I have never seen so much chaos before the start of a screening. Fellow StuffWeLike contributor Seth Hansen and I arrived in the theater for Pacific Rim and found our seats rather quickly. We were smart; we got there at 7:00pm. The movie was slated to begin at 7:30. Around 7:20, the theater was pretty packed, save for the back row that was roped off for some reason and guarded by a petite woman who worked for the studio.
A loud, blonde woman with a New York accent ascended the stairs and demanded to know why those seats were not available. From her response, she didn’t like the answer she was given. As the line of unseated people collected on the staircase, she began plotting with other around her that they were gong to “take the seats by force” if they were still empty when the movie began.
Another man, wearing a long-sleeve plaid shirt and cut-off jean shorts, who looked like Larry David plus 10 years began to gripe about not having a seat to a man who was already seated. All I could think was: If you wanted to make sure you had a seat, you should have gotten here earlier. The highlight of this seating fiasco had to be the obese critic dressed in all black that waddled up the stairs, saw the empty back row and declared: “I’m media, let me through.” He was quickly berated by the blonde and the Larry David look-a-like.
Finally, they stopped letting people in, opened up the back row, then we had to wait five minutes while the obese critic tried to find a seat. He and this woman kept pointing at empty seats and asking if they were taken. At long last the guy wedged into a seat and the movie began.
I can honestly say that I have never experienced that much chaos at a screening in my entire time going to these things. It was pretty crazy.
Onward to Pacific Rim, which was an amazing testament to how far special effects have come in just the past decade. This was a movie that was totally worth seeing on the big screen, especially in IMAX 3D. There’s plenty of solid action and effects that make up for the weaker parts of the film, but when it comes to the scenes with the Jaegers (human-controlled robots) fighting the Kaiju (inter-dimensional monsters) it’s definitely worth seeing.
Pacific Rim has everything you’d expect and want to see in a sci-fi/action movie that involves giant robots and monsters, and as the action and danger escalates, the excitement and awe increase as well. Guillermo del Toro has done an excellent job crafting a world that makes you hope something like this never happens, while at the same time you kind of hope it does just so we can build such kick-ass robots!
The film’s B-movie dialogue and occasional moments to cheesy acting take a backseat to the action and effects that are clearly the focal point of film’s universe. We’re not here for a love story, a story of redemption, or a story of revenge. We are here for one thing: to see robots kick monster butt!
My one issue with the movie – and what I feel was the weakest element of the film – was the attempts at comic relief, which felt forced, out of place, and unfunny. I’m primarily referring to the scenes involving actors Charlie Day and Burn Gorman as two research scientists studying the Kaiju. Comic relief is always welcome, but in this case the abrupt shift in tone just didn’t work, and the scenes just weren’t funny (even though that’s clearly what the intent was).
Pacific Rim is a lot of fun! With plenty of action and effects, it is one summer movie that is worth spending a little extra to see in IMAX 3D. I highly recommend it!
What did you think of Pacific Rim? Leave a comment and let us know!
Check back soon for our review of the direct-to-DVD knock-off, Atlantic Rim (yes, it exists).
Follow Ian on Instagram at writer_guy1979.