People couldn’t believe the news when it was first announced but here we are: A movie adaptation of a Hasbro board game, Battleship, has an imminent American release. Jumping head first into international waters, Universal has already released the film in dozens of countries — in fact, the United States will be the last to host Battleship in theaters when it hits our shores May 18. For the critics who have seen it, what did they think?
“Impressive visual effects and Berg’s epic set pieces fight against an armada of cinematic clichés and some truly awful dialogue,” from a Rotten Hollywood Reporter review by Megan Lehmann.
“[Floats]…on the strength of its boyish, eager-to-please razzle-dazzle,” from a Fresh Variety review by Guy Lodge.
“If you found Transformers just a touch too subtle, this is the film for you,” from a Rotten Guardian review by Catherine Shoard.
“All you can do is raise the white flag and surrender to the film’s awesome silliness,” from a Fresh Movie Talk review by Jason Best.
In a nutshell, critics are astonished by its pure blockbuster simplicity — whether that’s a good or bad thing falls squarely to individual interpretation. If the Tomatometer score holds, this will continue lead actor Taylor Kitsch’s Rotten streak (out of his 7 credited movies, none are Fresh). Director Peter Berg has not had a Fresh movie since 2004’s Friday Night Lights.
What do you think? Will Battleship be Fresh or Rotten?
