Line #39 YMMV/Pixels


1	* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: Delving deeper into the "character" part; [[spoiler:QBert never showed any shapeshifting abilities before turning into Lady Lisa - did she somehow hear Ludlow and then ''forcefully overwrite QBert with her own data'' just to be with him again?]]
2	* AssPull:
3	** [[spoiler:Eddy using a cheat code to teleport in the Pac-Man fight. The movie doesn't even ''try'' to explain how a code from a video game could be used to make a ''real car'' teleport, plus it makes no sense to have a code that applies to the villain characters rather than the player one.]]
4	** [[spoiler:Eddy also apparently used this same cheat code in "Pac Man" to win during his competitive arcade days, which opens up a whole host of FridgeLogic. For one, ''Pac Man doesn't have any cheat codes'' (at least not the versions from 1980), and being one of the most popular arcade games ever, almost anyone could tell you that. Not to mention how did he enter it at a tournament in front of dozens of spectators with no one noticing?]]
5	** [[spoiler:Q*Bert somehow becoming Lady Lisa and having babies with Ludlow.]]
6	* AwardSnub: Despite being nominated for several Razzies, it didn’t win a single one.
7	* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: "Game On", from Music/GoodCharlotte and Music/WakaFlockaFlame, is an incredible adrenaline rush.
8	* ClicheStorm: The film contains the most common of the Creator/AdamSandler movie tropes, such as the quirky LoserProtagonist that society thinks will amount to nothing, TheBully who puts him down and a WillTheyOrWontThey subplot. If you're familiar with any of his past films, you could predict where every plot point would go long before it resolves itself in-story.
9	* CriticalDissonance: The film seemed to fare marginally better with audiences than with critics. It's rated 50% on the Rotten Tomatoes user scores and 5.7/10 on Website/IMDb, indicating a pretty even split between those who liked it and those who hated it.
10	* DirectorDisplacement: No one seems to know that the one and only Creator/ChrisColumbus directed this film. Y'know, the guy that brought us ''Film/AdventuresInBabysitting'', the first two ''Film/HomeAlone'' films, the first two ''Literature/HarryPotter'' films, ''Film/MrsDoubtfire'', and others.
11	* EnsembleDarkhorse: Eddie is usually considered the highlight of the movie, thanks to Creator/PeterDinklage putting effort into his performance.
12	* FandomRivalry: Fans of the LetsPlay/{{Yogscast}} did ''not'' like fans of this film due to its advertising that tried to exploit the Yogscast fanbase. The Yogscast were originally approached to help promote the movie, but the group backed out of the negotiations when the ''Pixels'' people wanted full creative control over the promotions. But then marketing was made to specifically target the Yogscasts' various Youtube channels, using ads where the film's stars acted like the Yogscast wanted their fans to see the movie. This was all without including the Yogscast in the production of new adverts, paying them for using their channels as an advertising platform, or even ''pronouncing their name properly''. High profile members of the group such as LetsPlay/SimonLane, LetsPlay/HatFilms' Ross Hornby and artist Teutron all slammed the film (plus Sandler specifically) for [[https://twitter.com/SimonHoneydew/status/629313597114552320 what they view as]] [[https://twitter.com/Teutronz/status/629611007061684224 poor effort]], as well as [[https://twitter.com/djh3max/status/629641386556555264 shady conduct and poor behaviour]] at best.
13	* HarsherInHindsight: The doctored '80s footage used to spread the aliens' message looks a little different now that the spread of deepfakes became a legitimate concern for ''the actual US government.''
14	* HilariousInHindsight:
15	** One of the stories featured in ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode ''[[Recap/FuturamaS3E18AnthologyOfInterestII Anthology of Interest II]]'' is what if videogames were real, which starred Fry being the saviour of humanity at beating space invaders. It too played around with similar tropes and jokes to this movie almost 13 years prior to this film existing.
16	** In 2015, Creator/JoshGad and Creator/PeterDinklage fought iconic video game characters with Creator/AdamSandler. In 2016, Josh Gad and Peter Dinklage become video game characters in ''WesternAnimation/TheAngryBirdsMovie''.
17	** ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'', an early video game-based movie that was greatly acclaimed, yet failed to feature Mario. This movie was the exact opposite since Mario gets a 3 second cameo. Although director commentary makes it clear that ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'' was perfectly capable of including Mario; they simply didn't have a good role in the film for him to perform that was worthy of the legendary mascot.
18	** Eddie is found to have [[spoiler:used cheat codes for Pac-Man and Donkey Kong, invalidating his actual records.]] This character was based off of Billy Mitchell, the "King of Kong" ([[Film/TheKingOfKong who even got a movie documenting this]]), who in 2018 was stripped of his records after he was possibly found to have cheated by setting them via an emulator as opposed to a physical cabinet.[[note]]The evidence used is from the order the sprites load into the game. Billy's footage appears similar to at least one emulator, though not identical. Later photographs revealed that, even if the game wasn't played on an emulator, he used an eight-way joystick, which is ''also'' banned in ''Donkey Kong'' scorerunning.[[/note]] Some were even happy to note that Billy looked sort of like a taller version of Peter.
19	** We get a scene with [[Film/{{Troy}} Odysseus and Agamemnon]] ''screaming like girls and hugging each other'' when they think they're about to die.
20	** One plot point in the movie is that the military is completely inept at video games, forcing the protagonists to step in. As it turns out, [[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-61229305 the military is deeply entwined with gaming]]: a large number of personnel play games, the military uses videogame-like simulations for training, and (the British one at least) goes as far as to do Twitch livestreams and attend gaming festivals to booster public relations.
21	* JustHereForGodzilla:
22	** Most people were expecting, and got used to the fact that this ended up being yet another horribly reviewed Creator/HappyMadisonProductions movie, but went to see the movie anyway for the 80s video game references.
23	** Some watched this film just to see Creator/PeterDinklage or [[Creator/AshleyBenson Ashley]] [[Series/PrettyLittleLiars Benson]].
24	* OneSceneWonder: Some fans admitted that the inclusion of Videogame/DuckHunt, of all characters, was a pretty nice bonus. Notably in a coincidental case that occurred a few months earlier, Creator/{{Nintendo}} ''themselves'' had [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap revoked his Scrappy status]] by having him appear in all his glory in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU''.
25	* QuestionableCasting:
26	** Why the ''hell'' were Creator/PeterDinklage and Creator/SeanBean in this movie, if not to ride the ''Series/GameOfThrones'' hype at the time? The same can also be said about Creator/BrianCox, who never appeared on that show (though ''Series/{{Sharpe}}'' and ''Film/{{Troy}}'' fans may be pleased to see Sharpe and Hogan/Odysseus and Agamemnon together again).
27	** Creator/KevinJames plays the President of the United States. Pretty much every review of the film felt compelled to put up a NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer when they mentioned his casting. Some suspected that he was made the President purely so they could do the joke revealing his career after he complains about how much it sucks, as he otherwise acts exactly the same as any other Kevin James character.
28	* RootingForTheEmpire: Why wouldn't you want to root for an alien race that brings your childhood favorite video game characters to life? The cool visuals and the fact that they're fighting a group of annoying humans led by Creator/AdamSandler also help.
29	* TheScrappy:
30	** Sam, half because he's played by Creator/AdamSandler and the other half because the film seems to be merely a vehicle for acting out a fantasy for his actor (as many reviews noted).
31	** Ludlow garnered a lot of hate due to both his [[NoIndoorVoice constant screaming]] and his [[LoonyFan creepy tendencies]] towards Lady Lisa.
32	* ShallowParody: President Will Cooper as a parody of President UsefulNotes/GeorgeWBush. He's introduced during a riff on the "The Pet Goat" incident on September 11, 2001. To put it mildly, the parody was no longer timely in 2015. Aside from the general idea of being a buffoon, there was little else to tie the fictional Will Cooper's behavior to the behavior of George Bush Jr.
33	* {{Squick}}: [=QBert=] [[spoiler:becoming a human woman and then ''having sex with Ludlow.'']] Sam even {{lampshade\|Hanging}}s it near the end: "Doesn't anyone find that weird? That was just [=QBert=]!" [[spoiler:Oh, and they have a litter of baby [=Q*Berts=] at the end.]]
34	* StrangledByTheRedString: Despite Sam being a loser and acting like a creep, Violet is still interested in him for some reason.
35	* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
36	** Many reviews remarked that the premise (while rather nonsensical) could have made for a fun movie with the MST3KMantra in full effect. Instead, the film never really ''does'' much with the characters.
37	** Those who found the concept interesting also found themselves disappointed that the film devotes itself more to being an Creator/AdamSandler vehicle that also doesn't use the film's concept to its full potential.
38	* TookTheBadFilmSeriously: Creator/PeterDinklage seemed to be fully aware that the movie wasn't good and ''still'' gave it his best shot. HamAndCheese also applies, given that his character is a BoisterousBruiser.
39	* UncertainAudience: Meshing the low-brow comedy of Creator/AdamSandler and relying on 80s games and/or references is not a combination with wide appeal; gamers wouldn't like the low-effort jokes or appreciate how they are stereotyped as losers and archetypal [[BasementDweller basement dwellers]]. Fans of 80s games specifically would generally be far too old to have any interest in the film's style of story; fans of the low-brow Adam Sandler style of humor would be alienated by not getting references to the various 80s games from before their time. Additionally, the script dismissing modern video games and highlighting arcade games from TheEighties as the pinnacle would earn the ire of gamers who would have believed the film was about celebrating where video games got their start, not showcasing that time as when video games were at their most meaningful. The only people who will totally accept the latter are those who really never got past the days when arcade games were high-score-based novelties, especially when out of all examples used for "meaningless modern games", ''VideoGame/TheLastOfUs'' has been acclaimed as a masterpiece by critics and players for its cinematic storytelling and presentation.
40	* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Ludlow is supposed to be a relatable lonely {{Manchild}}, but that's undermined by the fact he comes off as [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} a complete kook]] who [[TheCloudcuckoolanderWasRight happened to be right about something for once]] and an unstable, pathetic lunatic at worst. His crush on Lady Lisa is also meant to be seen as the latter being his OneTrueLove; his actual behavior is more in the ballpark of LoonyFan with PerverseSexualLust, something the movie itself jokes about briefly. [[spoiler:Not to mention that he gets to have said heroine come to life and fall in love with him for no reason; Q*bert then transforms into her just to give him a happy ending, which again is so [[{{Glurge}} insufferable and disturbing to think about]] that Sam ''points it out''.]]
41	* VideoGameMoviesSuck: Not based on a direct film adaptation to a specific game, but counts by using their characters, ''Pixels'' received very negative reviews from critics, and was not exactly well liked by audiences either. It was one of two victims of this trope in 2015 (the other being ''Film/HitmanAgent47'', which at least ''tried'' to resemble the ''Franchise/{{Hitman}}'' series).
42	* WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids: The film overtly features dozens of surprisingly raunchy sex jokes, FamilyUnfriendlyDeath scenes, mild swearing, and various other inappropriate stuff, but that hadn't stopped the film from getting much publicity for children, with outlets such as ''Creator/{{Nickelodeon}}'' featuring promos and tie-ins for the film in the time up to its release. The lack of appeal towards a family audience of parents who know better are likely major contributions to the BoxOfficeBomb failure the film suffered.
43	* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotPolitical: The President is a down-to-earth nice guy beset by all sorts of tiny problems (like low popularity ratings). Nevertheless, he is a fundamentally decent guy, enjoys a meaningful relationship with Great Britain, and has an aggressive foreign policy. The film suggests that he is picked upon by the U.S. media because he is not educated or refined, and his disappointing polling numbers receive a boost from a series of high-profile attacks that result from eighty chickens coming home to roost. [[UsefulNotes/GeorgeWBush He's the president you’d most like to have a beer with.]] Indeed, the actor’s very first scene features a riff on that [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pet_Goat famous scene]] of George W. Bush reading the children's book "''The Pet Goat''" to a crowd of schoolchildren; he is then informed of one of the attacks at the World Trade Center in New York City in 2001; he stumbles over words, making it clear that he may not be the most charismatic individual to hold office.

Context YMMV / Pixels