True to Its Lore

Rating: 9/10 (11 June 2016)

Straight off, I am a longtime Warcraft fan. I've been playing their games since Warcraft: Humans & Orcs.
We'll start out with the cons. First, the movie's 'human' cast is pretty wishy washy. They often speak too quietly, they don't sell their lines, and manage to be kinda boring. Khadgar was decent, and I liked the queen, but beyond that, they were flat. Second, the pacing is choppy. They jump from scene to scene, never dwelling on what's happening. It can be disconcerting, and it doesn't help the story. Third, they tried to fit waaaaay too much into this movie. They essentially tried to tell a majority of Warcraft's early lore in one movie, and it feels like it. They really needed more of that forty minutes they left on the floor to fill it out.
Now the pros. First, this movie is gorgeous! Everything about it is absolutely perfect visually and audibly, minus the aforementioned human dialogue. The scenery is excellent, the music is engaging, the magic looks amazing, and I could keep on running on and on about this part of the film forever! Second, you know how movies often skimp on the effects, visually impressive battles, monsters, and all the cool stuff they can do? This movie blows that idea of movie-making out of the water! There isn't a single thing that was left out, from gryphons in battle, to beautiful and impressive magic, to every detail on every orc! It's not just visually impressive, it's full of those moments to the point it pushes the story out just to showcase it! Third, the feeling of the movie. While they don't convey some of their actors as well as they could, they still sell their world! You feel every hit, the sense of doom as towns are burned, the weight of consequence as things happen! It's not perfect, but it's darn near close! Fourth, the lore. There was no way they were going to fit the full scope of the story into this movie, not even the early stuff from Warcraft I, but they tried anyway. Dedicated fans will be able to pick apart the weak details, but overall they did an impressive job of keeping the continuity together. They kept little details in place, made sure to mention the right things at the right times, and made sure moments of great importance weren't overlooked or written out. While this is less important to the casual watcher, for a dedicated fan, this was a gold standard few movies try to hit these days. For that, I salute you!