I am a huge Adam Sandler fan and have reviewed many of his movies here on the site. Adam Sandler is one of those actors who I like 90 percent of his stuff. Pixels has average reviews at best online, but I do not care I love this movie and it is one of my favorite of the “modern” Adam Sandler movies.
How to Download Pixels
Pixels was released on February 14, 2024. Pixels was released on July 24, 2015. You can download or stream the film from a digital platform. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and make your choice. If you like Adam Sandler, check out 50 First Dates, Click, or Grown Ups.
The Movie Review
Nostalgic Trip to the Theatre
I have such great memories of going to see Pixels in the theatre. I went to see this with my son and we are both huge gamers so we just had an absolute blast with this. It is not just “nostalgia” either. I have seen Pixels several times since 2015 and I have loved it each and every time. It is one of those movies where I genuinely do not know why it gets the hate that it does.
Engaging Characters
Right from the start, I knew that Pixels was going to be a movie I loved. It starts in the early 80s where we are introduced to our main cast. We have Sam, Will, Ludlow, and their nemesis, The Fireblaster Eddie Plant. They are at a video game contest that sees Sam come up short to Eddie in a game of Donkey Kong.
Unconventional Plot
We fast forward to the modern day and Sam is a tech installer, Ludlow is a conspiracy theorist that still lives with his mom and Will is the freaking president of the USA. Adam Sandler plays Sam, Kevin James plays Will and Josh Gad plays Ludlow. We also have Peter Dinklage as Eddie and Michelle Monaghan as Violet, a high-ranking officer in the army.
Alien Invasion and Gaming Challenges
Back in the 80s, the USA sent a shuttle up to space with a bunch of stuff about Earth culture on it. A race of aliens came across this and saw it as a threat so they decided to come to Earth in the guise of popular video game characters and start a war. It is not just a full-on invasion, they challenge Earth to a series of video games and if they lose, it is game over for us here on Earth.
Well, with Will being the president and finding out about these gaming aliens, he calls in his gaming buddy, Sam to try and offer some expertise. With the military unprepared and out of their depth, Sam and Ludlow work with Violet to train soldiers so that they have a chance of fighting off the aliens.
Look, Pixels is a freaking weird concept and I can see why some people might find it dumb. I do not care though, I love this movie and have so much fun with it each time I watch it. I love how they have to play the aliens at classics like Pac-Man and Centipede, but with a modern twist.
If you like Adam Sandler movies and video games, I honestly do not see how you cannot like Pixels! However, if you are someone that is tired of the Adam Sandler formula, I can see why this might not click with you. Plus, if you have no sense of humor or fun and just like super serious movies that you can add to your Criterion Collection, Pixels is probably not going to be for you either.
Visual and Auditory Appeal
While I unashamedly love Pixels, one thing I honestly do not think it gets enough credit for is its visuals. The movie looks great and even the better part of a decade later, I think the CG, especially when they are playing the games looks awesome. If you are a gamer, you will get a huge kick out of all the references and especially all the classic characters that show up at the end. It also has a great soundtrack with some awesome 80s hits.
Final Verdict
This is not a satirical review or me poking fun at Pixels. I legit love this movie and for me, it is a perfect 10/10 movie. When the only criticism I have of Pixels is that there is no 4K release of it, you know I love it. I do have the 3D version and even at home on my projector screen, the 3D looks fantastic and wows me like it did in the theatre. If you want to have fun watching a movie, watch this. You do not even have to be huge into video games to have a good time with this.
