Summary
Watching giant robots fighting equally large monsters might seem like familiar territory, but it’s hard to be too displeased when that’s what it promised on the side of the tin.
It turns out that the apocalypse was not so much cancelled as postponed. Following 2013’s Pacific Rim, the apocalypse was shifted to Boardroom B, a new invite list of attendees was sent out, and catering was informed of the changes. So to quote this sequel, “we’re going with giant robots again,” and there isn’t a damn thing wrong with that.
Set 10 years after the war between humans and the kaiju, Jake Pentecost (John Boyega) lives a life of crime far removed from his hero father Stacker, who died in the Battle of the Breach. After he and young jaeger engineer Amara Namani (Cailee Spaeny) fall foul of the law, the duo is drawn back into the world of giant robot piloting by Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi), Jake’s adopted sister. However, when a rogue jaeger attacks Sydney during a ceremony, Jake and fellow jeager ranger Nate Lambert (Scott Eastwood) attempt to save the world.
You have to admire a movie that delivers exactly what it promises on the back of the box. While Guillermo del Toro’s film had a certain panache, and a self-awareness of the history of the genre, it was essentially about giant robots fighting monsters. Incoming director Steven S. DeKnight (TV’s Spartacus, Daredevil) wastes little time in bringing us back to this basic concept, even if we have to be a little bit patient before we see any actual kaiju.
In fact, it’s jaeger versus jaeger for the first two acts of the film. For us natives of Sydney, the destruction of Circular Quay and the surrounding harbourside suburbs was as disturbing as it is kind of cool. By the time we get up to the monumental mega-kaiju fight, a seriously spectacular clash of the CG titans on the streets of Tokyo, the script doesn’t even pretend it isn’t blatantly riffing on its Japanese influences.
PACIFIC RIM UPRISING is one of those sequels that is ultimately perfunctory. The giant fights are spectacular and technically proficient, but they don’t really come from any kind of underlying drama. Indeed, in the words of at least one character “That was supposed to be epic, but it wasn’t.” The dialogue is still cheesy (even with four screenwriters), the supporting cast is tropey, but it’s still hard not to feel your inner 12-year-old squeeing in delight.
