Here are the things I know about “Uncharted”:
1. It’s a video game for the PlayStation.
2. It’s got adventures, puzzles, and a pretty cool looking storyline.
3. People wanted Nathan Fillion to play the title character, Nathan Drake, for a long time.
Here is what I can tell you about the movie version of Uncharted:
Nathan Drake (Tom Holland, still on his Spider-Man workout routine since he started filming “No Way Home” days after this wrapped) is separated from his brother, Sam, while they were still kids after numerous violations of curfew at the orphanage where they live as well as the law. Fifteen years after they see each other for the last time, Victor “Sully” Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg) enters his life offering him the adventure of a lifetime that could land them both more wealth than either of them imagined in the hidden treasure of Magellan’s crew while possibly unraveling his brother’s disappearance. Also hot on the trail of the treasure is Santiago Moncada (Antonio Banderas), who is willing to use all of his family’s fortunes to find it working with Braddock (Tati Gabrielle), who also knows a few things about all the parties involved.
And Tom Holland falls. A LOT.
In this case, I am kind of glad that I don’t have a lot of knowledge within the “Uncharted” video game universe. I really wanted to enjoy this film based on my limited awareness and just enjoy the ride. There are a lot of differing opinions on Ruben Fleisher’s take on the franchise (the guy knows geek culture with the “Zombieland” films, “Venom,” and some episodes of “Superstore”), but I cannot say I did not enjoy the two-hours I spent in an IMAX theater for this screening. Wahlberg and Holland’s chemistry contributes to the fun along with Sophia Ali as Chloe Frazer, the can you/can’t you accomplice overseas. The story covers the globe as both groups try to one-up each other and take the glory (and the gold) for themselves balancing story and action well.
If there is a problem here, it is actually two-fold. The first of my two issues lies within the script itself. It seems very “front heavy,” with a third act that seemed a bit rushed. Most of the clues that are uncovered to get to the next place that are focused on the (for lack of a better term) protagonists without proper pursuit by the “bad guys” seemed a bit odd to me. The puzzle solving is there, the double, triple, and more crossing is there, the swashbuckling is there; but once they get past the point where they head to the finish line, it just kind of… happens. I don’t think it made the film any better or worse, but it might have balanced it out a bit better.
The second issue is not the fault of the filmmakers but more of the studio in Sony. (For the record, this is the first film that has a stinger at the beginner for “PlayStation Productions,” and that’s actually kinda cool) with the trailers and TV spots for “Uncharted”. Now that I have seen the film, they give away WAY too much to the point where part of some of the promotion I have seen even give away the second of two mid-credits scenes as well as major plot points that should have been saved for being in the theater. I am not sure if this is because Sony didn’t trust the film to stand without the reveals, but trust me; it would have been fine.
Seeing this film in IMAX was an extra treat for me because this is the type of film that needs to be seen in some form of a premium format. If that means you see it at a non-evening showing to offset the extra cost for something like IMAX, Dolby Cinema, or X-D do that. Go and have fun!
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