In 2011, Ernest Cline delivered his novel Ready Player One to the masses, and it went on to earn numerous accolades, including becoming a New York Times bestseller. Seven years later, the cinematic adaptation helmed by Steven Spielberg is just about to hit theaters, allowing both fans of the novel and folks who'd never heard of it until now to experience the wonders of the OASIS on the big screen. As a pop culture smorgasbord, the Ready Player One movie clearly delivers and then some, just like the novel. But how is the movie itself being received by critics? Well, reviews are now plentiful online, and the overall consensus seems to be that Ready Player One is another solid entry in Spielberg's resume, if not necessarily ranking near the top of the list.
Starting off, CinemaBlend's own Conner Schwerdtfeger noted that where Ready Player One lacks in plot, it makes up for in technical achievement and finding an emotional core that wasn't present in the novel.
Ready Player One works best when it embraces that classic Steven Spielberg sense of spectacle, and while it feels somewhat rushed and less character-driven than his best movies, it's still a fun romp that reinforces his reputation as a master of his craft.
EW's Chris Nashawaty was another fan of Ready Player One, saying that the movie was a great fit for Steven Spielberg, even if he doesn't quite stick the landing.
Steven Spielberg's sci-fi popcorn fantasia Ready Player One feels like a movie made by someone in his 20s rather than his 70s.
However, not all the reviews towards Ready Player One have leaned towards positive. Christy Lemire from RogerEbert.com noted that Ready Player One suffers from relying too much on fandom references, with the movie itself being unsubstantial.
The action is breathless and non-stop, both in the virtual reality and the reality reality, but wallowing in '80s nostalgia is only so much fun for so long.
Back to warmer reception, USA Today's Brian Truitt praised Ready Player One for its many visual achievements, though also noted that it's the "human" moments that serve as the movie's "soul."
Ready Player One's an entertaining nostalgia trip that wears its influences proudly but throws them at such dizzying force that sometimes you feel like you're buried under Chuck E. Cheese tokens.
Alonso Duralde from The Wrap, on the other hand, wasn't impressed with Ready Player One, saying that the story was boring and that Steve Spielberg might not have been the best choice to tackle the source material.
Steven Spielberg's Ready Player One might mark the beginning of a new era in filmmaking or the end of an old one, but either way it feels like a failed experiment in building a new story on the carcasses of old movies, TV shows and video games.
Finally, The Hollywood Reporter's John DeFore stated that Ready Player One benefitted from making select changes to the source material, resulting in a better product than the original novel.
A rollicking adventure through worlds both bleak and fantastic, Steven Spielberg's Ready Player One makes big changes to the specifics and structure of Ernest Cline's best-selling novel but keeps the spirit and level-up thrills intact.
These are just a few of the many Ready Player One reviews published online, so feel free to scour the interwebs and ready what other people have to say about the movie.You can also judge Ready Player One for yourself starting tomorrow, March 29. For those of you interesting in planning your trips to the theater for the rest of the year, you can check out our 2018 release schedule.
