It arrived on a wave of hype in 2018 – bolstered by its best-selling novel source material, and by having living legend Steven Spielberg at the helm. But, while the hype was certainly as loud as the action sequences in the film itself, Ready Player One is ultimately an unsatisfying endeavour, consisting of narrative contradictions, and deeply regressive sexism. This cinematic adaptation of Ernest Cline’s popular debut novel is, in the final analysis, nothing but empty calories.

The story of Ready Player One is well known for being an homage to pop culture and gaming but, just below that shiny surface lies a deeply sad tale of the reverence of nostalgia, and the self-loathin...

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