Pacific Rim

sciencefiction.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/pacific-rim-image04.jpg

Raleigh and his brother co-pilot the Jaeger to save the day from giant aliens. 

When you look at Pacific Rim the right way, it functions as an Independence Day for a new generation. In many ways, Pacific Rim outdoes Independence Day and several other sci-fi movies of the last 20 years. Its enormous monsters and robots make the film larger than life, but the humanity from its main characters ground it in solid principles.

The movie primarily taking place more than a decade into the "Kaiju War." For years, giant otherworldly monsters have been attacking Pacific Coast cities, only to eventually be put down by Jeagers - giant fighting robots specifically engineered to fight off the giant beasts. As time goes by, Kaijus come more frequently and more powerful, resulting in the destruction of virtually all the Jeagers. This causes the Jeager Initiative to be deemed ineffective, leading in its termination. Instead, giant "Walls of Life" are built to defend the cities, but all ultimately crumble at the hands of the Kaijus.

Raleigh Becket, one of the original Jaeger pilots, retires after his brother is killed during a Kaiju fight. Commander Pentecost calls Becket back in just as the Jaeger Initiative is about to die. With only four Jaegers left, their team has to make a last ditch effort to defeat the largest Kaijus on record, as well as discover a way to close the gap between the two universes for good.

Summary in a nutshell: Giant Monsters vs. Giant Robots. When it's done this well, what's not to love?

I wasn't sure if I would like the movie when it first started. The first Kaiju fight was poorly lit, poorly shot, and didn't bring much urgency until the end of the fight. A movie like this should've started off with more of a bang. Unfortunately, it slightly flopped. After that first fight, Pacific Rim became incredible. It's a rare grand-scale film that captivates you and immerses you fully into its fictitious universe. The acting was spot-on, the effects and editing were top-notch (after the first Kaiju fight, that is), and the writing was surprisingly great for a movie like this. It won't hit you until you leave the theater, but Pacific Rim is truly fun, exciting, and an incomparable movie experience, thanks in-part to the intelligently paced direction of Guillermo del Toro. I highly recommend seeing it in 3D. It's worth the extra 4 bucks.

As I said, any film fan will see clear inspiration from Independence Day. For example, Charlie Day's character is a young, eccentric doctor, who studies the Kaiju. The character is a sort of hybrid between Jeff Goldblum's role and the long haired scientist from Area 51 of Independence Day (while giving off strong vibes of a wannabe Robert Downey Jr.). He even says a line almost identical to Bill Pullman's when he talks about how after looking into the Kaiju's mind, he sees their plan is to take out Earth's population, use up their resources, and move on. Finally, the aliens from the Kaiju's home planet look all-too resemblant from the little black aliens from the 1996 sci-fi modern classic. But still, I think this outdoes Independence Day. Let's see how Independence Day 2 does in 2015. As for now, this should keep you entertained.

Rating: 4.5/5