Uncharted (2022 | USA | 116 minutes | Ruben Fleischer)
Joining a long run of unsuccessful video game adaptations, Uncharted proves there is a new low to be found when bringing a beloved series to the big screen. Specifically, a low that relies on name recognition alone without putting any thought into actually making a worthwhile adaptation.
It is difficult to think of a more poorly conceived film than this one. Starring Tom Holland who is supposedly playing Nathan “Nate” Drake and Mark Wahlberg who claims to be Victor “Sully” Sullivan, they represent the most out-of-place casting decisions of recent memory. Neither is convincing or compelling as they instead feel like any number of the characters they have played previously. It only marks the beginning of the problems as the film barely keeps its head above water as an origin story of sorts for the famed adventurer. Whereas the games jumped all the way in by covering exciting adventures across a whole host of locations, the film only barely dips its toe in.
The flimsy story begins when Sully recruits Nate to join him in setting out to find the lost treasure of Ferdinand Magellan. In addition to the promise of adventure, Sully lures the young bartender by mentioning how he had previously known Nate’s brother, Sam. Now, through Sully’s mentioning of the past he shared with Sam, Nate is wondering if the journey will somehow lead him closer to his brother. They then must hit all the markers of the original game from a heist to oh so many instances of puzzle-solving. Unfortunately, it is executed without any of the sense of scope or excitement that made the video game so beloved.
The biggest problem is that the film only operates on the surface, recreating key moments without building any sense of deeper engagement with the original game. Considering many of the action sequences of the game were themselves drawn from action films, it doesn’t work to just take them back and strip away any of the specific nuances of the series. It is an imitation and a poor one at that. This film could have been called anything else and it would feel more natural. Instead, it draws you in with the promise of the name only to baffle you with how off-target its understanding of the story is.
It isn’t just that Holland and Wahlberg look nothing like the characters. Suspension of disbelief is possible and there is some leeway to be given to actors who step into a role when they bring a dedication to capturing the emotion of the characters. Neither actor is able to do this. Instead they are mostly just bickering extensions of themselves, all snark and no heart. There were moments where Holland seemed to be getting into a rhythm. Unfortunately, these rare moments are soon undercut when Wahlberg just barges in with a bad joke or a snarky comment. You never believe that he cares about Nate or, inversely, why Nate is still sticking around such an unreliable asshole. Whatever Wahlberg is doing isn’t working, making his recent one-note performance in Joe Bell look like a nuanced masterpiece.
An over-the-top ending almost makes you forget everything else that was going on. It offers a glimpse of what could have been if you could just ignore the genuinely frustrating characters. Alas, seeing a giant battle that takes place with helicopters and giant ships is not enough though it is hard to imagine anything could be with how little the film has going for it. By the time the multiple hints at a sequel get thrown at you in the conclusion, you hope none of them will ever come to fruition if it is going to follow in this first film’s unimaginative footsteps.
You can watch Uncharted in theaters starting Feb. 18.