Pacific Rim Uprising (Dir. Steven S DeKnight, 1h 51 m)
To (mis)quote the immortal words of cult animated show Mega
XLR, I dig giant robots. Gundam, Evangelion, Gunbuster, etc, from small single
pilot machines to screen spanning titans that require an entire team to pilot, I
love them all. Thus, when Guillermo Del Toro, renowned lover of all things monstrous,
unleashed Pacific Rim, a tale of giant
robots (jaeger) fighting equally giant monsters (kaiju) from another universe
to save the world (obviously), in 2013, you can imagine my excitement. Four and
a bit years later, with Del Toro off winning Oscars, but with John Boyega
onboard, as both producer, and son of apocalypse-cancelling hero Stacker
Pentecost, the series continues; a little smarter, a little sillier, but with
more than enough to bring fans of the original back for round two-seconds out!
Fight!
Pacific Rim Uprising begins much as the original did; kaiju come from another world, kaiju destroy cities, humans build jaegers, jaegers fight kaiju. But with the war having come to an end, and humanity beginning to rebuild, and with even the jaeger program under threat from a new drone-piloted jaeger project, built by the shadowy Shao corporation, and fronted by one of the few returning characters, Charlie Day’s Newton (Newt) Geiszler, so the entire world seems to be changing. Jake Pentecost, however, much like Raleigh in the original, has walked away from the jaeger program, seemingly unable to live up to his father’s example. However, when he, and junkyard living, jaeger building free spirit Amara, are apprehended in a jaeger she built from spare parts, both are taken into the custody of the Pan Pacific Defence Corp, with Jake reluctantly returning to his role as a trainer, and Amara dumped into a group of cadets with whom she sees to have little in common.
Both characters are certainly a refreshing addition to the Pacific Rim Universe; whilst Jake seems to follow the story beat of Raleigh, as a reluctant hero pulled back in for “one last saving-the-world job”, Boyega has a warmth that Hunnan never really had-there’s a certain goofiness, a young man who is introduced at a pool party for those living in a hedonistic society of bartering in areas still affected by the Kaiju’s remains, who scoffs ice cream, with several toppings(!) during a heart to heart with Scott Eastwood’s fellow pilot, Nate. It’s easy to like Jake, (possibly because Boyega himself is a likeable and charismatic person in himself), but we also get a sense of insecurity that the goofy personality attempts to cover, highlighted in his less-than-rousing speech towards the end of the film, less cancelling the apocalypse, more attempting to move it to another date.
Amara is an equally likable character, and one that we haven’t seen before in the Pacific Rim world, a resourceful technician, someone who has eked a living out in the ruins of the world that the kaiju left behind, building her own tiny yet powerful mecha; despite her tragic backstory, she is a tough, resourceful and intelligent heroine, who, despite her past and her background, is every bit a hero.
Around both of them are a diverse cast, from fellow pilots, (who are generally well fleshed out, from Trolololo-playing Russian badass, to grumpy but eventually heroic pilot Vik) to the other three returning characters, Mako (Rinko Kikuchi), who, in my only complaint about the film, makes too brief a return, to Burn Gorman’s Doctor Gottlieb, who becomes a far bigger part of the story than before. And then there’s Newt. Charlie Day is clearly having the time of his life playing Newt this time around, as ten years of plotting, and altogether too much dabbling in the other universe’s technology, (not to mention the Kaiju brain he lives and regularly drifts with), has left Newt somewhat…altered, with his plot to end the world for his new masters forming the backbone to the film. There’s an enjoyably over-the-top sense to Newt, as he cacklingly unfolds his plan, with one of the best scenes in the film his revelation of his master-plan, complete with him rolling up his sleeves to once again reveal his kaiji themed tattoos.
With his diabolical plan in action, so the rag-tag group of new pilots have to go about saving the world. Again. If one thing has improved about Uprising ,it’s the fight scenes-things now less resemble a highly advanced rock-em-sock-em robots, and seem more kinetic, even more…anime-esque, with the new generation of Jaeger sporting everything from laser whips to truly colossal ball and chain. The fights, thus, are kinetic, take unexpected turns, complete with the typical tokusatsu destruction of large sections of-where else-Tokyo. Indeed, if Del Toro leant gently on the likes of Godzilla and Evangelion in the original, then DeKnight buttresses the entire film up against the genre, in a loving way. The final battle, with Newt fusing three kaiju together into a decidedly Godzillarine beast that storms its way to a date with Mount Fuji is so Godzilla all it would need is Ikufube’s score kicking in to complete the illusion.
DeKnight’s touch, however, is also light enough, despite his previous role as Michael Bay’s right-hand-man, to feel like it’s still Del Toro’s creation; the monsters and machines are still lovingly portrayed-one may even say improved, with far more variation in their appearance, fighting style, and weaponry, whilst the sense of the world moving on can be seen both in the increased reverence of machine, and the burgeoning worship for the kaiju that’s hinted at occasionally. The existing characters have developed into older, wiser (or crazier in the case of Newt) mentors, with the new generation of Jaeger cadets forming the heart of the film. One could even suggest that the film takes a stand against the dronification of warfare, warning at the perils of putting machinery into the hands of a single person or group of people.
Nevertheless, Uprising is more of what the fans want, both in terms of the giant stompy monster versus mecha (or indeed, as it happens, robot versus robot) fighting, as well as developing certain characters in directions the fanbase considered possible for years. Uprising, however, also retains the soul of the original film, whilst developing the story to a new and exciting place, and with a sequel hook dropped into mid credits, with Jake promising to take the fight back to the villainous Precursors, Uprising sets the stage for a final showdown between humans and aliens, between Jaeger and Kaiju. It may not reinvent the tokusatsu movie, but it certainly adds a choice few new creation to its burgeoning toybox. In a word, it’s a monstrously good film.
Rating: Highly Recommended
Pacific Rim Uprising begins much as the original did; kaiju come from another world, kaiju destroy cities, humans build jaegers, jaegers fight kaiju. But with the war having come to an end, and humanity beginning to rebuild, and with even the jaeger program under threat from a new drone-piloted jaeger project, built by the shadowy Shao corporation, and fronted by one of the few returning characters, Charlie Day’s Newton (Newt) Geiszler, so the entire world seems to be changing. Jake Pentecost, however, much like Raleigh in the original, has walked away from the jaeger program, seemingly unable to live up to his father’s example. However, when he, and junkyard living, jaeger building free spirit Amara, are apprehended in a jaeger she built from spare parts, both are taken into the custody of the Pan Pacific Defence Corp, with Jake reluctantly returning to his role as a trainer, and Amara dumped into a group of cadets with whom she sees to have little in common.
Both characters are certainly a refreshing addition to the Pacific Rim Universe; whilst Jake seems to follow the story beat of Raleigh, as a reluctant hero pulled back in for “one last saving-the-world job”, Boyega has a warmth that Hunnan never really had-there’s a certain goofiness, a young man who is introduced at a pool party for those living in a hedonistic society of bartering in areas still affected by the Kaiju’s remains, who scoffs ice cream, with several toppings(!) during a heart to heart with Scott Eastwood’s fellow pilot, Nate. It’s easy to like Jake, (possibly because Boyega himself is a likeable and charismatic person in himself), but we also get a sense of insecurity that the goofy personality attempts to cover, highlighted in his less-than-rousing speech towards the end of the film, less cancelling the apocalypse, more attempting to move it to another date.
Amara is an equally likable character, and one that we haven’t seen before in the Pacific Rim world, a resourceful technician, someone who has eked a living out in the ruins of the world that the kaiju left behind, building her own tiny yet powerful mecha; despite her tragic backstory, she is a tough, resourceful and intelligent heroine, who, despite her past and her background, is every bit a hero.
Around both of them are a diverse cast, from fellow pilots, (who are generally well fleshed out, from Trolololo-playing Russian badass, to grumpy but eventually heroic pilot Vik) to the other three returning characters, Mako (Rinko Kikuchi), who, in my only complaint about the film, makes too brief a return, to Burn Gorman’s Doctor Gottlieb, who becomes a far bigger part of the story than before. And then there’s Newt. Charlie Day is clearly having the time of his life playing Newt this time around, as ten years of plotting, and altogether too much dabbling in the other universe’s technology, (not to mention the Kaiju brain he lives and regularly drifts with), has left Newt somewhat…altered, with his plot to end the world for his new masters forming the backbone to the film. There’s an enjoyably over-the-top sense to Newt, as he cacklingly unfolds his plan, with one of the best scenes in the film his revelation of his master-plan, complete with him rolling up his sleeves to once again reveal his kaiji themed tattoos.
With his diabolical plan in action, so the rag-tag group of new pilots have to go about saving the world. Again. If one thing has improved about Uprising ,it’s the fight scenes-things now less resemble a highly advanced rock-em-sock-em robots, and seem more kinetic, even more…anime-esque, with the new generation of Jaeger sporting everything from laser whips to truly colossal ball and chain. The fights, thus, are kinetic, take unexpected turns, complete with the typical tokusatsu destruction of large sections of-where else-Tokyo. Indeed, if Del Toro leant gently on the likes of Godzilla and Evangelion in the original, then DeKnight buttresses the entire film up against the genre, in a loving way. The final battle, with Newt fusing three kaiju together into a decidedly Godzillarine beast that storms its way to a date with Mount Fuji is so Godzilla all it would need is Ikufube’s score kicking in to complete the illusion.
DeKnight’s touch, however, is also light enough, despite his previous role as Michael Bay’s right-hand-man, to feel like it’s still Del Toro’s creation; the monsters and machines are still lovingly portrayed-one may even say improved, with far more variation in their appearance, fighting style, and weaponry, whilst the sense of the world moving on can be seen both in the increased reverence of machine, and the burgeoning worship for the kaiju that’s hinted at occasionally. The existing characters have developed into older, wiser (or crazier in the case of Newt) mentors, with the new generation of Jaeger cadets forming the heart of the film. One could even suggest that the film takes a stand against the dronification of warfare, warning at the perils of putting machinery into the hands of a single person or group of people.
Nevertheless, Uprising is more of what the fans want, both in terms of the giant stompy monster versus mecha (or indeed, as it happens, robot versus robot) fighting, as well as developing certain characters in directions the fanbase considered possible for years. Uprising, however, also retains the soul of the original film, whilst developing the story to a new and exciting place, and with a sequel hook dropped into mid credits, with Jake promising to take the fight back to the villainous Precursors, Uprising sets the stage for a final showdown between humans and aliens, between Jaeger and Kaiju. It may not reinvent the tokusatsu movie, but it certainly adds a choice few new creation to its burgeoning toybox. In a word, it’s a monstrously good film.
Rating: Highly Recommended
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