Adventure movies based on treasure hunts are not really my thing. You read RL Stevenson’s 1883 classic ‘Treasure Island’ once and you will find most of the bounty hunt movies following the same pattern. Among the numerous treasure hunt movies that Hollywood has produced in the last few decades, the ‘Indiana Jones’ film series, that started in the 80s featuring Harrison Ford in the iconic titular role, has to be the most popular. The reason I’m giving so much context here is because I felt like I was watching another one of those Indiana Jones movies when watching ‘Uncharted’, the latest release on Netflix. Based on the famous video game franchise called ‘Uncharted’, the American action-adventure movie, directed by Ruben Fleischer, features Hollywood stars Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg on a treasure-finding frenzy. Nate (Tom Holland), an orphan who got separated from his brother Sam 15 years ago, works as a bartender in New York. He’s also a quick-handed pickpocket who steals from the rich people he meets. Then one day, he’s paid a visit by Victor ‘Sully’ Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg), who introduces himself as Sam’s friend. Introducing himself as a fortune hunter, Sully entices Nate to help him steal a golden cross which is the key to finding an enormous treasure. Nate declines at first but when he learns that finding his brother Sam would also be a part of the deal, he agrees to join Sully.

The duo manages to steal the golden cross, but they find themselves in trouble with Santiago Moncada, the last descendant of the Moncada family who believes the cross and the treasure are rightfully his, and Jo Braddock, a ruthless mercenary. Then follows a series of adventures, deceptions, shocks, and surprises till the very end.

Despite the fact that the writers and the director of Uncharted had to follow the theme of the video game in storytelling, there is a lot of redundancy in the movie. The storyline, the plot, and even the characters have nothing new about them. This lack of freshness in the creation and the unimaginative production makes this star-studded movie a lot less enjoyable than it could have potentially been. The movie had apparently entered development back in 2008 and was delayed for various reasons. Between then and the time the filming actually began in 2015, the movie’s development went through massive changes in its crew and cast. But I guess the filmmakers who actually executed the script might have forgotten to contextualize it for the present times. As a result, Uncharted feels like it was produced and released back in the 90s or early 2000s as one of the last films in a lengthy series of sequels. Actors Holland and Wahlberg have both played some iconic roles in their careers, so famous that they are sometimes recognized by the names of their characters. In Uncharted, both actors had the opportunity to play characters that had already established their names worldwide following the success of the game. But the weak script and direction didn’t let these actors own their roles and make them memorable. Even the legendary desperado Antonio Banderas doesn’t seem to fit in his character of a mighty antagonist. He is supposedly very wealthy and powerful. But his persona does not get a proper build-up and ends up not being credible enough. Nothing against any of the actors though. The uninspiring characters are the result of weak writing and storytelling that makes the movie silly. How the movie earned three times its budget at the box office still beats me. Or perhaps I’m just being a bit too critical here and the majority of the audience is still hungry for treasure hunts. Who should watch it? ‘Uncharted’ is a fast-paced action-adventure movie. Despite its failure to create excitement while watching it, it’s still not boring. People who love action films with death-defying stunts, glorious camerawork, and some CGI will definitely enjoy it in parts. If you want to watch something similar with better storytelling, check out Nicolas Cage’s ‘National Treasure’ (2004). Rating: 2.5 stars Genre: Action/adventure Run time: 1hr 56mins Actors: Tom Holland, Mark Wahlberg, Antonio Banderas Director: Ruben Fleischer