I went into Borderlands without knowing much about the video game series, but from what I saw, it looked fun and lively. Somewhere in the translation to live action, though, all that energy drained away, leaving a dull, discount Guardians of the Galaxy, with muted colors and lifeless characters portrayed by uninterested actors.
The plot follows Lilith (Cate Blanchett), an infamous outlaw who returns to her home planet of Pandora to find the missing daughter of Atlas, a girl whose disappearance has drawn the attention of other outlaws and dangerous figures. Along the way, she joins a group of misfits to battle alien monsters and bandits. Predictably, the journey forces Lilith to rethink her priorities, giving new purpose to both her mission and her life.
Unfortunately, Borderlands never shakes off its paint-by-numbers feel, offering nothing new to the sci-fi genre. The monsters are forgettable, and the world feels cheap and artificial throughout. The choppy editing only exacerbates the issue, with awkward cuts that make the dialogue seem rushed, as if characters are responding before the questions are even finished. Eli Roth, fresh off Thanksgiving, struggles to inject any real energy or fun into the film. There’s no standout action, no thrilling chase scenes, or creative touches.
The humor in Borderlands sticks to that now-tired Marvel-style banter, but unfortunately, none of the jokes land. The film feels like it’s on a mission to cast actors who are completely misaligned with their roles, wasting their talents in the process. You’ve got Kevin Hart as the serious guy, Jack Black’s voice is so heavily modulated that he’s barely recognizable, and Jamie Lee Curtis is decked out in ridiculous costumes that distract from any attempts at serious moments. But the real puzzler is Cate Blanchett. Maybe she was lured in by her experience with green screens in Thor: Ragnarok (or the paycheck), but this film is definitely a career low for her, as she delivers cringeworthy lines and poses for the camera in a way that’s embarrassingly hard to watch.
The film doesn’t offer much in terms of logic either—characters who need to escape can suddenly get their hands on digital masks that make them unrecognizable, and major plot points are introduced only to be dropped without explanation. There are constant hints of a need for a sacrifice, which is meant to add suspense but is abruptly abandoned, giving off the impression of rushed re-shoots. In the end, Borderlands is messy, painfully unfunny, and ultimately another forgettable entry in the pile of video game adaptations. It’s a shame that it brought so many good actors down with it. Borderlands? More like Boredlands.