Warcraft (2016)

This is probably the nerdiest film I have ever seen, which I find endearing as somebody who is a fan of franchises that hold such a shamelessly niche appeal. And on that point, my biggest praise I can give this film is that the aesthetics are completely loyal to how the games look and feel. However, this and the fairly competent action direction don't make up for the rest of this film feeling so empty. It has the most basic of plot-lines, the world-building doesn't expand much beyond the occasional fan-pandering, and an ending that is completely pointless beyond the set up for a sequel we will probably never see. I should probably hate this more than I do, but I left with less of a sour taste in my mouth as much as I did with an unanswered query: who is this for?! (apparently, a fair amount of people in China, according to the box office...)Viewed 8/7/2018

Just went back and watched this again, now a few years later and its even better than the first time.Travis Fimmel (Anduin Lothar) and Paula Patton (Garona) have great chemistry and their performances along with Ben Foster (Medivh) Ben Schnet (Kadgar) Toby Kebbel (Durotan) and Daniel Wu (Gul'dan) are excellent. As well as more minor characters. The story plot follows the World of Warcraft game lore for the most part with some exceptions for Garona to bring the adventure along. Having a strong knowledge of that lore is what turned it from a 7 to a 9 for me as all the details were there in the settings and in the characters. And for World of Warcraft Players, having an understanding of the lore and general story already having played the game enhances the film as you can envision what you know has happened outside of this story laid on top of what you see in the film. The actual production of this film, CGI etc. is amazing. The Director's work in maintaining continuity and performance is solid, especially given the complexity of CGI.And the nod to a sequel at the end has me hoping that Blizzard will follow through with the same Class A Production on a sequel soon!

I'm a gamer. I love RPGs. I love fantasy movies. But man, this movie is a mess. The ties to the source materials are flimsy at best. It's just looks like an attempt to grab a few more bucks from the WoW crowd. If it weren't for the WoW apologists (who I appreciate because of my own gaming past) this movie would be rated around the 3 range. The people involved took this movie way too seriously. Sorry, you're not Tolkien. At least take comfort in the fact that this movie isn't as bad as Double Dragon.

I think the story should have built up better to the orc invasion. I believe a director should always make us fall in love with his characters, and the only way to do that is to give us a story. If he had taken the time to build up a story for each of the main characters, I believe a lot of people would have liked it better. even if the cost was less time for original story line. The first lord of the rings movie was 3 hours of practically nothing. Just building a bond between the characters and making us love them with some drama.So jumping to the story line too soon, I believe, was Duncan Jones mistake. And casting Dominic Cooper for king Llane. A king should always have the face of a wise man or a veteran. Dominic Cooper just looks like a regular guy. I also think that when a new idea is being introduced, the pace should be slow when it comes to magic and supernatural powers. Because when it is thrown out there right at the start, it just loses its charm. Also people see things relatively, and the director didn't stress on things that would have wowed us, like the difference in strength between orcs and humans. the fights should have been horrific and scary.But I still like the movie and hope to see a sequel soon.