Ready Player One has the hot new movie soundtrack

I am sure that everybody out there knows who the doll Chucky is. But have they ever been to the Overlook Hotel? The very name alone already gives me the scary goosebumps. Then what about, have they ever chased a T-Rex while driving a DeLorean or to be simpler about it, played Adventure on an Atari game console. 

You know the answers to those if you grew up in the ‘80s era and because a major character did so in the movie Ready Player One, those are a few of the many, (and I really mean so many, you will need several sessions with the rewind button in slo-mo to find them all) pop culture references in this most engrossing motion picture.

Directed by Steven Spielberg and based on the bestselling novel by Ernest Cline, Ready Player One is the story of the search for a fortune worth trillions of dollars secreted in an Easter egg in the world of the virtual reality software OASIS. Before owner James Halliday with avatar Anorak, played by Academy Award winner Mark Rylance, died, he created a game called Anorak’s Quest that would lead to his fortune and whoever finds the egg wins the game and will inherit everything. 

This sent everybody, users, gunters, gamers, corporations, etc., etc., into game mode. It took several years but Wade with his avatar Parzival, played by Tye Sheridan of X-Men, finally won the game. How did an 18-year-old orphan from the trailer stacks homes of Ohio do it? By referencing cultural icons from Halliday’s growing up years in the ‘80s. So now you know why Molly Ringwald went to Halliday’s virtual funeral and why there is a Tears for Fears song in the music soundtrack to match. Ready Player One is set in the future but it also travels back to time.

Alan Silvestri, the man behind the music of the Back To The Future films, which were produced by Spielberg, did the original score for Ready Player One. He put out a statement that I think fully captures the kind of experience that this picture is. 

Wrote Silvestri: “An invitation to travel arrived just about a year ago, not just to a place, but to a time. Actually to a number of times — primarily the year 2045, along with a few stops in the ‘80s. A rather detailed map had been drawn by Ernest Cline and the Captain of the voyage, none other than Mr. Spielberg himself. What could one possibly do or say? Pencil in hand, one firmly fastens one’s seatbelt, says ‘Sir, Yes, Sir’ and prepares for the trip of a lifetime.”

It was indeed the trip of a lifetime but being no stranger to traipsing from one era to another in films, it was no surprise that Silvestri aced it. He came up with a score that approximates music of 20 years into the future. The album Original Score by Silvestri has music that is simple with hints of what may come but definitely timeless with a most engaging quality. 

Then to provide atmosphere and more to the ‘80s-related scenes, there are pop tunes from the period in the soundtrack. The line-up is a well-curated one, fun and nostalgic. 

Compiled in Ready Player One: Songs From The Motion Picture are: I Wanna Be Your Lover by Prince; Everybody Wants To Rule The World by Tears For Fears; Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me) by The Temptations; Stand On It by Bruce Springsteen; One Way Or Another by Blondie; Can’t Hide Love by Earth, Wind & Fire; Blue Monday by New Order; Stayin’ Alive by the Bee Gees; We’re Not Gonna Take It by Twisted Sister; You Make My Dreams by Daryl Hall & John Oates; Pure Imagination by Bryan Nguyen featuring Merethe Soltvedt. 

Just a thought that I am aching to share with readers of this piece. It is a bit of a spoiler but I cannot resist. Ready Player One ends with Wade and the members of the High Five group making one fantastic decision. OASIS, which by the way means Ontologically Anthropocentric Sensory Immersive Simulation, closes shop for two days every week. 

That means the software totally stops working. This is to give families and all those gunters, gamers, users, whatever a chance to bond with one another and do other things. What a great idea that should certainly be taken seriously.