More than most video games of its type, Borderlands feels ripe for a cinematic outing. Thankfully, we’ve got one. Eli Roth’s Borderlands movie is hitting theaters this month with an all-star cast and plenty of sights and sounds from the hit video game series. The vibrant and violent world of Pandora is a perfect fit for a movie, but why is that? Let’s take a look at what benefits Borderlands has for the big screen.
Firstly, we have the planet of Pandora. Full of life (most of it out to kill you, but still) and character. The planet is the source of an ongoing power struggle over ancient alien technology. When folk aren’t fighting each other over that, they’re having to deal with a barrage of hostile flora and fauna in the planet’s various biomes.
The world itself is something of a star in the games, and that gives the movie and any possible sequels plenty of interesting backdrops to the likely chaotic action (because when is it not chaotic somewhere on Pandora?)
Just as importantly, Pandora’s riches attract all manner of weirdos, psychos, and sycophants searching for power, giving a movie version plenty of colorful characters to work with.
The many protagonists of the Borderlands series make it unenviable to pick just a handful to use in a movie, but then there are the side characters! Eli Roth has mixed and matched the two categories to create a ragtag crew featuring series favorites Tiny Tina, Lilith, Claptrap, Krieg, and more. Even with such a strong crew and antagonists for the first movie, there’s still a lot left on the table for later. We’ve still got the likes of Handsome Jack, Brick, Mordecai, Zer0, and more waiting in the wings for further stories.
Why Borderlands can be a great movie
All these characters mean more possible stories to be told in a movie franchise. While the mainline games lean more toward blasting Rakk and Skags than telling deep stories, there’s proof that funny and meaningful stories can also be told in this universe. Telltale’s spinoff Tales from the Borderlands gave us a more narrative-focused adventure that still retained the madcap spirit of the looter shooter mainline entries. Certainly, it shows you can have depth and spectacle in the Borderlands series without sacrificing its identity.
These are all fine ingredients for a movie adaptation, but there’s something else of great importance here. The tone of Borderlands should make for a comfortable transition to the big screen.
What is Borderlands synonymous with? Bombastic action, a silly, puerile sense of humor, almost slapstick violence, and colorful locales. That’s pure blockbuster summer movie stock right there. This is a series about hyperviolent fun, after all. The adrenaline rush of combat encounters and doling out lethal punishment with a wild selection of weaponry is something that can easily be translated to big screen spectacle.
The Borderlands series is an unashamedly over-the-top action extravaganza, and embracing that maniacal chaos should ensure a highly entertaining time at the movies.
Borderlands is in theaters on August 9, 2024
