Giant robots fighting giant monsters. No matter how many times I try to write what this film is about, try to find the perfect description, nothing beats my very first impression. This is a monster movie where humanity builds giant robots to confront an intergalactic threat named Kaiju. It is nothing more and nothing less. It may have a famous director in Guillermo del Toro and jaw-dropping special effects but at the end of the day it might as well be a very long, melodramatic, big budgeted Power Rangers episode.

I feel somewhat compelled to at least mention the acting in the film despite it seeming slightly redundant in a movie such as this. In short the acting is completely over the top and characters spurt out expositions to explain the “science” of everything going on.  On that note this film may set the record for most stereotypes in a single film featuring: a main character who is trying to redeem himself again after he made a mistake a number of years ago, three very militant Chinese triplets, two Russians complete with blonde hair and ridiculous accents and a rival who despises the main character for no apparent reason. With these glaring racial stereotypes hanging over the performances, Pacific Rim seems to try to be serious yet often turns out comedic.

On the other hand the film can turn from the ridiculous to the sublime in a matter of moments.  While the dialogue exchanges are blocky and silly, they manage to shepherd the film between magnificent set pieces where the film truly shines. As previously mentioned the effects in Pacific Rim are excellent. When viewing the film the scope and magnitude of the Kaiju and robots can truly be felt. It is clear that del Toro wanted to bring the classic Godzilla type monster movie to a new generation and he succeeds in showing off the monsters. The action is entertaining and no matter how old I grow I will still enjoy watching a 100ft alien monster use a building as a battering ram.

no matter how old I grow I will still enjoy watching a 100ft alien monster use a building as a battering ram

My only major problem with this film is that it occasionally introduces interesting ideas that are never fully explored. For instance in the opening scene it presents the pilots of the robots as the new rock stars, the darling of the media. Kids buy toys based on the real life events and they turn the Kaiju into a marketing device. This is a really interesting idea but nothing is done with it and it is never mentioned again. Later on in the film we are exposed to the black market of Kaiju organs and how they are worshiped as Gods in some countries. Yet within two minutes the idea is thrown away again. Subplots in this film seem to only make cameo appearances; they are presented one minute and never seen again. They do not advance the over arching story and are clearly there just for filler and it is disappointing that a lot of these interesting concepts are not further explored.

Over all none of this is to say that Pacific Rim is a bad film, it just means that it is simple and simple can be fun. If you want to go to the cinema and have a decent popcorn flick then Pacific Rim is the perfect fit. The action is well done and the pacing of the film never allows the viewer to get bored. However, there is nothing deeper here and those expecting anymore than the simple monster movie will be left disappointed.