The Borderlands Movie's Wasted Potential

The "Borderlands" film is a disappointing adaptation of a great game franchise as well as a bad film on its own.Photo byKrists LuhaersonUnsplash

Lionsgate’s Borderlands is a tragedy and farce of a film that sadly should have never been greenlit after falling victim to a sense of misdirection and corporate greed. The issues are built upon a myriad of errors, culminating in a production that lasted for nine years. The result is a dull, soulless mandated studio collage that backfires on all cylinders and never finds its footing, despite the hope fans prayed for. Viewers are left to their devices, bound to watch a horrendous paint job masquerading as the Gearbox shooter with elements copied and pasted from other franchises such as Star Wars, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Spy Kids.

All About Borderlands

The studio released an official synopsis for the film, which reads: “Lilith, an infamous outlaw with a mysterious past, reluctantly returns to her home planet of Pandora to find the missing daughter of the universe’s most powerful S.O.B., Atlas. Lilith forms an alliance with an unexpected team. These unlikely heroes must battle alien monsters and dangerous bandits to find and protect the missing girl, who may hold the key to unimaginable power. The fate of the universe could be in their hands – but they’ll be fighting for something more: each other.”

Borderlands is led by Cate Blanchett (The Lord of the Rings) as Lilith, Kevin Hart (Jumanji sequels) as Roland, Jack Black (The Mandalorian) as Claptrap, Edgar Ramirez (Jungle Cruise) as Atlas, Ariana Greenblatt (Ahsoka) as Tiny Tina, Florian Munteanu (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) as Krieg, Gina Gershon (Thanksgiving) as Mad Moxxi, and Jamie Lee Curtis (Knives Out) as Dr. Patricia Tannis.

Rounding out the ensemble is Olivier Richters (Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny) as Krom, Janina Gavankar (Star Wars Battlefront II) as Commander Knoxx, Cheyenne Jackson (American Horror Story) as Jakobs, Charles Babaloa (Black Mirror) as Hammerlock, Benjamin Byron Davis (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3) as Marcus, Steven Boyer (Trial & Error) as Scooter, and Ryann Redmond (Heels) as Ellie, among others.

Welcome to Pandora

The film’s biggest hindrance is that director Eli Roth (Thanksgiving) can never find his envisioned tone. The Gearbox adaption should have focused on pushing for an R-rating and creating a Mad Max-style wasteland turned up to eleven, which could have blossomed under Roth’s vision of raw and bloody brutality. Unfortunately, the director's misconstrued edits and apparent tampering led to the film’s downfall, as the screenplay was torn apart and shredded to pieces.

With that noted, the project had the potential to follow in the footsteps of the lightning-in-the-bottle success of recent video game adaptations such as Amazon Prime’s Fallout, Paramount Pictures’ Sonic The Hedgehog, and HBO original The Last of Us. Still, this adaption will fall into the pile of broken and lifeless misfires, forever banished to the wasteland of false promises and forgotten dreams. It will probably be found for under 5 dollars at the local Walmart bargain bin years from now.

It’s sad to confess that there are tons of elements that will appeal to the hardcore fan, from the authenticity of the various shops to a plethora of Easter eggs, the inclusion of practical sets that make you feel like you are on the surface of Pandora, and the variety of colors. These elements cause the film to fall victim to coming off as outdated, feeling more in line with movie projects of the early 2000s. The marketing and trailers accurately present what you can expect from the film, as the narrative is highly paper thin, with no hidden surprises ever bestowed, and the lack of tangible character arcs or journeys for our heroes to travel is utterly remorseful.

Strong Cast, Misplaced Opportunities

Of course, a few standouts of the cast were Jack Black’s portrayal as Claptrap, the budding comic relief. The CGI, aka the visual effects for the companion robot, was spot on, and some of the best portions of the runtime were when the camera shifted to the in-game HUD, which featured a variety of gags and in-game jokes. Still, after a few minutes of repetitive exposition from the subconscious, Black’s dialogue consists of scat jokes and juvenile pee-pee humor, resulting in few chuckles. Despite Black's performance, most of the general audience will be turned away.

Cate Blanchett did her absolute best as Lilith in the costume and makeup, looking pulled from the cel-shaded paradise of the video games and instilled with a higher focus as the protagonist, as the story takes place from her point of view. The choice feels like it stays true to the established lore of Lilith being the canon lead throughout the franchise. Still, it’s a shame that the film never grants the character any sense of motivation or development. Fans of the games will already know the big twist, which makes its presence in the movie come off as stale and predictable. Blanchett did great with the stunts, wire, and camerawork to keep the game’s flair practical, but she was let down by a lack of attention.

In contrast, Kevin Hart as Roland was the weakest of the cast and felt oddly miscast. His performance and the character's motivation could have been better and had no relation to the source material. Hart just relied on his usual acting methods. The execution of his comedic dialogue felt forced, didn't match the tone of the film, and lacked any real substance.

Ariana Greenblatt as Tiny Tina came fitted with the iconic bunny ears and the various stuffed animal explosives she carried, building a decent rendition of her console counterpart. She was given simple quips and the occasional chaotic insanity that was sadly toned down from her console counterpart. She served as the film's heart. It was a signal to provide a sense of this being a family picture, even though the IP should have stayed more in line with the bloody violence the series is known for generally. Though the chemistry between Blanchett and Greenblatt was some of the best in the film, sadly, no one else could rise to a similar position.

Florian Munteanu was the silent and apparent muscle of Greenblatt’s Tina, and besides the occasional grunt or violent outburst, the character's role felt just to be a display of violence; the actor didn’t bring anything else to the film’s equation. Gina Gershon as Mad Moxxi was significantly diminished and showed up to pass along pointless exposition. Once again, the costume looked great, but there was nothing else to report. Jamie Lee Curtis as Dr. Patricia Tannis also provided nothing else to the plot.

Edgar Ramirez did little to nothing as the villain, as the film makes it’s clear, never building character development, along with stripping away any ounce of motivation or any questions provided or asked beyond the crutch of staying formulaic and adhering to the notion of capturing MacGuffin and kidnapping the child copy-and-paste thread and resulting in his role being subjected to standing on the CGI green-screen backlot and doing nothing. It’s sad because, in projects, the heroes are usually a mirror image of the villain or the foil, but nothing beyond the lackluster appearance is ever shown.

Pros and Cons

The misuse of a star cast and memorable characters highlights one major flaw in the theatrical adaptation that holds it back from finding a puddle of value. Too much of the original lore was devoid and missing from the screenplay, which could confuse any viewer who's being exposed to the looter-shooter franchise for the first time.

The visual effects are low-budget and quite comical to comprehend, to the point that it’s clear to see where the green screen is shown or the actors are riding in harnesses. It's a shame these problems exist since the film's development lasted for nine years and the crew had an extra year to polish the final product. since the film wrapped last February after two weeks of reshoots.

The only redeemable achievement of Borderlands was the costumes created by costume designer Daniel Orlandi. Still, sadly, the lasting effect of those designs was the A-list cast masquerading as cosplayers under the support of a 120 million dollar budget. Roth also did them no favors in the way he framed a shot before the cue for action was called; important moments were only captured with the fragility of a novice, not the craft of a master.

Final Verdict

Every failure attached to the project is the consequence of putting too many proverbial eggs in the basket. The studio and producers tried to cut corners and, in turn, created a narrative that was easy to understand on paper but became needlessly messy on screen. The film's pacing is also a considerable strain: the 100-minute runtime is chopped into pieces and the editing makes certain scenes feel out of place. The film, overall, is a half-baked, over-stuffed mess of slop that should have been canceled or shelved.

Borderlands is a colossal failure devoid of the spirit and splendor of what once made the iconic Gearbox franchise and IP revolutionary during gaming uncertainty.

3/10

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Article originally written by Brendan Rooney.