Giant Robots Vs. Big Monsters (Pacific Rim Review)

Pacific Rim takes inspiration from the elements of any material that involves giant creatures and robots. When monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, start rising from the ocean, a war erupts that destroys cities and consumes humanity resources for years. The nations of the world come together to face this threat by building Jaegers. Jaegers are basically giant robots controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. However, kaiju get stronger with each battle and the forces defending mankind must turn to two unlikely heroes – a washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee rookie (Rinko Kikuchi) – who are teamed to drive a legendary, but seemingly obsolete Jaeger. Together, they are mankind’s last hope against the upcoming apocalypse.

Pacific Rim is the latest film from visionary director Guillermo del Toro, who has directed films like Hellboy, Pan’s Labyrinth, and The Devil’s Backbone. Pacific Rim is easily his most mainstream and blockbuster film. The large-scale battles between the Jaegers and Kaiju are spectacularly well done and are very thrilling. The designs of the creatures and robots are simply marvelous and stunning. The backstory involving the Kaiju, the mechanical details of Jaegers, and how society has become affected due to the Kaiju attacks is very fascinating. Basically, the film plays homage to monster movies, which is filled with anime inspired robots.

Nevertheless, while the film does satisfy on a visuals effects level, it is greatly lacking in substance. The story is rather weak and is filled with clichés and generic plot points. Plus, while the cast is talented they are only playing stock characters, which are the norm in almost every other science fiction movie. In addition, while the film looks extraordinary, the majority of the battles take place at night, sometimes in the rain. While the battles are amazing in that setting, it does make it hard to keep up with the fighting sometimes. Despite those problems, it is still a fantastic movie.

While Pacific Rim is not completely groundbreaking, it is still a movie that is best experienced in theaters. The film is intriguing and action packed, but sadly the plot suffers from some lackluster storytelling and one-dimensional characters. However, it is a monster vs. robots type of story, so I cannot expect too much depth from it. If you liked the Transformers series, then you will definitely appreciate this movie.

Pacific Rim - 4/5