Pacific Rim

**** 
Release Date: July 12th 2013

As a war between humankind and monstrous sea creatures wages on, a former pilot and a trainee are paired up to drive a seemingly obsolete special weapon in a desperate effort to save the world from the apocalypse.

Director: Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy Trilogy, Pan's Labyrinth, Blade II)

Starring: Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day

'Go big or go extinct'.

Big robots fight big aliens. The world is in jeopardy. That's the gist of it, right? Pacific Rim is intricate, in depth and full of action. Even though there's plenty of it, it never takes focus away from it's storyline.

The opening scene sets up the pace and narrative very nicely. There's no faffing around... destruction of the planet has already begun and a swift but precise back story of what's taken place so far. The lead, Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam) explains through the power of voiceover. The aliens, known as Kaiju, appear from a portal under the sea. The big, lumbering robots, called Jaegars, are built to defend the earth. After an incident that causes Becket to retire, he's later sought after by the Pentecost (Idris Alba), the general in command.

There's a long, hard wait until the next encounter, but it's worth it. In the mean time a lot is learned about 'drifting'. Drifting is a bond between two people allowing their minds to link so that they can control a Jaegar.

There are friendships, feuds, love interests, and two very odd scientists that will at first seem like screen filler, but help out in ways most nerdy science whizzes would be too timid to do. Hats off to Rinko Kikuchi, who plays Mako. She is constantly undermined by Pentecost as he dulls her passion to pilot a Jaegar.

Pacific Rim could be compared to the likes of Transformers or Battleship, the Hasbro box office giants. This is not the case. GDT makes it unique. It's serious, dark at times and has the occasional chuckle that breaks up the flow. There were assumptions on my part surrounding the trailer, that it would be cheesy. PR is far from it, although Pentecost's rallying speech is a mild, yet compelling slice.

The combination of 3D and CGI make certain fighting scenes hard to watch. Sparks fly everywhere, close ups of the Jaegars and Kaiju get confusing which is which. I'd suggest seeing it in 2D, if it's still out of course!

There's more to say on the matter, but I'll leave it to you to decide.

Overview: No intentional pre-mind blowing.... but it's better than expected. It's a nerd busting film, catered to the gadget lover.