‘Pacific Rim Uprising’ Review
3/5
Director: Steven S. DeKnight
Starring: John Boyega, Scott Eastwood, Charlie Day, Cailee Spaeny
Rebellious Jake Pentecost, a once-promising Jaeger pilot whose father gave his life to secure humanity’s victory against the monstrous Kaiju, is given one last chance to live up to his legacy.
(Spoilers ahead)
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JOHN BOYEGA IS… a scavenger who ends up caught up in a resistance against an evil foe, while pining for a parent who is no longer around. So, he’s switched from Finn to Rey?
SCOTT EASTWOOD IS… also in this film. A by the book, strait-laced military man, he inexplicably starts wisecracking as everything actually gets serious.
CHARLIE HUNNAM IS… not in this one. I mean, I didn’t miss him but his character’s fate never gets an explanation. Oh well.
I’m not taking this review very seriously, but then that’s also the best way to watch this slightly belated sequel to 2013 blockbuster Pacific Rim. Leave your brain at the door (or in a suspended animation tank) and it’s a reasonable follow-up to Guillermo del Toro’s original. And while that was hardly the now Oscar-winner’s best, it was silliness created from a place of real warmth and affection for kaiju and mecha movies.
Uprising is never boring, and has a far more charismatic lead in Boyega, but the CGI-heavy monster vs. robot fight scenes don’t quite achieve the tangible hugeness that del Toro managed. There’s also the same assumption that bigger equals better which harmed Independence Day: Resurgence, though there’s certainly a thrill to be had from the OTT destruction.
Charlie Day, Burn Gorman and Rinko Kikuchi’s returns help connect to the first film, and the arc of Day’s Dr. Newt Geiszler takes things in an interesting direction. Some fans may hate it and I doubt many will love it, but at a brisk 110 minutes it’s worth a watch on the big screen.
