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The next video game movie is Borderlands, and it’s out in theaters tomorrow, August 9. Reviews for the film have begun to appear online, painting a picture of the film’s critical reception.
Here at GameSpot, our Borderlands movie review scored the film a 2/10. Reviewer Phil Owen called it “generic” and “disposable.” The film has an aggregate score of 33 on GameSpot sister site Metacritic. Scroll down to see more reviews and excerpts from a variety of outlets across the internet.
The Borderlands movie was directed by Eli Roth (Hostel), with re-shoots from Deadpool director Tim Miller. The film boasts a big cast of huge names, including Cate Blanchett as Lilith, Kevin Hart as Roland, Jamie Lee Curtis as Tannis, Jack Black as the voice of Claptrap, and Ariana Greenblatt as Tiny Tina.
Roth previously directed Blanchett and Black in 2018’s The House with a Clock in Its Walls, and Gearbox boss Randy Pitchford credits this relationship with being the main reason Blanchett signed on. Blanchett herself said she agreed to be in the movie in part due to “COVID madness” and wanting to get out of the house.
The Borderlands film exists in its own universe, so what happens in the film doesn’t impact the games and vice versa. “We are authentic to characters, tone and style, but allow for independent storylines. The mediums are not the same, so the content should not be bound to the same rules,” Pitchford said.
As for the Borderlands game series, many believe Gearbox is working on Borderlands 4 and could announce it soon.
Borderlands
Directed by: Eli Roth (re-shoots by Tim Miller)Written by: Eli RothStarring: Jack Black, Jamie Lee Curtis, Cate Blanchett, Ariana Greenblatt, Kevin HartPremiere Date: August 9Rating: PG-13Runtime: 1 hour, 40 minutes
GameSpot — 2/10
“For most of its length, Borderlands is just unremarkable, the sort of thing that fades from the mind so quickly that it’s actually difficult to dislike it with any real intensity. Aside from Jack Black’s upsetting new version of Claptrap, anyway.” — Phil Owen [Full review]
ScreenRant — 3.3/5
“The overall experience is still a fun one, and I for one would welcome another big screen trip to Pandora.” — Tatiana Hullender [Full review]
The Hollywood Reporter — No score
“It’s conceivable that longtime fans of the video game might get more out of Borderlands, but I wouldn’t count on it. At one point, Claptrap returns to operational mode after a heavy-weaponry assault and says, ‘I blacked out. Did something important happen?’ Not in this movie.” — David Rooney [Full review]
Variety — No score
“The Oscar winner [Cate Blanchett] is joined by Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Jack Black in a generic gaming adaptation that deprives audiences of the most valuable ingredient of its source: surprise.” — Peter Debruge [Full review]
IGN — 3/10
“Borderlands is an abysmal waste of a beloved franchise that takes a kooky band of murderous misfits and drains the life out of their first adventure together. Eli Roth is no James Gunn, and this film has none of the lovable lunatics, awe-striking sci-fi visuals, and out-of-this-world storytelling of Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy. The hyper-stylized flair of the Borderlands games is replicated only on the most superficial level, and with a PG-13 rating, all the limb-severing gore, dirty-minded humor, and uniquely deranged themes are replaced by recycled blandness geared toward mass marketability. It’s the worst-case-scenario Borderlands movie that goes against everything Borderlands stands for as a series–a miserable failure.” — Matt Donato [Full review]
GamesRadar — 2/5
“Small wonder it feels so messily chaotic, with cheap-looking FX and dodgy matte work adding to its woes. ‘Feel free to applaud’ Hart quips at one point after driving an APC through the skull of a gargantuan, tentacled monster. Sorry Kevin, but the only applause Borderlands deserves is a slow handclap of derision.” — Neil Smith [Full review]
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