Regie:
Guillermo del ToroKamera:
Guillermo NavarroMusik:
Ramin DjawadiBesetzung:
Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, Max Martini, Robert Kazinsky, Clifton Collins Jr., Robert Maillet, Diego Klattenhoff (mehr)Streaming (5)
Inhalte(1)
Monströse Kreaturen, die einer Erdspalte tief im Ozean entsteigen, richten in Küstenstädten am Pazifik verheerende Zerstörungen an. Mit riesigen Robotern, den Jägern, nehmen die Menschen den Kampf gegen die Ungeheuer auf. Als der Einsatz wegen Erfolglosigkeit enden soll, gehen Jäger-Chef Stacker Pentecost und drei seiner Roboter-Piloten aufs Ganze. Sie wollen die Spalte im Pazifik schließen - egal wie! (ProSieben)
(mehr)Kritiken (16)
Something is creaking here and unfortunately not in that good robotic way. Guillermo del Toro might be playing around with huge action figures, but he forgot to give them a beating heart. Any part of Transformers can have as many mistakes as it wants, and yet it works incomparably better in terms of storytelling or emotion. Surprisingly, various dialogue and narrative clichés pile up here for some time, not all the actors are likable (Charlie Day fails miserably in his role), and all the weight lies on the action scenes. As expected, these work perfectly, and the battle for Hong Kong with the third dimension in the background is intoxicating like nothing I've seen in a long while, but it is still far from enough. Behind every precise hit, there is hesitation, and behind every twist, there is awareness that this is only little boy's dream come true without anything that would also satisfy someone who didn't spend his childhood throwing robots and lizards against the wall in his room. Even the plot twists with some added value, like the black market or the hints of a social crisis, feel slightly contrived. And given that the characters fighting the enemy are just pre-set genre figurines (unfortunately, even the eagerly awaited protagonists Mako and Pentecost), it is quite a disappointing experience despite cautious expectations. The third star is saved by the likable Charlie Hunnam and an appearance by a rejuvenated Daniel Craig, as well as Ron Perlman in the role of Ron Perlman. It particularly pains me, as a person who regularly acknowledges both Hellboy and Hellboy II as possibly the best comic book adaptations, that this blockbuster certainty didn't work out in the end. The perfect visual attraction remained just that: an attraction, not an honest film.
()
Eine Film-Megalomanie, die nicht selbstzweckmäßig und übertrieben ist, sondern der Kern des Zielkonzepts selbst, das Blut im Herzen des Films. Eine einfache Handlungsschablone, perfekte visuelle Effekte, physisch überwältigende Actionszenen (die beste spielt sich im Hafen von Hongkong ab), eine ausgefeilte visuelle Gestaltung der Roboter sowie der Meeresungeheuer. Eine ausgewogene Verwunderung über die epische Kraft der Gegner (die Japaner werden Bauklötze staunen). Dazu kommt Guillermos Begeisterung für Schleim, Hautparasiten und Ron Perlman. Die Figuren und ihre Interaktionen sind aber nicht besonders gut und der Gedanke mit den Dinosauriern kommt krampfhaft rüber. Schade. Die 3D-Version ist besser als in den meisten Fällen (aber immer noch nur während der Postproduktion aus 2D gemacht). Ist es ein Zufall, dass der verrückte Wissenschaftler ein Ebenbild von J. J. Abrams ist?
()
Guillermo del Toro spielte dank einer Art Wild Card in der ersten Liga von Hollywood, da man automatisch annahm, dass es sich um ein klasse Ding handeln würde, sobald er einen echten Großfilm gedreht haben wird (denn der unterfinanzierte Hellboy oder der wahnsinnige Blade II gehören wohl nicht dazu). Rückblickend tut es mir wirklich Leid, dass das Megalomaniewerk über den Berge des Wahnsinns und Der Hobbit überreif geworden sind. Denn Pacific Rim ist im Grunde genommen alles, was mich mit dem Begriff des bayischen generischen Blockbusters verknüpft. Ein paar anfänglich großartige Ideen sowie eine in der Tat gigantische Atmosphäre sind durch die Rede eines irren Hipster-Wissenschaftlers weggeweht worden, in welche er alle Klischees über die Alien-Invasion in einem Satz zusammengefasst hat und besser wurde es dann auch nicht mehr. In Anbetracht dessen, dass sich im Grunde genommen ein Drittel des Films lediglich den Beziehungen zwischen den Charakteren widmet, macht Pacific Rim einen kahlen und nervösen Eindruck, denn selbst der Miniaturist del Toro, der es geschafft hat, aus einem wandelnden Ektoplasma eine sympathische Figur herauszuzaubern, rutscht hier zu krampfartigen Kreationen sowie Castingübertreibung ab (und der jüngere sowie weniger talentierte Bruder Heath Ledgers kann da auch nicht viel weiterhelfen). Ohne Ron Perlman würde ich sagen, dass es hier keine einzige wirklich exzentrische Figur gibt, lediglich eine Sammlung sich wiederholender Klischees. Mich hat auch die ungeschickte Arbeit mit den Handlungssträngen doch recht stark überrascht - so dass einer weitergehen könnte, die wiederum anhalten und nach fünf Minuten an gleicher Stelle weitergeht, an der sie vorher endete. Manchmal entstehen hierdurch regelrecht skurrile Eselsbrücken, wie zum Beispiel die SPOILER "Charaktere, die eine kostbare Information erfahren und in den Kontrollraum laufen müssen, um ins Mikrofon zu schreien und die Jäger zu warnen, die inzwischen seit drei Minuten auf dem Meeresboden marschieren" / SPOILER. Zur Zeiten der hektischen Verflechtung von Ereignissen wie bei Star Trek mutet dies wirklich wie ein deftiger Retro an. Guillermo erkennen wir dementsprechend insbesondere anhand des perfektionistischen Erscheinungsbildes, was den Eindruck erweckt, dass Gaspar Noe angefangen hat, mit Robotern und Monstern zu spielen. Mit diesem wunderschönen Neonglitzerzeugs wird einem wohl kaum etwas anbeißen. Außerdem sind einige Szenen in der Tat schwindelerregend ikonisch und es ist eine große Freude, sie zu betrachten (und zwar selbst in 3D, das weder dunkel, noch irgendwie störend ist). Was ist denn also bei dem jahrelangen Übergang del Toros zu den Blockbustern herausgekommen? Ein optisch und designmäßig feingeschliffener Retrofilm, der nicht viel sinnvoller und eigenartig witziger ist als die Transformers (obwohl dieser Streifen sie in Bezug auf Durchführungsfertigkeiten übertrifft). Hauen Sie mich doch mit einem Tanker über den Schädel, aber das hier reicht einfach nicht.
()
(weniger)
(mehr)
Pacific Rim hat von mir eine zweite Chance bekommen und hat wesentlich besser abgeschnitten. Er war vor allem unterhaltsamer, was mir beim ersten Mal sehr gefehlt hat. Warum? Vielleicht lag es daran, dass ich mir die Originalfassung mit Untertiteln angeschaut habe (also keine synchronisierte Version)? Oder daran, dass ich gewusst habe, was kommt? Schwer zu sagen, jedenfalls kamen mir diesmal die großen Metallmonster, die andere große Monster schlagen, sehr unterhaltsam vor. Die Action war bombastisch und in den richtigen Momenten entspannt (Newtons Schaukel). Die Hauptfiguren fand ich sympathisch und del Toros verspielte Stimmung fast greifbar. Ich freue mich auf den zweiten Teil (noch gestern hätte ich nicht gedacht, dass ich gerade über diesen Film so etwas schreiben werde).
()
Egal, was irgendjemand sagt, Pacific Rim ist einfach ein anständiger und actiongeladener Blockbuster mit atemberaubenden audiovisuellen Effekten und großartiger und knallharter Musik. Es macht nichts, dass viele der Szenen schablonenhaft und mit allen möglichen Klischees gespickt sind. Ich bin mit dem Gedanken ins Kino gegangen zu sehen, wie es aussieht, wenn ein Haufen achtzig Meter großer Roboter und ein Haufen gigantischer "Godzillas" gegeneinander kämpfen. Nun, am Ende ist es wirklich gut anzusehen, die Action ist reichlich vorhanden, die Kämpfe sind gut durchdacht und episch, es gibt auch Witz und einen Hinweis auf eine stärkere emotionale Szene. Ron Perlmans Cameo-Auftritt war ein Vergnügen und hat mich gut unterhalten. Auch das Aussehen der Monster erinnerte mich stark an die Monster aus Hellboy und Pan's Labyrinth. Von der Story her ist der Film nicht so stark und tiefgründig wie das Labyrinth, aber das hatte ich auch nicht erwartet. Kurzum, für mich ist dieser Film ein absolutes guilty pleasure, mit allem Drum und Dran - ich habe mich amüsiert und habe beim Visuellen manchmal auch vor Wonne "gegrunzt".
()
Godzilla meets Transformers. Pacific Rim is the most honest of this summer’s blockbusters, as it doesn’t pretend to be anything it isn’t and avoids narrative feints and overlapping meanings in straightforwardly bringing very clear content to the term “high concept” (Monsters! Robots! And they’re really big!). (With respect to the anticipated hurricane of merchandising, the fetishisation of technology present in the film deserves special analysis – the characters repeatedly marvel at the power and size of the robots as the camera revels in their design in long shots, which are in some ways reminiscent of the presentation of the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park). The plot puts us in familiar positions as viewers, as it is composed of popular sci-fi and military motifs (Earth in peril, neural linking, clones, male rivalry, the best defence is offence). All it requires from us is that we somewhat unthinkingly and completely contentedly watch modified versions of Top Gun, Cloverfield, Independence Day and Hellboy (for connoisseurs, there is a bonus in the form of the Blade Runner-esque neo-noir visual aspect of Hong Kong and a rather inappropriate reference to the famous “nose” scene from Chinatown). Given that its marketing campaign made it very clear what it was going to be about (and that it wouldn’t be about much more than that), Pacific Rim’s lack of originality did pose an obstacle to my enjoyment of the pure entertainment that it provided. The predictability of the plot twists and the restricting of the human element (manifested in the hunky actors who, with the exception of Elba, are interchangeable and uncharismatic) to the necessary minimum – after all, the concept of the Jaeger is based on the “transformation” of humans into a multi-ton steel monster (or an analogy for the cooperative playing of action-oriented games) – make room for a visual and visceral action experience. The heavyweight matches are clear and varied to the extent possible, but they are mainly huge. It’s a dream come true for gamers and comic-book fans. Guillermo del Toro plays like a little boy on a grand scale. I enjoyed the film – not intellectually, but intensely – especially because of its imaginativeness and the sensory experience provided by the combination of the film’s incredible visual aspect and its rock soundtrack. 75%
()
One of my most anticipated films of the year turned out to be pretty weak! I’d been looking forward to Pacific Rim basically ever since the first reports. A war between giant human-controlled robots and giant sea monsters could be conceived in many ways, but I was hoping for a gritty and dark sci-fi bash with relentless apocalyptic atmosphere and massive and originally conceived battles (the first reports spoke of at least five giant battles, with each being shot in a different way). In short, I was hoping for something like the antithesis to the childish Transformers. If only. Pacific Rim is nothing but a generic popcorn movie for kids with jokes, shallow characters, clichés, and pathos. Even the action scenes don’t have much juice – and there aren’t enough of them (in the first half, the characters are just talking in hangars and it’s insufferable). Del Toro really only aimed for “the bar” – even the design of the monsters and the robots is not amazing. Squandered opportunity.
()
Del Toro brings us something that has been done before. After all, big cities have already been devastated by The Avengers, Transformers, or Superman to the point that falling skyscrapers are becoming a bit of a stereotype. The director tries to add personality to it by providing some pretty clear action scenes, and by not going too far over the edge in terms of visual sweeps. On the other hand, into two hours he didn't cram in a single major character, a real character who could pull carry better than a jaeger pulling a tin can down the street. Idris Elba has charisma but drowns in pathetic speeches, and the rest of the ensemble is severely uninteresting - Ron Perlman is more of an iconic trademark than a functional character. It goes by quickly, but the most important and impressive scene is still the escape of little Mako from the kaiju through the empty street.
()
After watching this film, at first I said to myself that it was completely average. But then I went down another star as I thought of a lot of scenes where the logic of it was just too incomprehensible. Pacific Rim is a textbook example of a blockbuster. I don’t blame it for that, I even liked the camera and digital effects that Guillermo del Toro and his crew worked with. But let no one tell me, and now I’m going to spoil a bit, that the best warriors in those robots are brothers who, by coincidence, are on a routine mission in a sea grasped by a monster who immediately takes down one of them. I was also fascinated by how ten years later the other brother is offered to control a robot again and is considered an incredible fighter, which of course the other colleagues do not believe him at all. Plus, not a single actor fully convinced me to like him here, which is quite a fundamental issue, because Guillermo relies on the power of dialogues that do not work here at all in this regard. The only one worth it is Charlie Day as the crazy doctor. The rest is neither funny nor interesting, and the viewer simply cannot connect to them, which is probably the most fundamental stumbling block. It’s not entirely bad, but it failed because of the average actors and a very bland screenplay, which is simplifying so many things that it’s just incredibly obvious.
()
A new movie about an invasion by toerags from another dimension which, instead of NGE (the blues know what I’m talking about), is more similar to Emmerich’s version of Godzilla, eighties style. Guillermo has a lot of strong sides and one (and for the purposes of a summer popcorn movie - fundamental) weakness: he is simply no good at action. Under his directing action turns into a succession of clichés and wonderfully arranged images with no dynamism, inner tension, build up or clarity. No wonder that the most successful movies of his career are those with no action. Despite this handicap, he decided to make a movie based purely on action in massive dimensions. And... And certainly this didn’t turn out to be that proverbial exception that proves the rule, but simply solid Bayism with nice visuals, which might just break the iceberg of racist xenophobia so common in this country. After watching this, every little boy will want to have a little Gypsy Woman figurine on his bedside table.
()
Del Toro serves up pure-blooded mecha anime in live-action form with a properly intensified wow effect. Nevertheless, it is necessary to realise that Pacific Rim is primarily intended to work as a presentation of the mecha genre for the mainstream western audience. Therefore, if we look for adequate equivalents to the film in anime, then we definitely cannot go to the extremes of the genre such as the psychological-existential-theological curiosity Neon Genesis Evangelion or the spectacular self-reflexive and genre-caricature madness of Gurren Lagann. Pacific Rim is rather an equivalent of the genre’s pioneering titles that gets by with an honestly straightforward story and is built primarily on the novelty (in the context of Hollywood blockbusters) of its basic concept of spectacular battles between giant robots and giant monsters. People who have had a brush with anime, or rather Japanese pop culture in general, and have seen a handful of the most highly acclaimed and thus also completely exceptional titles can lament the fact that, in terms of characters and their dramatic arcs as well as the complexity of the given world, there are better mecha films than the first American blockbuster venturing into the vast expanses of the genre. But let’s bear in mind that the purpose was not to make an equivalent of Evangelion, but simply to make the first-ever live-action mecha film that wouldn’t have the form of papier-mâché tokusatsu movies and series, but would be an epic hyper-realistic spectacle in which the main attractions are the dimensions and proportions of the mechs. Similarly as in the case of Hellboy, del Toro doesn’t offer a distinctive interpretation of the existing tradition, but he gets by with fannish enthusiasm over the fact that he got to play with his dream action figures. _____ Regarding the film’s revenues and reception: Based on opening weekend box-office receipts in the US, some predicted a sad fate for the film, but several weeks after its release, Pacific Rim has proven to be a project that isn’t oriented primarily toward the American audience, as it has strong international potential, especially in Asia. During its opening weekend in South Korea, it captured 44.3% of the audience (i.e. 1,160, 636 viewers), and it became a truly massive hit in China, where it held the number-one spot for three weeks, repelling attacks from expected domestic hits, and was on the way to exceeding the revenues of Iron Man 3. Whereas domestic box-office receipts account for half of total global revenues with other Hollywood seasonal blockbusters such as Iron Man 3 and Fast & Furious 6, foreign receipts comprise two-thirds of the total in the case of Pacific Rim.
()
A quality movie, but not such a massacre as promised in the trailers. The characters receive the same care as the unbelievably tangible fights with metal and organic monsters. Beautifully followable and ingenious brawls are the icing on the cake, held together by a perfectly functioning world whose natural laws are strange, but most of the time make more or less sense. Locating most of the plot in Hong Kong was also really fine, because it provides a perfect backdrop for those monumental punch-ups. People who like monsters and robots have made a movie for people who like monsters and robots.
()
It is much less spectacular than Avengers or Man of Steel, which is quite ironic, as it should be a much "bigger film" in terms of the screenplay. It is also less functional. The battles are decent, the visual effects are good, and even the 3D works. However, the characters are poorly developed, and the viewer doesn't really identify with anyone completely. It reaches its peak with the iconic Ron Perlman, who is clearly only there for decoration, and overall I felt like it was more of a summer blockbuster than a technically groundbreaking or otherwise innovative thing. I didn't feel the desire to say anything, I didn't feel great ambitions, nor a grand score. Entertain and move on. It is thrilling and also suspenseful, they literally played with the Jaegers and got everything they could out of them.
()
You are a playful kid who sees a giant monster from outer space around every corner and imagines how you can become bigger up and give it a good spanking. And then you grow up and you make Pacific Rim. It's silly, with mediocre performances, and full of militant clichés, but at the same time it's crafted to perfection, with spectacular villains and one breathtaking scene, fully reflecting del Toro's staging mastery (the little girl). In the 50s, they would have sold their nuclear arsenal to the Russians for a monster movie like this, nowadays is past it’s prime, but it’s still fun. Ron Perlman rules.
()
Cliquishness and absolute lack of originality when it comes to the characters and their dialogue is something that knocks the film down. Additionally, even the logic works on its own terms. Sometimes you will think that this is a really stiff script that didn't deserve to become something truly quality and magnificent. It's disappointing. It's as if the creators don't care about what they are telling, as long as it looks good. But that's not enough. More: http://www.filmovy-denik.cz/2013/07/pacific-rim-utok-na-zemi-2013-45.html
()
Total let down. There’s nothing positive to be said about this movie. A blatant rip-off of various other works, be it movies (Godzilla, Transformers) or video games (Mass Effect, Portal). Totally uninspired, with horrible dialogues and the largest number of super unlikeable characters per square meter. I had been looking forward to Pacific Rim since the first trailer, but this might just be the biggest disappointment of this year.
()