And then we tried to watch Pacific Rim...

[elisi]

It was in ITV2 last night. And we got half way through.

I had this notion that it was a Good Thing; not quite sure why, but that was the fannish vibe I had gotten. (I also got Good Thing vibe re. Guardians of the Galaxy, and found *that* unwatchable, although for different reasons.) Anyway, I should backtrack a little...

When we went to see Black Panther one of the trailers was puzzling. It looked vaguely Transformer-y, had a young & nicely diverse cast - and seemed to be about giant robots punching monsters in the face. It wasn't until the final titles flashed up that I discovered it was for Pacific Rim 2.

Somehow no one had ever mentioned that Pacific Rim was about giant robots punching monsters in the face... Generally if a movie is dumb, but awesome, I pick up on it and set my expectations accordingly. Ah well. I don't know that it would have made a difference.

Anyhoo, it was on telly, Darcy said 'fancy watching it?' and so we did. Except this one didn't have a diverse cast (except for Idris Elba and the Japanese girl), instead it had a plethora of Riley clones, minus the charm & personality. (Seriously, I cannot remember the main character's name. Did he HAVE a name? I'm serious, did anyone ever mention it?) And Darcy commented that they all looked like 'human wallpaper, completely featureless'. I swear they could have swapped them round and I wouldn't have noticed.

Which might have been manageable if there had been a coherent story or the characters hadn't ALL BEEN SO VERY STUPID or the writing had been OK or... something. IDK. Basically the Honest Trailer is PERFECT, it's simply a film 'starring things your inner 9 year-old will love':

Giant robots!
Giant monsters!
Giant robots punching giant monsters!
Using shipping crates as brass knuckles!
Using a freighter as a baseball bat!
Bo staff fighting!
Colors!
A doggy!
Aw, that's got three arms!
Pew pew pew!
Whoa!
And that one part...
Where he's all like 'Ugh'
And the Kaiju's all 'Rarr'

Watch on YouTube

Although on the plus side, Smurfette the female character wasn't sexualised (at all), again confirming the 'made for 9 year olds' theory.


Don't get me wrong, there is nothing WRONG with giant robots, especially since Darcy then discovered a movie called Robot Jox from 1989, from which Pacific Rim clearly has taken most of it's cues/ideas (just adding Godzilla). The film's plot follows Achilles, one of the "robot jox" who pilot giant machines that fight international battles to settle territorial disputes in a dystopian, post-apocalyptic world.

JUST LOOK AT THIS SEQUENCE (and see how the Pacific Rim robots are literally lifted wholesale). Bonus, this movie's hero has a memorable name, and I already care about his world:

Watch on YouTube

(WHY DOES EVERYONE STILL LIVE IN THOSE CITIES IN PACIFIC RIM??!??? WHY DO THEY ALL RUN AROUND PANICKING, WHY ARE THERE NOT PROCEDURES IN PLACE??? WHY- ok, I'll stop. There are no answers beyond 'robots punching monsters in the face'.)

Comments

[ruuger]

I'm so happy I'm not the only person who doesn't get the appeal of that movie! It was so boring, and not even stupid in an entertaining way.

[elisi]

I am still BAFFLED that it's so popular. Like, I can appreciate 'dumb, but awesome', but I need just a SLIVER of something to care about.

Even poor Burn Gorman couldn't do anything interesting with his role. :(

[greensword]

I have not seen any of the movies in question however I saw the phrase "Achilles vs Alexander" and now I want a fight movie that's somehow about Achilles taking on Alexander the Great with maybe a subplot of Patroclus and Haphaestion trying to work out some kind of diplomatic solution.

[elisi]

You've not missed out! *g*

and now I want a fight movie that's somehow about Achilles taking on Alexander the Great with maybe a subplot of Patroclus and Haphaestion trying to work out some kind of diplomatic solution.
Now THAT I'd watch. With Greek actors, not white Hollywood clones.

[beccaelizabeth]

the point with pacific rim is
drift compatible
it's giant robots beating up giant monsters
with the power of friendship

[elisi]

I guess the friendship bit might have been more evident if we had watched to the end...

[orangerful]

My inner 9 year old did enjoy the movie the one time I've seen it. It was stupid but some good mindless fun. Felt like a very over-the-top Power Rangers episode LOL. And now John Boyega is in the sequel so I'm kinda hoping that is just as fun because I like John Boyega. :)

But yeah gotta be in the right mindset for it. I still need to rewatch "In Bruges" because I was not int he mood for that kind of movie when I sat down to watch it since the trailers were just SO WRONG in how they promoted it.

[elisi]

Felt like a very over-the-top Power Rangers episode LOL.
Yes, definitely. :D

And now John Boyega is in the sequel so I'm kinda hoping that is just as fun because I like John Boyega. :)
The sequel looked like it had far more interesting characters!

I still need to rewatch "In Bruges" because I was not int he mood for that kind of movie when I sat down to watch it since the trailers were just SO WRONG in how they promoted it.
Ooooh, now that is an amazing movie, but very very VERY dark humour.

[nostalgia]

I like it but I still don't get why the coastal cities still had massive populations.

[elisi]

It's very strange. I mean, it looks gorgeous (COLORS!), so maybe they all just liked the aesthetic.

[owlboy]

iirc it was meant to be an analogy for climate change or something.

i watched it a few years ago and i dont remember any single thing about it whatsoever

[yourlibrarian]

I wasn't very impressed with it either. I agree with beccaelizabeth that these seem to be the factors that fandom latched on to. I did watch the whole thing but have no interest in seeing the sequel.

Re: people moving away from the coast, yes, you'd think so wouldn't you? I'd think that giant monsters would be traumatic enough for anyone. But then again there are people who live on coasts now that are threatened, who live by rivers that continually flood them, etc. And governments are doing little to nothing about all these coastal communities that need to start making plans to move now if they're going to all be out by the time the waters cover them.

Now I'm curious what you didn't like about Guardians!

[elisi]

I did watch the whole thing but have no interest in seeing the sequel.
Having seen the trailer for the sequel, it immediately looks more interesting, partly just because John Boyega, and the fact that his character looks 5000 times more interesting than White Guy Whose Name I Can't Remember. And it's about training new pilots. Mind you, I'm not in a rush to see it, clearly the main point is still Giant Robots Punching Monsters...

And governments are doing little to nothing about all these coastal communities that need to start making plans to move now if they're going to all be out by the time the waters cover them.
Alas yes. :(

Now I'm curious what you didn't like about Guardians!
I wrote a VERY SNARKY thing here. Apologies to everyone who loved it. But it's fun to snark...

[sea_thoughts]

(Seriously, I cannot remember the main character's name. Did he HAVE a name? I'm serious, did anyone ever mention it?

Raleigh Becket. It is mentioned, though infrequently.

WHY DOES EVERYONE STILL LIVE IN THOSE CITIES IN PACIFIC RIM??!???

Because they thought they'd be safe with the Jaegers to protect them and it's cheap to live there, as opposed to inland, which has now become expensive due to said attacks.

WHY DO THEY ALL RUN AROUND PANICKING, WHY ARE THERE NOT PROCEDURES IN PLACE???

There were procedures in place, except the governments decided Jaegers were too expensive and decided to build the completely useless and ineffective wall instead.

[elisi]

Raleigh Becket. It is mentioned, though infrequently.
Looks at name. Tilts head. Nope. Would never have guessed it.

Re. living in cities/procedures: Why does every major building not have some kind of bunker below it? Attack = everyone goes to the cellar to be safe, even if the building is flattened. I literally thought this up in three seconds flat and NO ONE in the 10+ years the world has been attacked has thought of this?

Of course, this would not look half as good as masses of panicked people running through the streets and getting trampled. Again: giant robots punching monsters. I HAVE to stop thinking any deeper.

[ever-neutral.livejournal.com]

tbh I was just stoked to see an Asian female protagonist in a Hollywood blockbuster. I take what I am given!!

[elisi]

Good point. And she was pretty awesome too!

[dieastra.livejournal.com]

I only know about Pacific Rim because Burn Gorman of Torchwood fame is in it. How much or how little I don't know, as reading the description on IMDB was enough to tell me that this movie is not for me ;)

I fared better with Guardians of the Galaxy though. I couldn't get into it at the beginning but kept going and it grew on me the longer I watched. The green lady certainly was no damsel in distress but able to hold her own, and I found myself chuckling at some of the jokes. I even briefly entertained the thought of buying figures but then decided against it.

On the other hand, the first Deadpool fared not well with me. I had recorded it from TV with great expectations because everyone seems to love it, but it was not my kind of humor and I gave up after a while. Maybe it was just the delivery of the German dubbing, maybe it got better later, who knows. I just found it confusing, the way it jumped around.

Then again people also found "The Nice Guys" very funny which I only watched for Matt Bomer, and I couldn't get into that either. It's not that I did not understand the jokes, I did, I just could not laugh about them.

So, I guess we can conclude, humor is a very particular thing!

[elisi]

I only know about Pacific Rim because Burn Gorman of Torchwood fame is in it. How much or how little I don't know, as reading the description on IMDB was enough to tell me that this movie is not for me ;)
He plays a scientist. It's not worth seeing for him. :(

I fared better with Guardians of the Galaxy though. I couldn't get into it at the beginning but kept going and it grew on me the longer I watched.
Yeah, I may have given up too quickly, but the beginning (and the main character) was so generic I found it very difficult to connect...

Maybe it was just the delivery of the German dubbing
German dubbing!!! D: D: D: Good grief, what a horrific thing to do to it - it's ALL in the smart-alec commentary/4th wall breaking. Yes it jumps around narratively, but honestly the joy is quite simply in HIM being a snarky, sarcastic bitch about everything. (Of course, if that's not your cup of tea, then that can't be helped...)

Then again people also found "The Nice Guys" very funny which I only watched for Matt Bomer
This rings a very faint bell, but I know what you mean about not finding jokes funny. As you say, humour is a very particular thing!

Hasn't seen this, has no plans to do so, grabs popcorn anyway

[(Anonymous)]

see how the Pacific Rim robots are literally lifted wholesale
Well, Guillermo Del Toro does tend to copy-paste things (*cough* Shape of Water *cough* Black Lagoon *cough*)

I generally dislike/don't care for giant robots -give me human-sized robots any day- so I didn't watch this, but you have to admit that "Today we are cancelling the apocalypse!" is one the most badass lines ever put on film. So, worth it, for me.

If I may though, I am intrigued: what was it about Guardians of the Galaxy that was so unwatchable? I mean, personally, I don't follow the MCU because big, shared universes aren't good for obsessive compulsives, and because something about the Marvel formula puts me off, I don't know what. Still, what was it about this *widely* praised film that put you off, I'm curious.

Re: Hasn't seen this, has no plans to do so, grabs popcorn anyway

[elisi]

Well, Guillermo Del Toro does tend to copy-paste things (*cough* Shape of Water *cough* Black Lagoon *cough*)
*looks up Creature from the Black Lagoon* Nah, Splash! is still a better fit... (But yes, stealing ideas is obviously a thing!)

I generally dislike/don't care for giant robots -give me human-sized robots any day- so I didn't watch this, but you have to admit that "Today we are cancelling the apocalypse!" is one the most badass lines ever put on film. So, worth it, for me.
You should watch Buffy.



(Since there are 144 episode of Buffy, I am not expecting you to even glance at it, but when it comes to badass/cool lines, Buffy is pretty much second to none!)

Still, what was it about this *widely* praised film that put you off, I'm curious.
WELL. You asked. *cracks knuckles*

Scene: Random evening (probably a Friday or Saturday), my beloved other half says ’How about Guardians of the Galaxy?’ (not being particularly enthused, but hey, it's on Netflix and there's nothing else on) and I say ‘Oh yes, everyone loves it, that seems the perfect thing to watch! It should be fun and diverting in a silly superhero way!’

Now, we only watched half an hour or so, but here is my savage (APOLOGIES EVERYONE, SNARK IS FUNNY) take-away. What I can remember, that is. Done scene-by-scene, from memory.

1 - Utterly generic Little Boy's Mother is Dying scene. He runs outside and there is a spaceship?

(Sidebar: The script seemed to be created by The ScriptGenerator (TM), a wonderful tool which saves a lot of money I’m sure, but it does leave something to be desired when it comes to original storytelling.)

2 – Little Boy has now grown up to be a straight, white, generic male who lives in a spaceship and is a smuggler (or a dodgy guy of some description or other) who is probably also a wiseguy cracking jokes in the face of danger, because that's in the character description. He wakes up next to Hot Chick Whose Name He Can’t Remember*. The CharacterGenerator (TM) was obviously set to the lowest, most basic setting possible. I have zero interest in him, and wish the nameless girl would kill him and take over the story, rather than watching Yet Another Story About a White Guy Becoming a Hero. (His ~journey~ probably has something to do with his father, because when doesn't it?)

3 – A heist of some kind? I have vague memories of a big grey castle-thing on a stony planet. There is a magical McGuffin (some kind of ball?) and some bad guys??? I don't think they were actually twirling their mustaches evilly, but otherwise they were exactly as expected.

4 - Ming the Merciless and his two daughters, one of whom was Karen Gillan, painted green ETA: Blue. I have been told she was blue. Goes to show how good my memory is...). I love Karen, but there was nothing to work with. I have no recollection of what happened, except they were arguing. About the kind of things Evil Overlords & their off-spring/subordinates usually argue about. And someone stormed out dramatically.

5 - Nice pretty civilised place with a pool and maybe some shops or something. Possibly alien palms IDK. This is where Gru (that's the tree one, y/y?) turned up along with the... racoon (?) and ran into Straight White Male Main Character (and also Karen Gillan?) And some of them were in capes. There was a sack. And they were all after the McGuffin, and there was an awkward chase/trying-to-remain-disguised scene and even worse dialogue and a big fight broke out and we literally couldn't bear it any longer.

*The Nameless girl is there to demonstrate that a) he's virile and able to get hot chicks to fall into his bed easily, b) he's straight and c) he has commitment issues (cf DEAD MOTHER) and presumably d) he will at some point meet a ~Special Girl~ who will be Different and Kickass and able to Hold Her Own (Strong Female Character (TM)) and help him get over his mommy issues and finally fall in love. Zzzzzzzzzzz.

[kazzy-cee.livejournal.com]

I really enjoyed Guardians but it was the side characters and the music I enjoyed most.

I did see Pacific Rim but it was so unmemorable that I have few recollections. I do think those types of films suffer on TV especially with commercial breaks and of course they often cut the cinema release so it depends how well they’ve done that.

[elisi]

I really enjoyed Guardians but it was the side characters and the music I enjoyed most.
These things are always very personal - I don't think I noticed the music, but might look it up. :)

I do think those types of films suffer on TV especially with commercial breaks and of course they often cut the cinema release so it depends how well they’ve done that.
Yes, I think it probably looks pretty spectacular on the big screen. And I don't think there's much to remember plot-wise...

[janne-d.livejournal.com]

Ugh, I noped out of Pacific Rim about half way through - so nice to know other people out there also didn't enjoy it! Like you I saw so many references to it around various fandoms I thought it had to be at least fun, plus some RL people I know also liked it.

I did know it was about giant robots fighting monsters before I watched, and my main takeaway was "how did they manage to make giant robots fighting monsters so boring?"

[elisi]

Ugh, I noped out of Pacific Rim about half way through - so nice to know other people out there also didn't enjoy it!
It was realising that there was a whole hour left...

Like you I saw so many references to it around various fandoms I thought it had to be at least fun, plus some RL people I know also liked it.
Glad that I'm not not the only one going by the tenor of fannish osmosis.

I did know it was about giant robots fighting monsters before I watched, and my main takeaway was "how did they manage to make giant robots fighting monsters so boring?"
Aye. From what I can gather, the sequel is a lot better - the battles don't all take place at night, in the rain, so you can see what happens!