ReelTalk Movie Reviews  


New Reviews
Beauty
Elvis
Lightyear
Spiderhead
Jurassic World Domini...
Interceptor
Jazz Fest: A New Orle...
Chip 'n Dale: Rescue ...
more movies...
New Features
Poet Laureate of the Movies
Happy Birthday, Mel Brooks
Score Season #71
more features...
Navigation
ReelTalk Home Page
Movies
Features
Forum
Search
Contests
Customize
Contact Us
Affiliates
Advertise on ReelTalk

Listen to Movie Addict Headquarters on internet talk radio Add to iTunes

Buy a copy of Confessions of a Movie Addict



Main Page Movies Features Log In/Manage


Rate This Movie
 ExcellentExcellentExcellentExcellentExcellent
 Above AverageAbove AverageAbove AverageAbove Average
 AverageAverageAverage
 Below AverageBelow Average
 Poor
Rated 3.1 stars
by 292 people


ReelTalk Movie Reviews
Rising Above Clichés
by Richard Jack Smith

Does Pacific Rim successfully bring the Godzilla scenario into the 21st Century? At first glance, perhaps not. The next generation of creature feature fans may find their loyalties tested as director Guillermo Del Toro starts his film with a tour de force, then the plot takes hold. During this time, a number of characters appear and some irrelevant back-stories clog up the machinery. However, the end result provides a worthy alternative to Michael Bay's string of robotic misfires.

At the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, monstrous sea creatures known as the Kaiju emerge to wreak havoc on a global scale. Mankind's survival depends on the success of giant Jaeger robots -- machines operated by two human pilots. With the apocalypse looming, can the human race reset the balance in time?
 
On paper, the film sounds like a second rate Godzilla/Transformers knockoff. With a script by Del Toro and Travis Beacham, there's very little in the way of high concept storytelling. Instead the filmmakers take a genre clearly inspired by Japanese monster movies of the 1950s and they elaborate on a bare-bones sketch, with room for special effects to do the heavy lifting.
 
Casting director Margery Simkin narrowly misses perfection with her choice of leading players. Charlie Hunnam portrays Raleigh Becket as an all-round virtuous warrior, completely devoid of character flaws or human interest. He's a cipher in a helmet, while notable Oscar-nominee Rinko Kikuchi (Babel) allows herself to get bogged down in long-winded character flashbacks.
 
By contrast, Idris Elba uses his screen time to excellent effect here, pulling off a speech which will surely ignite the passions of even the most sedate audience member. Likewise, Ron Perlman lends sufficient gravitas in order to steal every second of the film from his co-stars.
 
I'm not exactly a fan of composer Ramin Djawadi, yet he surprised me with his electric guitar themes. By shaking the dust off the film's old-fashioned surfaces, he lends a modern twist to a timeless battle for supremacy.
 
Overall, Pacific Rim works when the dialogue takes a back seat to the spectacle.

(Released by Warner Bros. and rated "PG-13" by MPAA.)


                                                                                                                                                                               
 
© 2024 - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
Website designed by Dot Pitch Studios, LLC