Guillermo del Toro is arguably one of the most interesting directors working in Hollywood at the moment. Although he has directed fewer than 15 titles himself, the Mexican director has always involved himself in projects that have captured his interest, like the wonderful Orphanage and the amazing animation Kung Fu Panda 2.
However, del Toro’s real love is a good monster movie and that has evidently played out throughout his work, an obsession with the unknown or the fantastical a centre point for a lot of his work. His exploration of vampires in Cronos right through to his twisted children’s tale Pan’s Labyrinth have marked him out as a talent in the currently bland Hollywood.
Pacific Rim really focuses on del Toro’s love of the unknown and of course, his love of monsters. Based on a script by Travis Beacham who originally got the idea while walking on the beach and imagining a robot fighting a monster that had just risen from the sea, del Toro explores a lot more than your average monster movie.
The film begins with a history of the monsters which are now invading the planet. Nicknamed the Kaiju, they enter the world via a breach in the Pacific Rim. After their destruction of several cities, humans begin to fight back with the Jaegars, massive robots manned by two rangers who fight back to protect the cities.
One such ranger is Raleigh, played by Charlie Hunnum, an emotionally disturbed soldier who has spent five years out of the Jaeger programme following the death of his brother during a battle with a monster. However, when the Kaiju continue to evolve and suddenly begin defeating the robots, he is sought out by Stacker (Idris Elba) who has a plan to defeat the robots for good.
If you are looking for a summer blockbuster where you can turn your mind off for a couple of hours and just enjoy the visuals, than Pacific Rim is definitely the film you have been seeking. However, even though the film looks amazing, it is also extraordinarily dark. Most of the battles take place at night or underwater and the fact that it never stops raining in future Earth puts a dampener on the whole thing.
Another issue is that the action sequences are extremely repetitive the further into the running time, especially towards the end.
The acting is at best wooden and at times predictable, although we do have a lot less of the God Bless America theme here and more of the God Bless the World. Idris Elba is arguably the best performance, but the other actors phone it in with the emotional segments, despite the fact that they have undergone serious trauma in their lives. A flashback of the younger Mako, Raleigh’s inevitable ranger companion, is about the most heartbreaking event in the film.
However, despite its failings, Pacific Rim puts forth a pretty positive message. There are no questions about world alliances here, everyone is in this battle together, Del Toro himself proclaims himself a pacifist and didn’t want to put forth the notion that “war is good.” The rangers even have to work together in robots, both sides of their brain becoming one in an event described as “drifting”.
One thing is for certain, kids will love this film.
