Fun, Fast and Exceeds expectations

Rating: 8/10 (1 April 2018)

A solid movie with great paced storytelling. The visual effects are brilliant, as is the soundtrack.
There are reviews that will give you an idea of the plot a lot better then I can so I wont go there.
If you are hoping the movie will be an exact retelling of the book you will be disappointed. While the movie takes its idea from the book it changes just about everything else about it. This however doesn't detract from the story itself and gives fans of the book a quest with different challenges to go on with Wade and his friends.
I loved geeking out with all the nostalgic references and cannot wait to get this on home release so I can go frame by frame to pick up all the hidden "easter eggs".
No spoilers but i was so excited watching the Shining scene,
My biggest problem with the movie is that there are references to the book that are never set up but just seem to come out of nowhere. An example is at the end where they out of nowhere start referring to them as the high 5 yet not once up until this point had that name ever been applied to them in fact the leaderboard is hardly ever even shown let alone focusing on who the top 5 ranked players are. As well a throw away reference to Ludo which played a major role in the book.
I wouldn't have been against this being a 2 or even 3 movie series so that the Oasis and the egg hunt could have been expanded upon further as well as building up the friendships between the main group rather then having them already know each other.
Overall this movie is a must watch and if you can get over the differences to the book i'm sure this will end up holding a place in your heart like so many of the pop culture items it nods to.