Creating a video game adaptation โ whether itโs a film or series โ always comes with some risks. Yes, you have the fanbase, but 1) they have sky-high expectations, and 2) you have to bring multiple storylines taking place throughout different games together in a cohesive way. Both The Last of Us and Fallout have shown us that it is possible to pull off a high-quality, stunning videogame adaptation, but sadly, there are also prime examples of how it shouldnโt be done. The biggest one is Eli Roth’s (Thanksgiving, Fin) latest movie, Borderlands. Roth is clearly only a master in horror films, as his action-adventure is nothing but a bland, heartless Guardians of the Galaxy rip-off.
How this feature has turned out to be the mess it is, is still a mystery โ although we can take a few guesses though โ as Roth can count on such a tremendous cast consisting of, amongst others, Cate Blanchett (Tรกr, Elizabeth), Jamie Lee Curtis (Halloween Ends, Knives Out) and Jack Black (School of Rock, Envy). The talent is oozing out of the cast list, but itโs again proven in this film that an actor or actress is only as good as the script they have been given. There’s a great screenplay hidden deep down underneath the piles of over-the-top actions, forgettable one-liners and half-baked storylines.
You follow how the ruthless and badass bounty hunter Lilith (Blanchett) is being tasked with retrieving Tiny Tina (Ariana Greenblatt), daughter of CEO Atlas (Edgar Ramรญrez), who has been kidnapped by former mercenary Roland (Kevin Hart). To do so, she has to return to Pandora, a heavily protected, deserted alien planet that is very popular with vault hunters looking for the magical key that can open the mystical vault and unlock all its hidden treasures.
While at first Lilith’s only goal is to retrieve the girl and not to look for the vault (“I’m not a vault hunter. Really, I’m not”), she swiftly and unexplainably changes her mind. Maybe it’s because she needs the money, because she has found Tiny Tina very early on in this movie or because she has become curious after all, Lilith ensembles a team consisting of Krieg (Florian Munteanu), who the muscle behind the search for the vault, Tannis (Curtis), who’s the brain and Claptrap, who is, well, an irritating and once-in-a-while helpful robot voiced by Black.
From then onwards, Borderlands becomes an action-packed, buddy team-up movie that is different from what you expect or want. Instead of getting a cyberpunk-style feature with many powerful moments and touching scenes, you’re being served a sloppily made, one-dimensional, bleak feature. What makes Guardiansโ which Roth wants to copy for the complete 100% – so extremely popular are the multilayered characters you can relate to, the fantastic and non-confusing CGI, the well-delivered humour and the perfectly timed needle drops. You can tell that Roth wanted to tick off those boxes one by one, but neither him nor his co-writer Joe Crombie can deliver the magic that makes Guardians work.
The lack of depth is the main reason why Borderlands will never be the next Guardians or come even close to The Last of Us. The audience gets some information about Pandora and its history at the beginning, so the story is much easier to follow, but that’s all the information you’ll get throughout the feature.
It can be great for viewers to try to fill the gaps themselves to keep the suspense and surprises coming. Still, it’s hard to be invested in the storyline and the characters themselves when knowing absolutely nothing about the characters’ motivations, their history, or what binds them together. There are a few storylines โ such as the troubled relationship between Tiny Tina and her father and the broken bond between Lilith and her mother โ that, if they were written in a much more detailed way, could have taken this feature to a much higher and more emotional level.
It would also have allowed the actors to work with so much more than they have now been given. Throughout the 101-minute runtime โ which feels much longer โ it’s hinted that Tiny Tina is the key to opening the vault and unleashing unimaginable powers, which is the only reason she’s part of the ragtag team of deranged lunatics. Greenblatt’s character has no other purpose, resulting in an underdeveloped story-arc. To make up for the flatness of her storyline, the Barbie and Love and Monsters actress wants to deliver her lines with a lot of emotions and power, but by trying to do so, she goes into overkill (sometimes literally when her character throws exploding cute little stuffed bunnies), resulting in her overperforming her lines and her character becoming annoying instead of exciting.
From Greenblatt overperforming to Curtis extremely underperforming. Curtis’ character only turns up in the latter part of the feature, and therefore, she doesnโt get the chance to grow in her role and give Tannis the personality and depth she deserves. There’s a history between Tannis, Lilith, and Tiny Tina, but as an audience member, you need more emotions to invest yourself in that relationship. When looking at Curtis’ performance, you can tell that she doesn’t believe in her character herself because of the way her character is structured (or better said, ‘not structured’), resulting in lifeless acting.
The only person who can save this miscast cast is Blanchett as the fierce, extravagant vigilante. Kudos to the hair and make-up team and the clothing department for creating an exciting and robust character. While there’s not a lot to Lilith โ her potentially stirring and emotional background is wholly ignored โ Blanchett does succeed in giving her an energetic and badass vibe.
What is equally badass is the score. There might be some needle-drop fatigue ones in a while, but Ace of Spades certainly does the trick as itโs the highlight of this movie. Not only because of the punch and power the song itself packs but also because of the mesmerizing gun-wielding Blanchett. Sadly, the unhinged and tedious CGI decrease the impact of that scene โ and the overall film in general โ a lot.
Roth has the bombastic videogame, an all-star cast ready to give it their best shot, and a music catalogue that will certainly fit an action-adventure, but instead of bringing those elements together in a vibrant, thrilling, and well-executed feature, he creates a humourless, sluggish, and sad to say easily forgettable over-the-top one that is half-saved by a tremendous Blanchett.
Borderlands is out now in cinemas courtesy of Lionsgate
Roth has the bombastic videogame, an all-star cast ready to give it their best shot, and a music catalogue that will certainly fit an action-adventure, but instead of bringing those elements together in a vibrant, thrilling, and well-executed feature, he creates a humourless, sluggish, and sad to say easily forgettable over-the-top one that is half-saved by a tremendous Blanchett.
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GVN Rating 4
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User Ratings (1 Votes)
2.3