[Movie Review] Pixels (2015)

Posted on July 24, 2015 by thegrandshuckett in Movie Reviews // 0 Comments

Director: Chris Columbus

Writers: Tim Herlihy, Timothy Dowling

Runtime: 105 min

Main Cast:

Adam Sandler as Brenner
Kevin James as Cooper
Michelle Monaghan as Violet
Peter Dinklage as Eddie
Josh Gad as Ludlow

Review: by Erika T

Aliens discover video feeds of classic arcade games and from earth and believe this is a sign of war. To get the upper hand they attack Earth through using the games as models. In order to fight against them President William Cooper (played by Kevin James) recruits his childhood friend, former video-game champ Sam Brenner (played by Adam Sandler) to fight. Brenner calls upon fellow old-school players (played by Peter Dinklage and Josh Gad) to help fight to save the world.

Adam Sandler has certainly established quite the reputation for himself in Hollywood when it comes to critics. Many couldn’t contain themselves to jump at the chance to tear this film down. To be honest, while the film was far from brilliant, it was NOT as bad as certain critics want you to believe. Uwe Boll still wins the gold medal for me as the worst offender. At least I still enjoy Sandler’s movies to an extent. I feel as if any other star that wasn’t Sandler was attached to this, it would easily be better received.

What I Liked:

What was my experience with this film? While I may not be a serious gamer, I have played my fair share and I generally understand the culture. I bring a Nintendo 3DS with me. I have a PlayStation 3. I grew up on NES and SNES and watching my brother play them. So with that background I feel as if my opinion is as valid as anybody else who grew up enjoying video games. I still enjoy them and wish I had more time to dedicate to them.

But all in all I actually didn’t hate the film. I thought the graphics were really awesome and I enjoyed the character cameos. The 3D was also fairly decent. While I was curious if this would feel like Wreck-It-Ralph, I wasn’t expecting it to be nearly as good so I tempered my expectations knowing Sandler would be at the helm. His comedy isn’t the most sophisticated these days but I laugh at jokes of all kinds, including his at times.

The audience enjoyed it more than I did. They laughed even more and I believe there were cheers at the end.

What I Didn’t Like:

I can get behind a film that’s self-aware of its ridiculousness and I feel this movie accomplished that. The story wasn’t the best but it wasn’t the worst I’ve seen this year either. I think children will enjoy the special effects and adults will just as much, if not more as it does tap into the nostalgia factor.

Summary

It’s an entertaining film for kids and gamers I think. Bottom line, if you don’t like Sandler then don’t bother. If you don’t like Sandler but you like games, give it a chance to see for yourself. If you don’t like either one then don’t waste your time on this one.

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