Ready Player One was Steven Spielberg’s long-awaited return to directing a sci-fi action movie. While I believe it’s no Jurassic Park or E.T., Ready Player One still brings the Spielberg magic we’ve grown to expect from a Spielberg movie. Ready Player One provided an entertaining journey with 80’s nostalgia that panders to millennials but still delivers enough pop culture references to attract younger audiences.
There were many reasons to enjoy Ready Player One. The nostalgia, the effects, and for me, the direction. Spielberg movies helped shape my childhood, so I’ve always been a little biased to his films. I think Spielberg did a better job with Ready Player One than he did with the latest Indiana Jones installment. While it came as no surprise that Ready Player One was a visual masterpiece, movies with excessive CGI tend to look half-assed, much the way Henry Cavill’s mustache did in Justice League (you can read my review of Justice League here).The effects team at Industrial Light and Magic (ILM) never cease to amaze with their cutting-edge technology we’ve seen in almost every Marvel and Star Wars movie. The effects team behind Ready Player One makes the experience so lifelike that you sometimes forget which parts happen in the Oasis (the VR world from the movie) and which parts take place in reality.
Personally, my favorite sequence of the movie came when they went into The Shining movie in search of the jade key. The sequence was shot beautifully. From the comic relief that came from one of the characters in the story having never seen The Shining to the scenes looking as though they were taken directly of the 1980 Kubrick classic, the effects team did a fantastic job of blending the two realities together.
Though Ready Player One wasn’t close to perfect, I’ve only honed in on the effects and nostalgia components. As with 90% of blockbuster movies, Ready Player One had an extremely predictable storyline, so don’t go in expecting this move to change your life in that regard. All the actors did great in their roles. Incidentally, I thought Miles Teller was playing the best role of his career as Wade Watts – until I came to the realization that Miles Teller was, in fact, Tye Sheridan all along! Whoops!
Overall, Ready Player One is a great movie that audiences of all ages can appreciate. You don’t even have to be an 80’s pop culture expert to understand the references in this movie. I’d give this movie 3.5 out of 5 stars! What did you think of Ready Player One? What other Easter eggs would you have liked to see? Sound off in the comments and let us know what you thought!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mike Maizel is a regular tech beat reporter, movie reviewer, and producer for NewsWatch. He loves all things tech, and can regularly be found outdoors in the mountains of Colorado.
