“I don’t think anyone would call Borderlands art, but it is fun,” is a quote from Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett, who plays the lead role in this film. Regardless of how she ends her sentence, the fact that she can’t call this film art tells you all you need to know. This film is based on the Gearbox Software video game series and has an incredible ensemble cast. We have one of the best actresses in the game as our lead, along with Kevin Hart and Jack Black, who are borrowed from the Jumanji series. Oscar-winner Jamie Lee Curtis joins the mix, as does Barbie alum Ariana Greenblatt and boxer-turned-actor Florian Munteanu.

Borderlands is almost unwatchable. It may not lay claim to the title of worst blockbuster of the year (that honor belongs to Madame Web), but it certainly disappoints in its lack of entertainment value. I haven’t played the game on which this film is based, so I can’t reasonably say how faithful the film adaptation is. All I can say is how well the film works on its own, and it doesn’t. This is a frustratingly bland film masquerading as one with personality.

The film starts off visually like a Star Wars movie during the escape scene. Tiny Tina (Greenblatt) is captured, but is rescued by Roland (Hart). Once Roland takes off his mask, the film takes on a slightly more sillier tone. However, the action is almost always directed seriously. I can’t imagine people taking Kevin Hart seriously as an action hero, but that’s what this film asks of us. Next, we meet Lillith (Blanchett), a badass with a gun and an itchy trigger finger. She’s a bounty hunter sent on a mission to find the captured Tiny Tina.

At first it’s confusing to see Lillith set out to rescue a person we’ve already seen rescued in the opening scene, but Borderlands moves at a brisk pace. It introduces our main characters early on, the plot points fly by, and we’re treated to a pretty fun chase sequence involving most of our protagonists at the end of our first act. This is where the film’s positives end, however. We quickly find ourselves in the middle of a plot that lacks any interesting twists. It’s a series of set pieces that often feel like part of a video game, but none of them add any depth to the characters or the story.