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The Uncharted series has become a critical and commercial success for Sony’s PlayStation brand, but how well does the movie adaption make the transition from console box to box office?
The Uncharted series has been a vital property for Sony’s PlayStation success. Launching in 2007, Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, became a killer app during a time when Sony’s PlayStation 3 was off to an unfortunate start.
Since then, the Uncharted series has become a critical and commercial success selling over 41 million copies worldwide, with the fourth game of the installment selling 15 million copies alone. With that level of popularity, it’s no wonder that, Sony Pictures and newly built PlayStation Productions, have decided to venture into the realm of video game movie adaptions.
The history of video game adaptions is littered with dreadful attempts. A lot of video game adaptions have struggled commercially, but with the golden age of television, there has been a shift in visual video game telling. The Witcher has become one of Netflix’s most popular shows regardless of if you’re a fan of the game or not.
While some new adaptions have seen success there is still a lot of skepticism with games transitioning to the big screen. So how well does Sony’s Uncharted movie make the move from console box to box office?
Coming in at a runtime of just under two hours, the Uncharted movie is an enjoyable experience from start to finish. This on-screen adaption does a solid job of capturing the essence of the game series, whiles approaching these characters in a slightly different manner.
All the elements that fans would come to expect are in here: moments of deception, large action sequences, stealth engagements, punchy fight scenes, witty banter and clever jokes. The weakest element was the limited gun fights, but given the tone and directed demographic it’s understandable that gun violence would be less pronounced here. Even still, there isn’t much missing for fans.
Now let’s address the elephant in the room, the main casting. When the initial news of Tom Holland as Drake and Mark Wahlberg as Sully were unveiled, it was highly questioned as to why they were chosen for these roles. Holland has a very baby-face look that is far cry from a rugged Drake (Wahlberg looks more like Drake than Holland ever could), and a Sully without a mustache just looks like Wahlberg with the name Sully.
However, over the course of the movie the two do start to grow into their roles. The writing does wonders for these two as they find some on-screen chemistry with jokes that hit the right level of humour. There are some moments of poor delivery, but these are seldom and it never feels as if the duo is trying too hard.
Holland brings out Drake’s historical intelligence, comedic timing, spontaneity and pure heart. While Wahlberg is able to tap into Sully’s mistrust and selfishness.
It was hard for me to ever fully embrace the two as their video game counterparts due to the voice difference and appearances, but the writing and delivery is strong enough to overshadow those aspects.
On the other hand, the supporting characters were great. Sophia Taylor nails her performance as Chloe Frazer highlighting Frazer’s loner attitude, and both Tati Gabrielle (Braddock) and Antonio Banderas (Santiago Moncada) are entertaining villains that are given interesting back stories for their villanous motives. Even their goons offer moments of comedic relief.
The Uncharted movie does a solid job of adapting the game series to the big screen. Fans of the series will find something familiar and enjoyable during this two hour ride despite the main casting choices; and for those unfamiliar with the series there’s even more fun to be had throughout this on-screen journey.
Featured Image via: GameInformer
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