Directed
by
Chris
Columbus,
"Pixels" is
a
sci-fi
entertainer
based
on
French
director
Patrick
Jean's
2010
released
short
film
of
the
same
name.
The
narration
begins
in
the
summer
of
1982
when
best
friends
Sam
Brenner
and
Will
Cooper
attend
the
First
Worldwide
Video
Arcade
Championships.
It
is
here
that
they
meet
a
nerdy
Ludlow
Lamonsoff,
who
is
infatuated
with
the
computer
game
character,
Lady
Lisa.
Sam
breezes
into
the
finals
where
he
meets
his
nemesis
Eddie
Plant,
the
self-proclaimed
Fire
Blaster,
who
defeats
him
for
the
title.
Years
later,
an
unkempt
looking
Sam
(Adam
Sandler)
works
as
an
electronics
installer
for
a
Geek
Squad.
His
friend
Will
(Kevin
James)
is
the
president
of
the
US,
and
Ludlow
is
a
conspiracy
theorist.
Meanwhile,
a
military
base
in
Guam
is
attacked
by
some
unexplained
forces.
Sam
and
Will
notice
that
there
is
a
similarity
between
the
attackers
and
the
video
game
"Galaga".
They
eventually
realise
that
aliens
attacking
our
planet
have
developed
weapons
resembling
classic
video
game
characters
like
Pac
Man,
Donkey
Kong,
Space
Invaders
and
Centipede
to
challenge
and
ultimately
conquer
Earth.
Courtesy
of
Twitter
Realising
that
the
US
armed
forces
are
ill-equipped
to
handle
the
situation,
Will
turns
to
Sam
as
he
feels
that
he
is
uniquely
qualified
to
save
the
world
because
he
has
studied
the
patterns
of
the
old
school
video
games.
Sam
in
turn
ropes
in
Ludlow
(Josh
Gad)
and
Eddie
(Peter
Dinklage)
to
help
him
save
the
world
from
annihilation.
The
plot,
written
by
Tim
Herlihy
and
Timothy
Dowling,
is
clumsily
structured.
It
is
perfunctory,
weak
and
mediocre
with
sexist
gags
and
childish
buffoonery.
The
story
lacks
logic,
motivation
and
conviction.
The
characters
too,
are
cardboard
thin
and
unbearably
annoying.
On
the
performance
front,
the
actors
seem
to
be
walking
through
their
roles,
having
a
bonhomie
time
on
screen
and
not
bothered
about
their
performances.
The
entire
drill
seems
like
a
big
house
party
recorded
for
a
home
video.
In
this
male
dominated
scenario,
the
only
exception
is
actress
Michelle
Monaghan,
who
plays
Lieutenant
Colonel
Violet
Van
Patten.
She
is
Sam's
love
interest,
who
he
meets
while
installing
a
TV
for
her
son
Maddy
(Matt
Lintz).
She
brings
some
depth
to
her
character
through
a
meaningful
performance.
But
unfortunately,
this
romance
sub-plot
is
underdeveloped
like
Ludlow
and
Lady
Lisa's
track
and
hence
she
is
lost
in
the
maze.
With
poor
production
quality,
the
visuals
too
seem
affected.
Several
sequences
are
crammed
with
designs
that
are
not
aesthetic
or
pleasing
to
the
eye.
The
computer
generated
images
seem
to
be
of
a
bygone
era.
They
are
of
an
unexceptionally
low
quality,
sloppy
and
garish.
The
3D
effects
too
do
not
elevate
the
viewing
experience.
Overall,
the
film
is
disappointing
as
it
fails
to
recreate
the
nostalgia
and
honesty
that
was
reflected
in
the
short
film.