PACIFIC RIM

Pacific Rim (2013)

Grade: B-

Directed by Guillermo del Toro

Starring: Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day and Ron Perlman

Premise: Humans build giant, mind-controlled fighting robots to combat an onslaught of huge monsters from another dimension.

Rated PG-13 for strong action violence, disturbing images, scenes of destruction, language, and some gore

When I first began hearing advance buzz for Pacific Rim, I didn’t quite know what to make of it. Oh, I knew the main idea: the whole giant robots-fighting-giant-monsters, Godzilla-meets-Transformers video game nerd’s wet dream. How much more straightforward can it get? But one thing just didn’t click to me, didn’t make sense—the involvement of Mexican director Guillermo del Toro. A giant robots-versus-monsters earth-in-jeopardy smackdown directed by del Toro? By the man who lavished creative style (at the expense of some substance, I’ll admit) on the two generally appreciated Hellboy superhero flicks? The man who fashioned one of the last decade’s most memorable, emotional, and lovingly-made films, the critical darling Pan’s Labyrinth, which was defined by its look as much as its poignancy? Oh sure, the trailers for Pacific Rim made it clear the film’s central premise was Earth being invaded by monsters from another dimension, which at least made it plain that del Toro would get to show off his visually-creative chops in monster design and plot intrigue, but directing? Really?

Having seen Pacific Rim, I can tell you that it has the fingerprints of a great director. Despite the obviousness of its monster mash calling card, Rim isn’t just a bunch of mindless action, nor did it reveal all its best moments in the trailer (in fact, pretty much everything from any of its trailers is spilled out in the movie’s opening minutes, a rare feat for a summer blockbuster). Its main idea is pretty cool, it opens with a spectacularly nerve-shattering, awe-inspiring dramatic action sequence, and has some other solid moments. However… Basically, despite cool action and some great visuals (thankfully, the rumored $180 million budget does not appear to have been wasted), Pacific Rim ends up feeling like little more than a bigger, better-made version of those earth-in-jeopardy SciFi channel flicks that ends with a male and a female smiling at each other while rescue helicopters soar over their heads, Earth’s/humanity’s destruction happily and tidily averted.

Story: In the near future, a portal to another dimension will open deep in the Pacific Ocean—its discovery coming only after a skyscraper-sized alien monster (nicknamed kaiju, Japanese for ‘Giant Beast’) unexpectedly plunders San Francisco and leaves thousands dead. After more kaijus come havoc-wreaking ashore, leaving their huge, destructive mark on many a well-populated city, humanity’s greatest minds come up with an idea: combat the kaijus with something like-sized. The result of much research and construction are the Jaegers (pronounced “Yay-grr), giant humanoid robots controlled, avatar-style, by a live person. Two people, in fact, to keep from overloading either individual’s neurons. Naturally, like any truly-destructive virus, the monsters slowly begin adapting, becoming more and more deadly, and the Jaegers--despite huge iron fists, flamethrowers and plasma cannons-- don’t always win. Jaeger pilot Raleigh Beckett (Charlie Hunnam) learns this the hard way in 2017, when his brother (Diego Klattenhoff) is snatched right out of the cockpit of their dually-controlled bot by an angry kaiju. Physically and emotionally scarred, Raleigh drops out of the program, but is re-recruited five years later by the Jaeger team’s head honcho (Idris Elba) when it’s revealed that a giant, armored wall along the coast is no use against a land-bound kaiju, and Jaegers really are humanity’s only defense.

There is some hope in the war against extinction, though. The kaijus have consistently made their appearances via a “bridge”, the portal in the Pacific. Humanity’s best military minds have concluded that an appropriately placed nuke might be able to collapse the bridge and shut and lock the proverbial door on the baddies. But as the monsters keep adapting, growing more and more fearsome, and their attacks become more and more frequent, Jaegers keep falling, and the chance of getting an A-bomb down into that portal is all but left to the haunted, scarred Raleigh and his enthusiastic but untrained rookie partner (Rinko Kikuchi).

What Works?

Pacific Rim opens with a bang, both with an opening voiceover by Raleigh establishing the history of the human-kaiju war and in the realization, as a moviegoer, that this movie isn’t simply going to be a longer version of its trailer. Then the opening fight scene, with Raleigh and his brother entering their Jaeger, joining minds, being deployed, and facing down a swordfish-faced monster is superb, with its awe-inspiring scope and pedal-to-the-medal action. (A following scene in which a stunned, ashen-faced and badly-wounded Raleigh staggers from the wrecked cockpit of his mauled Jaeger proves one of the most memorable movie images of the summer.) Also, thankfully, this is one of those monster/alien movies where the monster aliens actually look pretty cool, and aren’t just big-budget attempts at spookiness (remember, this is del Toro directing). Rim really hits its stride with an epic Top Gun-style scene where Raleigh and his partner, Mako, having proven erratic piloting a Jaeger together during a test run, rush to save the day as three other Jaeger teams are in the process of being overwhelmed by two enormous kaijus off the coast of Hong Kong. The pulse-pounding spectacle and the “yeah, get ‘em!” adrenaline rush of the smackdown are nigh irresistible (and make you realize Pacific Rim just has to be a video game).

Other than the action sequences, the other really impressionable scene is a flashback/dream scene in which Mako relives her childhood ordeal of fleeing a wrathful kaiju through a ruined city shortly after losing her family—between the obvious distress of the screaming, crying child (props to young actress Mana Ashida) and the wanton destruction, the scene is vivid in its raw intensity, a surprisingly uncomfortable wake-up call right in the middle of a big popcorn flick. But that height is never reached again, and after the aforementioned cheer-worthy one-on-two fight scene, Rim turns to a too-easy, contrived second act that’s all action and ticking nuclear bombs.

As ever in a movie like this, the actors do what they can. Despite his best efforts, Hunnam makes little impression in the crusading hero role, not necessarily his fault given the cliché plot and character type (he’s essentially Jake Sulley from Avatar). As his partner, Mako, Oscar nominee Kikuchi is sadly underused: she makes an intriguing change from the typical swimsuit model heroine/love interest of most blockbusters, but after wowing in an early sparring scene, she’s all sheepish smiles and goo-goo eyes as she lavishes platonic affection on Raleigh. And as the movie’s most marketable actor, Elba does what he can with the weary, heroic veteran role.

What Doesn’t Work?
Did I really expect three-dimensional characters and challenging moviemaking from a movie about giant robots fighting giant alien monsters? Of course not. But the action starts to become a little tiring when alien after alien is off-ed with an Optimus Prime-style sword. Also, the movie goes from triumphant to almost-over on a dime, rushing in an overlong climax involving two Jaegers fighting about six different monsters.

A lot of screen time is also devoted to some shaky supporting characters. As a kaiju-loving scientist who has an eleventh hour revelation about the beasts’ habits after attempting a risky experiment, Charlie Day proves that a little manic, nerdy, mad scientist energy goes a long way, and more than that becomes nails-on-chalkboard annoying. Hellboy himself, Ron Perlman, also shows up late in the proceedings as a bling-draped black market profiteer who collects kaiju parts. Perlman, certainly not known as a master of the acting craft, is almost painfully bad, trying on dark humor and intimidating mobster at the same time and convincing in neither fashion.

Like I said, Pacific Rim has the early makeup of something better and less perfunctory, but, really, it arrives at its climax too easily, reminding one that these humans-on-the-brink-of-elimination tales can be riveting in the moment but rarely end up as gratifying on screen as they once seemed on paper.

Content

There’s Transformers/Man of Steel style destruction of cities during (and even after) Jaeger-kaiju battles, in which cars are knocked aside like Skittles and skyscrapers are hollowed out in an instant, plus some malevolent maiming and mauling of the neon-blooded alien baddies, but not much real blood. There’s some low-key profanity and one or two scares (impressively for a summer blockbuster, scarcely a whiff of sensuality or anything suggestive), but mostly the movie’s about as unnerving as the rock-em-sock-em video game it seems to want to be.

Bottom Line: It’s decent (in fact, it has some legitimately great moments), but Pacific Rim deflates quickly in its second act: it's essentially a bigger-budgeted, more polished version of the monster tales that regale viewers regularly on the Sci-Fi channel. Not really sure whether this counts as a win or a loss for the enigmatic Mr. Del Toro.

Pacific Rim (2013)

Directed by Guillermo del Toro

Written for the Screen by Guillermo del Toro and Travis Beacham

Rated PG-13

Length: 132 minutes