A great experience overall

Rating: 9/10 (27 June 2016)

Die-hard Warcraft fan here, having played all games since the 90's so naturally my expectations were high. I was also very curious to see how the movie would be received by people who don't know anything about the Warcraft universe as I expected a lot of lore references that would be difficult to understand for the general crowd. So, my wife joined me and she had some big reasons to hate Warcraft purely because I used to spend so much time playing it.
It is very difficult to achieve a good Warcraft movie, simply because there is so much depth to the story, very much comparable to something like Lord of the Rings. It is very difficult to strike a perfect balance between the millions of fans who know the story inside out (almost to a disturbing level) and general people who just want to have some fun watching a fantasy movie.
For those who don't know the Warcraft universe, this is a dark, heavy and rich fantasy, across a very wide world with tons of characters, of which you could take a single one and do a full trilogy about. The events depicted in this film are the very early days of the Warcraft saga and these characters, although some are very dear to the heart of Warcraft fans, are not the main characters, if there is such a thing on this story. Are there some simplifications to the story? Die-hard fans will notice (as I did), most people won't know or care, but I honestly think it was needed. After all, this is a movie and not an encyclopedia and the movie needs to be enjoyable without a master's degree on Warcraft lore.
On to the movie itself: it is very enjoyable, and my wife actually liked it a lot. Sure, she doesn't get the importance of the baby orc, or knows who Sargeras is and what is the burning legion. And that, to me, is the biggest accomplishment of the movie: it managed to tell a convincing story, in a way that left most people wanting more, without pouring tons of unnecessary backstory and plot lines on top of the audience.
The CGI is amazing, not going to waste more time talking about that as every single review here raves about it.
There are maybe a couple of Hollywood moments that are a bit cheesy but overall I don't think it caused the movie great harm. It is clear they are trying to setup a move franchise and I honestly hope it happens as there are so many great story lines that could result in great movies.
I also believe the movie is receiving a lot of hate from critics simply because it is based on a video game. I didn't find any major flaws that could justify the bashing it is receiving. I had a smile on my face throughout as I watched the careful craftsmanship of bringing so many familiar locations and characters to life in a way that didn't disappoint me. Several other people I know who don't share this experience were intrigued by the story and want to learn more. Which means the movie accomplishes the objectives it set out to: please the fans, draw in newcomers.
I thoroughly recommend it. It's great fun.