WARCRAFT | Movie Review

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"WARCRAFT | Movie Review"
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WARCRAFT | © 2016 Universal Pictures

Orcs and humans, and war, oh my!

The only thing I know about this franchise is it’s a video game SOUTH PARK hilariously spoofed in one of their episodes. (You can look it up.) That’s it. Therefore, not much can be said on my part. There are valid voices out there who can lay down more on this, but my angle is just someone viewing it through neutral eyes and assessing what I (personally) felt while enduring this unique piece.

In a nutshell, WARCRAFT is an adventure of world-colliding conflict. There’s a peaceful realm known as Azeroth which stands on the brink of war as its civilization faces a fearsome race of invaders: Orcs – warriors fleeing their dying home to colonize another. As a portal opens to connect the two worlds, one army faces destruction and the other faces extinction. From opposing sides, two heroes are set on a collision course that will decide the fate of their family, their people, and their home.

This fast-paced adaptation is obviously made for fans of the game only. In the early stages of the film you sometimes feel as if you’re supposed to know what these characters are going on about, finding yourself thinking “huh?” every-once-in-a-while. For those oblivious to this will find it hard to care about paper-thin characters and a messy plot. 

On the upside, things pan out and become tolerable as the art behind the film starts to run its visual course. Quite frankly, the movie’s saving grace. The effects are fantastic, the production design is pretty cool and the magic it plays with turns out to be pretty entertaining. There’s something beautiful about watching fantasy-based blockbusters like this on an IMAX screen. One that wouldn’t come off as effective at a regular theater, or even on smart devices once released on digital download.

Running at a quick hour-and-forty minutes, WARCRAFT jams in too much at once and one doesn’t really know how react with directions it takes with certain characters and twists that follow afterwards. But that’s just me. Who am I? This movie will have its lovers, haters, and those who don’t really know how to feel about it. Teasing at possible sequels (depending how this performs at the box office), I think those loyal to this franchise have a lot to look forward to.

At least I now know the purpose of “UNITE” across the movie’s poster.

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Grade: C+ / Genre: Adaption, Sci-Fi, Action-Adventure / Rated: PG-13 / Run Time: 1:40

Starring: Travis Fimmel, Ben Foster, Paula Patton

Directed by: Duncan Jones

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