This Film Is Disappointing, But I Don’t Hate it | My Thoughts On Borderlands
Lionsgate
While I was sailing a Virgin Voyages cruise for the first time, the weather was not the best. When we docked in Roatan, Honduras, it rained the entire day, and I decided not to let that ruin the day and instead turned this would be port day into a stay inside the cabin, order Ship Eats, and watch movies all day kind of day. I watched Skyfall (2012) for the first time, and I loved it. After watching a masterpiece, I decided to watch something a bit mindless and put on Borderlands (2024). And, imma be honest: it was a mess, but I didn’t hate it. I would watch it again.
About Borderlands
Lionsgate
Lilith (Blanchett), an infamous bounty hunter with a mysterious past, reluctantly returns to her home, Pandora, the most chaotic planet in the galaxy. Her mission is to find the missing daughter of Atlas (Ramírez), the universe's most powerful S.O.B. Lilith forms an unexpected alliance with a ragtag team of misfits - Roland (Hart), a seasoned mercenary on a mission; Tiny Tina (Greenblatt), a feral preteen demolitionist; Krieg (Munteanu), Tina's musclebound protector; Tannis (Curtis), the oddball scientist who's seen it all; and Claptrap (Black), a wiseass robot. Together, these unlikely heroes must battle an alien species and dangerous bandits to uncover one of Pandora's most explosive secrets. The fate of the universe could be in their hands - but they'll be fighting for something more: each other. - Summary from Lionsgate
The Writing
Lionsgate
As I said in my I Watched House Of The Dragon. I Have Never Watched Game Of Thrones - Here Is What I Loved About The Show post, I am not one to complain about writing. Still, I am sick of this trend of scripts thinking the audience is stupid and needs their hand held and told what is happening at every moment because they cannot rely on them to pick up on the context clues or be okay with being confused.
Emotions for people you barely know?
Lionsgate
There were many scenes throughout the film that tried to be super emotional. When Roland ‘sacrificed’ himself, Tiny Tina was damn near in tears because of this. She reacted like they had known each other for years, not days.
There were also awkward moments meant to be heartfelt and sentimental but came off as cringe because of the lack of context behind them. Notably, when Lilith tells Tiny Tina she is special, there is an awkward pause. It seems like it was there to encourage the audience to experience a specific emotion. It looks like this exchange was supposed to be a mother-daughter-like connecting bonding moment, but the movie gave us absolutely nothing to work with as they just met one another.
It sometimes felt like the fan fiction I wrote in Middle and High School. And Yes, I still read and write fan fiction, and I am almost 30.
The Plot Twist made me furious
Lionsgate
The reveal of Lilith being the true daughter of Eridian and the key to the vault could have been done so much better. I get that Lilith is a hot middle-aged mercenary with a mysterious past, and the twist of her being the special one could have been cool if it had been done better.
A character who has poor self-esteem and does bad things to get by in life and doesn’t understand the reasoning behind her childhood trauma only to find out her mother was protecting her and she is one of the most powerful beings in the world is a cool concept, sign me tf up it is done well.
I never played Borderlands, so the movie didn’t give us enough time to connect with Lilith. We got flashbacks to her past, but it felt very empty, and when she is revealed to have been special and that her mom left for a reason, it just doesn’t make me care.
Things I Liked
Lionsgate
Even though they were cringe at times I did like the characters. I also thought the action scenes were well choreographed. My only exposure to the Borderlands franchise was clips on social media of Tiny Tina, and I thought her live-action counterpart was accurate. I also found ClapTrap to be funny. I also enjoyed watching Lilith wield a flamethrower.
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Hi! I’m Andrea, the creator of Cinematic Excursions.
I am a video editor, photographer, travel and events vlogger, and blogger who likes to write movie analyses and yap about fandom. I also have a useless film degree.
I have been creating videos since 2018. In 2023, I started Cinematic Excursions to share my unfiltered experiences traveling, cruising, going on excursions, and using city cards that are supposed to save money.
I also use my platform to document my experience attending events like New York Comic-Con, MCM Comic-Con London, and the Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival, advising others and covering news from these events.
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