Speaking of miscasting, the biggest standout is Claptrap — the famous one-wheeled droid that arguably serves as the mascot of the
Borderlands franchise. It was always unlikely that original Claptrap voice actor David Eddings would return for the
Borderlands film adaptation. And, for the record, Jack Black has proven to be a more than capable voice actor with the
Kung Fu Panda series under his belt, amongst others. In the case of
Borderlands, though, it’s obvious that director Eli Roth has no idea how to utilize Black’s comedic timing, or even Claptrap as a character for that matter. Moreover, Roth’s screenplay, which is co-written by the
mysterious pseudonym “Joe Crombie,” is just painfully unfunny. It doesn’t take long for Claptrap to become, frankly, the most annoying aspect of the film. Whenever Black does actually make Claptrap likable, Roth is there, ready to undercut the performance with another lame joke.
You need no further proof of
Borderlands‘ haphazard production than Jamie Lee Curtis, who stumbles across her scenes as she spells out the plot with nonsensical exposition. It’s a miracle that more actors don’t look as genuinely lost as she does, given the cheap use of CGI.