Every time I saw the trailer for this I always had the same thought, “This is going to suck.” I had no hope for it so when I got the chance for a free screening I took it so if it did suck I didn’t pay for anything. One of my favorite things about cinema is going in expecting so little and having my expectations completely surpassed and Pacific Rim did exactly that. It has its moments that really make you roll your eyes but those few instances are far outweighed by the insane robot vs. monster action that is packed to the brim in this just over 2 hour run time. See this with the mindset of a little kid and you will have one hell of a time. It’s robots, monster aliens, explosions, destruction and complete anarchy; in other words, it’s a lot of fun.
If Guillermo del Toro is anything he is certainly imaginative. When he has creatures in his movies they will be unlike anything you have ever seen before; just see Pan’s Labyrinth, Hell Boy 1 & 2 and even Blade 2 for references. The story of Pacific Rim is a bit weak and riddled with cliché film moments that you can see coming from a mile away. Whatever it lacks in originality it more that makes up for it with its CGI filled action. It’s Jax (Sons of Anarchy) operating a giant robot fighting horrifically immense monsters bent on our demise, what’s not to love?! And by Jax of course I mean Charlie Hunnam who plays Raleigh Becket, an expert in Jaeger (Giant robots) operations.
In the not too distant future, monsters are wreaking havoc upon our beloved planet Earth and so extreme measures have been taken to stop them. Through mankind’s ingenuity and prowess an army of skyscraper sized robots are created to thwart the threat of annihilation. The robots are known as Jaegers which by definition means hunter, a fitting name I think. These hunters were made for the soul purpose of destroying the kaiju, an alien race that has entered our world through a tear in our dimension deep in the Pacific Ocean. It is discovered that the reason for the kaiju’s existence is to destroy and consume planets and simply move on to the next. There is no peace here, only all-out war and now the human race has a pawn in this chess match.
I feel that what I enjoyed most about this is the little boy in me came out for a couple hours; this is cowboys and Indians, cops and robbers, robots and aliens. This is every grown man’s dream they had at least once in their youth and we can all finally relish in the fact that it’s finally here in celluloid form. This is not an intelligent movie, the story is thin, the characters are very cartoonish and the predictability levels are off the charts. Did anyone expect a serious movie here though, I certainly didn’t. There is no question that what makes this memorable is the scale of the film and how truly small you feel watching these giant masses of metal and alien clash in a match up that would give Rocky an erection. Ding! Ding! Ding! “In the blue corner weighing in at an astounding several hundred thousand pounds, it’s a Jaeger!! In the red corner, hailing from parts of the galaxy unknown, it’s a kaiju!!” The fight of the millennium!
Joining Charlie Hunnam who I believe is yet another actor that is contractually obligated to take his shirt off, are Idris Elba as the strict Stacker Pentecost, Rinko Kikuchi as Charlie’s partner Mako Mori. Along with these fine actors are the hilarious as always Charlie Day as Dr. Newton Geiszler and the man himself, Ron Perlman (fellow SOA alumni) as Hannibal Chau, a man who provides… alien parts.
This is a silly movie but it is so awesome and fun to watch. This is the quintessential summer blockbuster. Suspend your preconceived notions and you just might enjoy some awesome monster robot action. If you want a great time at the movies then definitely check out Pacific Rim. By the way, I saw this in 3D and it didn’t really make or break it for me. It ended up being something I could live with or without, it seemed irrelevant. So I say see it in 3D if that’s your thing otherwise you won’t miss out seeing it in good ol’ 2D. I mean if you don’t want monsters flying at your face… if you’re one of those… people. 😉
Rated PG-13 for: sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence throughout, and brief language
Run Time: 131 minutes
After Credits Scene: None. There is something about a minute or two into the credits so stick around.
Starring: Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Ron Perlman, Charlie Day, Rinko Kikuchi
Directed By: Guillermo del Toro
Out of 5 Nerdskulls
Story: 3/ Acting: 3/ Directing: 3.5/ Visuals: 5
OVERALL: 4 Nerdskulls
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