GG (Good Game) Review: Donny Pangilinan is a Memorable Protagonist in Lukewarm Film

In this Filipino movie, adventure meets esports as viewers are transported to a cutthroat and entertaining world of online gaming. The Sci-fi film features themes of family and adventure as the protagonist goes through the ups and downs of losing someone close and jumping into his passion to find himself.

When Seth’s grandmother dies, he is forced to live with his mother and her new family and start a new school. However, unbeknownst to everyone else, he has joined an esports team in Manila and wishes to come out as the winner in an upcoming tournament.

Seth, as a protagonist, is annoying – he’s overexcited, he blows up at the smallest things and is desperately trying to win the Requiem tournament as a way to overcome the grief of losing his grandmother and come to terms with the changes in his real life. Although he’s extremely hot-headed and mercurial, Seth isn’t a one-dimensional character and you understand his gripes and why he is the way that he is. The movie gives him ample opportunity to paint a vivid picture of himself and showcase his life, such that it tells us exactly why he has resorted to gaming.

Seth’s relationship with his family is a pretty big part of the film as well – the movie presents the ups and downs of family life as well as what it means to be a family in the first place. The friction between Seth and his mom will be relatable to many and the way the esports world and the family dynamics are portrayed will not only be relatable to youngsters but also to adults. The difficulties of adjusting to vastly new surroundings after the loss of a loved one is nothing short of difficult and that is portrayed well in the movie.

The esports world in GG (Good Game) is also showcased with enough attention, portraying a vivid picture of the lives of its gamers along with giving us a glimpse of the real people behind the online personas. We care for these characters and their struggles and thus we are bound to feel happy for them when they get into the sports tournaments to get recognition, and money and use it as a way to escape the harsh realities of life as well.

That being said, Good Game movie can get a bit boring and feel sluggish at points. The different complicated moments are not done well and certain characters feel like stand-ins and feel like a second thought. Although Seth is the protagonist, it feels like his character is given too much priority, such that his other teammates feel forgotten. Moreover, Seth’s gradual character arc might feel a bit slow for some viewers and he might get on your nerves. However, the biggest flaws are the plot and character holes that the movie seems to forget to address from time to time.

Some certain characters and moments are brought up but are then forgotten or something drastically different is mentioned later – viewers will feel whiplash from the vastly different sequences and along with sometimes feeling sluggish, the movie drops the ball in holding on to its “train of thought”. The gaming sequences, as mentioned previously, aren’t the best and although they are interesting at certain points, thrilling even, as an esports film, it leaves much to be desired.

GG (Good Game) Review: Final Thoughts

Donny Pangilinan is a good actor to portray the protagonist in this movie because he carries much of the load on his shoulders. He showcases the different phases of Seth’s life effectively and leaves an impression on you. However, in spite of having all the beats to make this truly memorable, it’s the execution that leaves much to be desired in GG (Good Game). It’s a good one-time watch though.

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