Ready Player One

I did not read the book. I do not have any preconceived notions about what this film is, should be, could have been, etc. I loved it. Tye Sheridan and Oliva Cooke play Wade and Samantha in the real world, but more importantly, their avatars are Parzival and Art3mis in the Oasis. Real world in 2047 kinda sucks, but the Oasis is a fully immersive VR world where most people go to be something, do something, enjoy something. When the founder of the Oasis dies, he reveals an easter egg somewhere in the Oasis that, when found, will grant ownership of the Oasis to the finder. Of course, the corporations want this ownership. Parzival and Art3mis want it to protect it from the corporation. Let the race begin. Yes, this is a series of 80's and 90's cultural triggers (opening song Van Halen's Jump), and yes, at least 2/3 of the film take place in the avatar world of the Oasis. But it is not just an action orgy. It is well balanced in terms of storyline and pacing (no overload, no doldrums). The Oasis is fun (a la the Bazaar in Valerian) and while I am sure that the dedicated observed every single throwback reference, I liked when they snuck up on me or when I recognized something familiar, but couldn't put a finger on it. Overall, it was just fun...
5 stars (out of 5)