I’m not really a hater by nature (I try my best to avoid negative reactions to things before I have a decent amount of information), but every so often, it’s hard not to feel a little bit negative about some films as they’re being advertised. Such is the case for Ready Player One.

While I enjoyed the book quite a bit, despite its faults (I blew through it in two days), and I had faith in director Stephen Spielberg, it was hard not to get bogged down by the obnoxious marketing campaign of Warner Bros. Rather than double down on the story (which is plenty good enough as is), they’re putting all their attention on the pre-existing IPs from the studio that will be laced throughout. Based on this campaign, it seemed there was a real lack of confidence in the movie, and that the studio was trying to compensate through advertising.

Luckily, that doesn’t appear to be the case. A new report from TheWrap states that when Ready Player One debuted at the 2018 SXSW Film Festival on Sunday night, it received a standing ovation when the credits started rolling. Speaking to the packed crowd, director Steven Spielberg said:

“We made this with a lot of ambition to really fill the screens, and I hope I can do that tonight. I made Ready Player One because like a lot of you here, I loved the book by Ernest Cline. [We also wanted to make this movie for] people who don’t play video games, who may have never played a video game. This isn’t a film that you must have gotten into the gaming world in order to really get involved with. So this is not just for gamers but this is also a movie that has so many cultural references.”

Sadly, during a climactic moment of the film, there was a technical error that resulting in the film stopping, and the theater having to restart it multiple times (not from the beginning though, just right before the initial incident).

So what did audience members think? Here are a few tweets from social media:

https://twitter.com/scottEweinberg/status/973062374470094849

READY PLAYER ONE feels like Spielberg watched a ton of Luc Besson movies and decided to outdo them. In terms of pure spectacle, it’s the most astonishing thing he’s done. Never underestimate Steve. #SXSW

— erickohn (@erickohn) March 12, 2018

https://twitter.com/graedrake/status/973067082148601857

#ReadyPlayerOne is classic Steven Spielberg. It’s got the references, the ferocious effects and the great ‘80s soundtrack, sure, but also the charm, the heart, the humor and a fantastic Alan Silvestri score. I loved it & so did this #SXSW crowd. Be excited for it! pic.twitter.com/xwPOGwXDxd

— Erik Davis (@ErikDavis) March 12, 2018

READY PLAYER ONE: Good lord I was wrong about this one. It’s oodles of fun and kind of the antithesis of Cline’s novel in terms of its quality. References weren’t too cloying for me, but I was so close I couldn’t pick out too much. #sxsw

— nick johnston (@onlysaysficus) March 12, 2018

I don’t know about you, but this does renew some of the faith I’ve lost over the past month or so for the film. What about you? Let us know your thoughts down below!

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SOURCE: TheWrap