"Thank You for Playing My Game"

Rating: 9/10 (26 June 2018)

Many critics say that this movie is just a hodgepodge of old school pop culture icons exploiting the feeling of nostalgia in the 80s and 90s. Spielberg even spent a large portion of this movie - specifically, the journey to find the second key - on the classic Shining as a tribute. But beyond the smoke and screen, if you dig deep into the theme of this movie, you'll see a biblical context in it. No I'm not a religious rightwinger or conspiracy nut, just to clarify. Believe it or not, you can see Jesus in the male lead and a "jailbreak" salvation in many dystopian sci fi movies specifically about RATS IN THE MAZE experiment - Hunger Games, Maze Runner, Divergent, Passengers, you name it. The hero is thrown into such a big game in virtual reality. At the beginning he doesn't know why he is there, he may not even know who he really is, but slowly and surely he comes to understand the intention of the game's creator, then he gathers a group of like-minded disciples and fights their way out, and finally he meets the mighty creator and enters in a new life.
This theme couldn't be more obvious in this movie. Not only do you have Halliday, the God of this Oasis game and Wade the Savior worthy of Halliday's legacy, you even have the Holy Scripture in it - the journal archive that has documented the creator's entire life and reveals the genesis of this game. However, what's really brilliant is the depiction of Nolan as Satan. It is so accurate that he bears every character of the Serpent: he used to be an intern working for Halliday with his own ambition to run the game in his way, like what Lucifer to God; he built a huge organization to take control of the game and enslaved people to work for him, just like what Satan does in this world; he tempted Wade to bow down to him after he identified Wade as the lucky one who won the first challenge, as Satan tempted Jesus; finally, with a rallying call to arms, Wade led all the players in the epic battle against Nolan's minions, the battle of Armageddon in which all believers join Jesus, descending from heaven to fight against Satan and his army as it is said in Revelation. And of course, the "extra life" resurrection and the final reunion with Halliday, the Creator. Nolan has all the resources in both reality and the virtual world, but at the end he still lost because through this game, he lost his soul whereas Wade regained it.
If you wanna argue about the message - or lack there of - in this movie, I'd say that it explains the spirit of playing game. It's not meant to be a sanctuary to escape realiy, not is it about winning in the competition, but to relate to the game designer through the game and rediscover yourself. The designer created the game to reveal his talents, just as God's creation reveals His glory. The true heir whom the Creator has chosen to inherit His kingdom is the real player who loves the game and admires the designer. That's all a game designer could ask for, to appreciate him and offer his gratitute to the players, just as Halliday's farewell to Wade, "Thank you for playing my game." To sum it up, the journey is the reward, and along the way you'll find those hidden Easter Eggs that are the Creator's signature in his masterpiece, just like it is in the Adventure game.