Ready Player One: Master of Nostalgia, Visuals, and Wowing Audiences

Photo Courtesy of William Edward Beavers, V

Steven Spielberg's directed adaptation of Ernest Cline's Ready Player One was a compelling battle of old-school video games combined with futuristic technologies. Through the right cast members, remarkable use of virtual reality, and a rousing musical score by one of Spielberg's frequent collaborators, Alan Silvestri, Ready Player One was a robust film for adults and children to see for their viewing pleasure.

Set in 2045, young outsider Wade Watts (Tye Sheridan, Scott Summers from X-Men: Apocalypse), escapes from the dismal real-world situation by using the virtual-reality software known as OASIS, created by video game tycoons James Halliday (Mark Rylance) and Ogden Morrow (Simon Pegg). Known as Parzival, Wade races against time to find a mystical Easter egg left behind by Halliday in the OASIS, before a diabolical corporate businessman (Ben Mendelsohn) gets the egg to take control of the OASIS. Through help from the charismatic Art3mis (Olivia Cooke) and his numerous gaming companions, Wade can save the future and make a brighter reality.

What I loved in Ready Player One was its paying homages to previous other films of 1980s-2010s pop culture, e.g. The Iron Giant or Atari. I liken some of the film to Homer's Odyssey, a man who goes on a dangerous quest beyond imagination to get to the life he deserves. There was a great blending of CGI and live-action for the V.R. sequences for Parzival and other characters in the OASIS. And it had it's moments on deciding whose world is it to rule, such as whether or not it belongs to the antagonistic wealthy or the creative and possibly wunderkind youth.

Without a doubt, Ready Player One was an outstanding adaptation of Cline's novel. If you haven't read the book, maybe this will give you invite you to. The cast and crew did their hardest and best in this.
Go watch Ready Player One.   

A Wrinkle in Time: Perfect Timing by Ava DuVernay

Ava DuVernay directed the right cast and crew for the adaptation of the 20th century novel by Madeline L'Engle. With stylized visual effects, well-designed costumes, uplifting original songs and scoring, and bringing the light to the dark moments, A Wrinkle in Time was an overall fantastic production to view.

Meg Murray (Storm Reid) hasn't been the same since her astrophysicist father, Dr. Alex Murray (Chris Pine) disappeared years prior. But she gets an unexpected chance to reconcile with Murray when three astral travelers (Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling) inform her that he is a prisoner on a distant planet. Joining forces with her younger brother Charles Wallace (Deric McCabe) and classmate Calvin O'Keefe (Levi Miller), Meg must liberate from her isolated state and save her father before an evil entity known as the It (David Oyelowo) comes to destroy the universe.


By the time the film ends, audiences may notice that Meg has become acknowledged as a hero who overcame her fears and brought peace to a destructive time period. There was also other planets lush with colorful skies and grasses, floating flowers, and gorgeous scenery. The costumes worn by Winfrey, Witherspoon, and Kaling were sparkling and beautiful. There were moments of displaying different places and space-time travel not yet conceived by humanity. Finally, in addition to Ramin Djawadi's wonderfully composed score, there are also lovely original songs written and performed by Sia, DJ Khaled ft. Demi Lovato, et. al.

When DuVernay directed Selma, I had seen African-Americans faced with many odds to get to their civil rights, but ultimately did not give up and succeeded. I see those in A Wrinkle in Time, and the cast did a great job in the final cut. It was a satisfying Disney creation blended with well-executed special effects and occasional gratifying messages of family.

Black Panther Had Ferocity and Spirit

Wakanda Forever

Marvel Studios went with a predominantly African-American cast, invigorating visual effects, and moving musical score and soundtrack in their newest film, Black Panther. Ryan Coogler  (Creed) poured his heart out and delivered an exceptional direction in this superhero movie. The ensemble cast arranges from Chadwick Boseman who has a knack for playing historic and iconic figures of African American descent (42, Marshall) to Andy Serkis, who is gifted in roles with motion-capture (Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Star Wars: The Last Jedi). Taking place after the events of Captain America: Civil War, T'Challa is given the mantle as king of the African nation, Wakanda. But threats to overthrow the throne and control the nation's supply of vibranium force T'Challa to fight for his people, and eventually, the world, as Black Panther.

The actors' performances should be commended, for in the story, many people had different boundaries to face and different ways to get to liberation. As the film continues, one may notice themes of betrayal, trust, destiny, and obtaining hegemony, the prize for an ideological struggle. While it is an antagonist role, Michael B. Jordan's character, for example, has some similarities to his previous role as Adonis Creed, a young man who's been fighting his whole life to get to the top.  It is a huge burden for T'Challa to succeed his father, but he is unbroken as he tries to protect his friends, love, family, and everyone around them.

Another good thing to note is the technology. Many of the munitions shown in Wakanda is technology that the military and regular engineers would only dream of, but haven't made a reality yet. Lexus went all out with product placement by allowing their new LC 500 for one of the actors to drive. Costume designer Ruth E. Carter (Do the Right Thing, Selma) designed the best costumes for Wakandans to wear, referencing ethnic groups such as the Zuri or Missai for royal and/or local garments. When it came to fights for the throne or defeating the opponent ever, Boseman and Jordan were well-trained to get in shape for their characters. And last but not least, composer Ludwig Goransson scored beautifully, using recordings from Senegal and South African musicians and combining stupendous drum beats as he goes along with other kinds of African-related sound. Kendrick Lamar was remarkable on his end when contributing some songs to Black Panther: The Album. I would say my favorite was "Pray for Me" sung by The Weeknd, ft. Lamar.


As a whole, I loved seeing how many people of African background were hungry to succeed and wouldn't stop the fight until they've earned their places. It has its brutal moments, but they showed relentless spirits and kept aiming for opportunities to win. If you want to see a fictional hero who can inspire peacemaking and warrior strength for people everywhere, go see Chadwick Boseman's ferocity and champion presentation of Black Panther.