Ironically, this script is the antithesis of “cerebral”. They must be mentally compatible, otherwise the neural link won’t work, or in some cases, will backfire with devastating results. The pilots absorb each other’s memories and bond with the machines, physically maneuvering them with two state-of-the-art elliptical devices located inside (I think it’s explained why they can’t be controlled remotely – who knows). Having set aside our differences, the various nations created giant machines called Jaegers, named from the German word for “hunter”, each having two pilots that operate the gargantuan humanoid robots via a neural bridge called “the drift”. Here’s the set-up: It’s the year 2020, and Earth has been in a seven-year war with the Kaiju, giant pre-historic looking creatures that periodically emerge from a mysterious portal beneath the Pacific Ocean to wreak havoc on us (it’s mentioned that this might have something to do with the dinosaurs and global warming – more on that later). Still, we need humans if it’s going to be any kind of story, so del Toro and co-writer Travis Beacham (the “Clash of the Titans” remake) create an easy “Top Gun” parallel with the typical character designations: loose cannon, sacrificial lamb, egotistical antagonist, among others – these functions are just about the extent of their depth, but fulfill the formula nonetheless. Hell, this one might have been even more fun without people involved the mass casualties are little more than a vague number mentioned in the film’s opening exposition.
PACFIFC RIM MIND MELD MOVIE
It’s evident that director Guillermo del Toro (“Pan’s Labyrinth”, “Hellboy”) isn’t trying for anything more than a modern-day monster movie here, and with all the characteristics of a 1960’s “Godzilla” flick amped up to the tune of roughly $200 million, it can be quite an immersive experience (though I wouldn’t suggest spending $17.50 on an IMAX/3D ticket). “Pacific Rim” is certainly no exception, but for a film that focuses on robots fighting monsters, it works surprisingly well. In other words, special effects have become the principle player, and everything else is just ancillary, if not entirely unnecessary. Of course, that would be a major backslide for me as a critic (I’m still trying to dial down my use of the word “cliché” in my reviews), but as I watch one big CGI spectacle after another being used as a veil for some bland, cookie-cutter soap opera, I realize how few of these films could actually be sustained on the characters – or even the storyline – alone. Each week in this season of mega-budget movies I’ve come a little closer to making the comment, “If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen ‘em all”.
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