10 Worst Things About the Borderlands Movie (So Far)

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The video game movie curse strikes again… Welcome to WatchMojo! In this video, we’re counting down the Top 10 Worst Things About the Borderlands Movie—from casting choices and awkward character portrayals to missed story opportunities and more.Tell us your thoughts in the comments—and don’t forget to follow for more brutally honest takes on video game movies and pop culture flops.

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00:00It's cute that y'all think you're the heroes of this little adventure, but you're not.

00:05Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the top 10 worst things about the Borderlands movie.

00:11Number 10. The Casting.

00:15Let's get this one out of the way.

00:17Would you look at that? A ladder!

00:19Unfortunately, my design doesn't facilitate this type of...

00:22While the casting choices were questionable in the beginning due to age differences between the actors and characters,

00:29some of us try to keep an open mind.

00:31However, it definitely feels like Star Power was tacked onto Borderlands for the sake of having Star Power.

00:37None of the cast's performances feel remotely close to the source material,

00:40and the age differences become really, really hard to ignore for fans of the games.

00:44I needed a gun!

00:45So you asked for it!

00:46When no one looks or feels like the cast of the original iterations,

00:50you have to wonder who the movie is supposed to cater to.

00:53Are we really ready for this to finish?

00:54Number 9. The Story, Writing, and Lore.

00:57Legend has it that there's this massive treasure hidden in some secret vault.

01:03The Borderlands movie does get one thing right.

01:06Just like the games bring up in their own lore,

01:08Pandora was created by an ancient alien race known as the Eridians

01:12and was made to keep a dangerous creature from destroying the universe.

01:15However, this beast barely has any presence nor prominence in the movie.

01:19Instead, we have this child who is a failed clone of the Eridians?

01:23On top of that, the movie barely touches upon the overarching theme of the games

01:27that commentates on weapons manufacturing, corporate greed,

01:30and companies with private militaries.

01:32You have the best in horrific death and dismemberment insurance!

01:35In other words, the movie is only carrying a small percentage of the game's DNA in its story.

01:40Did everything else just wind up on the cutting room floor,

01:42or did we forget some of the crucial aspects of Borderlands?

01:45God, I hate this plan.

01:47Number 8. The ADR

01:49You ready to kick some ass?

01:50Okay, let's go.

01:51Hey, hey, hey.

01:52Some of the audio mixing in the Borderlands movie is downright awful,

01:55and considering the crew had to do two weeks of reshoots,

01:58where did the quality control go?

02:00In a couple of scenes, you may have noticed characters talking out of sync

02:03or lines being said when no one is speaking at all.

02:05You get a bullet? You get a bullet?

02:07Look, ADR is really important in the final stretches of movie production.

02:10It can help make lines clearer, fix audio problems that may have occurred on set,

02:14and even strengthen performances.

02:16Here, the ADR feels like a band-aid on a wide-open wound.

02:20Mismatched lines can really damage your cast's performances,

02:23as well as pull the audience out of your story quickly.

02:25It's a part of the editing process you cannot overlook.

02:28There's only one of you in the world.

02:29You're special.

02:30Number 7. The Vault Hunters

02:32We promise we aren't trying to pick on the cast.

02:35What we want to draw attention to are the Vault Hunters who are and are not in this movie.

02:44Though Lilith and Roland are the most important characters in the franchise,

02:48this'll just take a second.

02:51It's a real shame that the Borderlands movie left out Mordecai and Brick,

02:55the other two Vault Hunters featured in the first game.

02:58That was awesome!

03:04How come Cree got a spot when he was a throwaway DLC character for the second game

03:07and only briefly appears in the third?

03:09While Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford claims that Brick was originally planned to be in the movie,

03:14something tells us that was never the case.

03:16Besides, you can't have Brick without Mordecai because the two do become friends in the games.

03:21Number 6. The Set Designs

03:23Play the first Borderlands video game for an hour or two

03:25and you'll notice something about the architecture featured in various settlements and enemy camps.

03:33Yes, there is junk everywhere,

03:35but there are still unique buildings with distinct styles to give the environment some character.

03:40Firestone, Skaggully, Sanctuary,

03:42they all have a layout to give them an identity.

03:44The Borderlands movie has no personality in any of its settings.

03:48Follow me this way, I have a tremendous sense of...

03:51Sanctuary is a marketplace of pipes, garbage, and neon signs everywhere.

03:56As for every other setting,

03:57it's more garbage, more generic layouts, and a ton of sand.

04:00Remove the name,

04:01and you could guess these set pieces belong to any other post-apocalyptic or sci-fi movie.

04:06Everybody run!

04:08Number 5. The Humor

04:10Feel free to applaud.

04:13Unfortunately, Borderlands has had a questionable sense of humor in recent years.

04:17Ever since Borderlands 3 in 2019,

04:19the series has relished in jokes that often come off as juvenile,

04:22borderline childish in most cases.

04:24Once upon a time, Borderlands was clever and witty in its humor,

04:28much of it leaning into the violence while touching upon some grim subject matter.

04:32Please enjoy your relaxing stay.

04:34Interesting fact, based on your current stress patterns,

04:37I calculate a 94.3% chance that you will encounter an unfortunate death experience.

04:44You know, dark humor.

04:46Instead of trying to replicate the wit of the early games,

04:48the movie joins in on the childish antics Borderlands 3 started

04:51and cranks it up a notch with toilet humor.

04:53What did I tell you?

04:54Minimal explosions!

04:55I said no explosions!

04:57Come on, did we really need an entire scene dedicated to Claptrap awkwardly soiling himself in front of the entire cast?

05:03Number 4. Tiny Tina

05:05Speaking of childish and immature, Tiny Tina is nothing like her video game counterpart.

05:12It's a real shame too, because her character was part of what made Borderlands 2 so memorable.

05:16This doctor thought it was all in fun.

05:23Ghost a bandit!

05:24As we mentioned earlier, the movie Tiny Tina is some failed clone of the Iridians.

05:29The games did absolutely nothing like that.

05:31In the games, Tiny Tina is a child who has been traumatized by her parents getting killed by a band of stars.

05:35Psychos.

05:36As a result, she becomes almost as crazy as the psychos who hurt her as she personifies her plush bunnies and arsenal of explosive weaponry.

05:43Which iteration of Tiny Tina sounds more interesting from a storytelling perspective?

05:46The unpredictable explosives expert or the failed clone who needs to be escorted?

05:50Time to make it rain!

05:52With your body parts!

05:55Number 3. Claptrap

05:57I had to get into incredible shape for this role with my nude scene late in the second act.

06:01Claptrap is another character the Borderlands movie adapts horrendously.

06:04In the games, Claptrap is meant to be your welcome to Pandora.

06:08Though he puts on a cheery, happy-go-lucky attitude while giving you the tutorial and quests,

06:12Claptrap will sometimes show a bit of immaturity by insulting someone while their back is turned.

06:16Prepare to face the fury of mega-interplanetary ninja assassin, Claptrap!

06:21His two-faced personality is what makes him funny.

06:23And it's even funnier when he gets kicked down for being so overconfident in a dangerous world.

06:27The movie completely sidelines him and makes him the token comic relief.

06:31And most of his antics come off as totally annoying even for viewers,

06:35like the soiling scene we mentioned a little bit ago.

06:37This has to happen now!

06:39Don't judge me!

06:40Number 2. The PG-13 Rating

06:42When adapting a book, a TV show, or even a video game,

06:47it's important that you match the tone and aesthetics that the source material goes for.

06:51With the exception of Tiny Tina's Wonderlands,

06:53every game in the Borderlands franchise is rated M for Mature.

06:57That alone should imply that there is some importance in the game's visceral nature.

07:01Not only is it a part of the game's visual identity,

07:03it also plays a part in how the humor should be depicted.

07:07Just from the PG-13 rating,

07:10the Borderlands movie does itself a disservice by needing to remove that visceral aspect of the games.

07:14So, now, you're banking entirely on the humor, story, and costumes,

07:19none of which did the game any justice.

07:23Before we continue,

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07:41Number 1. The Complete Irrelevance to the Games

07:44How are we gonna get through this?

07:47This is the movie's biggest crime.

07:49The number one goal in every adaptation, in every cross-media movement,

07:53is to expand your audience

07:54and show why the thing that you are adapting is revered in other fields of entertainment.

07:59The Borderlands movie fails in every possible avenue in achieving this.

08:02You woke the wrong dog.

08:04In trying to tell an original story, you axed characters some fans deem important.

08:12In leaning into the same sense of humor that fans have complained about for years,

08:16you have alienated not just them, but the new audience you could have pulled in as well.

08:20In trying to assemble a cast of notable actors,

08:22you effectively blew through most of your budget that could have strengthened the now weaker aspects of the movie,

08:27like the set design and CGI.

08:28And, in trying to appeal to everyone with a PG-13 rating,

08:32you have compromised in translating aspects of what you're adapting,

08:35and thus, failed in showing why an M-rated gaming franchise mattered in the first place.

08:40That said, what reason does anyone have in seeing Borderlands?

08:44Who was this for?

08:45If not, too bad. I'm telling you anyway.

08:47Did you wind up seeing this dumpster fire for yourself,

08:50or did you ignore Borderlands like most of the world did?

08:53Let us know down in the comments.

08:54That's incredibly kind and accurate of you.

08:56Did you enjoy this video?

08:58Check out these other clips from WatchMojo,

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