Pacific Rim: A Review

It's awesome. What the hell did you think I'd say?

All right, I suppose I ought to go more in depth. Because Pacific Rim is awesome not just for the spectacle of giant robots fighting giant monsters, but for more less flashy reasons that make it an incredibly solid film and the best movie of its kind in a long time.

Probably the best thing PacRim has going for is the quality of its script. Not that it's deep or profound, but that it's smart and self-aware. It knows exactly what this kind of movie is and doesn't weigh itself down with a lot of excess baggage. The writers know what the audience is here for and doesn't waste anytime, setting up everything we need to know in the first five minutes. To wit, a portal has opened up under the Pacific Ocean and been discharging giant monsters called Kaiju to wipe out human life on the planet. To fight back, Humanity has pulled together and built giant robots called Jaegers. The movie opens six years into the war against the kaiju, with their attacks becoming more frequent and more Jaegers being destroyed. The higher-ups are calling it quits, just deciding to build bigger walls to keep the Kaiju out, but the remaining Jaeger teams decide to try for one last attack on the portal from their base in Hong Kong.

PacRim works so well because it understands Screenwriting 101. It introduces its characters, gives them understandable goals, and gives them recognizable personalities that play off each other in relatable ways. And while those characters are broad, we the audience can invest in them and their struggle because we understand the stakes and what they're fighting for from the start. All their character development is focused around coming together to achieve their goal of defeating the kaiju. Clear stated goal and understandable characters working toward that goal, so many other blockbusters don't understand that and get bogged down with unnecessary plot gymnastics, but PacRim doesn't and is all the better for it.

As I said, most of the characters are rather archetypical; the stern Army general, the mad scientist, the wounded soldier, the mysterious waif, and the acting isn't great but the entire cast plays the parts with enough conviction that you still care about them. It helps that the script gives each of them enough little moments of characterization to almost rise above their archness.

It goes without saying that the battle scenes are spectacular, but I want to give special mention to the editing of these sequences. Too many movies today use the rapid-cut shaky cam style of fight scenes that render the whole thing incomprehensible, but PacRim doesn't. Because they don't, you can actually tell what the hell is going on in the fights and where everybody is. This makes the big "pump your fist in the air" moments hit harder and helps the audience connect with the protagonists better. There's more than one point where you'll wince when a Jaeger goes flying or cheer when a kaiju gets punched in the face. And because we can tell what's actually going on, it means we can keep connected with the protagonists and root for them easier.

I have a few minor complaints. Some of the Jaeger teams like the Russians and the Chinese don't get much to do or much characterization and I'd have liked them to get at least a moment to shine. Also the kaiju designs are slightly repititive, like they came up with one basic monster and just changed parts of it around. This sticks out especially next to the distinctive looks of the Jaegers. This may just be me, but I felt that final battle wasn't as exciting or involving as the Second act battle in Hong Kong. Almost like they blew their load in that fight and didn't have as much left for the end. But these are really minor things.

Pacific Rim just works, and it works for much the same reason The Avengers worked. It recognizes that its inspiration was kind of goofy and silly, but there was a charm and wonder in that goofiness. It doesn't hide from its ridiculousness with gritty realistic production design or a portentous serious tone. It embraces it silliness and plays it confidently, with a lean, focused script and the most amazing special effects of the summer. If you want to feel exhilarated or a sense of childlike wonder, Go see this movie.

Go!

Seriously, go now!

Why are you still reading this? GO SEE PACIFIC RIM!!!!!!!!!!!!

Final Score: 5/5