A Hero's Quest for All Ages

Rating: 8/10 (2 April 2018)

First of all, do not compare this movie with the book, because there are some things which need adjustment for a transition from a book to the big screen. It's no surprise that movies need to make profits thus it must appeal to as many audience as possible.
If you enjoy video games and movies in general, RPO is a fun ride. It uses the familiar hero's quest plot that everyone can relate to. It's not too complicated or too complex, which is a good thing considering this is also a movie for kids above 10 or so, but still has rooms for the older ones to recognize the 'easter eggs' in the movie. As a fan of video games and movies, I found myself smiling everytime I spot a reference that I am familiar with. It's visually beautiful too, though sometimes the CGI felt a little bit unrealistic/cartoon-ey when the players are inside the OASIS.
Although there is a lesson about how technology plays a role in our lives nowadays, the movie failed to portray several things like the background of the world in 2045, why Wade Watts lived in the stacks and what is happening with the world (disasters, hunger, energy crisis, etc), which should've been an interesting point to present. It also lacks the depth of the characters' development and their motivations (except Art3mis). It somewhat felt like Spielberg wanted to focus more on the pop-culture references as much as possible than the psychology of the characters.
The portrayal of James Holliday is amazing. Mark Rylance played him brilliantly. Hands down my favorite character in the movie, which sadly deserved more on-screen time.
Regardless you're the fan of the book or not, it's not a movie to be missed.