching this film, you get the feeling their abilities were merely hinted at in previous chapters.  Remember how Darth Vader throwing crates at Luke Skywalker in EMPIRE seemed like the ultimate Jedi weapon?  Prepare for Jedi’s with mystical abilities. The force isn’t just for stacking rocks anymore, and Johnson amps up the power to tremendous and unexpected levels.

What I would like to focus on, however, is not the film itself, but the special features.  You can check out my previous review of the theatrical release on Tacitus Publishing’s website if you want more exposition and critical eyeballing.  What really sets this release apart is the all-inclusive documentaries and featurettes.  The first is “The Director and The Jedi”, an hour-and-a-half long film which gives you an honest and detailed look behind the scenes.  From Mr. Johnson’s seemingly controversial appointment as director, to the choices he made with the script and effects, the studio does not shy away from the questionable moments of the films’ production.  Remember that controversy with Mark Hamill not agreeing with Mr. Johnson’s treatment of Luke Skywalker in the script?  It’s here.  The hardships of limited filming time on Ireland’s Skellig Michael?  The Twitterverse?  All here, and all handled with enough humility and openness to present an honest depiction of the life it takes to create art. 

Another of the docs shows Andy Serkis’s motion capture performance of “Snoke”, evil Jedi.  My Regular Twelve readers can attest to the fact that I have revered what the man is capable of; surely, he should have won an Oscar by now.  But to watch him in action is a true testament to his abilities and artistic prowess.  He makes it easy for the other actors in the scene to dismiss the rig he is wearing and the dots which litter his face with the sheer ferocity of his performance.  Art, indeed.

There are several other docs—one explaining Mr. Johnson’s reasons for reexamining the parameters of the force, another featuring that epic opening space battle—right down to how they created some of the sounds, some deleted scenes, etc.  But you should make time for the aforementioned two best ones, which both give a more intimate view at what it takes to really create a STAR WARS film.

While J.J. Abrams is set to direct the third and final film in the main series, Mr. Johnson has been tapped to write and direct the first in another planned trilogy.  If he holds true to what he has created here, fans should feel confident that the future lies in such capable and creative hands.

Grade: A

Special Features: A

Blu-ray Necessary: Most definitely

-- T.S. Kummelman