Review of Pixels (2015) by Sean S — 02 Apr 2016

What makes Pixels so bad is that there are parts that are actually really cool and exciting. The visual effects are top notch and the action set pieces are inventive, but literally everything stitching them together is a piping hot mess.

The film follows an alien invasion after a video in a time capsule is mistakenly taken as an act of war. There's an interesting plot here, and it definitely plays up the nostalgia factor, especially the beginning, which is actually pretty good.

Unfortunately, for every interesting idea, there's a Peter Dinklage, but more on that later. As for the good, the visual effects are really good. The classic characters are brought to life beautifully, and their set pieces are genuinely exciting, especially when coupled with a rockin' 80's soundtrack.

But in between the action comes the characters, which really destroy this film. Oddly enough, Adam Sandler is not the worst thing about this film. He's very tame in this, and once the alien action starts, it looks like he's having a fun time.

However, for up until then, he seems to be literally sleepwalking through the role. Everyone else is okay, even though Josh Gad overacts a little bit. And then there's Peter Dinklage, who single handedly brings down the film every time he shows up on his.

His character is so poorly written and so terribly acted that you actually question if this is the same man in Game of Thrones. And, by the time the film ends, the viewer is left irritated at why this couldn't be good, even when everything was lining up for it to be.