Ashvegas movie review: Pacific Rim

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

1

Jaeger: the world’s premier elliptical machine.
(Warner Bros.)

In processing Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim, the word “vision” pops up in its many connotations, both positive and negative.  The first is of a more literal sense, as while the film’s giant human-piloted fighting robots have their roots in the likes of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and its skyline-toppling monsters date back to the age of the original Godzilla, they’ve never quite been taken to the extent showcased here.  Thrust directly into this new look with the aid of expository voiceover from Raleigh Beckett (Charlie Hunnam), the gruff, heroic tone of his voice sets an enthralling mood for the world-saving adventures to come.

The preamble then smoothly transitions to a thrilling illustration of how the jaeger program works, compensating for the telling with pure show as Raleigh and his brother Yancy (Diego Klattenhoff) go to work inside their combat machine, Gipsy Danger.  Gearing up to confront the giant, quasi-reptilian kaiju, facets from the neural handshake between pilots (which allows them to control the machines with a shared mind) to the melee capabilities such a union offers play out in the absence of commentary, at once loose, exciting, and informative.

Crikey.
(Warner Bros.)

It’s in these battles, however, that the enthralling images run into an obstacle of clarity.  Since the kaiju emerge from a trans-dimensional portal beneath the ocean floor and due to the natural preference of jaeger captain Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba, excellent as always) to confront these foes before they have a chance to reach the mainland, many battles occur by necessity in the ocean.  Other than the added terror of darkness, why the longest face-offs occur at night remains unknown, but combined with murky splashing water or debris from smashed buildings, simply seeing the action is a fundamental challenge.  Add to that an overactive camera and jumbled editing and del Toro’s film is unfortunately more like Michael Bay’s Transformers series than it probably ought to be.

“I told you, I’m wearing black today.”
(Warner Bros.)

Within the confusion, sustained visibility briefly emerges as it does in the film’s few minor daytime battles, namely the ones that appear to be news footage captured via amateur video.  These instances offer the best looks at both forms of monsters and along with the cockpit shots, jaeger base camp, black market kaiju parts, and the dreamlike glimpses into the neural handshake, provide the clearest evidence of del Toro’s creative vision.  Compared to the extensive homemade creatures and overall personalized world feel of his Hellboy films and Pan’s Labyrinth, though, mere dirty metal and a reliance on computer magic suggest a cap on the filmmaker’s imagination.  Pacific Rim is, of course, a different kind of film than those three prior works, but considering the problems that come with the blurred visuals, the lack of a distinct, constant new look is somewhat of a letdown.

What happens when you flush baby alligators down the toilet.
(Warner Bros.)

Regardless of these issues, the epic-sized action remains in steady motion, thanks in large part to an impressive variety in the fights and enough unpredictability with both the jaegers and kaiju that anything seems possible.  Central to this freshness is the pairing of Raleigh and his new co-pilot Mako (Rinko Kikuchi), each gifted yet volatile, dangerously emotional people out for familial revenge.  Together, they make for a high-risk, high-reward team, their creativity and the hidden weaponry of the jaegers themselves offering frequent surprises, as do the evolving kaiju, ever adapting to the humans’ latest tricks.  Though the duo’s relationship is as flat as the film’s other interpersonal strands, the pace and consistent excitement remain in the forefront, delivering more than enough big, loud adventure to occupy the mind.  Action films need not aspire to much beyond entertainment, but with a visionary like del Toro calling the shots, there remains a sense that Pacific Rim falls short of its potential.

Grade: B

Rated PG-13 for sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence throughout, and brief language.

Pacific Rim is currently playing at the Carolina Cinemas on Hendersonville Rd.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5guMumPFBag]