Pacific Rim (film): Difference between revisions
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{{Infobox film |
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| name = Pacific Rim |
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| image = Pacific Rim FilmPoster.jpeg |
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| alt = |
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| caption = North America release poster |
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| director = [[Guillermo del Toro]] |
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| producer = {{Plainlist | |
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* [[Thomas Tull]] |
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* Jon Jashni |
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* Guillermo del Toro |
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* [[Mary Parent]] |
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}} |
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| screenplay = {{Plainlist | |
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* [[Travis Beacham]] |
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* Guillermo del Toro |
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}} |
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| story = Travis Beacham |
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| starring = {{Plainlist | |
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* [[Charlie Hunnam]] |
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* [[Idris Elba]] |
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* [[Rinko Kikuchi]] |
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* [[Charlie Day]] |
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* [[Robert Kazinsky]] |
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* [[Max Martini]] |
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* [[Ron Perlman]] |
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}} |
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| music = [[Ramin Djawadi]] |
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| cinematography = [[Guillermo Navarro]] |
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| editing = {{Plainlist | |
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* John Gilroy |
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* Peter Amundson |
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}} |
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| studio = [[Legendary Pictures]] |
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| distributor = [[Warner Bros.]] Pictures |
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| released = {{Film date|2013|07|01|Mexico City}}{{Film date|2013|07|12|United States}} |
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| runtime = 132 minutes<!--Theatrical runtime: 132:18--><ref>{{cite web|title=''PACIFIC RIM'' (12A)|url=http://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/pacific-rim-2013-5|work=[[British Board of Film Classification]]|date=July 9, 2013|accessdate=July 9, 2013}}</ref> |
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| country = United States |
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| language = English |
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| budget = $190 million<ref name="mojo">{{cite web|url=http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=pacificrim.htm|title=Pacific Rim|publisher=[[Box Office Mojo]]|accessdate=August 25, 2013}}</ref> |
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| gross = $411,002,944<ref name="mojo" /> |
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}} |
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'''''Pacific Rim''''' is a 2013 American [[science fiction film|science fiction]] [[monster film]] directed by [[Guillermo del Toro]], and starring [[Charlie Hunnam]], [[Idris Elba]], [[Rinko Kikuchi]], [[Charlie Day]], [[Robert Kazinsky]], [[Max Martini]], and [[Ron Perlman]]. The screenplay is by [[Travis Beacham]] and del Toro, with a story by Beacham. The film is set in the 2020s, when Earth is at war with the [[Kaiju]]s,{{ref|1|1}} colossal monsters which have emerged from an interdimensional [[Portal (doorway)|portal]] on the bottom of the [[Pacific Ocean]]. To combat the monsters, humanity unites to create the Jaegers:{{ref|2|2}} gigantic humanoid [[mecha]], each controlled by at least two pilots, whose minds are joined by a neural bridge. Focusing on the war's later days, the story follows Raleigh Becket, a washed-up Jaeger pilot called out of retirement and teamed with rookie pilot Mako Mori as part of a last-ditch effort to defeat the Kaijus. |
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Del Toro envisioned ''Pacific Rim'' as an earnest, colorful adventure story, with an "incredibly airy and light feel", in contrast to the "super-brooding, super-dark, cynical summer movie". The director focused on "big, beautiful, sophisticated visuals" and action that would satisfy an adult audience, but has stated his "real hope" is to introduce the kaiju and mecha genres to a generation of children.<ref name="HeroComplex">{{cite web | url = http://herocomplex.latimes.com/movies/guillermo-del-toro-edges-toward-greater-success-with-pacific-rim/ | title = Guillermo del Toro edges toward greater success with ''Pacific Rim'' | last = McIntyre | first = Gina | work = Hero Complex – movies, comics, pop culture | publisher = Los Angeles Times }}</ref> While the film draws heavily on these genres, it avoids direct references to previous works. Del Toro intended to create something original but "madly in love" with its influences, instilled with "epic beauty" and "operatic grandeur".<ref name="Blastr" /> The end credits dedicate the film to [[Ray Harryhausen]] and [[Ishirō Honda]], who helped to establish the giant monster genre with films such as ''[[The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms]]'' and ''[[Godzilla (1954 film)|Godzilla]]'' respectively. |
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The film was produced by [[Legendary Pictures]] and distributed by [[Warner Bros.]] It was released on July 12, 2013 including releases in [[3D film|3-D]] and [[IMAX 3D]]. While the film received positive reviews, with the visual effects receiving particular praise, and was highly successful in many other territories, the film was a disappointment at the United States box office.<ref name = A>{{cite news |url=http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2013/09/02/pacific-rim-and-more-domestic-flops-that-became-global-hits/ |title=''Pacific Rim'' And More Domestic 'Flops' That Became Global Hits |work=[[Forbes]] |last=Mendelson |first=Scott |date=September 2, 2013 |accessdate=September 3, 2013}}</ref> It earned a worldwide total of more than $411 million, including $114 million in China, its largest market. |
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== Plot == |
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In 2013, human cities come under attack by the Kaijus, colossal beasts who come to Earth through a portal on the Pacific Ocean floor. To combat them the [[Pacific Rim]] nations build the Jaegers, equally colossal robotic war machines. Each Jaeger is piloted by two people whose brains are linked to share the mental load of operating the machine. The Jaegers are initially effective, but many are destroyed as the Kaijus grow more powerful and their attacks more frequent. In 2025, the governments deem the Jaeger program ineffective and discontinue it in favor of building massive coastal walls. The four remaining Jaegers are redeployed to [[Hong Kong]] to defend the coast until the wall is completed. Jaeger commander Stacker Pentecost devises a plan to end the threat permanently by destroying the portal with a [[thermonuclear weapon|nuclear bomb]]. |
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Pentecost recruits retired Jaeger pilot Raleigh Becket to pilot ''Gipsy Danger'', the Jaeger he and his brother Yancy once operated together. During a mission in 2020, Yancy was killed by a Kaiju while still mentally linked to his brother. Raleigh travels to Hong Kong with Pentecost and begins the process of finding a new co-pilot. Raleigh selects Mako Mori, the director of the Jaeger refurbishment project and Pentecost's adopted daughter. Pentecost reluctantly allows Mako to participate in a test run with Raleigh. During the test, Mako loses control and nearly discharges ''Gipsy Danger''{{'}}s cannon in the hangar. Pentecost deems her unready for combat and grounds the pair. When two Kaijus attack Hong Kong, destroying two Jaegers and disabling a third, Pentecost is forced to allow them to pilot ''Gipsy Danger''. The Kaijus are defeated. |
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Meanwhile, Newton Geiszler, a scientist studying the Kaijus, creates a device that allows him to establish a mental link with a Kaiju brain. He discovers that the Kaijus are not wild beasts but cloned living weapons that share a [[Group mind (science fiction)|hive mind]] and fight at the behest of a race of alien colonists who wish to invade Earth. Pentecost demands that Geiszler repeat the experiment on a different Kaiju brain and sends him to Hannibal Chau, a criminal who sells Kaiju body parts on the black market. Geiszler commissions Chau to recover an intact brain. Chau's men investigate one of the fallen Kaijus and are attacked by its unborn offspring, which devours Chau before dying. Geiszler links with its brain and learns that the ocean portal only opens for Kaiju DNA, meaning the bombing mission will fail. |
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The two remaining Jaegers commence the plan to bomb the portal. Pentecost is forced to pilot the Jaeger ''Striker Eureka'' after one of its pilots is injured; Raleigh and Mako pilot ''Gipsy Danger''. Arriving at the portal, they are ambushed by three Kaijus including the largest ever encountered. A violent battle ensues, crippling ''Gipsy Danger'' and rendering ''Striker Eureka'' unable to deliver the bomb. Geiszler warns the two Jaegers that they must take a Kaiju into the portal with them for the bombing to work, and Pentecost decides to detonate his bomb immediately to clear a path to the portal for Raleigh and Mako. Since ''Gipsy Danger'' has a [[nuclear reactor core]] they can use it to destroy the portal. Pentecost detonates his bomb, destroying two Kaiju and his Jaeger. ''Gipsy Danger'' kills the third Kaiju and uses its body to open the portal. Once inside, Raleigh ejects Mako's escape pod and sets the Jaeger to self-destruct. The Jaeger erupts on the other side of the portal, destroying the invading aliens and the portal. Raleigh is able to jettison his escape pod and travel back before the portal collapses. Mako and Raleigh's escape pods surface safely in the Pacific, and the duo embrace as rescue helicopters arrive. |
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In a [[post-credits scene]], Chau cuts his way out of the newborn Kaiju's stomach. |
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== Cast == |
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{{Multiple image |
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| width = 175 |
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| footer = Top to bottom: [[Charlie Hunnam]], [[Idris Elba]], and [[Rinko Kikuchi]] star in the film as Raleigh Becket, Stacker Pentecost and Mako Mori respectively. |
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| image1 = Charlie Hunnam by Gage Skidmore.jpg |
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| alt1 = |
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| caption1 = |
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| image2 = Idris Elba 2007 Cropped.jpg |
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| alt2 = |
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| caption2 = |
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| image3 = Rinko Kikuchi cropped.jpg |
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| alt3 = |
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}} |
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* [[Charlie Hunnam]] as Raleigh Becket: |
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: A washed-up former pilot called out of retirement by the Pan Pacific Defense Corps.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.totalfilm.com/features/pacific-rim-the-complete-guide/stepping-up |title=Total Guide to ''Pacific Rim''}}</ref> On casting Hunnam, del Toro stated: "I saw him and I thought he had an earnest, really honest nature. And he was the kind of guy that I can relate to, as a male audience member I go, 'I like that guy. I would like to have a few beers with that guy' … he has an earthy quality.<ref name="GDT-Collider">{{cite web|url=http://collider.com/guillermo-del-toro-pacific-rim-interview/|title=Guillermo del Toro Talks Getting Back in the Director’s Chair, the Evolution of the Script, Creating the World on a Giant Scale, and More on the Set of ''PACIFIC RIM''|work=collider.com|last=Weintraub|first=Steve 'Frosty'|date=June 19, 2013|accessdate=June 20, 2013}}</ref> Describing the character, Hunnam stated: "When you meet me, in the beginning of the story, I've suffered a giant loss. Not only has it killed my sense of self-worth, but also my will to fight and keep on going. And then, Rinko and Idris, and a couple other people, bring me out of retirement to try to help with this grand push. I think that journey is a very relatable one. Everybody, at some point in their life, has fallen down and not felt like getting back up, but you have to, no matter how difficult it is."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://collider.com/guillermo-del-toro-charlie-hunnam-pacific-rim-interview/|title=Comic-Con: Guillermo Del Toro and Charlie Hunnam Talk ''PACIFIC RIM'', Giving the Robots a Personality, Ghost Stories, ''PROMETHEUS'', and More|work=collider.com|last=Radish|first=Christina|date=July 16, 2012|accessdate=June 26, 2013}}</ref> Hunnam was also considered for the role of Prince Nuada in del Toro's previous film, ''[[Hellboy II: The Golden Army]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.totalfilm.com/news/guillermo-del-toro-talks-pacific-rim|title=Guillermo del Toro talks Pacific Rim|author=Graham, Jamie|publisher=''[[Total Film]]''|date=June 7, 2012|accessdate=June 9, 2012}}</ref> Paul Michael Wyers plays Raleigh as a child. |
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* [[Idris Elba]] as Stacker Pentecost: |
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: Raleigh's commanding officer. On selecting Elba, del Toro stated: "This is a movie where I have had to deal with more dialogue than ever, and the way I cast the movie was—who do I want to hear say these things? Who do I want Charlie Hunnam to go against? Who can really tell Charlie Hunnam 'sit down and listen'?"<ref name="GDT-Collider" /> In another interview, the director said: "I wanted to have Idris not be the blonde, square-jawed, Anglo, super hip marine that knows [everything]. I wanted somebody that could bring a lot of authority, but that you could feel the weight of the world on his shoulders. When I watched ''[[Luther (TV series)|Luther]]'', that's the essence of the character... Luther is carrying literally the evils of the world on his shoulders. He's doing penance for all humanity... Idris is one of those actors that is capable of embodying humanity, in almost like a [[Auguste Rodin|Rodin]] sculpture-type, larger than life, almost like a Russian realism statue, you know, big hands, all the turmoil of humanity in his eyes. I wanted somebody that you could have doubts internally, and very few guys can do that."<ref name="IGN-1">{{cite web|url=http://ign.com/articles/2013/06/20/ign-heads-to-the-set-of-pacific-rim|title=IGN Heads to the Set of ''Pacific Rim''|last=Nicholson|first=Max|date=June 20, 2013|accessdate=June 24, 2013}}</ref> To prepare for the role, Elba watched footage of politicians [[David Cameron]] and [[Barack Obama]], as well as [[Russell Crowe]] in ''[[Gladiator (2000 film)|Gladiator]]'' and [[Mel Gibson]] in ''[[Braveheart]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/videos/entertainment/pacific-rim-interview-with-idris-elba-29397638.html|title=''Pacific Rim'' interview with Idris Elba|accessdate=July 7, 2013}}</ref> Del Toro initially offered the role to [[Tom Cruise]], who declined because of scheduling conflicts.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/entertainment/film-tv/news/del-toro-hunnam-can-date-daughters-29427356.html|title=Del Toro: Hunnam can date daughters|work=belfasttelegraph.com|date=July 17, 2013|accessdate=July 17, 2013}}</ref> |
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* [[Rinko Kikuchi]] as Mako Mori: |
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: Raleigh's co-pilot who lost her family in a Kaiju attack. Though Mori possesses a strength and fury that should serve well against the Kaijus, Pentecost is reluctant to use her, partly because of a fatherly bond and partly because he knows she is still fighting the terror of her childhood.<ref name="trauma">{{cite web|url=http://www.hitfix.com/motion-captured/rinko-kikuchi-on-how-trauma-forms-character-in-pacific-rim|title=Rinko Kikuchi on how trauma forms character in ''Pacific Rim''|work=hitfix.com|last=McWeeny|first=Drew|date=July 6, 2013|accessdate=July 7, 2013}}</ref> Del Toro stated: "I was very careful how I built the movie. One of the other things I decided was that I wanted a female lead who has the equal force as the male leads. She's not going to be a sex kitten, she's not going to come out in cutoff shorts and a tank top, and it's going to be a real earnestly drawn character."<ref name="Star" /> Noting that the other actors were exhausted and "destroyed physically" by filming in the intensive Jaeger cockpit harnesses, del Toro said: "The only one that didn't break was Rinko Kikuchi, the girl. She never complained... I asked Rinko her secret and she said 'I think of gummi bears and flowers.' I try to do that in my life now."<ref name="Kline">{{cite web|url=http://www.geekexchange.com/guillermo-del-toro-talks-pacific-rim-robots-monsters-cast-and-more-52179.html|title=GUILLERMO DEL TORO TALKS PACIFIC RIM ROBOTS, MONSTERS, CAST, AND MORE!|work=geekexchange.com|last=Kline|first=Doug|date=April 4, 2013|accessdate=July 7, 2013}}</ref> [[Mana Ashida]] plays Mako as a child.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tokyohive.com/article/2012/12/ashida-mana-to-make-her-hollywood-debut-in-pacific-rim/|title=Ashida Mana to make her Hollywood debut in 'Pacific Rim'|date=December 13, 2012|accessdate=July 13, 2013}}</ref> |
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* [[Charlie Day]] as Dr. Newton Geiszler: |
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: A scientist studying the Kaijus. Day stated: "Certainly myself and Burn Gorman provide a little bit of much needed levity, it's a break from the monsters and the guys fighting. But then the character gets thrust into the story in a way that his life is seriously at risk and it becomes a little more action oriented and a little more horror movie-esque. So, he kinda bounces back between being humorous and also being real... the rest of these guys, they look really good in their suits and they've got abs, they can kick and fight and punch. Newt is sort of the 'everyman' and he's flawed and he's arrogant."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://collider.com/charlie-day-pacific-rim-interview/|title=Charlie Day Talks How He Got Involved with the Project, Bringing Levity to the Story, the Giant Sets, and More on the Set of ''PACIFIC RIM''|work=collider.com|last=Weintraub|first=Steve 'Frosty'|date=June 19, 2013|accessdate=June 20, 2013}}</ref> Del Toro gave Geiszler the mentality of a [[celebrity chef]], with tattoos and a "big personality".<ref name="Julian" /> According to the director, Day was cast based on his performance in an episode of ''[[It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia]]'': "He comes out with a stick, and he has a monologue about what it is to hunt the rats in the basement. It was very funny, but he was coming from character. He was not doing big stuff, he was, like, really mourning and lamenting his job, you know, how inhuman it is. And I thought, 'This guy is great at shading and comedy.' There are moments in the movie where he delivers them both." Trek Buccino portrays Geiszler as a child. |
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* [[Max Martini]] as Herc Hansen: |
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: Chuck's father and co-pilot. Kazinsky stated Martini hated the fact that he was cast as Chuck's father, being only 13 years Kazinsky's senior. However Kazinsky said they developed a bond while filming, "Because we were working so tight together, we would finish and then we would go out for dinner every night and we would go to the gym together on days off we had... The emotional scene toward the end with the father-son parting, it was very easy for me to play because I had grown to actually genuinely love Max as a man and as a friend." Kazinsky revealed that Herc and Chuck's pet bulldog was del Toro's idea and said, "The dog's name was Max, ironically, and we ended up using Max for so many things. The story was that Herc and Chuck have difficulty communicating, that they communicated via the dog, and all the love that they couldn’t show each other they would show the dog."<ref name="LATimes 2013-07-15" /> The role was originally written for Ron Perlman, but del Toro decided the scenes between Perlman's Herc and Hunnam's Raleigh "might start to feel like ''[[Sons of Anarchy]] 2.0''".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://toromagazine.com/features/talking-to/20130729/guillermo-del-toro|title=Talking to... Guillermo del Toro|publisher=TORO Magazine|last=Brown|first=Phil|date=July 29, 2013|accessdate=August 21, 2013}}</ref> |
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* [[Robert Kazinsky]] as Chuck Hansen: |
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: An Australian Jaeger pilot considered the finest soldier left in the Resistance. He and his father pilot ''Striker Eureka'', "the strongest and the fastest" Jaeger with eleven Kaiju kills, and make up the Resistance's "go-to team".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://collider.com/rob-kazinsky-true-blood-season-6-interview/|title=Rob Kazinsky Talks TRUE BLOOD Season 6, His Character’s Relationship with Sookie, Getting Naked on the Show, PACIFIC RIM, and More|last=Radish|first=Christina|work=collider.com|date=July 6, 2013|accessdate=July 6, 2013}}</ref> Kazinsky, a fan of science-fiction, was initially drawn by the film's concept, "My immediate reaction was 'Holy crap, that's cool.' In the hands of somebody else, you might sit there and go, 'Well, this might be terrible,' but with del Toro doing it, you kind of go, 'This is going to be amazing.'".<ref name="LATimes 2013-07-15">{{cite web |last=McIntyre |first=Gina |date=July 6, 2013 |title=‘True Blood’ actor Robert Kazinsky talks genre, ‘Pacific Rim’ role |url=http://herocomplex.latimes.com/movies/true-blood-actor-robert-kazinsky-talks-genre-pacific-rim-role/#/0 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |accessdate=July 15, 2013}}</ref> Reflecting on his experience in the film, Kazinsky said in an interview, "The most fun I have ever had in my entire life was Pacific Rim, playing Chuck was incredibly fun."<ref>{{cite web|last=O'Connor|first=Shannon|title=Rob Kazinsky Talks Siren, Pacific Rim and True Blood|url=http://emertainmentmonthly.com/2013/11/08/rob-kazinsky-talks-siren-pacific-rim-and-true-blood/|publisher=Emertainment Monthly|accessdate=November 9, 2013}}</ref> |
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* [[Ron Perlman]] as Hannibal Chau: |
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: A [[black market]]eer who makes a living dealing Kaiju organs. Perlman stated, "I actually think this character was designed to be played by another ethnicity other than myself. And somewhere along the way, [del Toro] had the notion, 'Wouldn't it be interesting to turn this guy into more of an invention.' So, in other words, somebody takes on a persona that completely sounds like he's someone else and acts like he's someone else but he's really, you know, as you see me. That added a dimension to the larger-than-life aspect of the character... I'm playing somebody very close to my own origins. But a completely made-up persona... which makes him even more full of shit. And I think that's the charm of the guy—that he's kind of elusive, hard to pin down.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://collider.com/ron-perlman-pacific-rim-interview/|title=Ron Perlman Talks Developing His Own Character, Practical Effects vs. CG, His Relationship with Guillermo del Toro, & More on the Set of ''PACIFIC RIM''|work=collider.com|last=Weintraub|first=Steve 'Frosty'|date=June 19, 2013|accessdate=June 20, 2013}}</ref> ''Pacific Rim'' marks Perlman's fifth appearance in a del Toro film. The director stated: "I think the moment you have a guy that is called Hannibal Chau and Ron shows up, and he's from Brooklyn and he's been selling black market organs, you know the whole story... That's all I need to know. If it's any other actor, there's a lot more explaining to do. But when Ron comes in with that look, you can make your own story and it'll be as compelling as anything I can invent. You do a little weightlifting with the audience."<ref name="IGN-1" /> The bird tattoos on Chau's fingers indicate his past as a gangster.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://guardianlv.com/2013/07/pacific-rim-ron-perlmans-new-direction-in-life/|title=''Pacific Rim'': Ron Perlman’s New Direction in Life|work=guardianlv.com|last=Shamsul|first=Jayeeta|date=July 14, 2013|accessdate=July 20, 2013}}</ref> In the film, Chau states he took the name from his [[Hannibal|favorite historical figure]] and his second-favorite [[Szechuan cuisine|Szechuan restaurant]] in Brooklyn.<ref name="Kline" /> Del Toro drew inspiration from [[Burt Lancaster]]'s performance in ''[[Elmer Gantry (film)|Elmer Gantry]]'' when writing the character.<ref name="Boston" /> |
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* [[Clifton Collins, Jr.]] as Ops Tendo Choi: |
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: A Chinese-American Jaeger technician. Collins described his character as the "brains" behind the Jaegers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpkKv9rBvyQ|title=Pacific Rim Clifton Collins Jr Interview|publisher=''Flicks''|date=July 9, 2013|accessdate=July 17, 2013}}</ref> |
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* [[Burn Gorman]] as Dr. Hermann Gottlieb: |
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: A scientist studying the Kaijus alongside Geiszler. According to del Toro, Gottlieb is a "tweed-wearing, English, [[phlegmatic]] introvert that never leaves the lab". The modest Gottlieb resents Geiszler's arrogance and radical behavior; the duo echo the film's theme of incompatible people functioning together when the time comes.<ref name="Julian">{{cite web|url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAZfjnBtaOU|title=Guillermo del Toro On ''Pacific Rim''|last=Julian|first=Mark|work=youtube.com|publisher=[[YouTube]]|date=June 29, 2013|accessdate=June 30, 2013}}</ref> Drew Adkins portrays Gottlieb as a child. |
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* [[Diego Klattenhoff]] as Yancy Becket: |
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: Raleigh's older brother and co-pilot. Klattentoff joined the project to work with del Toro. Describing his character, Klattentoff stated: "This is a guy who is looking out for his very eager, younger brother and they were enabled with this gift that gave them the opportunity to kind of save the world. Or help, at least."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XW2yS3tS6a4|title=Pacific Rim: Diego Klattenhoff "Yancy Becket" On Set Interview|publisher=''Screen Slam''|date=July 1, 2013|accessdate=July 17, 2013}}</ref> Tyler Stevenson plays Yancy as a child. |
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* [[Ellen McLain]] as Gipsy Danger AI: |
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: The voice of Gipsy Danger's artificial intelligence system.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://kotaku.com/5951086/guillermo-del-toros-next-movie-has-a-little-glados-in-it |title=Guillermo Del Toro's Next Movie Has a Little GlaDOS in It |first=Evan|last=Narcisse |date=October 11, 2012|accessdate=October 13, 2012}}</ref> Del Toro secured permission from [[Valve Corporation]] to cast McLain in homage to [[GLaDOS]], her homicidal AI character in the [[Portal (series)|''Portal'' video games]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/05/del-toro-got-valves-permission-to-use-glados-voice-in-pacific/ |title=Del Toro got Valve's permission to use GlaDOS' voice in ''Pacific Rim'' |date=January 5, 2013 |accessdate=January 6, 2013}}</ref> The director stated: "It was clear to me that we needed something beautiful in that voice. My daughter is my wingman, we had done co-op on ''[[Portal 2]]'' for a long time and I did ''[[Portal (video game)|Portal 1]]'' when it came out. It becomes ingrained in you, that voice. I didn't want to use her as a negative force of evil. I called Valve and asked 'Can you give us the filter?' so we went full GLaDOS for the first commercial, but I thought it was too much. If you're a gamer, it's too distracting so we created our own GLaDOS 2.0 filter that's a little less full-on."<ref name="AICN-Quint">{{cite web|url=http://www.aintitcool.com/node/63094|title=Quint reports on the latest from Legendary Pictures! ''Pacific Rim'', ''Mass Effect'', ''Warcraft'', ''Seventh Son'', ''Godzilla'' and more! Plus a photo tour of the Kubrick Exhibit!|last=Vespe|first=Eric|work=aintitcool.com|publisher=[[Ain't It Cool News]]|date=June 30, 2013|accessdate=July 1, 2013}}</ref> |
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Additional Jaeger pilots include Charles Luu, Lance Luu and Mark Luu as the Wei Tang triplets (China), and [[Robert Maillet]] and [[Heather Doerksen]] as Sasha and Aleksis Kaidanovsky (Russia). [[Joe Pingue]] portrays Captain Merrit, the captain of a fishing boat caught in a battle between Jaeger and Kaiju. [[Santiago Segura]] plays an aide to Hannibal Chau.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/agencia-efe/130630/del-toro-casts-perlman-segura-pacific-rim|title=Del Toro casts Perlman, Segura in ''Pacific Rim''|work=globalpost.com|date=June 30, 2013|accessdate=June 30, 2013}}</ref> [[Brad William Henke]] and [[Larry Joe Campbell]] portray members of a construction team Raleigh joins after retiring from the Pan Pacific Defense Corps. [[Robin Thomas]], Julian Barnes, and [[David Richmond-Peck]] portray [[United Nations|U.N.]] representatives from the United States, Great Britain, and Canada respectively. [[Sebastian Pigott]] appears as a Jaeger engineer and [[Joshua Peace]] appears as an officer. [[David Fox (actor)|David Fox]] plays an old man on a beach, while Jane Watson portrays Raleigh and Yancy's mother in a flashback sequence.<ref>[http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3024569/resume IMDb Resume for Jane Watson (VI)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1663662/fullcredits?ref_=tt_ov_st_sm#cast Pacific Rim (2013) – Full cast and crew<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/pacific_rim_2013/ |title=Pacific Rim |publisher=Rotten Tomatoes |date= |accessdate=July 21, 2013}}</ref> Producer Thomas Tull makes a cameo appearance.<ref name="Wired-Watercutter" /> |
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== Themes == |
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In the film, a Jaeger's neural load is too much for a single pilot to handle alone, meaning they must first be psychically linked to another pilot—a concept called "Drifting". When pilots Drift, they quickly gain intimate knowledge of each other's memories and feelings, and have no choice but to accept them; del Toro found this concept's dramatic potential compelling. The director expressed his intention that the empathy metaphors extend to real life: "The pilots' smaller stories actually make a bigger point, which is that we're all together in the same robot [in life]... Either we get along or we die. I didn't want this to be a recruitment ad or anything jingoistic. The idea of the movie is just for us to trust each other, to cross over barriers of color, sex, beliefs, whatever, and just stick together." Del Toro acknowledged this message's simplicity, but said he would have liked to have seen adventure films with similar morals when he was a child.<ref name="Boston">{{cite web|url=http://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/movies/2013/07/06/pacific-rim-latest-heartfelt-project-from-guillermo-del-toro/aTU5X0wLpNaUe1GpbHqDUO/story.html|title=''Pacific Rim'' is the heartfelt project from del Toro|last=Russo|first=Tom|work=bostonglobe.com|date=July 6, 2013|accessdate=July 7, 2013}}</ref> The film's ten primary characters all have "little arcs" conducive to this idea; del Toro stated: "I think that's a great message to give kids... 'That guy you were beating the shit out of ten minutes ago? That's the guy you have to work with five minutes later.' That's life... We can only be complete when we work together." The director noted that ''[[Hellboy (film)|Hellboy]]'' and ''[[The Devil's Backbone]]'' told the same message, though the latter conveyed it in a very different way.<ref name="Beaks1">{{cite web|url=http://www.aintitcool.com/node/63167|title=Mr. Beaks Talks PACIFIC RIM, World Building And Gargantuas With Guillermo del Toro And Travis Beacham! Part One Of Two!|work=aintitcool.com|author=Mr. Beaks|date=July 8, 2013|accessdate=July 8, 2013}}</ref> |
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The film centers on the relationship between Becket and Mori, but is not a love story in a conventional sense. Both are deeply damaged human beings who have decided to suppress their respective traumas. While learning to pilot their Jaeger, they undergo a process of "opening up", gaining access to each other's thoughts, memories and secrets. Their relationship is necessarily one of respect and "perfect trust". Hunnam commented that the film is "a love story without a love story. It's about all of the necessary elements of love without arriving at love itself".<ref name="trauma" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://screenrant.com/chralie-hunnam-pacific-rim-interview/|title=Charlie Hunnam Talks Love and Psychic Bonds in ''Pacific Rim''|work=screenrant.com|last=Outlaw|first=Kofi|date=August 2012|accessdate=July 7, 2013}}</ref> Both Becket and Mori have suffered profound personal tragedies; one of the script's central ideas is that two damaged people can metaphorically "become one", with their figurative missing pieces connecting almost like a puzzle.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://movies.about.com/od/pacificrim/a/guillermo-del-toro-charlie-hunnam-ron-perlman.htm|title=Director Guillermo del Toro Discusses ''Pacific Rim''|work=movies.about.com|last=Murray|first=Rebecca|accessdate=June 20, 2013}}</ref> Del Toro emphasized the characters' emotional intimacy by filming their training fight scene the way he would a sex scene.<ref name="timeout-QA">{{cite web|url=http://www.timeout.com/newyork/film/tony-q-a-pacific-rims-guillermo-del-toro|title=TONY Q&A: ''Pacific Rim''{{'}}s Guillermo del Toro|last=Fear|first=David|publisher=''[[Time Out (magazine)|Time Out]]''|date=July 9, 2013|accessdate=July 10, 2013}}</ref> |
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Del Toro, a self-described pacifist, avoided what he termed "car commercial aesthetics" or "army recruitment video aesthetics", and gave the characters [[Western (genre)|Western]] ranks including "marshal" and "ranger" rather than military ranks such as "captain", "major" or "general". The director stated: "I avoided making any kind of message that says war is good. We have enough firepower in the world."<ref name="Star">{{cite web|url=http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/movies/2013/07/05/pacific_rims_guillermo_del_toro_is_a_monsterloving_pacifist.html|title=''Pacific Rim''{{'}}s Guillermo del Toro is a monster-loving pacifist|work=thestar.com|last=Howell|first=Peter|date=July 5, 2013|accessdate=July 5, 2013}}</ref> Del Toro wanted to break from the mass death and destruction featured in contemporary blockbuster films, and made a point of showing the streets and buildings being evacuated before Kaiju attacks, ensuring that the destruction depicted is "completely remorseless". The director stated: "I don't want people being crushed. I want the joy that I used to get seeing [[Godzilla]] toss a tank without having to think there are guys in the tank... What I think is you could do nothing but echo the moment you're in. There is a global anxiety about how fragile the status quo is and the safety of citizens, but in my mind—honestly—this film is in another realm. There is no correlation to the real world. There is no fear of a copycat kaiju attack because a kaiju saw it on the news and said, 'I'm going to destroy Seattle.' In my case, I'm picking up a tradition. One that started right after World War II and was a coping mechanism, in a way, for Japan to heal the wounds of that war. And it's integral for a kaiju to rampage in the city."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.shocktillyoudrop.com/news/174835-shock-interview-guillermo-del-toro-on-the-development-destruction-and-family-friendly-pacific-rim|title=Shock Interview: Guillermo del Toro on the Development, Destruction and Family-Friendly ''Pacific Rim''|work=shocktillyoudrop.com|last=Turek|first=Ryan|date=July 8, 2013|accessdate=July 9, 2013}}</ref> |
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Writing for the ''[[Los Angeles Review of Books]]'', [[Wai Chee Dimock]] connected the film's central theme of ''togetherness'' to its recurring image of missing shoes, stating the "utopian dream" driving the characters is "that puny humans like us could be 'together'—not only in the specific neural melding that must take place between the two Jaeger co-pilots but also, more generally speaking, in a [[fractal]] web of resemblance, filling the world with copies of ourselves at varying orders of magnitude and with varying degrees of re-expression, beginning with the shoes on our feet."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lareviewofbooks.org/essay/pacific-rim-guillermo-del-toros-fractal-shoes|title=''Pacific Rim'': Guillermo del Toro's Fractal Shoes|publisher=''[[Los Angeles Review of Books]]''|last=Dimock|first=Wai Chee|authorlink=Wai Chee Dimock|date=July 27, 2013|accessdate=July 28, 2013}}</ref> |
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== Production == |
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=== Development === |
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In February 2006, it was reported that [[Guillermo del Toro]] would direct [[Travis Beacham]]'s fantasy screenplay, ''Killing on Carnival Row'', but the project never materialized.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.empiremovies.com/2006/02/09/guillermo-del-toro-directing-carnival-row/|title=Guillermo Del Toro Directing ''Carnival Row''|last=Cullin|first=Liam|work=empiremovies.com|date=February 9, 2006|accessdate=July 5, 2013}}</ref> Beacham conceived ''Pacific Rim'' the following year. While walking on the beach near [[Santa Monica Pier]], the screenwriter imagined a giant robot and a giant monster fighting to the death. "They just sort of materialized out of the fog, these vast, godlike things." He later conceived the idea that each robot had two pilots, asking "what happens when one of those people dies?" Deciding this would be "a story about loss, moving on after loss, and dealing with [[Survivor guilt|survivor's guilt]]", Beacham commenced writing the film.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pacificrimbook.com/content/uploads/PacificRimSpread1.pdf|title=Monsters in the Mist}}</ref> On May 28, 2010, it was reported that [[Legendary Pictures]] had purchased Beacham's detailed 25-page [[film treatment]], now titled ''Pacific Rim''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deadline.com/2010/05/legendary-pictures-re-teams-with-clash-of-the-titans-scribe-on-pacific-rim/|title=Legendary Pictures Re-Teams With ''Clash Of The Titans'' Scribe On ''Pacific Rim'' |last=Fleming|first=Mike|publisher=[[Deadline.com]]|date=May 28, 2010|accessdate=July 11, 2012}}</ref> |
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On July 28, 2010, it was reported that del Toro would next direct an adaptation of [[H. P. Lovecraft]]'s ''[[At the Mountains of Madness]]'' for [[Universal Studios]], with [[James Cameron]] producing.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deadline.com/2010/07/guillermo-del-toro-and-james-cameron-ready-to-climb-at-the-mountains-of-madness-together-at-universal/|title=Guillermo Del Toro And James Cameron Ready To Climb ‘Mountains Of Madness’|last=Fleming Jr|first=Mike|publisher=[[Deadline.com]]|date=July 28, 2010|accessdate=August 21, 2013}}</ref> When del Toro met with Legendary Pictures to discuss the possibility of collaborating with them on a film, he was intrigued by Beacham's treatment—still a "very small pitch" at this point.<ref name="Huffington Post">{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dave-scheidt/pacific-rim-costumes_b_1663227.html|title=Exclusive Sneak Peak of the Costumes From Guillermo del Toro's ''Pacific Rim'' and Interview|last=Scheidt|first=Dave|publisher=The Huffington Post|date=July 11, 2012|accessdate=July 11, 2012}}</ref> Del Toro struck a deal with Legendary: while directing ''At the Mountains of Madness'', he would produce and co-write ''Pacific Rim''; because of the films' conflicting production schedules, he would direct ''Pacific Rim'' only if ''At the Mountains of Madness'' were cancelled.<ref name="AICN-Quint" /> [[Tom Cruise]] was attached to star in the Lovecraft adaptation.<ref name="GDT-Collider" /> |
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[[File:El coloso.jpg|thumb|Del Toro drew inspiration from [[Francisco Goya]]'s ''[[The Colossus (painting)|The Colossus]]'', and hoped to evoke the same "sense of awe" with the film's battles.<ref name="Huffington Post" />]] |
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On March 7, 2011, it was reported that Universal would not proceed with ''At the Mountains of Madness'' because del Toro was unwilling to compromise on the $150 million budget and [[Motion Picture Association of America film rating system|R rating]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deadline.com/2011/03/delays-on-at-the-mountains-of-madness-creates-competition-for-guillermo-del-toros-next-picture-as-legendary-preps-pacific-rim/|title=Competition For Guillermo Del Toro’s Next Picture: Legendary Preps ‘Pacific Rim’|publisher=[[Deadline.com]]|last=Fleming Jr|first=Mike|date=March 7, 2011|accessdate=August 21, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deadline.com/2011/03/qa-guillermo-del-toro-on-why-he-will-direct-pacific-rim-after-at-the-mountains-of-madness-fell-apart/|title=Q&A: Guillermo Del Toro On Why He Will Next Direct ''Pacific Rim'' After ''At The Mountains Of Madness'' Fell Apart|work=[[Deadline.com]]|last=Fleming Jr|first=Mike|date=March 9, 2011|accessdate=June 21, 2013}}</ref> The director later reflected, "When it happened, this has never happened to me, but I actually cried that weekend a lot. I don't want to sound like a puny soul, but I really was devastated. I was weeping for the movie."<ref name="HeroComplex" /> The project collapsed on a Friday, and del Toro signed to direct ''Pacific Rim'' the following Monday.<ref name="GDT-Collider" /> |
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Del Toro spent a year working with Beacham on the screenplay, and is credited as co-writer. He introduced ideas he had always wished to see in the genre, such as a kaiju birth and a kaiju attack seen from a child's perspective.<ref name="timeout-QA" /> The script also received an uncredited rewrite from [[Neil Cross]], who previously created the Idris Elba-starring drama series ''[[Luther (TV series)|Luther]]'' and wrote the del Toro-produced [[horror film]] ''[[Mama (2013 film)|Mama]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/luther-neil-cross-day-of-triffids-ghost-house-sam-raimi-guillermo-del-toro-296001|title=''Luther'' Creator Neil Cross Set to Grow Ghost House's ''Day of the Triffids'' Adaptation|last=Kit|first=Boris|work=hollywoodreporter.com|date=February 29, 2012|accessdate=April 21, 2013}}</ref> [[Patrick Melton]] and [[Marcus Dunstan]] were enlisted to perform uncredited rewrites when their [[spec script]] ''Monstropolis'' caught the filmmaker's attention.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/pacific-rim-writers-god-war-game-adaptation-347251|title=''Pacific Rim'' Writers Tapped for ''God of War'' Adaptation (Exclusive)|last=Kit|first=Boris|work=hollywoodreporter.com|date=October 7, 2012|accessdate=April 21, 2013}}</ref> [[Drew Pearce]] also carried out uncredited work on the script.<ref name="scriptuncredited">{{cite web|url=http://screenrant.com/pacific-rim-update-guillermo-del-toro-sandy-154681/|title=‘Pacific Rim’ Production Update From Guillermo del Toro|publisher=Screenrant|accessdate=August 31, 2013}}</ref> |
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=== Principal photography === |
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[[Principal photography|Filming]] began on November 14, 2011<ref>{{cite web|url=http://geektyrant.com/news/2011/11/16/guillermo-del-toro-gives-update-on-pacific-rim-production-ha.html|title=Guillermo del Toro gives Update on ''PACIFIC RIM'' – Production has Begun|date=November 20, 2011|accessdate=February 20, 2012|publisher=geektyrant}}</ref> and continued in [[Toronto]] into April 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.toronto.ca/tfto/pdf/currentlist.pdf |title=Productions currently filming in Toronto |publisher=Toronto Film and Television Office |location=[[Toronto]] |date=January 26, 2012 |accessdate=February 19, 2012}}</ref> Del Toro gave an update after the second week on filming finished.<ref>{{cite web|last=Turek |first=Ryan |url=http://www.shocktillyoudrop.com/news/topnews.php?id=22067 |title=Guillermo Del Toro Offers ''Pacific Rim'' Update |publisher=Shock Till You Drop |date=November 29, 2011 |accessdate=December 19, 2011}}</ref> The film was referred to as ''Silent Seas'' and ''Still Seas'' during production.<ref>{{cite web|last=Bettinger|first=Brendan|title=New Video and Photos from the ''PACIFIC RIM'' Set Show How Guillermo del Toro Turned Toronto Into Tokyo|url=http://collider.com/tag/still-seas/|publisher=Collider.com|accessdate=June 27, 2013}}</ref> |
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Del Toro had never shot a film in less than 115 days, but had only 103 to shoot ''Pacific Rim''. In order to achieve this, del Toro scheduled a splinter unit that he could direct early in the day, before main unit, and on his off-days. The director worked 17 to 18 hours a day, seven days a week, for much of the schedule. Del Toro took a new approach to directing actors, allowing "looser" movements and improvisation; the director maintained tight control over the production: "Everything, 100% goes through me sooner or later. I do not delegate anything. Some people like it, some people don't, but it has to be done that way."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://variety.com/2013/film/news/inside-pacific-rim-with-guillermo-del-toro-1200489073/ |title=Inside ''Pacific Rim'' with Guillermo del Toro |last=Cohen |first=David S. |work=variety.com |date=May 29, 2013 |accessdate=May 30, 2013}}</ref> |
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The film was shot using [[Red Epic]] cameras.<ref>{{cite web|title=Guillermo del Toro Talks ''PACIFIC RIM'', Why They Used the RED EPIC & Didn’t Do 3D; Reveals Blu-ray Will Have 30 Minutes of Deleted Scenes|url=http://collider.com/pacific-rim-deleted-scenes-blu-ray/185377/|publisher=Collider}}</ref> At first Guillermo del Toro decided not to shoot or convert the film to [[3D film|3D]], as the effect would not work due to the sheer size of the film's robots and monsters, explaining; "I didn't want to make the movie 3D because when you have things that big... the thing that happens naturally, you're looking at two buildings lets say at 300 feet [away], if you move there is no [[parallax]]. They're so big that, in 3D, you barely notice anything no matter how fast you move... To force the 3D effects for robots and monsters that are supposed to be big you are making their [perspective] miniaturized, making them human scale."<ref>{{cite web|last=Shaefer|first=Sandy|title=Guillermo del Toro: ''Pacific Rim'' Is Not Japanese Monster Movie Homage; No 3D|url=http://screenrant.com/guillermo-del-toro-pacific-rim-japan-anime/|publisher=Screenrant}}</ref> It was later announced that the film would be converted to 3D, with the conversion taking 40 weeks longer than most. Del Toro said: "What can I tell you? I changed my mind. I'm not running for office. I can do a [[Mitt Romney|Romney]]."<ref>{{cite web|last=Lesnick|first=Silas|title=Guillermo del Toro Talks The Strain and ''Pacific Rim''{{'}}s 3D Conversion|url=http://www.shocktillyoudrop.com/news/170043-guillermo-del-toro-talks-the-strain-and-pacific-rims-3d-conversion|publisher=Shock Till You Drop}}</ref> |
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Del Toro cut approximately an hour of material from the film. The unused footage explored the characters and their arcs in greater detail, but the director felt it was necessary to strike a balance, stating: "We cannot pretend this is [[Henrik Ibsen|Ibsen]] with monsters and giant robots. I cannot pretend I'm doing a profound reflection on mankind." Each character's arc was edited down to its minimal requirements.<ref name="Beaks1" /> The director wanted to keep the film around two hours, particularly for younger viewers. [[Alejandro González Iñárritu]] and [[Alfonso Cuarón]] helped with the editing; Iñárritu removed ten minutes of footage, while Cuarón removed "a few minutes" and rearranged several scenes.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vulture.com/2013/07/pacific-rim-guillermo-del-toro-interview.html|title=''Pacific Rim''{{'}}s Guillermo del Toro on 3-D, Long Movies, and Mexican Matinees|last=Cruz|first=Gilbert|work=vulture.com|date=July 10, 2013|accessdate=July 11, 2013}}</ref> Iñárritu and Cuarón receive a "special thanks" in the film's credits, as do [[James Cameron]] and [[David Cronenberg]]. |
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=== Design === |
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Del Toro wanted to "honor" the kaiju and mecha genres while creating an original stand-alone film, something "conscious of the heritage, but not a pastiche or an homage or a greatest hits of everything". The director made a point of starting from scratch, without emulating or referencing any previous examples of those genres. He cautioned his designers not to turn to films like ''[[Gamera (film)|Gamera]]'', ''[[Godzilla (1954 film)|Godzilla]]'', or ''[[The War of the Gargantuas]]'' for inspiration, stating: "I didn't want to be [[Postmodernist film|postmodern]], or referential, or just belong to a genre. I really wanted to create something new, something madly in love with those things. I tried to bring epic beauty to it, and drama and operatic grandeur."<ref name="Blastr">{{cite web|url=http://www.blastr.com/2012/07/heres_why_del_toro_says_p.php|title=Why Del Toro warned ''Pacific Rim'' designers never to watch ''Godzilla''|work=blastr.com|last=Castro|first=Adam-Troy|date=July 17, 2012|accessdate=July 1, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://herocomplex.latimes.com/movies/guillermo-del-toro-wants-pacific-rim-kaiju-to-start-from-scratch/|title=Guillermo del Toro wants ''Pacific Rim'' Kaiju to 'start from scratch'|work=herocomplex.latimes.com|last=Clark|first=Noelene|date=August 2, 2012|accessdate=July 1, 2013}}</ref> Rather than popular culture, he drew inspiration from works of art such as [[Francisco Goya]]'s ''[[The Colossus (painting)|The Colossus]]'' and [[George Bellows]]'s boxing paintings.<ref name="Huffington Post" /><ref name="Huffington Post 2">{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/02/guillermo-del-toro-pacific-rim_n_3536028.html|title=Guillermo Del Toro's ''Pacific Rim'' Brings Back The Monster Movie|work=huffingtonpost.com|last=Coyle|first=Jake|date=July 2, 2013|accessdate=July 3, 2013}}</ref> The film's designers include [[Wayne Barlowe]], [[Oscar Chichoni]], monster sculptors David Meng and Simon Lee, and ''[[Hellboy II: The Golden Army|Hellboy II]]'' and ''[[The Hobbit (film series)|The Hobbit]]'' designer Francisco Ruiz Velasco.<ref name="Huffington Post" /> Del Toro has acknowledged that some designs created for his cancelled ''[[At the Mountains of Madness]]'' adaptation may have been used in ''Pacific Rim''.<ref name="timeout-QA" /> |
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Approximately a hundred Kaijus and a hundred Jaegers were designed, but only a fraction of these appear in the film; every week the filmmakers would "do an ''[[American Idol]]''" and vote for the best.<ref name="Sacks" /> In designing Kaijus, the film's artists frequently drew inspiration from nature rather than other works. The director commented: "Kaijus are essentially outlandish in a way, but on the other hand they come sort of in families: you've got the reptilian kaiju, the insect kaiju, the sort of crustacean kaiju... So to take an outlandish design and then render it with an attention to real animal anatomy and detail is interesting."<ref name="aintitcool50956">{{cite web|url=http://www.aintitcool.com/node/50956|title=Guillermo Del Toro And Mr. Beaks Discuss DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK, PACIFIC RIM And The Far-From-Used-Up Future Of AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS!|author=Mr. Beaks|work=aintitcool.com|publisher=[[Ain't It Cool News]]|date=August 24, 2011|accessdate=July 1, 2013}}</ref> Del Toro avoided making the Kaijus too similar to any Earth creatures, instead opting to make them otherworldly and alien.<ref name="io9-Barlowe">{{cite web|url=http://io9.com/why-pacific-rim-doesnt-look-like-any-movie-youve-ever-708314921|title=Why ''Pacific Rim'' Doesn't Look Like Any Movie You've Ever Seen Before|last=Anders|first=Charlie Jane|work=io9.com|date=July 8, 2013|accessdate=July 9, 2013}}</ref> Del Toro called the film's Kaijus "weapons", stating that they are "the cleaning crew, the cats sent into the warehouse to clean out the mice." Certain design elements are shared by all the Kaijus; this is intended to suggest that they are connected and were designed for a similar purpose.<ref name="AICN-Quint" /> Each Kaiju was given a vaguely humanoid silhouette to echo the man-in-suit aesthetic of early Japanese kaiju films.<ref name="Unbelievable">{{cite web|url=http://io9.com/umm-kaiju-with-a-blade-sticking-out-of-its-head-reall-635133974|title=Unbelievable ''Pacific Rim'' video reveals all of the Kaiju's secrets|work=io9.com|last=Woerner|first=Meredith|date=July 1, 2013|accessdate=July 1, 2013}}</ref> While del Toro's other films feature ancient or damaged monsters, the Kaijus lack scars or any evidence of prior culture, indicating that they are engineered creations rather than the result of an evolutionary system.<ref name="io9-Barlowe" /> |
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Knifehead, the first Kaiju to appear in the film, is a tribute to the plodding kaiju of 1960s Japanese films, and is intended to look almost like a man in a rubber suit; its head was inspired by that of a [[goblin shark]].<ref name="Beaks1" /> Leatherback, the bouncer-like Kaiju which spews electro-magnetic charges, is a favorite of del Toro, who conceived it as a "brawler with this sort of beer belly"; the lumbering movements of gorillas were used as a reference.<ref name="USAToday" /> The Kaiju Otachi homages the dragons of Chinese mythology. The director called it a "Swiss army knife of a Kaiju"; with almost 20 minutes of screen time, it was given numerous features so the audience would not tire of it. The creature moves like a Komodo dragon in water, sports multiple jaws and an acid-filled neck sack, and unfurls wings when necessary.<ref name="Sacks">{{cite web|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/meet-monstrous-kaijus-pacific-rim-article-1.1388688|title=The Kaijus and Jaegers of Guillermo del Toro's 'Pacific Rim' are modern updates on classic movie monsters like Godzilla|last=Sacks|first=Ethan|work=nydailynews.com|date=July 7, 2013|accessdate=July 7, 2013}}</ref> It is also more intelligent than the other Kaijus, employing eagle-inspired strategies against the Jaegers.<ref name="USAToday" /> Onibaba, the Kaiju that orphans Mako Mori, resembles a fusion of a Japanese temple and a crustacean.<ref name="USAToday" /> Slattern, the largest Kaiju, is distinguished by its extremely long neck and "half-horn, half-crown" head, which del Toro considered both demonic and majestic.<ref name="USAToday" /> |
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''Gipsy Danger'', the American Jaeger, was based on the shape of New York City's [[Art Deco]] buildings, such as the [[Chrysler Building]] and the [[Empire State Building]], but infused with [[John Wayne]]'s gunslinger gait and hip movements. ''Cherno Alpha'', the Russian Jaeger, was based on the shape and paint patterns of a T-series Russian tank, combined with a giant containment silo to give the appearance of a walking nuclear power plant with a [[cooling tower]] on its head.<ref name="Sacks" /> ''Crimson Typhoon'', the three-armed Chinese Jaeger, is piloted by triplets and resembles a "medieval little warrior"; its texture evokes Chinese lacquered wood with golden edges.<ref name="USAToday">{{cite web|url=http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2013/07/09/pacific-rim-industrial-light-magic-del-toro-special-effects/2480799/|title=''Pacific Rim'': A monster challenge for special effects|work=usatoday.com|last=della Cava|first=Marco R.|date=July 9, 2013|accessdate=July 11, 2013}}</ref> ''Striker Eureka'', the Australian Jaeger, is likened by del Toro to a [[Land Rover]]; the most elegant and masculine Jaeger, it has a jutting chest, a camouflage paint scheme recalling the Australian outback, and the bravado of its pilots.<ref name="USAToday" /> |
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The film's costumes were designed by [[Shane Mahan]] and Kate Hawley, who spent several months on the costumes of the Jaeger pilots. The Russian pilot suits are old-fashioned and echo cosmonaut space suits.<ref name="Huffington Post 2" /> |
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=== Visual effects === |
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[[File:Great Wave off Kanagawa2.jpg|thumb|Del Toro used classic art such as [[Hokusai]]'s ''[[The Great Wave off Kanagawa]]'' as a reference for the film's ocean battles.]] |
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[[Industrial Light & Magic]] was chosen to create the visual effects for ''Pacific Rim''. Del Toro hired [[Academy Award|Oscar]] winners [[John Knoll]] and [[Hal T. Hickel]], both known for their work on the ''[[Star Wars]]'' [[prequel trilogy]] and the ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean]]'' films. [[Legacy Effects]] was hired to do the special and practical effects on the film. [[Shane Mahan]], known for creating the armored suits for ''[[Iron Man (2008 film)|Iron Man]]'', was hired on as effects supervisor. [[John Rosengrant]] was also brought in for his work on ''[[Real Steel]]''. Oscar winner [[Clay Pinney]], known for his work on ''[[Independence Day (1996 film)|Independence Day]]'' and ''[[Star Trek (film)|Star Trek]]'', was also brought on board. [[Hybride Technologies]], a division of [[Ubisoft]], and Rodeo FX also contributed to the visual effects.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.itbusinessnet.com/article/Hybride-Delivers-VFX-for-Guillermo-del-Toros-Pacific-Rim-2737615|title=Hybride Delivers VFX for Guillermo del Toro's ''Pacific Rim''|work=itbusinessnet.com|date=August 1, 2013|accessdate=August 2, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.shootonline.com/go/index.php?name=Release&op=view&id=rs-web3-2539972-1375133045-2|title=Rodeo FX Once Again Teams with ILM to Deliver Innovative and "Incredibly Realistic" VFX for "Pacific Rim"|work=shootonline.com|date= July 30, 2013}}</ref> |
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Del Toro conceived the film as an ''operatic'' work: "That was one of the first words I said to the entire team at ILM. I said, 'This movie needs to be theatrical, operatic, romantic.' We used a lot of words not usually associated with high-tech blockbusters … We went for a very, very, very, very saturated color palette for the battle for Hong Kong. I kept asking John to tap into his inner Mexican and be able to saturate the greens and the purples and the pinks and the oranges." The classic Japanese [[woodblock print]] ''[[The Great Wave off Kanagawa]]'' by [[Hokusai]] was a common motif in the ocean battles; Del Toro recalled, "I would say 'Give me a Hokusai wave' … we use the waves and weather in the movie very operatically."<ref name="Variety" /> The director asked that Knoll not necessarily match the lighting from shot to shot: "It's pretty unorthodox to do that, but I think the results are really beautiful and very artistically free and powerful, not something you would associate with a big sci-fi action movie." Del Toro considers the film's digital water its most exciting visual effect: "The water dynamics in this movie are technically beautiful, but also artistically incredibly expressive. We agreed on making the water become almost another character. We would time the water very precisely. I'd say 'Get out of the wave [on this frame].'"<ref name="Variety">{{cite web|url=http://variety.com/2013/film/news/pacific-rim-visual-effects-get-operatic-twist-1200488753/|title=''Pacific Rim'' Visual Effects Get Operatic Twist|last=Cohen|first=David S.|work=variety.com|date=May 29, 2013|accessdate=June 14, 2013}}</ref> |
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The film also features extensive [[miniature effect]] shots provided by 32TEN Studios, under the supervision of ILM VFX Producer Susan Greenhow and ILM VFX Supervisors John Knoll and Lindy DeQuattro. Shot using RED Epic cameras on 3D rigs, the scenes produced by 32TEN involved the creation of a ¼ scale office building interior which was destroyed by the fist of a Jaeger robot which was on a separate pneumatically controlled rig, as well as a sequence which depicted several rows of seats in a soccer stadium being blown apart as a Jaeger lands in the stadium, which was created by using ¼-scale seats blown apart by air cannons. Additionally 32TEN provided several [[Practical effects|practical]] elements for ILM’s compositing team including dust clouds, breaking glass and water effects.<ref name="32TEN">{{cite web|url=http://www.awn.com/news/people/32ten-studios-provides-practical-effects-pacific-rim|title=32TEN Studios Provides Practical Effects for Pacific Rim|work=anw.com|date=July 15, 2013|accessdate=November 14, 2013}}</ref> |
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== Video game == |
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{{Main|Pacific Rim (video game)}} |
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A video game based on the film was announced. Published and developed by [[Yuke's]], ''Pacific Rim: The Video Game'' was released along with the movie on July 12, 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/pacific-rim-game-revealed-6407950|title=''Pacific Rim'' game revealed|publisher=[[GameSpot]]}}</ref> |
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Reliance Games has developed a ''Pacific Rim'' tie-in game for [[iOS]] and [[Android (operating system)|Android]] devices.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://n4g.com/news/1305721/reliance-reveals-pacific-rim-mobile-game |title=Reliance Reveals ''Pacific Rim Mobile Game'' |publisher=N4g.com |date= |accessdate=July 21, 2013}}</ref> |
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== Music == |
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{{Main|Pacific Rim (soundtrack)}} |
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The film's score was composed by [[Ramin Djawadi]]. Del Toro selected Djawadi based on his work on ''[[Prison Break]]'', ''[[Iron Man (2008 film)|Iron Man]]'', and ''[[Game of Thrones]]'', stating: "His scores have a grandeur, but they have also an incredible sort of human soul." The director also stated that some Russian rap would be featured in the film.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://collider.com/guillermo-del-toro-pacific-rim-soundtrack-collectables/|title=Guillermo del Toro Talks ''PACIFIC RIM'' Soundtrack and Collectables|last=Weintraub|first=Steve 'Frosty'|work=collider.com|date=August 8, 2012|accessdate=June 26, 2013}}</ref> |
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The soundtrack was released on digital download from [[Amazon.com|Amazon]] on June 18, 2013 and CD June 25, 2013.<ref>{{cite web|title=''Pacific Rim'' on Amazon|url=http://www.amazon.com/Pacific-Soundtrack-Warner-Pictures-Legendary/dp/B00DIJ49UW/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1372197168&sr=8-13&keywords=pacific+rim}}</ref> The physical version of the soundtrack was released on July 9, 2013, three days before the theatrical release of the film itself.<ref name="FMR">{{cite web|title='Pacific Rim' Soundtrack Details|url=http://filmmusicreporter.com/2013/06/13/pacific-rim-soundtrack-details/|publisher=Film Music Reporter|accessdate=June 26, 2013}}</ref> |
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The ending theme is "Drift", performed by Blake Perlman featuring [[Rza]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/ae/movies/actor-gets-choice-role-in-pacific-rim-695144/ |title=Actor gets choice role in ''Pacific Rim'' |author=Vancheri, Barbara |publisher=''[[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]]'' |date=July 12, 2013 |accessdate=July 14, 2013}}</ref> |
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== Marketing == |
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On November 28, 2012, the official film website premiered alongside two viral videos—one depicting the initial Kaiju attack as captured by a handheld camera.<ref name="panpacificdefense.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.panpacificdefense.com/ |title=Pan Pacific Defense Corps |publisher=Panpacificdefense.com |date=|accessdate=May 3, 2013}}</ref> Blueprints depicting the designs for the Jaeger machines were also released online.<ref name="panpacificdefense.com" /> |
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On June 5, 2013, the graphic novel ''Pacific Rim: Tales from Year Zero'' was released. Written by Travis Beacham and featuring cover art by [[Alex Ross]], ''Tales from Year Zero'' serves as an introductory prologue to the film, and is set twelve years before its events.<ref>{{cite web|last=Casey |first=Dan |url=http://www.nerdist.com/2013/03/wondercon-pacific-rim-tales-from-year-zero-alex-ross-cover-revealed/ |title=Wondercon: ''Pacific Rim: Tales From Year Zero'' Alex Ross Cover Revealed « Nerdist |publisher=Nerdist.com |date=March 30, 2013 |accessdate=May 3, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=PacRim |url=http://pacificrimfilm.blogspot.com/2012/12/merchandising.html |title=Pacific Rim Le film: Merchandising/collectibles |publisher=Pacificrimfilm.blogspot.com |date=December 24, 2012 |accessdate=May 3, 2013}}</ref> |
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On July 2, 2013, a viral video was released in which Ron Perlman's character, Hannibal Chau, advertises his fictional Kaiju organ dealership, Kaiju Remedies.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/68319/ron-perlman-has-your-pacific-rim-kaiju-remedies-right-here|title=Ron Perlman Has Your ''Pacific Rim'' Kaiju Remedies Right Here!|work=dreadcentral.com|date=July 2, 2013|accessdate=July 5, 2013}}</ref> |
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On the day of the film's release, July 12, 2013, another viral video was released to promote the film. It involved the collaboration of the film studio (including del Toro himself) and the [[YouTube]] network Polaris (also known as The Game Station). It featured members of the YouTube network (such as the ''[[Game Grumps]]'') as Jaeger pilots fighting kaiju.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iw8XQ3vdW_4|title=Youtube: Pacific Rim – Training Day|work=http://www.makerstudios.com/|date=July 12, 2013|accessdate=August 14, 2013}}</ref> |
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On July 16, 2013, a novelization by [[Alexander C. Irvine|Alex Irvine]] was released.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.amazon.com/Pacific-Rim-Official-Movie-Novelization/dp/1781166781|title=''Pacific Rim'': The Official Movie Novelization: Alexander Irvine: 9781781166789: Amazon.com: Books|work=amazon.com|accessdate=June 20, 2013}}</ref> |
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On June 18, 2013, Insight Editions published ''Pacific Rim: Man, Machines, and Monsters'', an art book written by David S. Cohen. The book chronicles the film's production with concept art, photography, the cast and crew's accounts of the shoot, and a foreword by del Toro.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.amazon.com/Pacific-Rim-Man-Machines-Monsters/dp/1608871827|title=Pacific Rim: Man, Machines, and Monsters [Hardcover]|publisher=[[Amazon.com]]|accessdate=August 2, 2013}}</ref> |
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In July 2013, [[National Entertainment Collectibles Association|NECA]] began selling [[action figures]] of the film's Kaijus and Jaegers.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pacificrim-movie.net/news/860 |title=Exclusive: First Look at Finished NECA ''Pacific Rim'' Figures! |author=Picard, Chris |publisher=Scified.com |date=June 7, 2013 |accessdate=July 13, 2013}}</ref> |
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== Release == |
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''Pacific Rim'' was initially expected to reach theaters in July 2012. However, Warner Bros. decided to postpone the film's release date to May 10, 2013. In March 2012, it was announced that the film would be released on July 12, 2013.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/schedule/?view=changes&p=.htm | title=Release Schedule – NEW DATES & CHANGES | publisher=Box Office Mojo | date=March 2012 | accessdate=March 23, 2012}}</ref> The film premiered in [[Mexico City]] on July 1, 2013.<ref>{{cite web|title=A Week In Movies: Pacific Rim Launches|url=http://www.contactmusic.com/round-up/a-week-in-movies-pacific-rim-launches-the-wolverine-shows-himself-and-gwyneth-deals-with-sex-addiction_3747068|date=July 6, 2013|accessdate=October 30, 2013}}</ref> |
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=== Box office === |
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''Pacific Rim'' grossed $101.8 million in North America, and has had a favorable international release, grossing $309.2 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $411,002,944.<ref name="mojo" /> |
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The film grossed $3.6 million from Thursday night showings, 23 percent of which came from IMAX showings. It then faced competition from ''[[Grown Ups 2]]'' and ultimately fell behind it on opening day, earning $14.6 million.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3701&p=.htm |title=Forecast: 'Pacific Rim' Goes to War With 'Grown Ups 2' This Weekend |publisher=[[Box Office Mojo]] |date=July 11, 2013 |accessdate=July 21, 2013}}</ref> The film reached the #3 spot during the opening weekend with $37.2 million, behind ''[[Despicable Me 2]]'' and ''Grown Ups 2''. This is the highest ever opening for a film by del Toro, surpassing ''[[Hellboy II: The Golden Army]]''. Around 50 percent of tickets were in 3D, which makes it the second highest 3D share of 2013, behind ''[[Gravity (film)|Gravity]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?yr=2013&wknd=21&p=.htm |title=Weekend Box Office Results for May 24-26, 2013 |publisher=[[Box Office Mojo]] |accessdate=May 26, 2013}}</ref> During its second weekend, the film dropped a steep 57% with a gross of $16 million, and during its third weekend, had dropped a further 52% with a gross of $7.7 million.<ref>http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=weekend&id=pacificrim.htm</ref> |
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On July 22, 2013, it was reported that the film had reached #1 at the international box office over the weekend.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deadline.com/2013/07/pacific-rim-1-internationally-over-weekend/|title=''Pacific Rim'' #1 Internationally Over Weekend|publisher=[[Deadline.com]]|last=Finke|first=Nikki|authorlink=Nikki Finke|date=July 22, 2013|accessdate=July 23, 2013}}</ref> The film had a successful opening in China, grossing $45.2 million, the largest opening in China for a Warner Bros. title, and the sixth-largest Chinese debut of all time for any Hollywood film.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/box-office-report-pacific-rim-599329 |title=Box Office Report: ''Pacific Rim'' Scores Massive $45.2 Million China Debut |last=McClintock |first=Pamela |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=August 4, 2013|accessdate=August 4, 2013}}</ref> On August 19, 2013, its gross crossed $100 million in China alone, becoming the sixth-highest grossing American film ever in China.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2013/08/18/weekend-box-office-the-butler-opens-to-25m-kick-ass-2-jobs-paranoia-crash/|title=Weekend Box Office: 'The Butler' Opens To $25m, 'Kick-Ass 2', 'Jobs', And 'Paranoia' Crash |work=[[Forbes]] |date=August 19, 2013|accessdate=August 19, 2013}}</ref> It grossed a total of $114.3 million in the country, making China the largest market for the film.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://english.entgroup.cn/news_detail.aspx?id=2194|title= Hollywood Takes a Hit|author= Bai Shi (Beijing Review)|date= 9 February 2014|accessdate= 10 February 2014|work= english.entgroup.cn|publisher= EntGroup Inc.}}</ref> In Japan, the film landed in the fifth position on opening weekend, with an initial earning of $3 million (behind ''[[World War Z (film)|World War Z]]''{{-'}}s gross of $3.4 million).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://variety.com/2013/film/international/pacific-rim-fails-to-wow-japanese-auds-1200577862/ |title=''Pacific Rim'' Fails to Wow Auds |author=Schilling, Mark |publisher=''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' |date=August 14, 2013 |accessdate=August 14, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/japan/?yr=2013&wk=32&p=.htm/ |title=''Pacific Rim'' Japan Box Office |publisher=''Box Office Mojo'' |date=August 15, 2013 |accessdate=August 15, 2013}}</ref> |
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In September 2013, ''[[Forbes]]'' highlighted ''Pacific Rim'' as "the rare English-language film in history to cross $400 million while barely crossing $100 million domestic".<ref name = A/> |
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=== Critical reception === |
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<!-- The "Reception" section of an article is usually reserved for the opinions of professional film critics. Kanye West is not a professional film critic, so his opinion does not belong here. --> |
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''Pacific Rim'' received generally positive reviews from critics. Review aggregation website [[Metacritic]] gives a rating of 64 out of 100 based on reviews from 48 critics, which indicates "generally favorable" reviews.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.metacritic.com/movie/pacific-rim |title=Pacific Rim Reviews|work= Metacritic |publisher=[[CBS]] |accessdate=July 10, 2013}}</ref> {{Rotten Tomatoes score|1663662|all_in_one_plus_consensus}} |
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''[[The Daily Telegraph]]''{{'}}s [[Robbie Collin]] awarded the film five stars out of five, likening the experience of watching it to rediscovering a favorite childhood cartoon. He praised del Toro for investing his own affection for the genre and sense of artistry into the project in such a way that the viewer found themselves immersed in the film rather than watching from afar, noting the director had catered to younger and older audiences alike and expressed surprise that the film could rise above the sum of its parts.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/10162332/Pacific-Rim-review.html|title=''Pacific Rim'', review|last=Collin|first=Robbie|work=telegraph.com|date=July 8, 2013|accessdate=July 8, 2013}}</ref> [[Todd McCarthy]] of ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]'' gave a positive review, describing the film as the sum of the potential every monster film had ever tried to fulfill.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movie/pacific-rim/review/581518|title=''Pacific Rim'': Film Review|work=hollywoodreporter.com|last=McCarthy|first=Todd|authorlink=Todd McCarthy|date=July 7, 2013|accessdate=July 8, 2013}}</ref> [[Lou Lumenick]] of ''[[The New York Post]]'' gave the film four stars out of four, and said it had "no shortage of brains, brawn, eye candy, wit and even some poetry", praising the "clean and coherent" action sequences and the "terrific chemistry" between Hunnam and Kikuchi.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/movies/pacific_rim_baddies_are_big_but_NullCtb04GocGTlszZw83O|title=''Pacific Rim'' baddies are big, but the heroes are better|last=Lumenick|first=Lou|authorlink=Lou Lumenick|date=July 9, 2013|accessdate=July 9, 2013}}</ref> [[Drew McWeeny]] of ''[[HitFix]]'' highlighted other aspects of the film, paying particular attention to the production and art design. He also praised the cinematography for "perfectly capturing" the film, and described the score as "ridiculously cool".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hitfix.com/motion-captured/review-guillermo-del-toros-pacific-rim-is-an-eccentric-and-emotional-thrill/|title=Review: Guillermo Del Toro's ''Pacific Rim'' is an eccentric and emotional thrill|last=McWeeny|first=Drew|authorlink=Drew McWeeny|work=hitfix.com|date=July 8, 2013|accessdate=July 8, 2013}}</ref> ''[[Rolling Stone]]''{{'}}s [[Peter Travers]] called the film "the work of a humanist ready to banish cynicism for compassion", saying that del Toro "drives the action with a heartbeat".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/pacific-rim-20130711|title=Peter Travers' Three-Star Review of ''Pacific Rim''|last=Travers|first=Peter|authorlink=Peter Travers|work=rollingstone.com|date=July 11, 2013|accessdate=July 11, 2013}}</ref> Keith Uhlich of ''[[Time Out (magazine)|Time Out]]'' called the film "pure, pleasurable comic-book absurdity", and noted that del Toro had lent the proceedings a "plausible humanity" lacking in most of summer 2013's destruction-heavy blockbusters. He said the Kaijus' civilian victims make a "palpably personal impression", deeming one scene with Mako Mori "as mythically moving as anything in the mecha anime, like ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'', that the director emulates with expert aplomb."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.timeout.com/us/film/pacific-rim-movie-review|title=''Pacific Rim'': movie review (PG-13)|last=Uhlich|first=Keith|publisher=''[[Time Out (magazine)|Time Out]]''|date=July 8, 2013|accessdate=July 9, 2013}}</ref> ''[[The Village Voice]]''{{'}}s Stephanie Zacharek called it "summer entertainment with a pulse", praising its "dumbly brilliant" action and freedom from elitism, but noted the story is predictable and suggested del Toro's time would be better spent on more visionary films.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.villagevoice.com/2013-07-03/film/del-toro-s-pacific-rim-offers-monster-robot-glory/|title=''Pacific Rim'': Building a Better Blockbuster|work=villagevoice.com|last=Zacharek|first=Stephanie|date=July 8, 2013|accessdate=July 9, 2013}}</ref> Angela Watercutter of ''[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]]'' called it the "most awesome movie of the summer", a "fist-pumping, awe-inspiring ride", and opined that its focus on spectacle rather than characterization "simply does not matter" in the summer blockbuster context.<ref name="Wired-Watercutter">{{cite web|url=http://www.wired.com/underwire/2013/07/pacific-rim-surprising-review/all/|title=Pacific Rim Is Literally the Most Awesome Movie of the Summer|last=Watercutter|first=Angela|work=wired.com|date=July 10, 2013|accessdate=July 10, 2013}}</ref> [[Richard Roeper]] gave the film a B, commenting that either the Jaegers or Kaijus "can take down any of the [[Transformers (film series)|Transformers]]."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.reelz.com/trailer-clips/70267/pacific-rim-review/ |title=''Pacific Rim'' Review |author=[[Richard Roeper|Roeper, Richard]] |publisher=[[Reelz (TV channel)|Reelz]] |date=July 12, 2013 |accessdate=July 16, 2013}}</ref> [[Leonard Maltin]] gave the film two-and-a-half out of four stars, calling it "three-quarters of a really good movie that doesn't know when to quit."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.reelz.com/trailer-clips/70236/pacific-rim-review/ |title=''Pacific Rim'' Review |author=[[Leonard Maltin|Maltin, Leonard]] |publisher=[[Reelz (TV channel)|Reelz]] |date=July 12, 2013 |accessdate=July 16, 2013}}</ref> |
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''[[The Guardian]]''{{'}}s Andrew Pulver was less enthusiastic, calling the film a mix of "wafer-thin psychodrama" and "plot-generator dialogue".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/jul/08/pacific-rim-review-guillermo-del-toro|title=''Pacific Rim'' – review|last=Pulver|first=Andrew|work=guardian.co.uk|date=July 8, 2013|accessdate=July 8, 2013}}</ref> ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]''{{'}}s [[Richard Corliss]] said the action was let down by "inert" drama, describing the film as "45 minutes of awesome encased in 90 minutes of yawnsome."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://entertainment.time.com/2013/07/09/pacific-rim-transformers-transcended/|title=Pacific Rim: Transformers Transcended|work=entertainment.time.com|publisher=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|last=Corliss|first=Richard|authorlink=Richard Corliss|date=July 9, 2013|accessdate=July 10, 2013}}</ref> Justin Chang of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' criticized it as loud and lacking the nuance and subtlety of del Toro's previous films.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://variety.com/2013/film/reviews/film-review-pacific-rim-1200535260/|title=Film Review: ''Pacific Rim''|last=Chang|first=Justin|work=variety.com|date=July 7, 2013|accessdate=July 8, 2013}}</ref> ''[[Slant Magazine]]''{{'}}s Ed Gonzalez, who said the film lacked poignancy, compared it to a video game: "a stylish but programmatic ride toward an inevitable final boss battle".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/review/pacific-rim|title=''Pacific Rim'' – Film Review|work=slantmagazine.com|date=July 8, 2013|accessdate=July 9, 2013}}</ref> ''The Wrap''{{'}}s [[Alonso Duralde]] criticized the choice to set most battles at night or during the rain, feeling it detracted from the action, and said the comic relief actors—Day, Gorman, and Perlman—stole the film from the less interesting leads.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thewrap.com/movies/column-post/pacific-rim-review-there-be-monsters-here-somewhere-101501|title=''Pacific Rim'' Review: There Be Monsters in Here Somewhere|work=thewrap.com|last=Duralde|first=Alonso|authorlink=Alonso Duralde|date=July 8, 2013|accessdate=July 9, 2013}}</ref> Jordan Hoffman of ''[[RealNetworks|Film.com]]'' identified Hunnam as the weak link in the cast, calling him a "charisma black hole".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.film.com/movies/pacific-rim-review|title=Review: ''Pacific Rim''|last=Hoffman|first=Jordan|work=film.com|date=July 8, 2013|accessdate=July 9, 2013}}</ref> Giles Hardie of ''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'' was particularly critical of the film, awarding the action sequences "five [[Intelligence quotient|IQ points]] out of five" as he described the film as an hour and twenty minutes of fight sequences vaguely connected by ten minutes of story.<ref>{{cite news|title=Pacific Rim is an all-action monster with no tale|url=http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/movies/pacific-rim-is-an-allaction-monster-with-no-tale-20130709-2pnhr.html|first=Giles|last=Hardie|work=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]|date=July 9, 2013|accessdate=July 9, 2013}}</ref> |
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Director [[Rian Johnson]] praised the film,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://io9.com/5981528/pacific-rim-gets-a-rave-review-from-rian-johnson-plus-some-stunning-new-images|title=''Pacific Rim'' gets a rave review from Rian Johnson, plus some stunning new images|work=io9.com|last=Woerner|first=Meredith|date=February 4, 2013|accessdate=June 30, 2013}}</ref> as did Japanese game director [[Hideo Kojima]], who called it the "ultimate [[otaku]] film" and stated he "never imagined [he] would be fortunate enough to see a film like this in [his] life".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://kotaku.com/hideo-kojima-reviews-pacific-rim-in-eight-tweets-680304164|title=Hideo Kojima Reviews Pacific Rim In Eight Tweets|date=July 5, 2013|accessdate=July 8, 2013}}</ref> [[Go Nagai]], who pioneered the idea of mecha piloted from an interior cockpit, praised the film's fun and intense action, while game developer [[Fumito Ueda]] said its battle scenes surpassed memories of the [[tokusatsu]] films he saw as an impressionable child.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2013-07-10/metal-gear-shinkawa-draws-pacific-rim-poster-and-japan-creators-laud-film|title=Metal Gear's Shinkawa Draws Pacific Rim Poster & Japan's Creators Laud Film|work=animenewsnetwork.com|date=July 10, 2013|accessdate=July 18, 2013}}</ref> Science fiction author [[William Gibson]] called the film "A ravishing display of intelligent, often wonderfully witty visual design, every frame alive with coherent language, in the service of what is at heart a children's story... A baroque that doesn't curdle, that never fetishizes itself."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tweetlonger.org/getTweet.php?id=9qd|title=Pacific Rim, over 140 characters:|website=tweetlonger.org|last=Gibson|first=William|authorlink=William Gibson|date=July 20, 2013|accessdate=July 21, 2013}}</ref> |
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The inclusion of only one female character of note resulted in ''Pacific Rim'' not passing the [[Bechdel test]]. This became a topic of discussion in the media and on the Internet. Opinions were divided between those pointing to the film as an example of Hollywood's practice of ostracizing women, and those noting that the film did not [[Sexual objectification|sexually objectify]] Mako Mori and gave her a narrative arc not revolving around a man.<ref name="The Daily Dot 18 August 2013">{{cite news|last=Romano|first=Aja|title=The Mako Mori Test: 'Pacific Rim' inspires a Bechdel Test alternative|url=http://www.dailydot.com/fandom/mako-mori-test-bechdel-pacific-rim/|accessdate=September 15, 2013|newspaper=[[The Daily Dot]]|date=August 18, 2013}}</ref><ref name="Metro 18 July 2013">{{cite news|last=McGuinness|first=Ross|title=The Bechdel test and why Hollywood is a man’s, man’s, man’s world|url=http://metro.co.uk/2013/07/18/movie-lovers-hit-back-at-hollywood-misogyny-with-the-bechdel-test-3886103/|accessdate=September 15, 2013|newspaper=[[Metro (British newspaper){{!}}Metro]]|date=July 18, 2013}}</ref> |
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=== Accolades === |
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{| class="wikitable" |
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|- |
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! Award !! Category !! Winner/Nominee !! Result |
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|- |
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| [[American Black Film Festival|ABFF Hollywood Awards]] |
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| Artist of the Year |
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| [[Idris Elba]] (also for ''[[Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom]]'' and ''[[Thor: The Dark World]]'') |
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| {{nominated}} |
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|- |
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| rowspan=2| [[Annie Award]] |
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| Outstanding Achievement, Animated Effects in a Live Action Production |
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| |
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| {{won}} |
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|- |
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|Outstanding Achievement, Character Animation in a Live Action Production |
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| |
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| {{nominated}} |
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|- |
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|[[British Academy Film Awards]] |
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|[[BAFTA Award for Best Special Visual Effects|Best Special Visual Effects]] |
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| |
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| {{nom}} |
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|- |
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| [[Critics' Choice Movie Award]] |
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| [[Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Visual Effects|Best Visual Effects]] |
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| |
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| {{nominated}} |
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|- |
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| [[Denver Film Critics Society]] |
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| Best Science Fiction/Horror Film |
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| |
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| {{nominated}} |
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|- |
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| [[Empire Awards]] |
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| Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy |
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| |
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| {{nominated}} |
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|- |
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|Hollywood Film Awards |
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|Best Visual Effects |
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|John Knoll |
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|{{won}} |
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|- |
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| [[Las Vegas Film Critics Society]] |
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| Best Horror/Sci-Fi Film |
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| |
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|{{won}} |
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|- |
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|rowspan="5"|[[Saturn Award]] |
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| [[Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film|Best Science Fiction Film]] |
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| |
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|{{pending}} |
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|- |
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| [[Saturn Award for Best Director|Best Director]] |
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| [[Guillermo del Toro]] |
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|{{pending}} |
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|- |
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| Best Production Design |
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| Andrew Neskoromny and [[Carol Spier]] |
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|{{pending}} |
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|- |
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| [[Saturn Award for Best Editing|Best Editing]] |
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| Peter Amundson and John Gilroy |
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|{{pending}} |
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|- |
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| [[Saturn Award for Best Special Effects|Best Special Effects]] |
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| John Knoll, James E. Price, Clay Pinney and Rocco Larizza |
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|{{pending}} |
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|- |
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|[[St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association]] |
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|Best Visual Special Effects |
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|John Knoll |
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|{{nom}} |
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|- |
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|[[Teen Choice Awards]] |
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|Summer Movie Action |
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| |
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|{{nom}} |
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|- |
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|rowspan=5|[[Visual Effects Society]] |
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|Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects-Driven Feature Motion Picture |
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|John Knoll, Susan Greenhow, Chris Raimo, Hal Hickel |
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|{{nom}} |
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|- |
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|Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture |
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|Jakub Pistecky, Frank Gravatt, Cyrus Jam, Chris Havreberg for Kaiju - Leatherback |
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|{{nom}} |
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|- |
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|Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture |
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|Johan Thorngren, Jeremy Bloch, David Meny, Polly Ing for "Virtual Hong Kong" |
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|{{nom}} |
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|- |
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|Outstanding Virtual Cinematography in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture |
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|Colin Benoit, Nick Walker, Adam Schnitzer, Victor Schutz for "Hong Kong Ocean Brawl" |
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|{{nom}} |
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|- |
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|Outstanding Models in a Feature Motion Picture |
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|David Fogler, Alex Jaeger, Aaron Wilson, David Behrens |
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|{{nom}} |
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|} |
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=== Home media === |
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''Pacific Rim'' became available for download on the [[iTunes Store]] and [[Vudu]] on October 1, 2013.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://observationdeck.io9.com/pacific-rim-out-today-on-itunes-1434660554 |title=Pacific Rim Out Today on iTunes |publisher=i09.com |date=October 1, 2013 |accessdate=October 10, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://blog.vudu.com/?p=10164 |title=New Releases for the Week of Oct 1 |publisher=vudu.com |date=October 2, 2013 |accessdate=October 10, 2013}}</ref> The film was released on DVD and [[Blu-ray Disc]] in the USA on October 15, 2013. It will be released on home video in the UK and other countries on November 25.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pacificrim-movie.net/news/1152 |title=Own Pacific Rim on BluRay and DvD October 15th! |author=Picard, Chris |publisher=Scified.com |date=September 5, 2013 |accessdate=September 6, 2013}}</ref> A collector's edition was also available on the same date.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00F0N7JUG |title=Pacific Rim Collector's Edition (Blu-ray 3D + Blu-ray + DVD +UltraViolet Combo Pack) (2013)}}</ref> To help promote the home media release, Bryan Harley and Roque Rodriguez of [[Fresno, California]], produced a "[[sweded]]" version of the film's ''Gipsy Danger'' vs. Otachi battle scene, after del Toro was impressed by the duo's "sweded" trailer released on YouTube in March 2013.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/10/14/3553287/cheap-shots.html |title=Fresno Swede Fest founders help pitch 'Pacific Rim' DVD |author=Tehee, Joshua |publisher=''The Fresno Bee'' |date=October 15, 2013 |accessdate=October 16, 2013}}</ref> |
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== Potential sequel == |
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{{Anchor|Sequel|Sequels}} |
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In July 2012, del Toro discussed the possibility of making a ''Pacific Rim'' sequel. "We always leave ideas that were in the first draft as you go along. You know, either a set piece that was great but too expensive, an idea that was really bright, but it couldn't quite fit the structure... so we have a little stash of stuff we wanted to do that we didn't get to do. So if that's a possibility, A) I would be very happy to do a sequel, but B) a lot of these ideas, set pieces and all that, actually have in them a really good seed for a sequel."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://insidemovies.ew.com/2012/07/14/pacific-rim-comic-con/|title=''Pacific Rim'' Comic-Con panel: Giant robots! Giant monsters! Giant monster ''American Idol''!|last=Vary|first=Adam B.|publisher=''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''|date=July 14, 2012|accessdate=July 28, 2012}}</ref> |
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On December 4, 2012, Legendary Pictures announced that it had selected ''Pacific Rim'' co-writer Travis Beacham to write the sequel, along with del Toro, though there was no comment as to whether del Toro would return to direct the second film.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/pacific-rim-sequel-works-writer-397646 | title=''Pacific Rim'' Sequel Already in the Works with Writer Travis Beacham (Exclusive) | publisher=Hollywood Reporter | date=December 4, 2012 | accessdate=December 6, 2012 | archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/6ChC8dZ8g | archivedate=December 5, 2012}}</ref> |
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At [[WonderCon]] 2013, del Toro expressed enthusiasm for a potential crossover between ''Pacific Rim'' and ''[[Godzilla (2014 film)|Godzilla]]''—another Legendary Pictures kaiju film—but stressed that no such plans were in place.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://collider.com/pacific-rim-vs-godzilla-movie/|title=Guillermo del Toro Talks Hypothetical ''PACIFIC RIM vs. GODZILLA'' Movie, and His ''HEAVY METAL'' Approach|last=Goldberg|first=Matt|work=collider.com|date=April 3, 2013|accessdate=April 3, 2013}}</ref> |
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In July 2013, del Toro discussed the sequel, stating: "The main idea that we're bouncing off is the fact that Newt drifted with a Kaiju brain, and all Kaiju brains are connected. We say that. They are like a hive mentality. So, you know, draw your own conclusions."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/videos/entertainment/full-pacific-rim-interview-with-guillermo-del-toro-29397501.html|title=Full Pacific Rim Interview with Guillermo del Toro|work=independent.ie|date=July 5, 2013|accessdate=July 5, 2013}}</ref> The director has also stated the sequel will feature "''Gipsy 2.0''{{-"}}, as well as a "merging of Kaiju and Jaeger".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1710434/pacific-rim-2-guillermo-del-toro.jhtml|title=''Pacific Rim 2''? Director Already Has 'A Couple Of Things' In Mind|work=mtv.com|last=Gilchrist|first=Todd|date=July 11, 2013|accessdate=July 13, 2013}}</ref> |
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In October 2013, del Toro spoke to [[IGN]] about the sequel and revealed that, "Travis Beacham and I are writing [the sequel]", despite the film not yet being greenlit.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uk.ign.com/articles/2013/10/15/guillermo-del-toro-on-the-pacific-rim-blu-ray-frankenstein-and-his-cabinet-of-curiosities|title=Guillermo del Toro on the Pacific Rim Blu-ray, Frankenstein, and His Cabinet of Curiosities|work=ign.com|date=October 15, 2013|accessdate=October 20, 2013}}</ref> |
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== Notes == |
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{{refbegin}} |
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# {{note|1}} The word kaiju ('怪獣', "strange creature, monster") is [[Japanese language|Japanese]] in origin, and thus has an [[English plural#Nouns with identical singular and plural|identical singular and plural form]], i.e. the plural of "kaiju" is still "kaiju". However, the film specifically uses the plural "Kaijus", as does del Toro. This English modification is fairly common for Japanese loanwords.<ref name="Sacks" /><ref name=aintitcool50956 /><ref name=Unbelievable /> Travis Beacham has said that he believes both forms to be correct in the film's universe.<ref>{{cite web|last=Beacham|first=Travis|title=The grammar of Pacific Rim|url=http://travisbeacham.tumblr.com/post/60938103430/the-grammar-of-pacific-rim|work=the principle fantastic|accessdate=October 19, 2013}}</ref> |
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# {{note|2}} The word Jaeger ('Jäger', "hunter") is [[German language|German]] in origin, and has an [[English plural#Nouns with identical singular and plural|identical singular and plural form]], i.e. the plural of "(der) Jäger" is still "(die) Jäger". However, the film specifically uses the plural "Jaegers". |
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{{refend}} |
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== References == |
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{{Reflist|30em}} |
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== External links == |
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{{Wikiquote}} |
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* {{Official website|http://pacificrimmovie.warnerbros.com}} |
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* {{IMDb title|1663662|Pacific Rim}} |
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* {{Rotten Tomatoes|pacific_rim_2013|Pacific Rim}} |
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* {{Mojo title|pacificrim|Pacific Rim}} |
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* {{URL|http://www.panpacificdefense.com/|Pan Pacific Defense Corps (Viral site)}} |
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* {{allmovie|535242}} |
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{{Guillermo del Toro}} |
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[[Category:2010s science fiction films]] |
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[[Category:2013 films]] |
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[[Category:2013 3D films]] |
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[[Category:Alien invasions in films]] |
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[[Category:American science fiction action films]] |
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[[Category:American 3D films]] |
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[[Category:Annie Award winners]] |
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[[Category:Brain–computer interfacing in fiction]] |
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[[Category:Dolby Atmos films]] |
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[[Category:Films about technology]] |
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[[Category:Films directed by Guillermo del Toro]] |
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[[Category:Films set in the future]] |
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[[Category:Films set in 2013]] |
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[[Category:Films set in 2020]] |
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[[Category:Films set in 2025]] |
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[[Category:Films set in Alaska]] |
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[[Category:Films set in Hong Kong]] |
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[[Category:Films set in Manila]] |
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[[Category:Films set in San Francisco, California]] |
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[[Category:Films set in Tokyo]] |
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[[Category:Films set in the Pacific Ocean]] |
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[[Category:Films shot in Toronto]] |
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[[Category:Films produced by Guillermo del Toro]] |
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[[Category:Films using computer-generated imagery]] |
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[[Category:IMAX films]] |
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[[Category:Kaiju films]] |
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[[Category:Legendary Pictures films]] |
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[[Category:Mecha]] |
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[[Category:Robot films]] |
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[[Category:Science fiction war films]] |
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[[Category:Screenplays by Guillermo del Toro]] |
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[[Category:Super Robots]] |
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[[Category:Warner Bros. films]] |
Revision as of 08:52, 5 May 2014
Pacific Rim | |
---|---|
![]() North America release poster | |
Directed by | Guillermo del Toro |
Screenplay by |
|
Story by | Travis Beacham |
Produced by |
|
Starring | |
Cinematography | Guillermo Navarro |
Edited by |
|
Music by | Ramin Djawadi |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 132 minutes[1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $190 million[2] |
Box office | $411,002,944[2] |
Pacific Rim is a 2013 American science fiction monster film directed by Guillermo del Toro, and starring Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, Robert Kazinsky, Max Martini, and Ron Perlman. The screenplay is by Travis Beacham and del Toro, with a story by Beacham. The film is set in the 2020s, when Earth is at war with the Kaijus,1 colossal monsters which have emerged from an interdimensional portal on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. To combat the monsters, humanity unites to create the Jaegers:2 gigantic humanoid mecha, each controlled by at least two pilots, whose minds are joined by a neural bridge. Focusing on the war's later days, the story follows Raleigh Becket, a washed-up Jaeger pilot called out of retirement and teamed with rookie pilot Mako Mori as part of a last-ditch effort to defeat the Kaijus.
Del Toro envisioned Pacific Rim as an earnest, colorful adventure story, with an "incredibly airy and light feel", in contrast to the "super-brooding, super-dark, cynical summer movie". The director focused on "big, beautiful, sophisticated visuals" and action that would satisfy an adult audience, but has stated his "real hope" is to introduce the kaiju and mecha genres to a generation of children.[3] While the film draws heavily on these genres, it avoids direct references to previous works. Del Toro intended to create something original but "madly in love" with its influences, instilled with "epic beauty" and "operatic grandeur".[4] The end credits dedicate the film to Ray Harryhausen and Ishirō Honda, who helped to establish the giant monster genre with films such as The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms and Godzilla respectively.
The film was produced by Legendary Pictures and distributed by Warner Bros. It was released on July 12, 2013 including releases in 3-D and IMAX 3D. While the film received positive reviews, with the visual effects receiving particular praise, and was highly successful in many other territories, the film was a disappointment at the United States box office.[5] It earned a worldwide total of more than $411 million, including $114 million in China, its largest market.
Plot
In 2013, human cities come under attack by the Kaijus, colossal beasts who come to Earth through a portal on the Pacific Ocean floor. To combat them the Pacific Rim nations build the Jaegers, equally colossal robotic war machines. Each Jaeger is piloted by two people whose brains are linked to share the mental load of operating the machine. The Jaegers are initially effective, but many are destroyed as the Kaijus grow more powerful and their attacks more frequent. In 2025, the governments deem the Jaeger program ineffective and discontinue it in favor of building massive coastal walls. The four remaining Jaegers are redeployed to Hong Kong to defend the coast until the wall is completed. Jaeger commander Stacker Pentecost devises a plan to end the threat permanently by destroying the portal with a nuclear bomb.
Pentecost recruits retired Jaeger pilot Raleigh Becket to pilot Gipsy Danger, the Jaeger he and his brother Yancy once operated together. During a mission in 2020, Yancy was killed by a Kaiju while still mentally linked to his brother. Raleigh travels to Hong Kong with Pentecost and begins the process of finding a new co-pilot. Raleigh selects Mako Mori, the director of the Jaeger refurbishment project and Pentecost's adopted daughter. Pentecost reluctantly allows Mako to participate in a test run with Raleigh. During the test, Mako loses control and nearly discharges Gipsy Danger's cannon in the hangar. Pentecost deems her unready for combat and grounds the pair. When two Kaijus attack Hong Kong, destroying two Jaegers and disabling a third, Pentecost is forced to allow them to pilot Gipsy Danger. The Kaijus are defeated.
Meanwhile, Newton Geiszler, a scientist studying the Kaijus, creates a device that allows him to establish a mental link with a Kaiju brain. He discovers that the Kaijus are not wild beasts but cloned living weapons that share a hive mind and fight at the behest of a race of alien colonists who wish to invade Earth. Pentecost demands that Geiszler repeat the experiment on a different Kaiju brain and sends him to Hannibal Chau, a criminal who sells Kaiju body parts on the black market. Geiszler commissions Chau to recover an intact brain. Chau's men investigate one of the fallen Kaijus and are attacked by its unborn offspring, which devours Chau before dying. Geiszler links with its brain and learns that the ocean portal only opens for Kaiju DNA, meaning the bombing mission will fail.
The two remaining Jaegers commence the plan to bomb the portal. Pentecost is forced to pilot the Jaeger Striker Eureka after one of its pilots is injured; Raleigh and Mako pilot Gipsy Danger. Arriving at the portal, they are ambushed by three Kaijus including the largest ever encountered. A violent battle ensues, crippling Gipsy Danger and rendering Striker Eureka unable to deliver the bomb. Geiszler warns the two Jaegers that they must take a Kaiju into the portal with them for the bombing to work, and Pentecost decides to detonate his bomb immediately to clear a path to the portal for Raleigh and Mako. Since Gipsy Danger has a nuclear reactor core they can use it to destroy the portal. Pentecost detonates his bomb, destroying two Kaiju and his Jaeger. Gipsy Danger kills the third Kaiju and uses its body to open the portal. Once inside, Raleigh ejects Mako's escape pod and sets the Jaeger to self-destruct. The Jaeger erupts on the other side of the portal, destroying the invading aliens and the portal. Raleigh is able to jettison his escape pod and travel back before the portal collapses. Mako and Raleigh's escape pods surface safely in the Pacific, and the duo embrace as rescue helicopters arrive.
In a post-credits scene, Chau cuts his way out of the newborn Kaiju's stomach.
Cast
- Charlie Hunnam as Raleigh Becket:
- A washed-up former pilot called out of retirement by the Pan Pacific Defense Corps.[6] On casting Hunnam, del Toro stated: "I saw him and I thought he had an earnest, really honest nature. And he was the kind of guy that I can relate to, as a male audience member I go, 'I like that guy. I would like to have a few beers with that guy' … he has an earthy quality.[7] Describing the character, Hunnam stated: "When you meet me, in the beginning of the story, I've suffered a giant loss. Not only has it killed my sense of self-worth, but also my will to fight and keep on going. And then, Rinko and Idris, and a couple other people, bring me out of retirement to try to help with this grand push. I think that journey is a very relatable one. Everybody, at some point in their life, has fallen down and not felt like getting back up, but you have to, no matter how difficult it is."[8] Hunnam was also considered for the role of Prince Nuada in del Toro's previous film, Hellboy II: The Golden Army.[9] Paul Michael Wyers plays Raleigh as a child.
- Idris Elba as Stacker Pentecost:
- Raleigh's commanding officer. On selecting Elba, del Toro stated: "This is a movie where I have had to deal with more dialogue than ever, and the way I cast the movie was—who do I want to hear say these things? Who do I want Charlie Hunnam to go against? Who can really tell Charlie Hunnam 'sit down and listen'?"[7] In another interview, the director said: "I wanted to have Idris not be the blonde, square-jawed, Anglo, super hip marine that knows [everything]. I wanted somebody that could bring a lot of authority, but that you could feel the weight of the world on his shoulders. When I watched Luther, that's the essence of the character... Luther is carrying literally the evils of the world on his shoulders. He's doing penance for all humanity... Idris is one of those actors that is capable of embodying humanity, in almost like a Rodin sculpture-type, larger than life, almost like a Russian realism statue, you know, big hands, all the turmoil of humanity in his eyes. I wanted somebody that you could have doubts internally, and very few guys can do that."[10] To prepare for the role, Elba watched footage of politicians David Cameron and Barack Obama, as well as Russell Crowe in Gladiator and Mel Gibson in Braveheart.[11] Del Toro initially offered the role to Tom Cruise, who declined because of scheduling conflicts.[12]
- Rinko Kikuchi as Mako Mori:
- Raleigh's co-pilot who lost her family in a Kaiju attack. Though Mori possesses a strength and fury that should serve well against the Kaijus, Pentecost is reluctant to use her, partly because of a fatherly bond and partly because he knows she is still fighting the terror of her childhood.[13] Del Toro stated: "I was very careful how I built the movie. One of the other things I decided was that I wanted a female lead who has the equal force as the male leads. She's not going to be a sex kitten, she's not going to come out in cutoff shorts and a tank top, and it's going to be a real earnestly drawn character."[14] Noting that the other actors were exhausted and "destroyed physically" by filming in the intensive Jaeger cockpit harnesses, del Toro said: "The only one that didn't break was Rinko Kikuchi, the girl. She never complained... I asked Rinko her secret and she said 'I think of gummi bears and flowers.' I try to do that in my life now."[15] Mana Ashida plays Mako as a child.[16]
- Charlie Day as Dr. Newton Geiszler:
- A scientist studying the Kaijus. Day stated: "Certainly myself and Burn Gorman provide a little bit of much needed levity, it's a break from the monsters and the guys fighting. But then the character gets thrust into the story in a way that his life is seriously at risk and it becomes a little more action oriented and a little more horror movie-esque. So, he kinda bounces back between being humorous and also being real... the rest of these guys, they look really good in their suits and they've got abs, they can kick and fight and punch. Newt is sort of the 'everyman' and he's flawed and he's arrogant."[17] Del Toro gave Geiszler the mentality of a celebrity chef, with tattoos and a "big personality".[18] According to the director, Day was cast based on his performance in an episode of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: "He comes out with a stick, and he has a monologue about what it is to hunt the rats in the basement. It was very funny, but he was coming from character. He was not doing big stuff, he was, like, really mourning and lamenting his job, you know, how inhuman it is. And I thought, 'This guy is great at shading and comedy.' There are moments in the movie where he delivers them both." Trek Buccino portrays Geiszler as a child.
- Max Martini as Herc Hansen:
- Chuck's father and co-pilot. Kazinsky stated Martini hated the fact that he was cast as Chuck's father, being only 13 years Kazinsky's senior. However Kazinsky said they developed a bond while filming, "Because we were working so tight together, we would finish and then we would go out for dinner every night and we would go to the gym together on days off we had... The emotional scene toward the end with the father-son parting, it was very easy for me to play because I had grown to actually genuinely love Max as a man and as a friend." Kazinsky revealed that Herc and Chuck's pet bulldog was del Toro's idea and said, "The dog's name was Max, ironically, and we ended up using Max for so many things. The story was that Herc and Chuck have difficulty communicating, that they communicated via the dog, and all the love that they couldn’t show each other they would show the dog."[19] The role was originally written for Ron Perlman, but del Toro decided the scenes between Perlman's Herc and Hunnam's Raleigh "might start to feel like Sons of Anarchy 2.0".[20]
- Robert Kazinsky as Chuck Hansen:
- An Australian Jaeger pilot considered the finest soldier left in the Resistance. He and his father pilot Striker Eureka, "the strongest and the fastest" Jaeger with eleven Kaiju kills, and make up the Resistance's "go-to team".[21] Kazinsky, a fan of science-fiction, was initially drawn by the film's concept, "My immediate reaction was 'Holy crap, that's cool.' In the hands of somebody else, you might sit there and go, 'Well, this might be terrible,' but with del Toro doing it, you kind of go, 'This is going to be amazing.'".[19] Reflecting on his experience in the film, Kazinsky said in an interview, "The most fun I have ever had in my entire life was Pacific Rim, playing Chuck was incredibly fun."[22]
- Ron Perlman as Hannibal Chau:
- A black marketeer who makes a living dealing Kaiju organs. Perlman stated, "I actually think this character was designed to be played by another ethnicity other than myself. And somewhere along the way, [del Toro] had the notion, 'Wouldn't it be interesting to turn this guy into more of an invention.' So, in other words, somebody takes on a persona that completely sounds like he's someone else and acts like he's someone else but he's really, you know, as you see me. That added a dimension to the larger-than-life aspect of the character... I'm playing somebody very close to my own origins. But a completely made-up persona... which makes him even more full of shit. And I think that's the charm of the guy—that he's kind of elusive, hard to pin down.[23] Pacific Rim marks Perlman's fifth appearance in a del Toro film. The director stated: "I think the moment you have a guy that is called Hannibal Chau and Ron shows up, and he's from Brooklyn and he's been selling black market organs, you know the whole story... That's all I need to know. If it's any other actor, there's a lot more explaining to do. But when Ron comes in with that look, you can make your own story and it'll be as compelling as anything I can invent. You do a little weightlifting with the audience."[10] The bird tattoos on Chau's fingers indicate his past as a gangster.[24] In the film, Chau states he took the name from his favorite historical figure and his second-favorite Szechuan restaurant in Brooklyn.[15] Del Toro drew inspiration from Burt Lancaster's performance in Elmer Gantry when writing the character.[25]
- Clifton Collins, Jr. as Ops Tendo Choi:
- A Chinese-American Jaeger technician. Collins described his character as the "brains" behind the Jaegers.[26]
- Burn Gorman as Dr. Hermann Gottlieb:
- A scientist studying the Kaijus alongside Geiszler. According to del Toro, Gottlieb is a "tweed-wearing, English, phlegmatic introvert that never leaves the lab". The modest Gottlieb resents Geiszler's arrogance and radical behavior; the duo echo the film's theme of incompatible people functioning together when the time comes.[18] Drew Adkins portrays Gottlieb as a child.
- Diego Klattenhoff as Yancy Becket:
- Raleigh's older brother and co-pilot. Klattentoff joined the project to work with del Toro. Describing his character, Klattentoff stated: "This is a guy who is looking out for his very eager, younger brother and they were enabled with this gift that gave them the opportunity to kind of save the world. Or help, at least."[27] Tyler Stevenson plays Yancy as a child.
- Ellen McLain as Gipsy Danger AI:
- The voice of Gipsy Danger's artificial intelligence system.[28] Del Toro secured permission from Valve Corporation to cast McLain in homage to GLaDOS, her homicidal AI character in the Portal video games.[29] The director stated: "It was clear to me that we needed something beautiful in that voice. My daughter is my wingman, we had done co-op on Portal 2 for a long time and I did Portal 1 when it came out. It becomes ingrained in you, that voice. I didn't want to use her as a negative force of evil. I called Valve and asked 'Can you give us the filter?' so we went full GLaDOS for the first commercial, but I thought it was too much. If you're a gamer, it's too distracting so we created our own GLaDOS 2.0 filter that's a little less full-on."[30]
Additional Jaeger pilots include Charles Luu, Lance Luu and Mark Luu as the Wei Tang triplets (China), and Robert Maillet and Heather Doerksen as Sasha and Aleksis Kaidanovsky (Russia). Joe Pingue portrays Captain Merrit, the captain of a fishing boat caught in a battle between Jaeger and Kaiju. Santiago Segura plays an aide to Hannibal Chau.[31] Brad William Henke and Larry Joe Campbell portray members of a construction team Raleigh joins after retiring from the Pan Pacific Defense Corps. Robin Thomas, Julian Barnes, and David Richmond-Peck portray U.N. representatives from the United States, Great Britain, and Canada respectively. Sebastian Pigott appears as a Jaeger engineer and Joshua Peace appears as an officer. David Fox plays an old man on a beach, while Jane Watson portrays Raleigh and Yancy's mother in a flashback sequence.[32][33][34] Producer Thomas Tull makes a cameo appearance.[35]
Themes
In the film, a Jaeger's neural load is too much for a single pilot to handle alone, meaning they must first be psychically linked to another pilot—a concept called "Drifting". When pilots Drift, they quickly gain intimate knowledge of each other's memories and feelings, and have no choice but to accept them; del Toro found this concept's dramatic potential compelling. The director expressed his intention that the empathy metaphors extend to real life: "The pilots' smaller stories actually make a bigger point, which is that we're all together in the same robot [in life]... Either we get along or we die. I didn't want this to be a recruitment ad or anything jingoistic. The idea of the movie is just for us to trust each other, to cross over barriers of color, sex, beliefs, whatever, and just stick together." Del Toro acknowledged this message's simplicity, but said he would have liked to have seen adventure films with similar morals when he was a child.[25] The film's ten primary characters all have "little arcs" conducive to this idea; del Toro stated: "I think that's a great message to give kids... 'That guy you were beating the shit out of ten minutes ago? That's the guy you have to work with five minutes later.' That's life... We can only be complete when we work together." The director noted that Hellboy and The Devil's Backbone told the same message, though the latter conveyed it in a very different way.[36]
The film centers on the relationship between Becket and Mori, but is not a love story in a conventional sense. Both are deeply damaged human beings who have decided to suppress their respective traumas. While learning to pilot their Jaeger, they undergo a process of "opening up", gaining access to each other's thoughts, memories and secrets. Their relationship is necessarily one of respect and "perfect trust". Hunnam commented that the film is "a love story without a love story. It's about all of the necessary elements of love without arriving at love itself".[13][37] Both Becket and Mori have suffered profound personal tragedies; one of the script's central ideas is that two damaged people can metaphorically "become one", with their figurative missing pieces connecting almost like a puzzle.[38] Del Toro emphasized the characters' emotional intimacy by filming their training fight scene the way he would a sex scene.[39]
Del Toro, a self-described pacifist, avoided what he termed "car commercial aesthetics" or "army recruitment video aesthetics", and gave the characters Western ranks including "marshal" and "ranger" rather than military ranks such as "captain", "major" or "general". The director stated: "I avoided making any kind of message that says war is good. We have enough firepower in the world."[14] Del Toro wanted to break from the mass death and destruction featured in contemporary blockbuster films, and made a point of showing the streets and buildings being evacuated before Kaiju attacks, ensuring that the destruction depicted is "completely remorseless". The director stated: "I don't want people being crushed. I want the joy that I used to get seeing Godzilla toss a tank without having to think there are guys in the tank... What I think is you could do nothing but echo the moment you're in. There is a global anxiety about how fragile the status quo is and the safety of citizens, but in my mind—honestly—this film is in another realm. There is no correlation to the real world. There is no fear of a copycat kaiju attack because a kaiju saw it on the news and said, 'I'm going to destroy Seattle.' In my case, I'm picking up a tradition. One that started right after World War II and was a coping mechanism, in a way, for Japan to heal the wounds of that war. And it's integral for a kaiju to rampage in the city."[40]
Writing for the Los Angeles Review of Books, Wai Chee Dimock connected the film's central theme of togetherness to its recurring image of missing shoes, stating the "utopian dream" driving the characters is "that puny humans like us could be 'together'—not only in the specific neural melding that must take place between the two Jaeger co-pilots but also, more generally speaking, in a fractal web of resemblance, filling the world with copies of ourselves at varying orders of magnitude and with varying degrees of re-expression, beginning with the shoes on our feet."[41]
Production
Development
In February 2006, it was reported that Guillermo del Toro would direct Travis Beacham's fantasy screenplay, Killing on Carnival Row, but the project never materialized.[42] Beacham conceived Pacific Rim the following year. While walking on the beach near Santa Monica Pier, the screenwriter imagined a giant robot and a giant monster fighting to the death. "They just sort of materialized out of the fog, these vast, godlike things." He later conceived the idea that each robot had two pilots, asking "what happens when one of those people dies?" Deciding this would be "a story about loss, moving on after loss, and dealing with survivor's guilt", Beacham commenced writing the film.[43] On May 28, 2010, it was reported that Legendary Pictures had purchased Beacham's detailed 25-page film treatment, now titled Pacific Rim.[44]
On July 28, 2010, it was reported that del Toro would next direct an adaptation of H. P. Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness for Universal Studios, with James Cameron producing.[45] When del Toro met with Legendary Pictures to discuss the possibility of collaborating with them on a film, he was intrigued by Beacham's treatment—still a "very small pitch" at this point.[46] Del Toro struck a deal with Legendary: while directing At the Mountains of Madness, he would produce and co-write Pacific Rim; because of the films' conflicting production schedules, he would direct Pacific Rim only if At the Mountains of Madness were cancelled.[30] Tom Cruise was attached to star in the Lovecraft adaptation.[7]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/El_coloso.jpg/220px-El_coloso.jpg)
On March 7, 2011, it was reported that Universal would not proceed with At the Mountains of Madness because del Toro was unwilling to compromise on the $150 million budget and R rating.[47][48] The director later reflected, "When it happened, this has never happened to me, but I actually cried that weekend a lot. I don't want to sound like a puny soul, but I really was devastated. I was weeping for the movie."[3] The project collapsed on a Friday, and del Toro signed to direct Pacific Rim the following Monday.[7]
Del Toro spent a year working with Beacham on the screenplay, and is credited as co-writer. He introduced ideas he had always wished to see in the genre, such as a kaiju birth and a kaiju attack seen from a child's perspective.[39] The script also received an uncredited rewrite from Neil Cross, who previously created the Idris Elba-starring drama series Luther and wrote the del Toro-produced horror film Mama.[49] Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan were enlisted to perform uncredited rewrites when their spec script Monstropolis caught the filmmaker's attention.[50] Drew Pearce also carried out uncredited work on the script.[51]
Principal photography
Filming began on November 14, 2011[52] and continued in Toronto into April 2012.[53] Del Toro gave an update after the second week on filming finished.[54] The film was referred to as Silent Seas and Still Seas during production.[55]
Del Toro had never shot a film in less than 115 days, but had only 103 to shoot Pacific Rim. In order to achieve this, del Toro scheduled a splinter unit that he could direct early in the day, before main unit, and on his off-days. The director worked 17 to 18 hours a day, seven days a week, for much of the schedule. Del Toro took a new approach to directing actors, allowing "looser" movements and improvisation; the director maintained tight control over the production: "Everything, 100% goes through me sooner or later. I do not delegate anything. Some people like it, some people don't, but it has to be done that way."[56]
The film was shot using Red Epic cameras.[57] At first Guillermo del Toro decided not to shoot or convert the film to 3D, as the effect would not work due to the sheer size of the film's robots and monsters, explaining; "I didn't want to make the movie 3D because when you have things that big... the thing that happens naturally, you're looking at two buildings lets say at 300 feet [away], if you move there is no parallax. They're so big that, in 3D, you barely notice anything no matter how fast you move... To force the 3D effects for robots and monsters that are supposed to be big you are making their [perspective] miniaturized, making them human scale."[58] It was later announced that the film would be converted to 3D, with the conversion taking 40 weeks longer than most. Del Toro said: "What can I tell you? I changed my mind. I'm not running for office. I can do a Romney."[59]
Del Toro cut approximately an hour of material from the film. The unused footage explored the characters and their arcs in greater detail, but the director felt it was necessary to strike a balance, stating: "We cannot pretend this is Ibsen with monsters and giant robots. I cannot pretend I'm doing a profound reflection on mankind." Each character's arc was edited down to its minimal requirements.[36] The director wanted to keep the film around two hours, particularly for younger viewers. Alejandro González Iñárritu and Alfonso Cuarón helped with the editing; Iñárritu removed ten minutes of footage, while Cuarón removed "a few minutes" and rearranged several scenes.[60] Iñárritu and Cuarón receive a "special thanks" in the film's credits, as do James Cameron and David Cronenberg.
Design
Del Toro wanted to "honor" the kaiju and mecha genres while creating an original stand-alone film, something "conscious of the heritage, but not a pastiche or an homage or a greatest hits of everything". The director made a point of starting from scratch, without emulating or referencing any previous examples of those genres. He cautioned his designers not to turn to films like Gamera, Godzilla, or The War of the Gargantuas for inspiration, stating: "I didn't want to be postmodern, or referential, or just belong to a genre. I really wanted to create something new, something madly in love with those things. I tried to bring epic beauty to it, and drama and operatic grandeur."[4][61] Rather than popular culture, he drew inspiration from works of art such as Francisco Goya's The Colossus and George Bellows's boxing paintings.[46][62] The film's designers include Wayne Barlowe, Oscar Chichoni, monster sculptors David Meng and Simon Lee, and Hellboy II and The Hobbit designer Francisco Ruiz Velasco.[46] Del Toro has acknowledged that some designs created for his cancelled At the Mountains of Madness adaptation may have been used in Pacific Rim.[39]
Approximately a hundred Kaijus and a hundred Jaegers were designed, but only a fraction of these appear in the film; every week the filmmakers would "do an American Idol" and vote for the best.[63] In designing Kaijus, the film's artists frequently drew inspiration from nature rather than other works. The director commented: "Kaijus are essentially outlandish in a way, but on the other hand they come sort of in families: you've got the reptilian kaiju, the insect kaiju, the sort of crustacean kaiju... So to take an outlandish design and then render it with an attention to real animal anatomy and detail is interesting."[64] Del Toro avoided making the Kaijus too similar to any Earth creatures, instead opting to make them otherworldly and alien.[65] Del Toro called the film's Kaijus "weapons", stating that they are "the cleaning crew, the cats sent into the warehouse to clean out the mice." Certain design elements are shared by all the Kaijus; this is intended to suggest that they are connected and were designed for a similar purpose.[30] Each Kaiju was given a vaguely humanoid silhouette to echo the man-in-suit aesthetic of early Japanese kaiju films.[66] While del Toro's other films feature ancient or damaged monsters, the Kaijus lack scars or any evidence of prior culture, indicating that they are engineered creations rather than the result of an evolutionary system.[65]
Knifehead, the first Kaiju to appear in the film, is a tribute to the plodding kaiju of 1960s Japanese films, and is intended to look almost like a man in a rubber suit; its head was inspired by that of a goblin shark.[36] Leatherback, the bouncer-like Kaiju which spews electro-magnetic charges, is a favorite of del Toro, who conceived it as a "brawler with this sort of beer belly"; the lumbering movements of gorillas were used as a reference.[67] The Kaiju Otachi homages the dragons of Chinese mythology. The director called it a "Swiss army knife of a Kaiju"; with almost 20 minutes of screen time, it was given numerous features so the audience would not tire of it. The creature moves like a Komodo dragon in water, sports multiple jaws and an acid-filled neck sack, and unfurls wings when necessary.[63] It is also more intelligent than the other Kaijus, employing eagle-inspired strategies against the Jaegers.[67] Onibaba, the Kaiju that orphans Mako Mori, resembles a fusion of a Japanese temple and a crustacean.[67] Slattern, the largest Kaiju, is distinguished by its extremely long neck and "half-horn, half-crown" head, which del Toro considered both demonic and majestic.[67]
Gipsy Danger, the American Jaeger, was based on the shape of New York City's Art Deco buildings, such as the Chrysler Building and the Empire State Building, but infused with John Wayne's gunslinger gait and hip movements. Cherno Alpha, the Russian Jaeger, was based on the shape and paint patterns of a T-series Russian tank, combined with a giant containment silo to give the appearance of a walking nuclear power plant with a cooling tower on its head.[63] Crimson Typhoon, the three-armed Chinese Jaeger, is piloted by triplets and resembles a "medieval little warrior"; its texture evokes Chinese lacquered wood with golden edges.[67] Striker Eureka, the Australian Jaeger, is likened by del Toro to a Land Rover; the most elegant and masculine Jaeger, it has a jutting chest, a camouflage paint scheme recalling the Australian outback, and the bravado of its pilots.[67]
The film's costumes were designed by Shane Mahan and Kate Hawley, who spent several months on the costumes of the Jaeger pilots. The Russian pilot suits are old-fashioned and echo cosmonaut space suits.[62]
Visual effects
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/Great_Wave_off_Kanagawa2.jpg/220px-Great_Wave_off_Kanagawa2.jpg)
Industrial Light & Magic was chosen to create the visual effects for Pacific Rim. Del Toro hired Oscar winners John Knoll and Hal T. Hickel, both known for their work on the Star Wars prequel trilogy and the Pirates of the Caribbean films. Legacy Effects was hired to do the special and practical effects on the film. Shane Mahan, known for creating the armored suits for Iron Man, was hired on as effects supervisor. John Rosengrant was also brought in for his work on Real Steel. Oscar winner Clay Pinney, known for his work on Independence Day and Star Trek, was also brought on board. Hybride Technologies, a division of Ubisoft, and Rodeo FX also contributed to the visual effects.[68][69]
Del Toro conceived the film as an operatic work: "That was one of the first words I said to the entire team at ILM. I said, 'This movie needs to be theatrical, operatic, romantic.' We used a lot of words not usually associated with high-tech blockbusters … We went for a very, very, very, very saturated color palette for the battle for Hong Kong. I kept asking John to tap into his inner Mexican and be able to saturate the greens and the purples and the pinks and the oranges." The classic Japanese woodblock print The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Hokusai was a common motif in the ocean battles; Del Toro recalled, "I would say 'Give me a Hokusai wave' … we use the waves and weather in the movie very operatically."[70] The director asked that Knoll not necessarily match the lighting from shot to shot: "It's pretty unorthodox to do that, but I think the results are really beautiful and very artistically free and powerful, not something you would associate with a big sci-fi action movie." Del Toro considers the film's digital water its most exciting visual effect: "The water dynamics in this movie are technically beautiful, but also artistically incredibly expressive. We agreed on making the water become almost another character. We would time the water very precisely. I'd say 'Get out of the wave [on this frame].'"[70]
The film also features extensive miniature effect shots provided by 32TEN Studios, under the supervision of ILM VFX Producer Susan Greenhow and ILM VFX Supervisors John Knoll and Lindy DeQuattro. Shot using RED Epic cameras on 3D rigs, the scenes produced by 32TEN involved the creation of a ¼ scale office building interior which was destroyed by the fist of a Jaeger robot which was on a separate pneumatically controlled rig, as well as a sequence which depicted several rows of seats in a soccer stadium being blown apart as a Jaeger lands in the stadium, which was created by using ¼-scale seats blown apart by air cannons. Additionally 32TEN provided several practical elements for ILM’s compositing team including dust clouds, breaking glass and water effects.[71]
Video game
A video game based on the film was announced. Published and developed by Yuke's, Pacific Rim: The Video Game was released along with the movie on July 12, 2013.[72]
Reliance Games has developed a Pacific Rim tie-in game for iOS and Android devices.[73]
Music
The film's score was composed by Ramin Djawadi. Del Toro selected Djawadi based on his work on Prison Break, Iron Man, and Game of Thrones, stating: "His scores have a grandeur, but they have also an incredible sort of human soul." The director also stated that some Russian rap would be featured in the film.[74]
The soundtrack was released on digital download from Amazon on June 18, 2013 and CD June 25, 2013.[75] The physical version of the soundtrack was released on July 9, 2013, three days before the theatrical release of the film itself.[76]
The ending theme is "Drift", performed by Blake Perlman featuring Rza.[77]
Marketing
On November 28, 2012, the official film website premiered alongside two viral videos—one depicting the initial Kaiju attack as captured by a handheld camera.[78] Blueprints depicting the designs for the Jaeger machines were also released online.[78]
On June 5, 2013, the graphic novel Pacific Rim: Tales from Year Zero was released. Written by Travis Beacham and featuring cover art by Alex Ross, Tales from Year Zero serves as an introductory prologue to the film, and is set twelve years before its events.[79][80]
On July 2, 2013, a viral video was released in which Ron Perlman's character, Hannibal Chau, advertises his fictional Kaiju organ dealership, Kaiju Remedies.[81]
On the day of the film's release, July 12, 2013, another viral video was released to promote the film. It involved the collaboration of the film studio (including del Toro himself) and the YouTube network Polaris (also known as The Game Station). It featured members of the YouTube network (such as the Game Grumps) as Jaeger pilots fighting kaiju.[82]
On July 16, 2013, a novelization by Alex Irvine was released.[83]
On June 18, 2013, Insight Editions published Pacific Rim: Man, Machines, and Monsters, an art book written by David S. Cohen. The book chronicles the film's production with concept art, photography, the cast and crew's accounts of the shoot, and a foreword by del Toro.[84]
In July 2013, NECA began selling action figures of the film's Kaijus and Jaegers.[85]
Release
Pacific Rim was initially expected to reach theaters in July 2012. However, Warner Bros. decided to postpone the film's release date to May 10, 2013. In March 2012, it was announced that the film would be released on July 12, 2013.[86] The film premiered in Mexico City on July 1, 2013.[87]
Box office
Pacific Rim grossed $101.8 million in North America, and has had a favorable international release, grossing $309.2 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $411,002,944.[2]
The film grossed $3.6 million from Thursday night showings, 23 percent of which came from IMAX showings. It then faced competition from Grown Ups 2 and ultimately fell behind it on opening day, earning $14.6 million.[88] The film reached the #3 spot during the opening weekend with $37.2 million, behind Despicable Me 2 and Grown Ups 2. This is the highest ever opening for a film by del Toro, surpassing Hellboy II: The Golden Army. Around 50 percent of tickets were in 3D, which makes it the second highest 3D share of 2013, behind Gravity.[89] During its second weekend, the film dropped a steep 57% with a gross of $16 million, and during its third weekend, had dropped a further 52% with a gross of $7.7 million.[90]
On July 22, 2013, it was reported that the film had reached #1 at the international box office over the weekend.[91] The film had a successful opening in China, grossing $45.2 million, the largest opening in China for a Warner Bros. title, and the sixth-largest Chinese debut of all time for any Hollywood film.[92] On August 19, 2013, its gross crossed $100 million in China alone, becoming the sixth-highest grossing American film ever in China.[93] It grossed a total of $114.3 million in the country, making China the largest market for the film.[94] In Japan, the film landed in the fifth position on opening weekend, with an initial earning of $3 million (behind World War Z's gross of $3.4 million).[95][96]
In September 2013, Forbes highlighted Pacific Rim as "the rare English-language film in history to cross $400 million while barely crossing $100 million domestic".[5]
Critical reception
Pacific Rim received generally positive reviews from critics. Review aggregation website Metacritic gives a rating of 64 out of 100 based on reviews from 48 critics, which indicates "generally favorable" reviews.[97] Template:Rotten Tomatoes score
The Daily Telegraph's Robbie Collin awarded the film five stars out of five, likening the experience of watching it to rediscovering a favorite childhood cartoon. He praised del Toro for investing his own affection for the genre and sense of artistry into the project in such a way that the viewer found themselves immersed in the film rather than watching from afar, noting the director had catered to younger and older audiences alike and expressed surprise that the film could rise above the sum of its parts.[98] Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter gave a positive review, describing the film as the sum of the potential every monster film had ever tried to fulfill.[99] Lou Lumenick of The New York Post gave the film four stars out of four, and said it had "no shortage of brains, brawn, eye candy, wit and even some poetry", praising the "clean and coherent" action sequences and the "terrific chemistry" between Hunnam and Kikuchi.[100] Drew McWeeny of HitFix highlighted other aspects of the film, paying particular attention to the production and art design. He also praised the cinematography for "perfectly capturing" the film, and described the score as "ridiculously cool".[101] Rolling Stone's Peter Travers called the film "the work of a humanist ready to banish cynicism for compassion", saying that del Toro "drives the action with a heartbeat".[102] Keith Uhlich of Time Out called the film "pure, pleasurable comic-book absurdity", and noted that del Toro had lent the proceedings a "plausible humanity" lacking in most of summer 2013's destruction-heavy blockbusters. He said the Kaijus' civilian victims make a "palpably personal impression", deeming one scene with Mako Mori "as mythically moving as anything in the mecha anime, like Neon Genesis Evangelion, that the director emulates with expert aplomb."[103] The Village Voice's Stephanie Zacharek called it "summer entertainment with a pulse", praising its "dumbly brilliant" action and freedom from elitism, but noted the story is predictable and suggested del Toro's time would be better spent on more visionary films.[104] Angela Watercutter of Wired called it the "most awesome movie of the summer", a "fist-pumping, awe-inspiring ride", and opined that its focus on spectacle rather than characterization "simply does not matter" in the summer blockbuster context.[35] Richard Roeper gave the film a B, commenting that either the Jaegers or Kaijus "can take down any of the Transformers."[105] Leonard Maltin gave the film two-and-a-half out of four stars, calling it "three-quarters of a really good movie that doesn't know when to quit."[106]
The Guardian's Andrew Pulver was less enthusiastic, calling the film a mix of "wafer-thin psychodrama" and "plot-generator dialogue".[107] Time's Richard Corliss said the action was let down by "inert" drama, describing the film as "45 minutes of awesome encased in 90 minutes of yawnsome."[108] Justin Chang of Variety criticized it as loud and lacking the nuance and subtlety of del Toro's previous films.[109] Slant Magazine's Ed Gonzalez, who said the film lacked poignancy, compared it to a video game: "a stylish but programmatic ride toward an inevitable final boss battle".[110] The Wrap's Alonso Duralde criticized the choice to set most battles at night or during the rain, feeling it detracted from the action, and said the comic relief actors—Day, Gorman, and Perlman—stole the film from the less interesting leads.[111] Jordan Hoffman of Film.com identified Hunnam as the weak link in the cast, calling him a "charisma black hole".[112] Giles Hardie of The Sydney Morning Herald was particularly critical of the film, awarding the action sequences "five IQ points out of five" as he described the film as an hour and twenty minutes of fight sequences vaguely connected by ten minutes of story.[113]
Director Rian Johnson praised the film,[114] as did Japanese game director Hideo Kojima, who called it the "ultimate otaku film" and stated he "never imagined [he] would be fortunate enough to see a film like this in [his] life".[115] Go Nagai, who pioneered the idea of mecha piloted from an interior cockpit, praised the film's fun and intense action, while game developer Fumito Ueda said its battle scenes surpassed memories of the tokusatsu films he saw as an impressionable child.[116] Science fiction author William Gibson called the film "A ravishing display of intelligent, often wonderfully witty visual design, every frame alive with coherent language, in the service of what is at heart a children's story... A baroque that doesn't curdle, that never fetishizes itself."[117]
The inclusion of only one female character of note resulted in Pacific Rim not passing the Bechdel test. This became a topic of discussion in the media and on the Internet. Opinions were divided between those pointing to the film as an example of Hollywood's practice of ostracizing women, and those noting that the film did not sexually objectify Mako Mori and gave her a narrative arc not revolving around a man.[118][119]
Accolades
Award | Category | Winner/Nominee | Result |
---|---|---|---|
ABFF Hollywood Awards | Artist of the Year | Idris Elba (also for Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom and Thor: The Dark World) | Nominated |
Annie Award | Outstanding Achievement, Animated Effects in a Live Action Production | Won | |
Outstanding Achievement, Character Animation in a Live Action Production | Nominated | ||
British Academy Film Awards | Best Special Visual Effects | Nominated | |
Critics' Choice Movie Award | Best Visual Effects | Nominated | |
Denver Film Critics Society | Best Science Fiction/Horror Film | Nominated | |
Empire Awards | Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy | Nominated | |
Hollywood Film Awards | Best Visual Effects | John Knoll | Won |
Las Vegas Film Critics Society | Best Horror/Sci-Fi Film | Won | |
Saturn Award | Best Science Fiction Film | Pending | |
Best Director | Guillermo del Toro | Pending | |
Best Production Design | Andrew Neskoromny and Carol Spier | Pending | |
Best Editing | Peter Amundson and John Gilroy | Pending | |
Best Special Effects | John Knoll, James E. Price, Clay Pinney and Rocco Larizza | Pending | |
St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association | Best Visual Special Effects | John Knoll | Nominated |
Teen Choice Awards | Summer Movie Action | Nominated | |
Visual Effects Society | Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects-Driven Feature Motion Picture | John Knoll, Susan Greenhow, Chris Raimo, Hal Hickel | Nominated |
Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture | Jakub Pistecky, Frank Gravatt, Cyrus Jam, Chris Havreberg for Kaiju - Leatherback | Nominated | |
Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture | Johan Thorngren, Jeremy Bloch, David Meny, Polly Ing for "Virtual Hong Kong" | Nominated | |
Outstanding Virtual Cinematography in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture | Colin Benoit, Nick Walker, Adam Schnitzer, Victor Schutz for "Hong Kong Ocean Brawl" | Nominated | |
Outstanding Models in a Feature Motion Picture | David Fogler, Alex Jaeger, Aaron Wilson, David Behrens | Nominated |
Home media
Pacific Rim became available for download on the iTunes Store and Vudu on October 1, 2013.[120][121] The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray Disc in the USA on October 15, 2013. It will be released on home video in the UK and other countries on November 25.[122] A collector's edition was also available on the same date.[123] To help promote the home media release, Bryan Harley and Roque Rodriguez of Fresno, California, produced a "sweded" version of the film's Gipsy Danger vs. Otachi battle scene, after del Toro was impressed by the duo's "sweded" trailer released on YouTube in March 2013.[124]
Potential sequel
In July 2012, del Toro discussed the possibility of making a Pacific Rim sequel. "We always leave ideas that were in the first draft as you go along. You know, either a set piece that was great but too expensive, an idea that was really bright, but it couldn't quite fit the structure... so we have a little stash of stuff we wanted to do that we didn't get to do. So if that's a possibility, A) I would be very happy to do a sequel, but B) a lot of these ideas, set pieces and all that, actually have in them a really good seed for a sequel."[125]
On December 4, 2012, Legendary Pictures announced that it had selected Pacific Rim co-writer Travis Beacham to write the sequel, along with del Toro, though there was no comment as to whether del Toro would return to direct the second film.[126]
At WonderCon 2013, del Toro expressed enthusiasm for a potential crossover between Pacific Rim and Godzilla—another Legendary Pictures kaiju film—but stressed that no such plans were in place.[127]
In July 2013, del Toro discussed the sequel, stating: "The main idea that we're bouncing off is the fact that Newt drifted with a Kaiju brain, and all Kaiju brains are connected. We say that. They are like a hive mentality. So, you know, draw your own conclusions."[128] The director has also stated the sequel will feature "Gipsy 2.0", as well as a "merging of Kaiju and Jaeger".[129]
In October 2013, del Toro spoke to IGN about the sequel and revealed that, "Travis Beacham and I are writing [the sequel]", despite the film not yet being greenlit.[130]
Notes
- ^ The word kaiju ('怪獣', "strange creature, monster") is Japanese in origin, and thus has an identical singular and plural form, i.e. the plural of "kaiju" is still "kaiju". However, the film specifically uses the plural "Kaijus", as does del Toro. This English modification is fairly common for Japanese loanwords.[63][64][66] Travis Beacham has said that he believes both forms to be correct in the film's universe.[131]
- ^ The word Jaeger ('Jäger', "hunter") is German in origin, and has an identical singular and plural form, i.e. the plural of "(der) Jäger" is still "(die) Jäger". However, the film specifically uses the plural "Jaegers".
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- 2013 3D films
- Alien invasions in films
- American science fiction action films
- American 3D films
- Annie Award winners
- Brain–computer interfacing in fiction
- Dolby Atmos films
- Films about technology
- Films directed by Guillermo del Toro
- Films set in the future
- Films set in 2013
- Films set in 2020
- Films set in 2025
- Films set in Alaska
- Films set in Hong Kong
- Films set in Manila
- Films set in San Francisco, California
- Films set in Tokyo
- Films set in the Pacific Ocean
- Films shot in Toronto
- Films produced by Guillermo del Toro
- Films using computer-generated imagery
- IMAX films
- Kaiju films
- Legendary Pictures films
- Mecha
- Robot films
- Science fiction war films
- Screenplays by Guillermo del Toro
- Super Robots
- Warner Bros. films