Warcraft bludgeons moviegoers with its epic ambitions, says Eli Glasner

Following the feathered fury of Angry Birds, Warcraft is the latest video-game adaptation to make the leap to the big screen.

Based on the Warcraft series of video games best known for the multiplayer online game World of Warcraft(WoW)and shot in Vancouver, the film takes us into a medieval world filled with mages, orcs, flying beasts and noble knights.

With a visual scheme that lies somewhere between Iron Maiden album covers and airbrushed van art, director Duncan Jones presents a filmpacked with garish visuals and epic ambition.

The story revolves around the battle between the orcs and the humans of Azeroth. The formeris arace of massive,Hulk-like humanoids forced to flee their dying world. Their sinister warlock leader (and we know he's sinister because he has spooky, glowing green eyes) has a planto use aportal to invade Azeroth. ButDurotan, a wise orc chieftain, sees the how their leader's dark magic is corrupting his people and decides to seekanother way.

On the human side, Anduin Lothar leads the charge to repel the invaders.Travis Fimmel plays the generic knight with can-dospirit and a look borrowed from the Harrison Ford School of Scowling.

He's joined by Ben Schnetzer as young wizard school dropout who somehow senses the oncoming threat.They're also aided byThe Guardian, a supernatural lifeguard-of-sorts played by Ben Foster, who cranks his acting up to 11.

A shambolicfever dream

To call Warcraft sprawling doesn't really do justice to this shambolic, Dungeons and Dragons feverdream of a story. You can feel Jonesa filmmaker who displayed a knack for smart storytelling in the movie Moonstraining mightily.

Newbies who've never played WoWwill find theexperience overwhelming.

Like a bad Xeroxof The Lord of the Rings, random characters and races appear with little explanation. Who are the purple people with the impressive eyebrows? Is that a dwarf? Oh look!Callum Keith Rennie in a robe as The Guardian's butler. Oh look! Aflying eagle-lion thing. And there'sPaula Patton as an orc-human hybrid (and lookinglike Gamora's second cousin).She seems to have a thing for Lothar. But he's worried about his son.

Good Lord,I'm exhausted just recapping it.

Warcraft seeks to bludgeon us into submission with its vast visuals. But from the tusk-facedorc warriors to the knights in armour, there's a derivative feel to much of it.

While the film's CGI attempts to give themythicmenageriea sense of grit and gravity,the dialogue is disappointingly undercooked. No one ever tells a wizard to 'Shut up!' in a Tolkien novel, but that's what passes for wit in this realm.

Jones'valiant struggle

The utterly obvious parts of the storysuggest Warcraft is best appreciated by 12-year-olds high on Red Bull.

But if you squint and look beyond the crashing mallets and clanging swords, you can see director Jones waging his own valiant struggle to shape this into something grander, notablywith the fate of the orcs andDurotanin particular. The warrior andnew fatheriswilling to risk everything for his people's future.

The result (if you make it this far) is atale about fathers and son, sacrifice and loss. Ironies abound since Jones recently lost his own father, David Bowie. The director isalso a fan of the original game and may have erred on the sideof fandominhis attempt tocram its vastworld into a two-hour experience.

Indeed, Warcraftis meant to be the beginning of a new movie franchise.Here's hoping the next installment finds a better balance between overwhelming action and satisfying storytelling.

RATING: 3 out of 5 stars