After a very long wait, the live-action Borderlands movie finally arrives in theaters this weekend. But before that, the movie was screened for fans and critics in Los Angeles. And, based on the first impressions being posted online, the Borderlands movie sounds like a complete mess.
Borderlands, which hits theaters around the country on August 9, is based on the popular looter shooters developed by Gearbox and published by 2K Games. First announced back in 2020, the PG-13-rated live-action movie directed by Eli Roth spent years in production hell. And every time we got a peek at it, the movie looked pretty bad! But there was always a chance that the fully finished film would surprise us all and be amazing. Well, that doesn’t seem to be the case, based on the overwhelmingly negative first impressions online.
“Borderlands is a disaster,” posted critic Adriano Caporusso. “Filled with every cliché you can ponder, this film swaps the mayhem and imagination of the games for a lifeless, unfunny, and visually repulsive dud with annoying characters and a cast with not one ounce of chemistry.”
Matthew Simpson, a critic at Movies We Texted About, posted: “[The movie] is really bad. I really wanted to like it, but an uninspired plot + several phoned-in performances + being stuck in a weird place where it looks both expensive and cheap at the same time make it a huge misfire.” Simpson did offer one positive note, saying Jack Black is “great” in the film and the only actor who “matches the energy of the games.”
“Borderlands feels like what an out-of-touch executive thinks the ‘cool kids’ find appealing,” tweeted film critic Edgar Ortega. “There is not a single earnest character moment here, just obnoxious quips that feel dated as soon as they leave the actors’ mouths. It’s not even so bad it’s good, just a complete mess.”
“Borderlands is easily one of the worst movies of the year,” posted critic Shak Lambert. “Fans will be pissed off with how much they get the characters wrong (especially Tina) [and] casual moviegoers will be unimpressed at how much it feels like a half-baked [Guardians of the Galaxy] rip-off.”
Similarly, freelance film critic Sean Patrick Kelly posted that while the film has an “exceptional level of detail for those who have played the video games,” it’s likely that most people will still accuse it of “being a Guardians of the Galaxy rip-off.”
Not everyone completely hated the Borderlands movie…
There were some slightly more positive reactions, though. Many critics praised Jack Black and Cate Blanchett’s performances and suggested fans of the franchise will get a kick out of Easter eggs and references sprinkled throughout the movie.
“Borderlands is a fun PG-13 action movie,” posted Hollywood Handle. “It completely relies on Cate Blanchett’s star power to carry itself to the finish line — and she delivers. While there’s nothing that particularly makes it stand out from the crowd, the film is enjoyable from start to finish and has decent pacing throughout. Jack Black is also a comedic powerhouse. Aside from some corny flashback scenes and acting decisions that don’t always land, Borderlands is nothing to complain about but nothing to rejoice over.”
Borderlands content creator Killer Six said the movie was “better” than they expected, adding: “The plot is kinda a mess in true Borderlands fashion, but the humor and heart are there. Lots of fan service moments, but ultimately I don’t know if it will resonate. 6.75/10″
So yeah, it sounds like the Borderlands movie isn’t very good. I’ll be curious to see how it fares at the box office, especially with the big, similar action-comedy movie Deadpool & Wolverine already in theaters and doing very well. Will Borderlands continue the recent trend of video game adaptions being pretty good and successful, or will it burn out and flop? We’ll know soon enough.
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