Pacific Rim: Uprising

Pacific Rim: Uprising – It has been ten years since the Kaiju were driven back through the breach, and Earth enjoys peace with a few minimal reminders of what happened. Jake, a dead war hero’s son meets Amara Namani who has made her own Jaeger from scavenged parts, and both get taken in by the military. When a rogue Jaeger attacks, it becomes clear that the Kaiju are back and have gained control of numerous Jaegers. With a depleted military and only a few Jaegers to use, can Jake, Amara and a handful of cadets defeat the Kaiju before it’s too late?

Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018) – Director: Steven S. DeKnight

By Source (WP:NFCC#4), Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=55354828

Rating: 12

Running Length: 111 mins

Starring: John Boyega, Scott Eastwood, Cailee Spaeny

Genre: Action, Science Fiction

REVIEW: ‘PACIFIC RIM: UPRISING’

Like ‘Pacific Rim’ before it, ‘Pacific Rim: Uprising’ is a visual treat with high octance action and CGI as far as the eye can see. Audiences know exactly what they are getting with a movie about huge robots (Jaegers) punching huge aliens (Kaijus) and ‘Pacific Rim: Uprising’ certainly doesn’t disappoint on that front. With numerous fight scenes and lots of screen time for the Jaegers, one could be forgiven for mistaking it for yet another Transformers film!

While all the elements are there for a great movie experience are all there – likeable characters, plenty of action and evil aliens to fight against – ‘Uprising’ disappointingly falls short of greatness. Once the reveal of how the Kaijus are managing to return happens, the plot somewhat stagnates to make way for more fight scenes; once the motivations of the major characters are revealed, they also become secondary to the fight scenes. Sadly, as the vast majority of the action is so CGI-heavy, the gravity of the situations are somewhat diminished with much of these scenes looking like a computer game. In addition, it is almost impossible to keep track of which characters are piloting which Jaeger which makes these fight scenes confusing. Unfortunately, although ‘Pacific Rim’ had its flaws, ‘Uprising’ feels almost like a knock-off of a successful blockbuster, which seemingly can’t even afford the full use of its own soundtrack

Doing away with most of the original cast to make way for a new bunch of characters is a shame but understandable and both Jake (Boyega) and Amara (Spaeny) are both likeable and carry what little excuse there is for a story well. A movie about huge robots isn’t expected to provide a thought-provoking tale so even though the action is bound to be loved by kids, the adults accompanying them are likely to be crying out for more than what the movie provides.

CONTENT: IS ‘PACIFIC RIM: UPRISING’ SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN?

For those who have not seen the first ‘Pacific Rim’ movie, some of the terminology used below may be a little confusing! We give an explanation of some of the terms to help:

Jaeger – a huge robot-like machine which is used to fight the Kaijus. Jaeger’s must be piloted by two people who are psychically linked to each other’s thoughts and movements.

Kaiju – a huge alien being which attacks Earth.

When the cadets are training, two work together in a Jaeger to fight a simulation of a Kaiju. This scene becomes quite intense with close-ups of the Kaiju’s huge mouth which is full of sharp teeth. It roars at the cadets and attacks aggressively. This lasts for around one minute.

A rogue Jaeger (one piloted by someone other than the military) attacks and an intense fight between it and another Jaeger ensues. This becomes very violent, with the rogue Jaeger having the upper hand for most of the fight. This is quite a protracted scene which lasts for around 10 minutes.

A character tries to save someone they care about but narrowly misses and the loved one is killed. The character cries out in anguish and is visually upset for several minutes.

A young girl is seen on a day out with her family. A huge Kaiju suddenly appears, breaking apart the pier the girl is standing on and separating her from the others. She is terrified, her family try to coax her to jump over to them; the Kaiju then walks through where they are standing and they disappear, leaving the girl alive and alone.

Two men are electrocuted while piloting a Jaeger, they convulse for a few seconds before the camera cuts away but it is clear that they have been killed.

An established character is killed when missiles are fired at the room he is standing in. He stoically stands his ground and his body is seen briefly in silhouette as the fireball engulfs him.

An incidental character who is piloting a Jaeger lies on the floor after an attack, a rogue Kaiju then kills him by standing on the Jaeger’s ‘head’ which is where the pilot is situated.

The final third of the movie focuses on some Kaiju that have made their way to Earth and rampage through Tokyo. People run away, screaming in terror and some are seen to be crushed underfoot. When the Jaeger’s get there, a huge fight ensues causing dozens of building to be destroyed. The fight, which lasts for around 20 minutes is very tense with some characters getting badly hurt. One character suffers a head wound which bleeds profusely, another is killed, the camera briefly shows a close-up of their bloody and burnt arm.

A Kaiju stabs a large blade through the chest of a Jaeger, because its pilots are psychically linked to it, an image of the blade appears to also stab them through their chests. They cry out in surprise, however they are not actually injured and are seen to be fine not long later.

CAN I SEE A CLIP?

VERDICT: IS ‘PACIFIC RIM: UPRISING’ FOR KIDS?

‘Pacific Rim: Uprising’ may be disappointing but it is undoubtedly exciting; with good characters and decent pacing there is a lot to enjoy from start to finish. As most of the action sequences are intense and quite long, younger kids may find them too scary and with a good smattering of bad language throughout, we feel this movie is most appropriate for kids aged 8 and over.

• Violence: 3/5 (intense, protracted fight scenes. Little blood or gore is seen apart from what has been mentioned above)
• Emotional Distress: 1/5 (a character mourns the loss of a loved one)
• Fear Factor: 2/5 (the Kaiju’s and rogue Jaeger’s are ferocious and fight the Jaegers with the intention of destroying them and killing the pilots inside)
• Sexual Content: 0/5
• Bad Language: 3/5 (mostly mild cursing and blasphemy with some moderate cursing throughout. Two teen boys who are piloting a Jaeger make their machine give a Kaiju the middle finger)
• Dialogue: 0/5
• Other Notes: Deals with themes of family, accepting loss, rivalry, friendship and fighting a greater foe,

Words by Laura Record

[amazon_link asins=’B07BF46TPP,B0771LJ5TB,B0765YWS8V,1785657682,B0741DWSZY’ template=’ProductCarousel’ store=’isthimovsui-21′ marketplace=’UK’ link_id=’ed0d67bf-6ce1-11e8-83bd-cb36246fe3fa’]