Unlike the book - in a good way

Rating: 9/10 (14 July 2018)

As a big fan of the book I was worries how this would translate.
So much of it is so niche and nerdy I was sure it would be a flop.
The film is very different from the book.
It is not as dark as the book and, in a lot ways, not as cheesy.
The slow, considered journey of discovery in the book is replaced with some jaw-dropping action set pieces.
This changes the mood to something a lot more accessible and family orientated.
The story in the film is like a second-cousin to the book, they are very different but you can still see the resemblance.
I found this an enjoyable , inoffensive watch with plenty of action, fantastic locations and stuff blowing up.
The only issue I have with this is the choice of female lead. She was pretty good but her big physical reveal struck me as a little shallow - even for a film set inside a computer game.