Review of Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018) by Gui C — 06 Jul 2018

AS A STANDALONE MOVIE, THIS IS... OKAY. QUITE ENTERTAINING, BOMBASTIC ACTION SCENES, ALL THAT STUFF. BUT AS A SEQUEL TO PACIFIC RIM, WHICH HAD SO MUCH MORE GOING FOR IT THAN ROBOTS AND MONSTERS BEATING EACH OTHER TO A PULP, I HAVE TO SAY I'VE NEVER BEEN SO DISAPPOINTED IN A MOVIE IN MY LIFE. THE CHARACTERS AREN'T CONSISTENT. CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT FEELS RUSHED AND USUALLY COMES OUT OF THE BLUE, LIKE THEY LEARNED A LESSON WHILE WE WEREN'T LOOKING. EVEN LIKE THIS, MOST CHARACTERS ARE UNDERDEVELOPED.

THE STORY IS ALRIGHT. IT HAS SOME INTERESTING TWISTS AND TURNS. IT FEELS MORE EPISODIC THAN OVERARCHING, HOWEVER. ONE THREAT COMES UP AND IS ELIMINATED, OFF TO THE NEXT ONE. THAT JUST KILLS THE NARRATIVE MOMENTUM.

IT'S ALSO PAINFULLY UNORIGINAL. ONE OF THE SCENES WAS OUTRIGHT COPIED FROM THE FIRST ONE, MINUS THE SUSPENSE AND EMOTIONAL IMPACT. THERE ARE A FEW SURPRISES HERE AND THERE, BUT IF YOU DON'T CARE ENOUGH ABOUT THE CHARACTERS, YOU DON'T REALLY CARE WHAT HAPPENS TO THEM, AND AS SUCH EVEN THEIR IMPACT IS SEVERELY DAMPENED.

MANY CHARACTERS FEEL LIKE EXPYS OF CHARACTERS FROM THE ORIGINAL. AT ONE POINT, UPRISING INTRODUCES A CHARACTER THAT MIGHT AS WELL BE SCREAMING "I'M CHUCK HANSEN 2.0" AT THE TOP OF THIS LUNGS.

HALF OF WHAT MADE THE FIRST MOVIE AMAZING, WHICH IS, THE DRIFT, IS SEVERELY DOWNPLAYED HERE, RUINING THE POTENTIAL FOR DEEPER STORIES AND MORE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT.

I MISSED RAMIN DJAWADI'S SOUNDTRACK. IT SHOWS UP EXACTLY ONCE, BUT JUST AT THE WRONG MOMENT - 2 MINUTES LATER, AND THE EFFECT WOULD'VE BEEN BOMBASTIC. THERE'S NO EPIC POWER-UP SCENE LIKE IN THE FIRST MOVIE, AND THE SCORE IS PRETTY FORGETTABLE OVERALL.

THE BATTLE SCENES ARE, OBVIOUSLY, AMAZING. THEY'RE BY FAR THE BEST PART OF THE MOVIE. IF YOU'RE NOT HERE FOR A GOOD PLOT OR INTERESTING CHARACTERS, THEN THOSE ARE THE PARTS YOU'LL BE CHEERING AT. OTHER THAN WHAT THE TRAILERS SUGGESTED, JAEGERS AND KAIJU STILL DO FEEL QUITE REAL AND MENACING, EVEN THOUGH THE FIRST ONE'S VISUALS STILL MOST DEFINITELY TAKE THE CAKE. SOMETIMES, IT FELT LIKE THE CONN-POD DIDN'T SHAKE AT ALL WHEN IT DEFINITELY SHOULD BE, A DETAIL THAT FEELS MINOR BUT PULLS US RIGHT OUT OF THE MOVIE EVERY TIME IT HAPPENS. THAT DOESN'T MAKE THE BATTLE SCENES ANY LESS AWESOME, THOUGH. IF NOTHING ELSE, AT LEAST THIS THE FILM NAILED.

I MISS GUILLERMO DELTORO... I REALLY HOPE HE COMES BACK TO DIRECT PACIFIC RIM 3. IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE MORE THAN JUST MINDLESS POPCORN CINEMA. THIS IS WHY I'M GIVING THIS 2 STARS WHEN I WOULD NORMALLY BE GIVING 2.5 OR 3. THIS ISN'T WORTHY OF BEING A PACIFIC RIM SEQUEL. I HOPE THEY MAKE IT BETTER NEXT TIME.