Uncharted Movie Review: It Could Have Been Worse

Uncharted is not as bad as it could’ve been, but it doesn’t come close to being as good as it should’ve been. Tom Holland shines as Nathan Drake, so there is that.

It has been years since Sony first began trying to adapt one of their big video game franchises into a (hopefully) film franchise. The video games created by Amy Hennig are an adventure caper clearly inspired by Indiana Jones and old adventure serials; where we follow the adventure of treasure hunter Nathan Drake, who travels across the world to uncover various historical mysteries, and sometimes stumbles into the deeper, darker secrets behind them.

Directors ranging from Free Guy’s Shawn Levy to Kubo and the Two Strings’ Travis Knight have come and (sadly) gone, until finally Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland, Venom) took helm of the project. A trusted, company man that has helmed several projects before for Sony to several degrees of success.

The film adaptation follows a younger Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) than ever before, where he first meets and is recruited by the mysterious Victor “Sully” Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg) to recover a fortune amassed by Ferdinand Magellan and lost 500 years ago before the House of Moncada.

It’s no secret that video game adaptations do not have the best track record, and the production bumps this adaptation has taken along the way have not given fans much confidence. It has been so long since the film first began the process of being adapted that Wahlberg originally signed on to play Drake himself, until the point where without much movement he eventually agreed to play Sully, because father time stops for nobody.

Nevertheless, I’m happy to report that Uncharted is actually alright; a light, fun, breezy actioner and the treasure hunting that made us all first fall in love with the game is very much a strong presence in this film.

Tons of faithful sequences that not only reveal new depths of mystery and steps for our heroes to take, but little by little we find more about each of them along the way. The intricate set pieces feature the puzzles that makes the discovery and investigation side of the film so engaging.

What also helps is how enthused protagonist Nathan Drake is throughout this adventure. Holland is not exactly the Drake we know from the games, but it’s easy to buy him as a younger version of the character we know and love.

The film takes the wise approach of telling and origin story. As a sucker for origin stories, it’s easy to love someone finding their inner greatness; which in turn is a lovely connective tissue to the themes always present in the adventures of Uncharted: Sic Parvis Magna (Greatness from Small Beginnings).

Holland brings everything he has to this character: the charm, charisma, smarminess, and wisecracking attitude as well as his naivety and gleeful delight when treasure hunting. His teaming up with Wahlberg’s Sully forces them to join forces with another ally; Chloe Frazer (Sophia Ali), who in turn is an old acquaintance of Sully and wises Nathan up as to who he is actually helping.

This relationship works wonderfully with the themes of distrust present in the film that are so pivotal to Nathan and Sully’s growth through this adventure. Ali being herself a standout as a more experienced treasure hunter than Drake but a mirror image of whom he may become should he find himself betrayed by those he trusts.

Antonio Banderas as the rich aristocrat whose family lays claim to the gold is a devilishly charming presence that chews up the scenery at every opportunity presented, and the film is all the better for it.

From here sadly, we get into the issues and drawbacks of the film; some expected and others not so much, but all of them disappointing.

Related: 8 Video Games That Deserve Live Action Adaptations

You might have noticed I’ve particularly not brought up one of the key characters of the film, that being Sully. A fan favorite from the games, Nathan’s mentor and father figure, is sadly not to be found here. Wahlberg plays a character called Sully, that seems to form a similar mentor/mentee relationship with Holland’s Nathan, but this is fundamentally not Sully.

In fact, the way this character is written in the script for Wahlberg to play is given so many attributes that reflects the worst version of what Nathan could become, it almost feels like we have 2 Nathan Drakes on screen — one who will grow to be the one we love from the game, and one that never became that person.

It’s grating to see how the same script, written by three different screenwriters (Rafe Judkins, Art Marcum, Matt Holloway) can so clearly understand who one character is, but fundamentally change another to the point where he is not even recognizable outside of his name.

Ultimately the even bigger issue than the absolute insane changes to who Sully is as a character, is the direction by Fleischer. It’s competent, but sadly that is where it peaks.

There’s not distinct style, identity, or voice to his way of directing. Set pieces in this film are fine and look the part thanks to it being such a handsome studio production with Sony backing it, but nothing really stands out — everything just blurs together in memory where there is not one distinguishable aspect to differentiate it from countless other films of the type.

There is one single sequence that stands out, it happens in a nightclub in Madrid; very small scale, allows us to see characters thinking of their feet and figure things out in their own distinct ways.

Outside of that, the bigger the set pieces get, the more mundane they feel. They fall flat emotionally speaking. They’re empty spectacle, visual noise with nothing beneath — apart from pretty shots here or there, that are to be accredited to cinematographer Chung-hoon Chung (Last Night in Soho, Oldboy).

Fans are sure to recognize some of the bigger set pieces from the games as well, so there is that.

Overall Uncharted is not as bad as it could’ve been, but it doesn’t come close to being as good as it should’ve been. The rich source material is there — packed with unfiltered charisma, high-octane chaotic action driven constantly by character.

Ultimately we’re left with something that emulates what Uncharted is, but never fully embodies and becomes Uncharted. Rather feels like just another action/adventure film that comes in droves every year, but at least the actual Nathan Drake is there this time.

NOTE: Stay for the mid-credits scene and lookout for a fun cameo at the end of act 2.

Grade: C

About Uncharted

Street-smart thief Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) is recruited by seasoned treasure hunter Victor “Sully” Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg) to recover a fortune lost by Ferdinand Magellan 500 years ago. What starts as a heist job for the duo becomes a globe-trotting, white-knuckle race to reach the prize before the ruthless Moncada (Antonio Banderas), who believes he and his family are the rightful heirs.

If Nate and Sully can decipher the clues and solve one of the world’s oldest mysteries, they stand to find $5 billion in treasure and perhaps even Nate’s long-lost brother…but only if they can learn to work together.

Uncharted is in UK theaters now, and comes to US theaters on February 18th.