Weekend films

'Borderlands', from the well-known video game series a confusing and over-the-top film

Eli Roth's new feature film starring Cate Blanchett and Kevin Hart has arrived at the cinema

by Andrea Chimento

9 August 2024

3' min read

Key points

A not-so-fun treasure hunt
Life Is Not a Competition, But I'm Winning

3' min read

From the world of video games to the world of cinema: a step that may seem short on the surface, but these two languages have such different bases that they often give rise to unsuccessful combinations.

Borderlands', a film that arrived in our cinemas this week, directed by Eli Roth and based on a successful video game series, is no exception.

At the centre of the narrative is a mysterious bounty hunter, forced to return to the planet Pandora to find the daughter of the most powerful man in the Universe. To achieve her mission, she will assemble a team of decidedly bizarre characters: a mercenary, an explosives-loving teenager flanked by her little protector, a mad scientist and a loudmouthed, know-it-all robot.

The group will have to face all sorts of bandits and alien threats in an attempt to find and protect the girl.

“Borderlands” e gli altri film della settimana
Photogallery4 foto

This feature film had a troubled making of it, to say the least, and it's really noticeable, given the outcome: screenwriter Craig Mazin (one of the masterminds of 'The Last of Us' series) was initially involved in the project, but then dropped out altogether, some scenes were finalised by director Tim Miller, because Roth was busy shooting his 2023 film 'Thanksgiving' at the same time, but among the substitutions in the running, that of the composer should also be noted.

The production confusion of this feature film results in a very chaotic narrative, which makes the screenplay totally lose cohesion already in the first part of the viewing.

An unfunny treasure hunt

The adventure of the characters in the field turns into a treasure hunt that would like to be engaging, but ends up tasting too much like something already seen, also due to an accumulation of situations, cues and figures that make the entire viewing experience quite indigestible.

Roth, who had undoubtedly done better with the aforementioned 'Thanksgiving', seems to have little faith in this and ends up signing a tasteless work, devoid of personality, constantly over the top and tremendously dated.

A few high-impact spectacular sequences are saved, but certainly not enough to lift the fortunes of a bungled and crass product.

The cast is really wasted, with Cate Blanchett at the centre and names like Kevin Hart and Jamie Lee Curtis alongside her.

Life Is Not a Competition, But I'm Winning

As the Paris Olympics draw to a close, streaming on MUBI is a film that was uploaded onto the platform precisely on the occasion of the big event taking place in the French capital: the title is 'Life Is Not a Competition, But I'm Winning' and it is a deeply hybrid feature film, mixing drama and documentary and cannot be labelled.

Directed by Julia Fuhr Mann, this German film brings together transgender and intersex athletes to discuss the strict gender rules of competitive sports.

Presented at the Venice Film Festival's International Critics' Week 2023, this curious product represents one of the most intense and thought-provoking viewings of these summer months.

It is a committed work by the German author, a film that combines sport and sexual identity issues with the intention of giving a voice not to those who win Olympic medals, but to those who are not allowed to participate in competitions.

Given how much has been said about the challenge between Imane Khelif and Angela Carini, amidst heated debates and specious polemics, this film offers an interesting and original perspective on a subject of great urgency and topicality.