John
Boyega Scott
Eastwood Tian
Jing Cailee
Spaeny
Rinko Kikuchi Burn Gorman Adria Arjona Charlie Day
At first, I thought that the only reason to
watch this film is for the special effects, which are spectacular, but I wished
for more dramatic impact, which is so minimal. Then later, I was intrigued with its treatment of the Amara
Namani (Spaeny) character, a young sassy girl who had done amazing things on her
own (such as assembling a Jaeger from scraps), failed at first at cadet school,
then managed to become a central element in saving the earth. That redeemed this film to some extent
in terms of dramatic import and being more than the usual fight-game.
Another interesting twist is one of the characters’
going rogue after some of his vital fluids got mixed with that of a Kaiju in
the first Pacific Rim film, making him eventually a traitor to the Pan Pacific
Defense Force.
In Pacific
Rim Uprising, several story lines play out. There is the one about Jake (Boyega) trying to live up to
his father’s heroic brilliance, his competitiveness with his fellow pilot, Nate
(Eastwood), his argumentative relationship with Amara, and the competition
among scientists (Gorman, Arjona, Day) to produce the most effective force,
drones versus Jaegers. If these
stories had been fleshed out and the incessant, senseless robot fighting
reduced, this would have been a lot better film.
To complicate matters, the music and sound
effects often drown out dialog, and some subtitles flash by so quickly they’re
missed.
John Boyega, the recipient of a number of
rising star awards for his work in Star
Wars: The Force Awakens and Attack the Block, is good in the
starring role, which is very similar to his past roles, so it was not much of a
stretch. The new up-and-coming
star here is Cailee Spaeny in her first feature film. She is a natural in her range of expressions and her ability
to capture the spotlight. Tian
Jing as head of the Chinese Shao Corporation’s drone project is icily
attractive and clearly shows command of those under her purview. Eastwood playing rival to Boyega’s
character is very effective, although his resemblance to his father both in
appearance and mannerism is a bit distracting. (Not his fault, of course.) I missed not seeing more of Rinko Kikuchi, who had a major
role in the first Pacific Rim; her
role here is minor.
This is a film for special effects fans who are
less interested in drama and more enthusiastic about seeing robots engaged in
physical combat.
Meager in story; incessant in fighting.
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