Advance reviews of Borderlands: The Movie are not positive

Gearbox Software's Borderlands is getting a star-studded movie next month, directed by Eli Roth. Unfortunately, early reviews for the film haven't been great, but the gaming community isn't surprised.

Cate Blanchett, who plays the outlaw Lilith, has previously discussed her decision to star in the film due to the "madness of the pandemic," and the Australian actor will also star alongside Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Hart, and Jack Black, who voices the robot Crank. Previously released trailers showed energetic action scenes and retained the series' unique comedic style, but so far, this element does not seem to resonate with fans.

According to reliable industry insider Daniel Richtman, who shared filtered reviews from early previews of Borderlands in his post, audience feedback was not positive.

Early reactions included audiences calling the film "terrible" and "unfunny," even though promotional materials for the adaptation leaned heavily on the Borderlands series' signature comedic style, which was often hard to swallow. However, these initial impressions did little to shake the confidence of some gamers.

One social media account posted: "I can't believe it. It's finally here. Accurate movie adaptation." Another onlooker shared the same sentiment: "Bad and boring sounds exactly like Borderlands."

For context, another review highlighted that "Borderlands' humor has always been something that would only be appropriate for a medium like video games or animation." The series is often described as having "awkward humor," which isn't to everyone's taste. However, gamers are already very familiar with it, and the film is likely to be completely faithful to the original game in this regard.

Of course, social media was also flooded with negative comments, saying that no one asked for this film adaptation, and one person chimed in: "This doesn't surprise me because Borderlands basically won through gameplay, and a movie can't do that."

The Borderlands series is divisive in the gaming community, with many viewing the series as a product of its time, with millennial humor that doesn't hold up in today's culture. But perhaps this film adaptation will still be an entertaining ride.