Ready Player One is the Film for Our Time
It’s like The LEGO Movie…but not a joke
Yesterday saw the release of the first teaser trailer for Ready Player One, a highly anticipated adaptation of Ernest Cline’s eponymous sci-fi novel from 2011. The dystopian book is famous both for its depiction of a VR-centric world, and also an eclectic remix of pop culture iconography from the 70's/80's. The same way that The Lego Movie crammed in every intellectual property under the sun, Ready Player One integrates pre-existing characters and notable film beats within the tournament-style plot. Rather than merely homage favored flicks, the book tackles pop culture head on to the point of glorified fan fiction. The characters use virtual reality to enact famous film moments; it’s a nerd fantasy gone wild.
As a result, the film version immediately turned heads when none other than Steven Spielberg signed on to direct. The man responsible for half the source material in the book is making story about people hopelessly obsessed with his oeuvre. Wild!
Although Spielberg has removed some references to his personal filmography to avoid charges of “vanity,” the film is nonetheless indebted to his enormous influence on 80’s cinema. The trailer shows off a DeLorean — the famous car from the Back to the Future franchise. Spielberg didn’t direct those films, but he did produce and shape them. Similarly, iconic cartoon character the Iron Giant will feature heavily as an avatar in the film. Whose production company made that 1999 classic? That would be Amblin, the Spielberg brand.
All of this incestuous overlap makes us question how Spielberg can reshape the presentation to go beyond pandering and pastiche. Cline wrote the book as a fan, which takes away a level of satiric bite. At least The Lego Movie skewers our perception of Batman in the middle of its more generic hero’s journey. Although the novel was well-received for its societal commentary and sense of fun, it contributes to a larger, negative trend in pop culture: homage over originality.
The sorts of films that Ready Player One slavishly worships don’t necessarily get made anymore. The most gargantuan blockbusters these day are Star Wars and Jurassic Park reboots. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has brought lesser comic book characters to the screen, but it’s not the same as inventing The Iron Giant or Freddy Krueger from whole cloth.
Even smaller scale films often aren’t registering like they used to. Ready Player One prominently features Blade Runner as an element. Well, 2017 brings a long-awaited sequel to the cult film! I can’t imagine many sci-fi movies from the last few years receiving the same treatment. Ex Machina 2? Dream on.
When we spend more time remaking, remixing, rebooting, prequeling, sequeling, and even just discussing older movies we don’t have the space and time for new ones.
The next generation of filmmakers are groomed to go from their successful independent movies to the next big blockbuster. Think of Colin Trevorrow, Rian Johnson, Josh Trank, and even Ava DuVernay.
I don’t blame artists for wanting to make big movies with pre-established fan bases. But I’m still shocked at how pervasive the trend has become. Veteran director David Gordon Green — everything Pineapple Express to Joe — has a Halloween remake on tap. When will the pop culture re-invention lose steam?
I’m not even immune myself. I’m still waiting to pitch Universal on my Breakfast Club reboot! Seriously, just gimme 90 seconds, and I’ll blow your mind…
Perhaps it’s best that we got Spielberg on board instead of someone who is coming at the material as a fan. Spielberg has his billions of dollars and fans alike. The man doesn’t need to film a Greatest Hits Blockbuster. I trust that he can deliver a message on the limits of past pop culture, and what it means to be enslaved by it so many years later. Now that the stagnant, backwards-leaning pop cultural landscape of 2044 has become the reality, we need that film more than ever.
Even if he fails…who doesn’t want to see The Iron Giant fight Freddy Krueger?
Ready Player One opens on March 30, 2018.
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