JOIN USPacific Rim (3D)
English (U/A)****
Director: Guillermo del Toro
Cast: Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi
Pacific Rim, with its organised action and simple plot, delivers exactly what it promises — “Go big or go extinct.” And we are not ready to go extinct yet. What is most appreciable about the movie is that it’s not all kaboom-kapow. Although there is nothing novel about the plot (we have saved the earth from monsters many times), there are scenes which deliver the right amount of emotions, which render it touchy enough, but never overboard. The action is good and the 3D effects are well-employed. The creatures and robots lack novelty, but the visuals make up for it.
Earth is being attacked by sea monsters called Kaiju (“strange beasts” in Japanese).
In an attempt to counter the attacks, the humans have made huge 250-foot high, Transformers-like robots called Jaegers (“hunters” in German). As the Jaegers are being torn to pieces by the humongous, fast and strong Kaijus, programme leader Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba) is the only one who still has faith in the Jaeger programme, while other efforts are on to block the creatures from attacking mankind.
The giant Jaegers are piloted by two people who share a neural bridge that lets them into the minds of each other. Stacker seeks the help of trained Jaeger pilot Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam) to mission the last attempt to “cancel the apocalypse”. His question “Would you rather die here or in a Jaeger?” leaves Becket with no better choice. With little time to waste, Stacker has to get ready for the game at the Shatterdome in Hong Kong, a large-size techno area that houses the workshop of the Jaegers.
Two eccentric Kaiju researchers Newton and Gottlieb provide occasional humour to the otherwise serious scenario. Ron Perlman’s (Hellboy) role as the black marketeer who makes a living with dead Kaijus’ organs is charming and real. Bringing in a Japanese female co-pilot (Rinko Kikuchi) fills up the gender inequality which one generally sees in action movies such as these. But cheesy dialogues like “for my family” before she loses a fight to a Kaiju seems jarring.
Del Toro’s fascination for monsters is yet again brought alive on screen like magic, bringing out the child in us and making us believe them blindly.
The movie is one of the best in recent times. Don’t think twice.