Uncharted

Adapting a video game series into a grand, adventurous, action-packed movie that looks more magnificent, adventurous, and action-packed than any of its competitors, is a challenging and seemingly unnecessary task. And yet despite endless pre-production delays, changes in the director chair, and an incredible paradox where the actor originally planned for Nathan ended up in the role of Sully, Uncharted is a success. The creators do not need to reinvent the wheel, they allow the main hero to jump, run, and fall as befits the famous franchise, and above all, they remember that most viewers have played the game and will want to experience something familiar. The traditional flaw of game adaptations is possibly eradicated definitively, and the main visual attractions directly quote the third installment or even exaggerate the conclusion of the fourth one. However, what relieved me the most was the interaction between the main duo. Tom Holland is likable and, as a younger Drake, he can fully embrace the traditional acting role, but Mark Wahlberg, as Sullivan, I was dreading for some time only for him to ultimately steal the show. He perfectly captured the essence of the grumbling mentor with a nose for money. (05/19/2023)

So it looks like we'll have to wait for another really good movie based on a game, because Uncharted didn't succeed as much as fans of the source material would have liked. And probably not even adventure movie fans. Making it a prequel turned out to be a smart move, the makers can tell their own story and just reference the game; sometimes a lot, sometimes a little, sometimes totally, and make a good adventure movie first and foremost. But it’s not much of one. The main problem is that it all drags quite a bit, there’s little action, and at some points what happens on screen is almost embarrassing. All the attempts at Indiana Jones-like wandering through corridors, avoiding traps and solving puzzles looks so cheesy that I was reminded of the 1990s series Relic Hunter. The chemistry between Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg is also pretty dour, and that's mostly because Wahlberg is playing more of a scumbag than a likeable bastard, and Holland tries his best, but the flat and predictable script doesn't give him much of a chance to make Nathan Drake a real likeable guy to root for. Fortunately, Uncharted climbs from below average as the runtime progresses, and the finale on the boats is already a lot of good action fun. And it was because of it that I left the cinema feeling actually satisfied. Unfortunately, as soon as I started thinking about the rest of it, the enthusiasm went way down again. A good finish is important, but Uncharted has so many unfinished or uninteresting elements that it makes up for an average adventure at best. (02/09/2022)

The upside of a fast food movie like this for me, as a film collector, is that I save money. There really isn't the slightest reason to invest a single koruna in the Blu-ray of this; and its the same with most movie productions these days. I’ve never liked fast food, I prefer a hearty steak and this thing is like garlic bread. A tedious 120 minutes and the reassurance that the best film adaptation of a PC game is still the 27-year-old Mortal Kombat. (04/28/2022)

I haven't played computer games, so I can't compare them to the movie adaptation. For most of the running time, though, I was thinking how incredibly stupid this movie is – in a good way, but also in a bad way – as most of the scenes just happen for the sake of having something happen (at all). Uncharted doesn't lack action or suspense, but unfortunately it also has a lot of illogical moments – but maybe that was creative intent, who knows? The ship sequence had drive, while the plane scene was over the top. In the end, it's as dumb as Lara Croft, just good enough for one viewing. The final "cliffhanger" leaves the door open for a sequel, provided there is money. (02/19/2022)

Like… Like a lot of yawning more than anything else. It has no pace, no drive, no charisma (and it's not just the Holland/Wahlberg dynamic that doesn't work) and the blatant digitality makes it reprehensibly lifeless. As a result, it is neither a good adventure movie nor a good representative of movies based on video games, but rather a modern Hudson Hawk. Tomb Raider with Alicia fared significantly better in these respects. Better to watch the "Uncharted 4 all/best cutscenes 4k PS5" on YouTube, it's the same thing, just much more polished, better paced despite the longer runtime, with working emotions, better acted and written (especially the dialogues!), better directed (not to mention the set design) and paradoxically less digital. (04/27/2022)