Showing posts with label movie review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label movie review. Show all posts
[caption id="attachment_3338" align="alignnone" width="497"]
The American Jaeger Gypsy Caravan playing hide-and-seek with a Kaiju in Hong Kong.[/caption]
To be blunt, the actual movie didn't really start for me until about 20 minutes into the running time: The anti-kaiju wall is breached in Sydney, Australia. We get an exciting snippet of the Aussie Jaeger whupping a Kaiju in broad daylight!
When I say it starts, I don't mean it starts cleanly. This obviously finely crafted machine has been left in low gear too long, so it coughs, and sputters a bit as it revs up. When the Jaeger program boss Marshall Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba) is trying, gruffly, to woo the American, former Jaeger pilot, Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam) back into the Jaeger program, he caps his sales pitch with: "Haven't You heard? The World is comming to an end! Where would you rather die: Here, or in a Jaeger?" I thought dying in my seat at that low point would've been a mercy.
But then, The Marshall's personal assistant, Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi) finally arrives -- only 23 minutes late -- the gang's all here, and the movie begins to show real signs of life. The Jaeger program has it's back to the wall; all that's left has been garthered up in Hong Kong -- that's only four Jaegers -- the elegant Chinese Grab Hand, the very, old-school Russian Bucket Head, the macho Australian Rocket-Chest (Bustgunner was taken), and the swaggering American Gypsy Moth. Everything, and everyone connected with the Jaeger program is cooped up in something called the Shatterdome, which includes two wacky Kaiju researchers, a so-called "Kaiju-groupie," (Charlie Day), and his very pent-up boss, Dr. Hermann Gottlieb (Burn Gorman). I din't warm up to Charlie Day immediately, but Burn Gorman, Owen Harper from Torchwood, among other things, was a treat to watch from his first scene. The pair's interplay is good comic relief from all the histrionics.
Giant robots need dysfunctional people -- we know this, and with so many of them together under one roof, we get real emotional fireworks, and not-so-pent-up physical aggression, and several helpings of back-story trauma, until the movie finally, fully, roars to life with an incredible scene where Mako Mori relives her chilhood encounter with a Kaiju (played poignantly by Mana Ashida). The difference with Mako the child, is that Mako the adult is in a Jaeger with her finger on a plasma cannon -- wow!
The rest of the movie pretty much just rocks. It moves fast enough that you no longer have time to ponder the flaws and inconsistencies. The emotional intensity, and the scale of the visuals are finally in synch. The movie just flies. The final battle scenes -- progressing from bay, to port, to downtown Hong Kong are relentless, and breathtaking. One scene, in the city battle, which is already famous, culminating in a Newton's Cradle on a desk, should leave you gasping at director Guillermo del Toroo's skill, and chutzpah. Oh, and a mecha finally uses a sword to dispatch a Kaiju.
The climactic ending, was satisfyingly explosive, allowed the audience to see Mako Mori in her shiny black plugsuit one more time, and left everything up in the air for a sequel. Great stuff! Click the Mako Mori stills to enlarge them.
The American Jaeger Gypsy Caravan playing hide-and-seek with a Kaiju in Hong Kong.[/caption]Pacific Rim, if you haven't heard, is a recently-released, would-be Summer blockbuster film, directed by Guillermo del Toro, starring almost no one you've heard of, and released by Legendary Pictures. It tells a science fiction, action-adventure story built around two Japanese genres: mecha (Japanese for "kids in giant robots") and kaiju (Japanese for "guys in rubber monster suits"). Based on the trailer, and the track record of previous American efforts with anime, I was sceptical ►, and so, apparently, have been North American movie audiences ►. I've finally seen the movie -- three times.
To be blunt, the actual movie didn't really start for me until about 20 minutes into the running time: The anti-kaiju wall is breached in Sydney, Australia. We get an exciting snippet of the Aussie Jaeger whupping a Kaiju in broad daylight!
When I say it starts, I don't mean it starts cleanly. This obviously finely crafted machine has been left in low gear too long, so it coughs, and sputters a bit as it revs up. When the Jaeger program boss Marshall Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba) is trying, gruffly, to woo the American, former Jaeger pilot, Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam) back into the Jaeger program, he caps his sales pitch with: "Haven't You heard? The World is comming to an end! Where would you rather die: Here, or in a Jaeger?" I thought dying in my seat at that low point would've been a mercy.
But then, The Marshall's personal assistant, Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi) finally arrives -- only 23 minutes late -- the gang's all here, and the movie begins to show real signs of life. The Jaeger program has it's back to the wall; all that's left has been garthered up in Hong Kong -- that's only four Jaegers -- the elegant Chinese Grab Hand, the very, old-school Russian Bucket Head, the macho Australian Rocket-Chest (Bustgunner was taken), and the swaggering American Gypsy Moth. Everything, and everyone connected with the Jaeger program is cooped up in something called the Shatterdome, which includes two wacky Kaiju researchers, a so-called "Kaiju-groupie," (Charlie Day), and his very pent-up boss, Dr. Hermann Gottlieb (Burn Gorman). I din't warm up to Charlie Day immediately, but Burn Gorman, Owen Harper from Torchwood, among other things, was a treat to watch from his first scene. The pair's interplay is good comic relief from all the histrionics.
Giant robots need dysfunctional people -- we know this, and with so many of them together under one roof, we get real emotional fireworks, and not-so-pent-up physical aggression, and several helpings of back-story trauma, until the movie finally, fully, roars to life with an incredible scene where Mako Mori relives her chilhood encounter with a Kaiju (played poignantly by Mana Ashida). The difference with Mako the child, is that Mako the adult is in a Jaeger with her finger on a plasma cannon -- wow!
The rest of the movie pretty much just rocks. It moves fast enough that you no longer have time to ponder the flaws and inconsistencies. The emotional intensity, and the scale of the visuals are finally in synch. The movie just flies. The final battle scenes -- progressing from bay, to port, to downtown Hong Kong are relentless, and breathtaking. One scene, in the city battle, which is already famous, culminating in a Newton's Cradle on a desk, should leave you gasping at director Guillermo del Toroo's skill, and chutzpah. Oh, and a mecha finally uses a sword to dispatch a Kaiju.
The climactic ending, was satisfyingly explosive, allowed the audience to see Mako Mori in her shiny black plugsuit one more time, and left everything up in the air for a sequel. Great stuff! Click the Mako Mori stills to enlarge them.
Pacific Rim may also be starting slow at the box office. It seems obvious the film was built to succeed in the international market, but in large chunks of the world it still hasn't opened. It doesn't hit theatres in Japan, for instance, until August 5th.
[caption id="attachment_3037" align="alignnone" width="497"]
Eep Crood reaches for the light. Shoulders like a linebacker, but so cute. Click the image to enlarge it.[/caption]
I just wasn't prepared for watching The Croods, the Dreamworks 3D animated comedy about a prehistoric family, which was released into theatres this last March, 2013. I didn't have any tissues, or a paper bag to breathe into -- nothing. By about the 54 minute mark, when the entire clan reach what looks like an ocean, and go swimming -- I was all teary-eyed, and giggling uncontrollably, and just plain shocked by how emotional I was getting. At that point I surrendered, and let the film have it's way with me.
It was an emotional, button-pushing rollercoaster. Hard to single out any single aspect for praise, which is good. Emma Stone's voice work on Eep was wonderful, as was Eep's character design, and the way she was animated, but the story, the dialogue, the voice work, and animation was fabulous across-the-board -- it was all of a piece -- the entire movie. Even Nicholas Cage impressed! Apparently I enjoy his work as long as I don't have to watch him doing it (he was mostly hidden in costume in Hit Girl). But, while I think The Croods is a great time, I don't think it's quite as good as Madagasgar 3: Europe's Most Wanted, released in 2012. Mad' 3 astonished me with it's wall-to-wall, end-to-end zaniness. Compared to Pixar, I still feel Dreamworks bakes too much sugar and high fructose corn syrup into their animated confections, but they are definitely perfecting their recipe.
[caption id="attachment_3044" align="alignright" width="150"]
My dark mocha looks funny! Click the image to enlarge it.[/caption]
Red hair and freckles must test well with focus groups; how else to explain the prominent flame-haired heroines in a spate of recent animated films: Merinda in Pixar's Brave (2012); Captain Chantel DuBois in Dreamworks Madagasgar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012), and Eep Crood in Dreamwork's The Croods (2013). I don't mind in the least, I think ginger makes everything better.
I pondered this while sipping a decidedly brown haired, extra hot dark mocha at the Waves coffee shop at the corner of West Broadway Avenue and Spruce Street.
Eep Crood reaches for the light. Shoulders like a linebacker, but so cute. Click the image to enlarge it.[/caption]I just wasn't prepared for watching The Croods, the Dreamworks 3D animated comedy about a prehistoric family, which was released into theatres this last March, 2013. I didn't have any tissues, or a paper bag to breathe into -- nothing. By about the 54 minute mark, when the entire clan reach what looks like an ocean, and go swimming -- I was all teary-eyed, and giggling uncontrollably, and just plain shocked by how emotional I was getting. At that point I surrendered, and let the film have it's way with me.
It was an emotional, button-pushing rollercoaster. Hard to single out any single aspect for praise, which is good. Emma Stone's voice work on Eep was wonderful, as was Eep's character design, and the way she was animated, but the story, the dialogue, the voice work, and animation was fabulous across-the-board -- it was all of a piece -- the entire movie. Even Nicholas Cage impressed! Apparently I enjoy his work as long as I don't have to watch him doing it (he was mostly hidden in costume in Hit Girl). But, while I think The Croods is a great time, I don't think it's quite as good as Madagasgar 3: Europe's Most Wanted, released in 2012. Mad' 3 astonished me with it's wall-to-wall, end-to-end zaniness. Compared to Pixar, I still feel Dreamworks bakes too much sugar and high fructose corn syrup into their animated confections, but they are definitely perfecting their recipe.
Why are redheads suddenly so animated?
[caption id="attachment_3044" align="alignright" width="150"]
My dark mocha looks funny! Click the image to enlarge it.[/caption]Red hair and freckles must test well with focus groups; how else to explain the prominent flame-haired heroines in a spate of recent animated films: Merinda in Pixar's Brave (2012); Captain Chantel DuBois in Dreamworks Madagasgar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012), and Eep Crood in Dreamwork's The Croods (2013). I don't mind in the least, I think ginger makes everything better.
I pondered this while sipping a decidedly brown haired, extra hot dark mocha at the Waves coffee shop at the corner of West Broadway Avenue and Spruce Street.
Here's a really good blog post about seeing the film, and what's behind John Cleese's writing credit ►
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