Review of Ready Player One (2018) by Deborah F — 10 Oct 2018

The first thing that is evident in "Ready Player One" is that we are facing "vintage" Spielberg. The one that is a master of entertainment and blocking action scenes (as Edgar Wright said it), but at the same time can be uncomfortably corny. Comparing this with "The Post", movies that were released just a few months apart, speaks volume of the range and mastery of the most clinically expert director in Hollywood.

"Ready Player One" belongs to a museum. His frenetic exhibition of cultural references will be broken down as Halliday's posthumous video. At times it feels like Spielberg feared that this film was the only one to survive an apocalypse and that's why he filled it with so many easter eggs, keys and details. The truth, though, is that this is how any day in OASIS looks like. A love bomb-letter to pop culture and sci-fi.

The changes to the book are numerous. And although I missed the "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" sequence and the final battle between Ultraman and MechaGodzilla, the reality is that the adaptation ended up creating a far superior movie. Also, the replacements are incredible.

The weak point of "Ready Player One" is the unavoidable sacrifice that must be had when Spielberg directs PG movies. We're talking about his strategic ingenuity. The ending has a couple of moments that are just so cheesy, that simply feel out of place (That Sorrento's reaction would have made some sense if his character had more development, perhaps).

The characters have a little more time together on-screen and although they are far from well developed, they work very well as a team, which also reinforces Halliday's "teaching". And boy, Spielberg sure loves a fable.

It's also interesting the fact that the virtual characters are infinitely better positioned than the real ones. Many will feel that as an oversight in the direction and the script. For me, once again, it was a strategy of Spielberg to reinforce the theme of the book.

Because "Ready Player One" was never about Wade's real life. It was always about Parzival, Anorak and OASIS. This is about the healing and wonderful power of escapism and the paradox of not end up hating reality. And Spielberg, in that, triumphs gloriously.

This is pop culture as it best.

I want my poster of The High 5 a-la-Breakfast-Club, my limited Blu-ray edition and maybe a Parzival Funko (and I hate Funko figures).

That and an IMAX rewatch as soon as possible.