Video game projects are no longer the critical and commercial poison they once were. Between the “Sonic the Hedgehog” trilogy on the big screen and TV shows like “The Last of Us,” “Castlevania,” and “Fallout” building expansive worlds and telling original stories that nevertheless capture the essence of their source material, we’re getting more and more acclaimed adaptations of video games by the day.
Still, there is one big recent blockbuster video game movie that tried to launch a franchise only to massively disappoint critics and fans alike: “Uncharted.” Directed by Ruben Fleischer and based on the video game series of the same name created by Amy Hennig for Naughty Dog, the film stars Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg as two adventurers in a race against a corrupt billionaire to find a legendary treasure. It’s an old-school adventure like “Indiana Jones” and “The Mummy,” but with all the CGI flare of a soulless modern studio tentpole.
Unfortunately, “Uncharted” was met with poor reviews upon hitting theaters in 2022, many of which described the film as being boring and uninspiring. To quote /Film’s own “Uncharted” review, “[The movie’s] overreliance on unfunny quips and uninspired retreads of the action-adventure genre makes it another disappointing non-MCU outing for Holland, and another spiritless adaptation of a beloved video game.”
Still, even though it grossed a somewhat underwhelming $407 million at the global box office against a budget of (at least) $120 million (not including marketing costs), “Uncharted” has gained fans over the past couple of years. As it turns out, the film has is now an unlikely hit on streaming, having become the most streamed movie on Max in the U.S. this week (via FlixPatrol).
Uncharted is silly fun
Sure, “Uncharted” has neither the visual flourishes nor a cast with sheer charisma like the ones you’d find in “The Mummy” — that and a fair amount of the movie is devoted to just referencing the game it’s based on, along with impossible CGI-fest sequences. And yet, it’s hard not to be at least somewhat entertained by the silliness of the film. Tom Holland is serviceable as Nathan Drake, but it’s the movie’s cartoony sense of scale that really stands out, combined with the sheer absurdity and delightful fun of its big third-act set piece. For those not familiar, the set piece in question involves a massive battle between two pirate ships that are being flown by helicopters.Â
That’s right: a pirate fight on a ship that’s soaring through the air because it’s being dragged by a massive helicopter. It’s ridiculous, it’s nonsensical, and it’s also unabashedly entertaining.
“Uncharted” may have proven controversial enough to be banned in two countries, but it’s really a simple and otherwise amusing movie that cost way too much to make yet pales in comparison to other treasure-hunting films. Then again, it does feature Tom Holland shooting a helicopter using a centuries-old cannon. You can find out what you make of it by streaming “Uncharted” now on Max.