‘Pacific Rim’ Blu-ray Review: A Total Blast

Pacific Rim is fun. It’s a total blast that completely caught me off guard as I began watching it. I should note that this was the first time watching the film, and must admit that I would have drooled all over the movie theater had I seen it there first. However, the Blu-ray edition still had me visually impressed with the film from beginning to end. This is an eye-candy, action-packed delight that had me smiling throughout.

Pacific Rim is about big monsters that are terrorizing the earth, leaving it up to the human race to create machines that are big enough and strong enough to combat these monsters. These machines, known as Jaegers, are run by two man crews who connect with each other’s minds so that they can pilot the robot as one mind. The connection of the two pilots allows them to attack with the Jaeger in one fluid motion. It’s an interesting concept as during the movie two of the main characters need to fight each other to see how compatible they are when it comes to drifting. Better compatibility with one another leads to a better pairing for syncing their minds and controlling the robot as a whole.

I wish there was more time for character interaction as I feel that’s the only thing really lacking from the film. There are still many great moments where we learn the backgrounds of these characters, so the development is good, but additional character interaction could have been better. I’ll go ahead and say that it might be because I ended up liking the movie and the characters so much that I wish there was more of it just to have more. Every character is very interesting and likable, especially the main characters as the actors do an excellent job filling their roles. Heck, there is even a team that we don’t learn much about that still comes across as really cool just because of their appearance and a quick background on who they are and what they’ve done.

Pacific Rim features some of the best scenes I’ve seen in a movie, it’s just so entertaining to watch these Jaegers as they battle the Kaiju. It’s always a struggle for these characters, too, while in battle, which makes the scenes even more compelling. It has the viewer wondering what’s going to happen next, or how’s that going to work? It’s just a fun ride throughout, even in the moments that do become predictable.

Pacific Rim is one of those special movies that can connect with the inner kid inside a lot of us. It’s monsters vs robots, and there are guys who pilot these robots that kill these monsters. This is awesome stuff! It makes me want to be a Jaeger pilot that goes out to protect our cities from these giant creatures. It’s just cool, man!

The Blu-ray edition comes with a nice selection of special features that those who enjoy the movie will find very interesting to drift their way through. There are 14 features that take a closer look at Kaijus, Jaegers, the sets, stunts, sounds, special effects and art, and more. There is also a director’s notebook that I enjoyed quite a bit, where the director gave more information about how he felt during the creation process of the movie. There is plenty to like with hours of bonus content.

I really enjoyed the special moments where we learn just a little bit more about each character, and also the incredible battle scenes that go on throughout the movie. This is easily one of my favorite movies of late and one that must be seen by all, even if just for the splendid special effects and action.

Grade: A