Summary
As theBorderlandsmovie opens tooverwhelmingly negative reviews, the film is shaping up for a disappointing return this weekend. However,Take-TwoCEO Strauss Zelnick has come to its defence, saying that a “lot of people worked really hard on” the project.
Speaking toIGN, Zelnick also says that we should “give the film a chance” before writing it off, and even defends the casting decisions made for the movie. He describes the cast as “amazing”, and adds that the “the look and feel” of the movie is “really terrific” - a sentiment that many fans are disagreeing with online.
Take-Two Says We Should “Give The Film A Chance” While Borderlands Bombs
“Let’s give the film a chance”, says Strauss Zelnick. “A lot of people worked really hard on it. The underlying intellectual property is phenomenal, the cast is amazing, I think the look and feel is really terrific. So let’s see what audiences have to say.”
Well, judging from what fans have said since the film hit theatres, it looks like few would agree with Zelnick here. Borderlands has a user score of 4.4/5 on IMDb and 50 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, so fans are split, to say the least. This is admittedly an improvement on how critics have viewed the movie (a 27 on Metacritic and 10 percent on Rotten Tomatoes), but many are still disappointed.
It’s no surprise to see Zelnick rush to defend the casting. This has been controversial since it was revealed, with many arguing that the actors are poor fits for their characters. In particular, many were disappointed to hear that Jack Black is playing Claptrap, as opposed to his most recent voice actor in the games, Jim Foronda.
Gearboxco-founder Randy Pitchfordalso addressed this in an interview with TheGamer,making it clear that the cast had his backing, even if it wasn’t what fans were expecting. He did add that he expected pushback when the cast was unveiled but also said that he felt this came from a “very small percentage” of the fanbase.
However, it doesn’t seem that the premiere has done much more to win over naysayers. If you want to judge it for yourself, Borderlands is in theatres now.
Borderlands
WHERE TO PLAY
Gearbox Software’s 2009 loot-shooter Borderlands kicked off a popular series, leading to spin-offs and a big-budget Hollywood movie. You play as one of four Vault Hunters looking for an ancient Vault on the planet Pandora.
