Pacific Rim

I can not tell you how wrong my perception of this movie was. 

Well, I'll try.

I thought this was going to be another Transformers. 

It was NOT.

I thought this was going to be a Godzilla meets I Am Robot reboot. 

It was nothing of the kind.

In fact, it was a well-written, thrilling adventure that had me on the edge of my seat, barely blinking for a solid 131 minutes. It was more of a kung fu Independence Day, with the technology of Avatar, only the plot felt crisp and the dialogue was so nerdy it was cool. This movie doesn't just present giant robots fighting huge alien monsters of every shape and form. No, it screams at the top of its lungs, I AM A MOVIE ABOUT GIANT ROBOTS AND ALIENS AND I AM NOT ASHAMED! 

That's the only way to go about it, really.

For those of you who haven't heard of this film, here's the basic premise. Along a major fault line, deep in the Pacific Ocean, a rift in time and space has opened up to allow enormous monsters through that cause a lot of damage and are very hard to kill. Hence the need for a new kind of weapon...gigantic cyborgs mecha! (My sister refused to let me write such a misleading description of these giant robots as "cyborgs," as these are human controlled robots, not humans with robot parts. I honestly was just trying to find another word for 'robot')

Here are a few facts you must know about this movie (no more plot points- half the fun is that you don't know what these humongous beings are going to do next).

1. You need to see this on a big screen. The fight scenes and special effects are so well done that I actually felt small while I was watching these giant beings go at it with anything they could get their hands/talons/tails/teeth on. Twas thrilling, to put it mildly.

2. The casting rocked. With the exception of some over-the-top side characters, the cast was a refreshing, fresh faced pool of talent that reflected what might happen if the world was being attacked by a nearly unbeatable force. 

3. The female character was actually a character. Well rounded, interesting, and not there as eye-candy. 

I have nothing to say.

In fact, the eye candy was decidedly aimed towards a female audience, methinks....

Fist pump of equality, Charlie Hunnam!

I have found this to be a refreshing pattern in a few recent movies...

Thor's bringing the thunder from down under...he he...

Uhura did not take off her clothes and actually spoke some wicked Klingon.

Another one of my favorite things from Australia, film and reality.

4. You've got to ignore the "science" to enjoy the movie. Don't pay any attention to why things are happening: those lines were put in to ease the perfectionist portion of the audience who need to know the reason giant aliens are invading the planet. The rest of humanity just wants to watch huge robots and beasts duke it out on land and sea. Luckily, Pacific Rim glosses over these potentially weak points in the story by saying them really fast in a British accent, which lends a certain sense of mystery and authority to the line. It worked for me.

RAWAR! Guillermo del Toro approves this message.

5. Marvelous soundtrack- I hummed it for the rest of the day, loudly and randomly, much to the chagrin of my family. 

6. Last, but not least, I think this movie had the shortest motivational speech that seems to be required in Hollywood to steady warriors as they face certain doom. Short, sweet, to the point, and oh-so-quotable. I liked it.

Go see this movie in the theater- it's TOTALLY worth it.

Here's the trailer, if you're interested!

RED 2

I was really excited for this one. 

So excited I was even willing to pay  for a $10.25 matinee showing. The ticket taker gave a sympathetic chortle when I asked if there was a student discount. There isn't one apparently. 

If you have seen RED, the original movie released in 2010, then you understand my excitement for it's sequel- some of my favorite classics (Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich, I could go on and on) all in one entertaining ensemble, witty dialogue, great action sequences and unbelievable fun-all can be found in RED. 

The basic premise in the first movie is that retired assassins/spies/contract killers have been labeled RED (Retired, Extremely Dangerous), and must therefore be eliminated, with the necessary amount of political intrigue. Add a bit of quirky romance, a strong dollop of we-know-this-is-a-completely-preposterous-plot...and-we-don't-care attitude, and you've got awesome. 

The sequel wasn't disappointing. It just wasn't the original. 

Part of RED's charm (the first one) was that it was completely unexpected. 

He stepped out of a spinning car! HE JUST STEPPED OUT OF IT!!!!

Of course John Malkovich would go up against a rocket launcher with a handgun.
I mean, WHY NOT?!?!

RED 2 tried to accomplish that same sense of "don't underestimate what these retired killers can do!" that the first one so playfully presented, but it couldn't be unpredictable like the first one. I honestly felt the same sensation about the Matrix sequels- you can't replicate originality if you use the same gimmicks and tricks. Yes, there is the addition of how to hold on to a relationship that's gotten past the "He's a spy. I like spies" stage, the premise that Frank Moses (Bruce Willis' character) must save the world instead of just America, and kung fu, but it just wasn't as new as the first. 

My one true complaint has to do with the music- the funky soundtrack from the original (lead instruments- harmonica and banjo) was replaced by sadly commonplace THIS IS AN ACTION MOVIE! music that sounded just like every other action movie out there. What a waste. 

That being said, I did enjoy myself. I laughed- a lot. I was wrapped up in the spy story (of which I will not reveal the twists and turns- that would just be rude). The action sequences were exciting and the dialogue was decent. In short, I enjoyed myself, and what else are movies for, really?

The additions of Anthony Hopkins, Catherine Zeta Jones, and Byung-hun Lee to the cast (among others) was on the verge of feeling like Ocean's 12/13, but it never got too silly or full of its self like those sequels did. The silliness felt unabashed, not embarrassing, and I've got to respect something that is so completely itself, no explanations needed. Yeah, let's have a car chase that leads to this scene:

The car is spinning, of course.

All in all, I give this movie three stars- worth seeing, but as a rental. Save that $10.25 for something that is not a sequel.