GL_041918

24 | April 19, 2018 | The glenview lantern life & arts
glenviewlantern.com
rating: 7.9/10 | genre: Thriller/fantasy| run time: 139 minutes
‘Ready Player One’ — when reality fails humanity
Kathy Clemens
Contributing Columnist
Glenview resident
How appropriate that a
movie stuffed with “Easter
eggs” came rollicking
out of the gate on the very
same weekend that celebrates
the Easter holiday.
An Easter egg is a sly
little reference that is hidden
as an homage within
a scene for the dedicated
filmgoer to spot. Director
Steven Spielberg, whose
genre of films alone could
compose a majority of said
eggs, crafted this movie
with an evident love for the
80s, which were featured
prominently throughout.
Spielberg has always
been a master at constructing
a good story and
fashioning memorable
characters, and this one is
a delight from start to finish.
Based upon the 2011
book by Earnest Cline, the
movie takes some liberties
with the original storyline
but remains fairly true to
the main source material.
Set in 2045, the film depicts
a world in shambles.
Its inhabitants take refuge
via visors and haptic technology
in the virtual realm
of the OASIS, the brainchild
of tech guru James
Halliday (played by Mark
Rylance).
The idea that real life
is so unbearable people
would rather occupy virtual
reality instead is not
new, but here it is displayed
on an expanded
scale. The OASIS is made
up of many worlds where
the avatars of the visitors
can do just about anything,
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and since Halliday was a
huge fan of the 80s, the
worlds are populated with
trivia from that decade.
At his death, Halliday
announced that he had
hidden three keys to his
own Easter egg: control
of the entire OASIS and
his trillion-dollar fortune.
Naturally, the world has
taken up the challenge
and everyone is looking
to solve the puzzles. Wade
Watts, as his avatar Parzival
(yes, the Arthurian
knight), fights to find the
keys along with his best
friend Aech, the feisty Art-
3mis, and co-horts Daito
and Shoto.
Of course, there is a corporate
villain, as the company
Innovative Online
Industries sends thousands
of workers into the worlds
to win so that they have a
monopoly over the industry
and can charge exorbitant
rates for use and advertising
space.
Wade and his friends,
who have never actually
met in real life, race to the
finish to prevent a megaconglomerate
from ruling
the bandwidth.
The roller-coaster ride
that follows through the 80s
nostalgia (Duran Duran!) as
the players feverishly work
the clues is a feast for the
senses, depicting so many
pop culture references (Galaga!)
that it’s hard to keep
track as they flash across the
screen or are mentioned in
passing — but they are so,
so enjoyable.
This isn’t to say that the
social commentary is lost
in the blizzard of 80s pop
culture (Thundercats!).
Spielberg has always been
a fan of the scrappy group
of kids beating out the corrupt
grownups, and that
hasn’t changed.
There are also some
pointed notes given about
how human beings need to
interact with other human
beings on a tangible level,
regardless of how scary or
messy that might be. The
argument can be made that
reality has failed humanity,
which is why people
find solace in the ether, but
the real world will always
be superior to a virtual one.
Even if the virtual one
lets you climb Mount
Everest with Batman or
race a DeLorean.
The North Shore’s most
exciting orchestra!
ROMANTICRUSSIA
ATaleofTwo Composers
Sunday,May 6, 2018 at 4pm
Onstage Commentary by MaestroLawrenceRapchak
RACHMANINOFF
Piano Concerto No. 2inCMinor
GLAZUNOV
Procession from Raymonda
Symphony No. 5in
B-Flat Major, Op. 55
Sheely Center for
the Performing Arts
2300 Shermer Rd.
Northbrook, IL
60062
Guest Artist
George Vatchnadze
piano
Join our
Music is Magic!
Club & children
ages 7-18 attend
FREE!*
Pre-Concert Lecture with Jim Kendros at 2:30 pm
*Call the NSO office at (847) 272-0755 for details.
www.NorthbrookSymphony.org |NSO office: (847) 272-0755