Borderlands Movie Struggles Beyond Bad Reviews

As the premiere week for the Borderlands movie rolls on, the film continues to face significant challenges, including overwhelmingly negative reviews from top critics on Rotten Tomatoes and a controversy involving uncredited work by a member of the production team.

Borderlands Movie Faces Rocky Premiere Week

Film Staff Says He Wasn't Credited

Directed by Eli Roth, the Borderlands movie adaptation has encountered a turbulent premiere week, with its initial reviews being overwhelmingly negative. On Rotten Tomatoes, a leading platform for film critiques, the movie has garnered a dismal 6% approval rating from 49 reviews. Top critics have been particularly harsh, with Donald Clarke of the Irish Times suggesting that fans might want to "hammer an imagined X button" to escape the film's "wacko BS," and Amy Nicholson from the New York Times noting that while some design elements are commendable, the humor largely misses the mark.

Following the lifting of the social media embargo earlier this week, early viewers and critics have echoed these sentiments, describing the film as "lifeless," "terrible," and "uninspired." Despite this, a segment of Borderlands fans and movie-goers have found some enjoyment in the movie's loud, action-packed style, reflected in a more favorable 49% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. One viewer admitted, "Not gonna lie, I was a hater when I saw the cast. I went into it with low expectations, but I truly loved it." Another fan appreciated the explosive action and crude humor, though they noted that "some of the lore changes could leave people puzzled. Personally, I didn't mind too much as it made for a more compelling storyline for the film."

However, the Borderlands movie's issues extend beyond critical reception. A controversy has emerged involving Robbie Reid, a freelance rigger who worked on the character "Claptrap." Reid recently took to Twitter (X) to reveal that neither he nor the artist who modeled the character were credited in the film.

"Up until this point, I've been exceptionally lucky to have received a credit for every film I've worked on," Reid stated, expressing his disappointment. "It just stings that the one to finally break the streak was the last film I worked on at a studio. And for such a significant character too." He speculated that the lack of credits might be due to their departure from the studio in 2021 and highlighted that such oversights are unfortunately common in the industry.

"My disappointment lies with the general industry and how it treats/credits artists. It's a long on-going problem, and I'm sad to see it's still widespread based on replies. But I'm heartened by the support shown, and I hope it can lead to change for our industry," Reid concluded, shedding light on broader issues within the film industry.