Josh Wilding Reviews: PACIFIC RIM; "Imagine The Worst Syfy Movie With Decent Special Effects"

Josh Wilding Reviews: PACIFIC RIM; "Imagine The Worst Syfy Movie With Decent Special Effects"

Guillermo del Toro's Pacific Rim has divided critics and proved to be a major disappointment for Legendary and Warner Bros. this past weekend at the North American box office. Hit the jump for my spoiler-free verdict on arguably one of THE worst movies of 2013!

Review Opinion
By JoshWilding - Jul 16, 2013 10:07 AM EST
Filed Under: Sci-Fi


It's rare that a film is so bad that I want to walk out within the first half an hour. Having paid to see something, I always attempt to stick it out (it could get better after all, right?) and the only time I HAVE left was during a FREE screening of Iron Skies at the Kapow! Comic Convention in 2012. Well, for almost the entire gruelling two hours and eighteen minutes of Pacific Rim, every fibre of my being was telling me to get up and leave. It is without a doubt one of the worst movies I have ever had the misfortune of sitting through. Sure, if you're only after a soulless, brainless and utterly moronic movie with three decent - but really not all that special action sequences - you'll love it. However, while the Transformers films at least have the decency to embrace their sheer stupidity and have fun, this tries to be serious and fails on every level as a result.

Idris Elba needs a new agent. After being the only good thing about Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, he once again is the only decent part of a thoroughly awful ensemble cast. Like everyone else in Pacific Rim, he's saddled with dreadful dialogue from start to finish, but he's talented enough to actually elevate that material. The rest of the film is filled with those who can't act and those who are just plain awful at it. Charlie Hunnam, Robert Kazinsky and Rinko Kikuchi don't have an ounce of charisma between them, while Charlie Day and Ron Perlman are too bad for words. How exactly Guillermo del Toro managed to get such an awful performance out of the talented Burn Gorman is beyond me, but his turn is one of many that is one of those which is literally laughably bad.

Talking of del Toro, if Pacific Rim isn't proof enough that he's not cut out for a career directing Hollywood blockbusters, I'm not sure what is. There's no doubting the impressiveness of the action scenes with the gigantic Jaegers and Kaiju, but is any of it REALLY something we haven't seen before? There aren't any truly original ideas on display here. There's nothing memorable or a scene which will leave you gasping at the sheer scale of the battles on screen. They're undeniably exciting and in terms of special effects are great, but in an age of countless big CGI laden movies, Pacific Rim does nothing to stand out from the fold. It wouldn't even be fair to call it a brainless popcorn movie you can sit down and enjoy because you have to endure such tedious trash between the fights.

There's no real story to speak of. It's generic, cliched and boring. The score is pretty good, although that's probably the kindest thing you could say about the Pacific Rim. The humour constantly falls flat, and despite the aforementioned impressive action sequences, the noticeable green screen lets the movie down more than once. Practically, the sets are well designed, but we're now reaching a point where it's an absolute struggle to say anything even remotely positive about the movie. Simply put, it's garbage. It somehow has a reasonably good score on Rotten Tomatoes, but the mostly beloved Man of Steel has an extremely low one. Make of that what you will. Either way, one can only assume those critics and bloggers praising Pacific Rim as if it were the second coming of Christ were desperate to get a mention in a TV spot. Thank goodness it's so far performed badly at the box office, because at least that means we won't have to endure a second outing of this rubbish.

Imagine the worst Syfy movie ever with decent special effects and there you have Pacific Rim. Laughably bad, poorly written and directed, and entirely forgettable, it's yet another big budget disappointment. AVOID.









When legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes—a washed up former pilot and an untested trainee — who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse.


STARRING:

Charlie Hunnam as Raleigh Antrobus
Rinko Kikuchi as Mako Mori
Idris Elba as General Stacker Pentecost
Charlie Day as Newt Gotlieb
Ron Perlman as Hannibal Chow
Clifton Collins Jr. as Tendo Choi
Max Martini as Herc Hansen
Robert Kazinsky as Yancy Antrobus

RELEASE DATE: Out Now!
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JoshWilding
JoshWilding - 7/16/2013, 10:56 AM
Image and video hosting by TinyPic
Ironnick
Ironnick - 7/16/2013, 11:03 AM
We got that you didn't like it, but you don't have to be an ass about it...
bence61541
bence61541 - 7/16/2013, 11:07 AM
I feel like you're hating on it for the sake of hating on it. the gif is pretty unnecessary.
LEVITIKUZ
LEVITIKUZ - 7/16/2013, 11:07 AM
JoshWilding must need some quick cash before Comic-Con.
JoeMomma29
JoeMomma29 - 7/16/2013, 11:08 AM
LOL one star!!!! I enjoyed the movie for what it was, I guess some fans on this site are still waiting for that Godfather CBM or Sci-Fi movie to come out!
thatcoldblackcloud
thatcoldblackcloud - 7/16/2013, 11:08 AM
[frick] YOU Wilding (yeah, ill prolly get banned for that one...) THE movie is goood... it's mindless entertainment at its finest! Its a movie about giant monsters fighting giant robots...what the [frick] would you expect? Shindlers list meets godzilla?!?!!

HMPH!
ALegendaryPanda
ALegendaryPanda - 7/16/2013, 11:09 AM
JoshBerger
JoshBerger - 7/16/2013, 11:10 AM
1 star out of 5 ...lol DAYUM!
Benjamitesandwich
Benjamitesandwich - 7/16/2013, 11:10 AM
Hmmmm, let me get this straight. You give many crap movies 5 stars, but you give this freaking amazing movie 1? It was absolutely thrilling! While this movie wasn't the best movie I have seen, it's still bloody exciting.
ALegendaryPanda
ALegendaryPanda - 7/16/2013, 11:11 AM
@This review

JoeMomma29
JoeMomma29 - 7/16/2013, 11:11 AM
@ Levi

That is not nice! I am sure you can make more money by saving your used soda cans.

campblood
campblood - 7/16/2013, 11:12 AM
I liked PR
r3negade
r3negade - 7/16/2013, 11:12 AM
This is Lame. I saw Pacific Rim yesterday and It's in my top 5 favorite movies!
BatsFan
BatsFan - 7/16/2013, 11:12 AM
WTF?
ALegendaryPanda
ALegendaryPanda - 7/16/2013, 11:13 AM
Go home JOSH, you're drunk.
Abary
Abary - 7/16/2013, 11:13 AM
Wow. 1 star for a summer blockbuster as opposed to 5... Hm..........
JoeMomma29
JoeMomma29 - 7/16/2013, 11:14 AM
You know all the old Godzilla movies had great back stories etc..... man those are classics.

NeoBaggins
NeoBaggins - 7/16/2013, 11:14 AM
THANK YOU! And your score is even LOWER than mine. I guess we do agree on something.

Lord Baggins awesome PACIFIC RIM review
Sitterson
Sitterson - 7/16/2013, 11:14 AM
Didn't read. I don't care about people that can't have fun and see a fun action movie like the Avengers or Independence Day. Some people need to lighten up. Pacifc Rim is one of my favorite films of all times, and I had a blast. I feel sorry for those that didn't have fun watching it.
campblood
campblood - 7/16/2013, 11:15 AM
and this article is mean for the sake of being mean and getting people upset which is the very core of being a Internet troll
SugarYumYum
SugarYumYum - 7/16/2013, 11:15 AM
LOL Josh

I'll agree with you on the dialogue but everything else was pretty solid to me. Needs more drifting in the sequel, because I thought that was just so cool.
Quasimodo
Quasimodo - 7/16/2013, 11:15 AM
The movie looks like crap, I'm not surprised
Sitterson
Sitterson - 7/16/2013, 11:15 AM
Neo, you are a lost soul. I feel for you.
BatsFan
BatsFan - 7/16/2013, 11:15 AM
Are you [frick]ing high ?
THRILLHO
THRILLHO - 7/16/2013, 11:16 AM
jessepostal
jessepostal - 7/16/2013, 11:17 AM
Opinions vary people, just goes to show you, always make your own.
THRILLHO
THRILLHO - 7/16/2013, 11:18 AM
bluehit
bluehit - 7/16/2013, 11:18 AM
WTF? Pacific Rim is AWESOME
Gern
Gern - 7/16/2013, 11:18 AM
Yeah, I don't agree with ANY of this review.

"Mostly beloved Man of Steel"? Really? I know it has its fans but let's be honest - it's a super polarizing movie.

If anything, this movie was what I desperately wanted Man of Steel to be - fun, engaging, action that actually built up naturally, not boring as all hell, an earnestness missing from recent movies, fun, characters who (while totally slight and basically archetypes) actually had some sort of personality, camerawork that didn't give me a headache, had clichés but embraced them in a fun way, did I mention it was actually fun to watch? :)
Brokensteel1228
Brokensteel1228 - 7/16/2013, 11:19 AM
Completely Agree with your review, this is one of the worst movies i have seen in awhile. The 3 Good action scenes alone couldn't save it
GeekyCheekyChic
GeekyCheekyChic - 7/16/2013, 11:19 AM
I gave it 2.5
Saw it in IMAX and aside from the giant fights the rest of the film is forgettable. I really wanted to like it but it just felt like an incomplete film. I will see it again to see if I change my mind but for now it was underwhelming.
MrReese
MrReese - 7/16/2013, 11:19 AM
@Josh lmao PIPEBOMB!!

The movie was meh.
Silentman
Silentman - 7/16/2013, 11:20 AM
Wasn't that bad. Wasn't that good either, but I didn't hate it. Totally agree on the writing though, very poor. But I saw this movie to see giant robots fight giant monsters and to see Charlie Day be hilarious, and I got that, for the most part. I totally get your critiques though.
third3ye
third3ye - 7/16/2013, 11:20 AM
Way too harsh there. Yes the acting and some of the dialogue was subpar but comparing it to a Syfy film is completely off base. The acting was good enough to carry the movie from one action scene to the next. And the kaiju battles were by far the best action scenes this year.
JoeMomma29
JoeMomma29 - 7/16/2013, 11:20 AM
Hey maybe they should have included this in the movie!

prronred
prronred - 7/16/2013, 11:20 AM
I saw it the other day and thought it was very good. It may not be Shakespeare (thankfully), but it isn't awefull. The acting and the effects aren't bad either.
Sagart
Sagart - 7/16/2013, 11:20 AM
I don't think I've ever said this about a reviewer before, but I actually feel sorry for you, Josh.
optimus
optimus - 7/16/2013, 11:21 AM
You Know Josh...
Pacific Rim is the best movie based in anime-mecha.

PD: [frick] you stupid ass "review", Bay and Transformers
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