The Borderlands franchise has surged in popularity thanks to its memorable characters, sharp humor, and high-octane action centered on its core crew. When a film adaptation was announced in 2015, fans erupted with excitement. Yet even with a strong cast and bold ambitions, the end result sparked debate: the movie offers bright moments but struggles to ignite the spark that made the games beloved. This piece examines the strengths and weaknesses of the cinematic Borderlands.
Movie Reviews
pandorian chainsaw carnage
A long sleep—eight years, eleven months, and nineteen days—has left viewers puzzled about the world around them. Ahead lies Pandora, but this is the film version, not the game world fans have cherished for years. Thanks to a cryo slumber, time slipped by, and the premiere day arrived without warning.
What could beat gathering with friends who just finished the latest session? A shared venture to see beloved characters on the big screen. If readers see themselves in the group—some fighting on the front lines, others sneaking and looting, some leaning on flashy powers, and a few chasing loot boxes—it feels personal.
The screen overflows with gangs, lieutenants, and bosses as chaos erupts: rivers of blood, grotesque injuries, enemies in flames, acid specks, and the eerie shimmer of Edoran crystals. It captures a factor many players associate with Borderlands—an adrenaline rush and riotous humor—yet this film sometimes misses that core vibe.
Still, the project leans into a broader audience, and the result is a PG-13 experience that veers away from the game’s brutal energy. The high-octane drive fans crave is tempered by a gentler, more cautious tone. Violence, humor, dialogue, and even wardrobe face heavy edits, leaving the film feeling tamer than anticipated.
For more than ninety minutes, a hair-raising action beat is hard to find, and the sense of stepping into the chaotic world of Pandora feels diluted. Moments of danger and irreverence exist nearby, yet they resist capture. The action is shot in a way that softens impact, with blows that land more as blunt force than visceral consequence, and when close-quarters combat appears, it registers more as spectacle than threat.
What do you think of the casting choices for the main characters?
Running over the top
Just a quarter hour in, and the movie reveals itself as a glossy production exercise—polished but lacking bold creative direction. The aim to appeal broadly seems to have overridden any attempt to honor the game’s distinctive spirit. The result is a film that borrows from the franchise without embracing its DNA.
Besides Pandora and the familiar Vault, audiences glimpse Promethea, a cityscape where Atlas holds sway. The head of Atlas serves as the principal antagonist. The CGI team follows a brand guide with recognizable Borderlands locales, factions, and vehicles, and hints of Hyperion, Dahl, and Marcus slip into the frame. Even a weapon’s name pops up briefly, but that’s about the extent of the game’s elemental mechanics getting translated to the screen.
Weaponry that might echo the games remains flat, with a bland churn of bangs rather than signature “trunks” that transform into new devices. Shields and the crucial defensive gear from the games vanish from view, leaving the heroes moving through gunfights with little risk. Loot mechanics—so integral to the experience—are missing entirely.
Narratively, the script relies on quick, surface explanations and a few tidy reversals, without deeply integrating the lore that Borderlands fans expect. The approach seems tuned to a casual viewer who remembers the poster art and the tangle of eccentric characters, rather than rewarding longtime players with meaningful nods. The cinema audience’s waning turnout suggests the marketing did not fully connect with enthusiasts.
Hopelessness and despair
The plot adheres to a simple, predictable arc. This is not inherently fatal, but Borderlands falls short because the film offers little for adult fans seeking depth. The core events and conclusion feel preordained, and the film rarely invites viewers to invest in the team’s dynamics. For those who adore the source material and crave cinematic storytelling, the experience leans toward disappointment: the narrative lacks coherence, motivation, and a persuasive through-line.
Whereas other modern adaptations can draw on meta-commentary or self-aware humor, Borderlands treats its premise with a light touch that shies away from risk. Characters once defined by backstories and distinct personalities are reduced to quick clichés: Lilith as savior and empath, Roland as fighter and tactician, Patricia as researcher and philosopher, Claptrap as the stand-up bot, Krieg as a volatile force. Tina, though memorable in the games, dominates the screen with a constant demand for attention, often without clear justification within the story.
The runtime exceeds ninety minutes, yet the film struggles to present the six leads with any real depth or to develop a sense of unity against the villain. The alien-world stakes feel tepid, and the central conflict with the antagonist lands as a superficial caricature rather than a told, multi-layered struggle.
The ensemble reflects timely considerations of identity, with characters that are racially and gender diverse and cast in roles that align with contemporary expectations. Still, the execution rarely rises above surface-level dynamics, turning potential energy into a series of isolated episodes rather than a cohesive arc.
The pacing compounds the issue: the film lurches through setup, vault sequence, world-building, a new location, and an uninspired final confrontation. The finale descends into a canyon battle where the action loses clarity in dim lighting, and the climax arrives with little sense of consequence. Lilith briefly channels her siren abilities, but the broad, aimless staging of the combat saps the thrill of the closer.
You’re a producer in Hollywood. What game should we film next?
The Borderlands movie could have been a standout adaptation, but it mostly adheres to conventional tropes that dampen the material’s distinctive flavor. The action feels tepid, the humor lands with a hollow thud, and the resulting film risks becoming a cautionary tale about chasing recognizable IP without harnessing its true essence. The attempt to translate a vibrant game universe into a broad cinematic experience ends up as a missed opportunity for fans and general audiences alike.
Source: VG Times