Colombiana is one of those films where the protagonist has a gun and you just know that someone’s going to take his last walk. The poster gives you a Salt/Tomb Raider feel so this could be good news if you enjoyed those films. One thing that didn’t help was the trailer, which I found to be pretty awful personally. The actual movie is better than the trailer, but was it good enough to be considered a good movie?

Cataleya is the main character of the film and some may consider her a Hero. If you consider Light Yagami, The Punisher, or the Superior Spiderman as heroes, then by all means! She would definitely be heroic, but I don’t really consider those guys to be heroes. Goku, Superman……Bionic Bunny! Those guys did their duty and stayed with their morals. Cataleya’s big mission is to avenge her parents and destroy anyone who gets in her way! It will take some time to climb up the mafia list, so she makes a name for herself as she bumps more and more people off.

The plot is pretty basic which is (Almost) always a good thing. This means that the film can spend less time on the plot and more time on the action. There is also a character by the name of Danny. (Hardcore name, but awful character) Saying that he was an awful character is a bit strong, but I definitely did not like him. I don’t know…I just felt that he was a disgrace to such a cool name. Ignoring that guy, there weren’t many subplots in the film. We had the cliched FBI vs CIA fight, (Which never gets old! Honestly, it’s always the best part of the films) I wasn’t really sure who to root for. I guess I would go with the FBI, but they’re always so much weaker for some reason. I wish that this plot would have gotten more screen time, since it was pretty intense.

This film does have a lot of romance which can definitely bring down the movie for you. Cataleya and Danny are already not good characters, so this helps them to be that much worse. Danny tries to be a “tough guy” and even gets some “hardcore” lines. Unfortunately, they don’t make him a more endearing character. Cataleya’s uncle is supposed to be someone that we can possibly root for, but the opening scene already shows that he’s a complete villain. Why root for him? Of course, Cataleya also becomes a villain so I guess everyone’s evil this time. I bet even Danny had a secret agenda.

So, would I recommend this film? Well, the film has some action scenes and one hand to hand fight, but there are also some things that hamper it down. The romance is a bigger subplot than usual and the character cast is astonishingly unlikable. Cataleya’s scene where she spits out the disk is pretty gross and can also be a quick turn off. There’s the usual summer blockbuster violence, but I can’t remember anything that was unthinkably violent or wince worthy. If you’ve seen Jaws or Terminator, then you’ll be okay……if you want a real movie where the main character uses a gun…I don’t know what to tell you. (Maybe when this film gets a sequel, we’ll have something) If you want to watch a show where the main character has a gun, check out Black Cat!

Overall 3/10

Vertigo is a pretty big movie from the late 50’s. I’m sure that most of us know what the term Vertigo means, so I’ll skip that part. Alfred Hitchcock tends to make a lot of mystery movies and this one is no exception. The actual mystery doesn’t start until the later part of the film, unless you debate whether there’s a….Ghost involved! Let’s see how epic this film turned out.

Joh-Scottie is the main character of the film and he’s pretty terrible, but more on that later. He’s a retired detective who had to stop being a policeman when he led someone to their doom. It was an accident and the guy practically lunged off of the roof, but Sco-John knew that he needed to retire. Now he lives the happy life, no stress, no pressure! Unfortunately, someone wants him to complete one last assignment. (Sound like James Bond or Batman yet?) Jo-Scottie accepts and his mission is to follow the man’s wife: Madeleine. He fears that she is being possessed by a ghost. Sc-John follows her to a lot of placed and eventually she jumps in a river. Her body is able to float amidst the water so at least there is no chance of drowning, but John- I mean Scottie! Decides to save her. She escapes yet again and John is back to square one. Is she being possessed? Is she just insane!?

The film had a very weak cast, but films tend to do that. The best character was easily the judge when they took the main character to court. This guy knew what he was talking about and he saw through the main character’s act with ease! This guy was definitely an intellectual and not someone who should be messed with. John/Scottie suffers from delusions and he basically cracks towards the second half of the film. I would have felt bad for him, had he not been such an awful protagonist. You can’t even call him a hero since his short sighted, immoralistic (Is that a word? Well, now it is!) actions quickly turn him into the antagonist. Towards the end, you aren’t even sure who you should root for anymore! (I decided to just watch the two villains duke it out with an expression of horror on my face!) It’s really too bad, since the main character was pretty good at the beginning. He stayed solid until he took on the mission, which is where he slowly (But steadily) went downhill. The other characters were pretty unmemorable, but Judy Barton made some pretty big mistakes. Sometimes you shouldn’t wear things from the crime scene….

Overall this movie wasn’t one of Hitchcock’s better films. I do applaud the fake out endings, (Did you think that Avengers had a lot of those? This one has around 5 different scenes where the film “ends” and then starts up again. It was pretty epic, but one of the fake endings beat the real one. Only one of them though, I did enjoy the real ending since it was a pretty epic twist) but it wasn’t enough to keep the film afloat. It was just too long and suffered from the main characters. I recommend the film if you want to see a film where the main characters gets to leap across buildings, but otherwise, check out Man of Steel. He may not jump over them, but flying’s pretty good as well!

Overall 3/10

Alright, The Grandmaster is a film that many of you may not have heard of. It is based off of a “True story”. Ever heard of Ip Man? Well, he’s Bruce Lee’s teacher and apparently he was extremely tough. The film likely exaggerated his strength, but that was the fun part, so we should definitely let it slide. Usually films that are based off of real life are pretty awful, but since this one is action oriented, maybe that won’t hold true.

The Grandmaster starts off with an ambitious beginning. Ip Man has a big fight against a group of warriors and he skillfully makes short work of them. All of his opponents go down pretty quickly except for one warrior who manages to put up some resistance. There is never a question of who will win the battle, but I’m glad that at least one warrior tried to do something. The whole scene was very cool, but there was one problem with it….This scene completely destroyed the rest of the film. Sometimes, you should try not to start out so epic. This is one of those rare occasions. The problem is that the rest of the film doesn’t feature an abundance of fights and the ones that came up were cool…just not quite as cool. The first scene set the tone, but the rest of the film just dropped it.

The film stayed at a solid level for a while as Ip Man becomes the representative for the South. He faced various martial artists of the South who used different fighting styles, but Ip Man proved to be much better than the others. The fights did make for some pretty epic scenes. One of his opponents mixed different fighting styles together, which is a pretty good way to fight. Ip Man’s form of Kung Fu only uses three different signs, but they are sufficient to win battles.

Ip Man also took on Gong Er. She was a pretty skilled fighter and the first to “Defeat” Ip Man. It was decided that whoever broke a piece of furniture first, would be the loser. At one point Ip Man tries to save Gong Er, but she didn’t need his help and that’s what led to his downfall. With the exception of one scene, this was where the movie deteriorated quickly. Ip Man left the country and wars broke out. People died and the audience felt like snoozing.

Luckily, we still had one fight scene left (2 If you count Ip Man’s fight for the teaching position). Gong Er challenged Ma San to avenge her father. Ma San is a pretty skilled warrior and he was known as the strongest in the North. It’s a shame that he never got to challenge Ip Man. Gong Er and Ma San have a pretty solid fight and they both give it their all. The loser is humbled and the victor goes away feeling triumphant. After such a fight, I would expect nothing less!

The film should have ended there, but we get another half-hour of people talking, people dying, and people talking some more. You start to wonder what happened to Ip Man. Towards the end of the film, he vanished for a while and stopped being the main character. Gong Er replaced him in that regard and we got to see a little of her past. Gong Er and Ip Man were definitely the best main characters of the film. (Though I suppose that is not saying much.) Gong Er stayed strong to her vows and Ip Man beat up as many people as he could.

The Grandmaster is a film that suffered greatly from its length and lack of interesting characters. Had the film been cut down to around 70 minutes plus add some more fight scenes, this could have been one of the better films of 2013. I can’t say that I highly recommend this film, but if you like documentaries, then you should enjoy it. If you are willing to spend some money to see a good fight scene, you can also just come in and check the first few minutes. Of course, if you want a movie with real hand to hand fight scenes, check out Tekken Blood Vengeance!

Overall 3/10

Rope is a classic film that was made by Alfred Hitchcock. You’ve probably heard of him and I’ve seen some of his other films. I believe that I already reviewed one or two, but if not, now you’ll get to witness one. Rope is a classic mystery where the main characters (Well, really only Brandon) decide to tempt fate and see if their “Perfect murder” will come out all right.

The film starts out with David dying. It’s too bad since I’m sure that he could have been a decent character…hopefully anyway. The two murderers are the main characters; Brandon and Phillip. Brandon decides that the murder won’t be perfect unless they invite some people over and make this a fair contest. Brandon wants to test his intelligence against theirs and he also wants to feel the thrills of danger. Phillip is mortified, but he’s never able to stop Brandon from doing whatever he wants. The guests start to come in and things are going well….until Rupert walks in!

Rupert quickly became the best character in the film as he proceeded to completely obliterate Brandon’s chances for success. Brandon’s pretty cunning, but Rupert is an inquisitive person and he won’t be stopped so easily. The irony of the matter is that David’s body is in the same room with everyone. They are using the box that he is in, as the dinner table for the party. There are a lot of close shaves, but can Rupert actually solve this mystery?

The film is pretty suspenseful and it goes by quickly. The film basically takes place in the main room and they just talk for a while. A movie with nonstop talking may seem boring at first, but you never feel bored. I’m not sure if this would work in a modern movie, but I enjoy the dialogue in really old movies. Brandon makes for a pretty likable antagonist, but Phillip can be pretty annoying. He’s a villain, but he’s always doubting himself. Phillip keeps on getting nervous, but it’s far too late since he already committed the deed. Phillip nearly jeopardizes the mission several times and he does crack towards the end. The rest of the characters were pretty uneventful and they were mostly there to add drama. They never seemed to piece together the clues, but I like to think that they would have at some point.

This is a pretty fun film and I’d recommend it. The film isn’t very long and it holds up well. There may not be a lot of action or special effects, but not all films need that sort of thing. A lot of action can’t hurt, but this film manages to pull through without it. The mystery isn’t for the audience, which may be disappointing for some people, but then this would be a completely different movie. If you want a mystery to solve, check out Sherlock Holmes.

Overall 6/10

The Adjustment Bureau is a film that had a very good concept. Before I get into the plot, the poster should already tell you that this isn’t your average romance film! The stakes are pretty high and these beings may be the toughest antagonist since Jaws! I had heard of this film, but never got to watch it until recently.

The Adjustment Bureau is about a guy named David Norris. We spend the first few minutes starting to like the main character. The fact that he’s named David, means that he’s a tough guy, but it all goes downhill when the newspaper reveals that he made a critical error in judgement. He retreats to the bathroom, but Elise beat him there. David gets newfound inspiration from this extremely cringe worthy scene and goes back to make his speech. It’s really “heartfelt” and “emotional” so the fans quickly look up to him. David takes it all in and gets ready for the next day.

Unfortunately, there’s a shady fellow watching him and trying to make him spill his coffee! The guy isn’t very good at his job and falls asleep. Instead, the coffee falls on Elise. David jets to his job, but all of his coworkers have been taken down…he’s next! David must evade all of the officers if he is to escape. Unfortunately, they are “heavenly” beings (Who don’t act very heavenly) and they have powers beyond comprehension. Of course it does take 2-3 of them to finally subdue David…….

The Adjustment Bureau is in charge of making sure that things go according to the Chairman’s Master Plan. David decides that his fate is for him to decide, but they grab his paper and destroy the only means of contacting Elise. Can he ever find her again? Not to mention that The Adjustment Bureau will be attempting to stop him at all costs!

Well, the film had a great concept, but the execution wasn’t that good. The idea of a Dictator God is definitely intriguing and the real world would be a very depressing and scary place if that were the case. Also this “God” isn’t very good as he continues to alter his plans and lets his “Angels” wreck havok upon the city. David actually knocks one of them out and there’s something that you should know….they are very weak. Their hats allow them to cross time and space, but without them? They’re as good as human!

The film also had some things that were definitely a stretch. The Adjustment Bureau is in charge of managing the entire world, everyone’s life is managed so that they comply with the plan. So, how can about 100 guys, take care of billions of humans? Not to mention that the humans tend to be pretty defiant and collateral damage can get high. At one point, they try to stop David, but in the process they change the fates of around a dozen taxis and also cause a car crash. David even mentions how that doesn’t seem to be logical. It definitely isn’t! They’re changing more fates than they’re fixing them.

The “Hammer” gets a lot of hype since he never fails. Unfortunately, he makes the mistake of going up against David! There wasn’t really any likable characters in the film. David’s assistant was all right, but he was brainwashed very early on, so is that truly him? I think not! The Chairman seems to be pretty intense, but he should have appeared. With his abilities, maybe He could have defeated David.

The film’s concept was definitely ingenious, but it suffered from the poor execution. The film also added an extremely large dose of romance which hurt the film even more. It felt like a romance film with a thriller subplot. This plot would have been a lot better for an summer blockbuster or an anime film. If you want a thriller involving a mysterious organization, then I recommend checking out The Matr-Bleach.

Overall 3/10

I wonder how many of you readers remember Flightplan? It’s one of those movies that seemed to slip by many people. I can’t say that I’ve heard of it before, but you have to admit that it has a pretty cool poster. It’s slightly misleading and my one complaint is that she looks more horrified or shocked than determined and upset. Still, I’d say that the poster came out well and looks like a thriller/horror movie.

Flightplan involves the main character (Kyle) and her daughter (Julia) as they decide to board a plane. David Pratt had fallen off of a building, so they were going to bury him in Long Island. Julia seems to be worried since they were in a pretty seedy neighborhood, so Kyle made the logical choice and hailed a cab. They made it to the plane safe and sound, but that’s where things get dicey for the main characters.

Julia had wandered off to the side when she saw a nice snack. That’s never a good habit and Kyle warns her about that. Unfortunately, when Kyle takes a nap in the plane…Julia is gone! Even worse is the fact that she wasn’t on the Plane list and everyone claims to not have seen her. Obviously, she never got on the plane, but the heart that she drew is still there, not to mention that her Teddy Bear is still around. Kyle decides to check the entire plane, but she’s running low on suspects. There are two shady looking figures in the front, a really, overly cheerful guy in the back, a mean flight attendant, two irresponsible flight attendants,….The Captain! Maybe the suspect list isn’t as small as I had thought. Of course, if Everyone claims to not have seen Julia, could the entire crew be in on it? Julia must race against time as she tries to find Julia before the crew can arrest her.

Flightplan was a pretty solid movie, but it had some moments that were tough to believe. I won’t say whether she was hallucinating the whole thing, or if it happened. If it was the latter, wouldn’t someone notice a little girl being abducted? The crew was remarkably slow on the uptake in this film and nobody was willing to do what needed to be done. I can’t say that I was a huge fan of Kyle either, but she definitely beat the crew. Towards the end, the government gets involved, which definitely increased the stakes. There isn’t really a soundtrack on the film, but since there aren’t too many action scenes, it wasn’t necessary…right? Having a soundtrack is always a +, but not having one won’t hurt the film. (Of course, having one Would help the film) I’d recommend this film if you like classic mysteries and thriller films. Of course some scenes may make you facepalm.

Overall 5/10

True Grit is a call back to the old wild west days. If that didn’t start some alarms ringing in your head, then you may want to rethink that. I’ve never been a wild west person, but maybe this film could get past that. Maybe it could show me what a true wild west film should be like! Let’s see…..

The film starts out with a verse of scripture (Which is a solid way to start the film!) and then we get some narration. It appears that Tom Chaney defeated Mattie’s father and now she plans to avenge him. She mentions that everyone gets what’s coming to them at some point or other, but she’s going to take him down personally. First she needs to hire a gunman and get some money. In one of the better (but sadder) parts of the film, she negotiates with Colonel Stonehill. I liked his courage and dedication to the finer arts of negotiating, but Mattie is the protagonist, so things may not go his way. I’d say that this is where the film started going downhill. Slowly at first, but then it took a very steep nosedive towards the end.

Mattie hired a Marshall named Cogburn. They set out alongside LeBoueuf. (Who can get violent, but towards the end you’re supposed to sympathize with him because he’s a “hero”) They set off on a long trek to take down Chaney, but can they possibly catch him? Only time will tell I’m afraid.

Mattie isn’t a very good protagonist. I never liked a film to have a kid (Or in this case, very early teen) as the main character. I just can’t take the character seriously and it’s not as much fun. She has her “epic” scene at the end, but while it may have been temporarily satisfying, she should have listened to her own words. “Everyone pays for their sins” She’s all right with a gun, but she does freeze up when the going gets tough.

LeBoueuf is a pretty bad character. His opening scene is just awful and his next scene just keeps him on a spiralling track into oblivion. No matter what scenes he would get after that, it would be too late. He also tends to get taken out of a fight when things get tough.

How about Cogburn? Well, he tends to get drunk a lot and while he was a decent main character for a while, his poor treatment of his horse instantly put him on my bad list. That was just unacceptable and these characters could definitely learn a thing or two about true heroes.

Aside from Stonehill, I can’t say that I liked any characters in this film. Add to that the plethora of animal violence scattered across the film and some pretty cringe worthy scenes, this is not a film that I recommend at all. The Christian messages through the film are nice, but since the main character ignores all of them, you start to think about what the moral is. If you are squeamish about violence, you should probably avoid this film and if you like horses, then you should Definitely avoid this film. Next time you want to see something about the Wild West, check out the two part time travel episode in Justice League Unlimited. That’s the Wild West done right.

Overall 2/10

Jack Reacher is another film in a new trend of mysterious agent films. You know the type, the main character used to be the best of the best, until he retired or disappeared. Now he’s back and ready to roll! (Bourne, MI4. If James Bond were actually “The best of the best” you could add him to the list as well) Jack Reacher is a pretty good film and while it is weaker than the previous two films mentioned, it can hold its own.

The plot is that this guy shoots some people (And pays the parking meter!) before getting caught. At least the police were pretty quick on the draw this time, but they were too late. The convict asks for Jack Reacher to come, but the Police can’t contact him. Helen is the convict’s defense lawyer and she’s determined to help him. One day Jack shows up and tries to show why he’s the best. Helen decides to team up with him and together they can prove the convi-(I might as well say who the suspected convict is) James Barr’s innocence or vice versa. Unfortunately, some villains want to stop them, and they have the muscle to make it happen!

From there, there is a lot of shooting and fight scenes as Jack solves the case. He’s pretty smart and also physically powerful. In the film he’s capable of taking on several opponents at once and according to his trash talking, he always wins. Jack’s a pretty good character for the most part. When he’s in agent mode, he gets the job done. That’s the important thing. He’s also a pretty skilled marksman and did I mention that he served in the Government?

Helen is the other protagonist. She’s an all right character, but she’s mostly just there to be there. She doesn’t really help all that much and she’s definitely not much of a fighter. Towards the end, she doesn’t do so well, but at least she kept her dignity.

James Barr and Sandy aren’t very good characters either. Barr let his primal urges to shoot things get the better of him and Sandy doesn’t make the right move on several occasions. Cash is a pretty good character and it was nice to have at least one other fighter for the heroes. He’s all right with a gun and he did some damage. Zec is one of the big villains, but he’s very generic and not interesting. Let’s just say that he’s not much of a fighter. We also have the cop, but…..he’s not very good either.

Jack Reacher is a good film and if you like the subgenre of agents who must save the day, I’m sure that you will enjoy it. The final scene for Reacher can make you take a step back, but remember, Reacher’s no hero. He says so himself after all. You may be able to guess some of the plot twists early on, but it’s a good, popcorn fun movie to watch. Maybe it’ll get a sequel at some point. Either way, I recommend this film.

Overall 7/10

The Wolverine is a film that puzzled me for a long time. Not the film itself, but the concept. Wolverine is one of those characters that I never thought would get more than 1 film to himself. Wolverine is very popular, but it was just hard to picture, not to mention that the first one came out a long time ago. Now that the film’s out, it is a lot easier to picture Wolverine having a third film. The film is pretty solid and it’s a good superhero film.

Wolverine hasn’t had a very happy life. After the events of the first Wolverine film, and the 3 X Men films, Wolverine has decided to stop being a hero. The X Men can deal with their own problems and he’ll just live out in the woods. It’s a pretty neat set up, but ultimately it was never going to work out. After a very unnecessary subplot, Wolverine heads with Yuriko to japan. They meet with Shingen’s dad (Who is pretty awful. He makes some veiled threats along the way, but they aren’t to be taken seriously…), who is very old. Wolverine saved his life back in the day and now the old man wants to make sure that Wolverine gets what’s coming to him…..Wolverine declines and gets ready to leave. Unfortunately, he’s shot! Wolverine still does pretty good, but can he survive the odds without his healing factor? Also, Mariko is being targeted by the mafia, but why would they do such a thing?

There are a lot of questions that are left to the viewer, but I’m sure that you can guess them all. If you can’t, I recommend reading some Bleach and then getting back to this movie. Wolverine is a pretty solid character, but they did have to tone his healing factor down in this film. For most of the film, it is out of commission. There are circumstances involved, but I don’t find them plausible. This may not be a known fact, but Wolverine is still an expert hand to hand fighter. He’s gone up against Captain America and Spider Man in the past. The film shows us a little of that, but not too consistently. While his healing factor is working well, his fighting gets very sloppy. When his healing factor is fizzing out, Wolverine starts using tactics. Maybe that’s just the way he fights. Wolverine is a pretty solid character. (Even if he says a few “hardcore” things that take away from his character)

All of you should remember Yuriko from the anime, but for those who didn’t watch it; Yuriko is an expert close range combat fighter. She is able to fight against some pretty skilled opponents and it’s always good to have other characters who are able to fight alongside the main protagonist. Yuriko was definitely one of the better characters of the film and she gets 2 critical fights to herself. Her first fight was one of the best fights in the film and it’s always good to see a sword battle.

Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for Mariko. I didn’t find her to be a very good character and she was mostly the damsel in distress of the film. She has a few “tough” moments where she took on the minions and actually defeated a few. I dunno, if she had kept fighting the whole time, then it would have helped. Maybe even some classic lines like “I promise you Revenge!”.

The villains are definitely the weak point of the film. We have Viper, who plays a decently large role. Her power is pretty awful and not one that I would want to have. She’s actually pretty weak, but stays in the game somehow. She didn’t really add anything to the film and I think that she shouldn’t have been added. Shingen is a pretty tough villain, but he’s not very likable. His sword skills are pretty impressive and he makes for a good challenge to Wolverine. He wasn’t nearly as powerful as his anime counterpart, but it happens.

The “Silver Samurai” is a pretty tough mecha. What he lacks in character (Though his character is pretty awful), he makes up for (Somewhat) in sheer power. His Fire Blade is made of adamantium and it’s one of the strongest swords in XCU (Xmen Cinematic Universe) history. The Silver Samurai is pretty tough, but he does lack speed. Still, he was a decent final boss for the film.

On the negative side of the film, there are three main things. The opening scene involving the bear was pretty awful. They should have cut the scene out, but most live action films have a few cringe worthy scenes. The next one would be the excessive language in the film. It’s not extremely over the top, but more than you would find in the average superhero film. Sure, he’s Wolverine, but we don’t need the film to keep reminding us. He says his “iconic” line from X Men Origins, but there’s pretty little point. There are a lot of things that he could have said that would have been more epic. Also, this film has a romance subplot which is pretty annoying. Jean Grey’s ghost (Who is still inhabited by the Phoenix it would seem) keeps goading on Wolverine to just die already. He refuses, but she did cross the barrier between the living and the dead. Possible foreshadowing?

The Wolverine is a pretty good film. The atmosphere is a lot lighter than the first film and it’s more fun to watch. I would say that this film is better than the first, but the first film had a better final battle. (Deadpool FTW) The music is decently good for the film. The film does have more romance than you may have expected. The scenes are pretty wince worthy, but as long as you block them out, you’ll still enjoy the film. I recommend this film, but if you want a true superhero experience, then I recommend checking out The Avengers.

Overall 7/10

Pacific Rim is a film that jumped into theaters with a very risky premise. Robots fighting Kaiju is pretty out there and the general audience might not be able to sympathize with our interest in the film. The film also got very little marketing in theaters and it was very unlikely that you would see a trailer for the film. I went to the theaters quite a few times this year, (Not to mention that I’ll be checking out Thor and Wolverine soon) and while you would see the trailer for At World’s End, and World War Z, Pacific Rim was nowhere to be found. I only saw it once, (if at all) which is pretty disappointing.

The film starts with the main character explaining to us that the Kaiju have started to come to earth through an rift between dimensions, that was located deep beneath the Pacific. (Old school Kaiju fans may be skeptical since they usually come from underground or space, but it can be good to have a new take on that) The first Kaiju to make it through, manages to cause a lot of destruction over multiple cities before he was taken down. (By bullets and planes, but don’t laugh! Remember King Kong?) The rift seems to get bigger with each Kaiju attack and the frequency of the attacks becomes more and more common. (For example, it could have started as 1 Kaiju a year. Then 1 a week, 1 an hour, etc) The Kaiju have levels that let you know how dangerous they are. Level 5 Kaiju are the most dangerous and Level 1 Kaiju should be stopped pretty easily. The humans built Jaegers to combat the threat. They were doing some damage for a while. Now, the Kaiju are stronger and the attacks are more frequent. The Government, in their infinite wisdom, has decided to cancel the mecha project and just put a wall to stop the Kaiju from hurting everyone…..it’s an intriguing idea and I’d love to know which country thought of it. Either way, one Kaiju attack is enough to shatter it. They call in Becket to pilot the new and improved Gypsy Danger to end the Kaiju wars!

The main character is Mr. Becket and he’s a hardened veteran from the good old days. He has experience inside of Gypsy Danger and he’s one of the only humans to have ever piloted a mecha on his own. (Albeit for a few seconds) Only one other human has ever accomplished such a feat, but the film doesn’t let you know the (Obvious) plot twist until we are near the end. Becket is a pretty good main character and while he’s not quick to throw a punch, he has his limits. Nobody will be able to mess with him for long.

Stacker is the commanding officer of the army. (Don’t watch the trailer!) After tragic happenings, he can never put on the armor and go into a mecha again! (Don’t watch the trailer!) You really sympathize with him, since not being in a mech automatically takes you out of the main cast. He gives a lot of orders, but I never cared for the character. The end is his “Man Up” moment, but I wasn’t impressed. He wasn’t a bad character, I just would have preferred if he had made the final decision a bit earlier in the film. It would have had more impact.

Mako is another strong pilot for the Jaeger program. She was never allowed to actually get into one, even though her virtual scores were pretty solid. Why would they do such a thing!? They don’t tell us the reason for a while, but at least she still gets a decently big role. She was an all right character, but the fact that she nearly jeopardized Earth when she stepped into a Jaeger was a bit disappointing.

Meanwhile, Newton gets the subplot where he joins minds with a Kaiju. It’s a bold move, but probably not the right kind and it leads to some trouble. The subplot was probably to keep the film light, but I wouldn’t have minded some extra Kaiju scenes instead. Still, he could have been worse and he’s almost as good as Hermann. Hermann has a lot of calculations and prefers to use math to save the day. He’s pretty smart, but he’s not as used to mind fusing as Newton. Both characters were essentially filler, but at least they weren’t bad filler characters. Chau is one of the human villains, but he was pretty unlikable. His final scene was fitting…unless there is a post credits scene! (hint hint)

Gypsy Danger was easily the best Jaeger in the film. He had a cool energy blaster and let’s not forget about his Unibeam. He definitely means business and has a really cool design. Just about all of the Jaegers looked pretty cool, but none can come close to this guy. Second place is pretty tricky, but that would go to Cherno Alpha. It’s good to see a Mark 1 mecha fighting alongside Mark 5’s and holding his own. He did pretty good against the Kaiju.

I guess that brings us into the realm of the Kaiju! There are plenty of cool Kaiju in the film, but I’ll just name some of the coolest ones. Let’s start with the Trespasser. The film plays him out to be pretty weak since the army defeats him. (What they don’t mention, is that it took a Nuclear Attack to beat him) He has a pretty good design and you will all remember him from the trailers. He was the first of many!

The next Kaiju I’ll talk about is Raiju. I didn’t really like Raiju and it’s because of the way he lost. Who dives into a sword? (I nearly took a step back when that happened, but I caught myself in time.) It reminded me of Anguirus’s infamous scene in Vs Gigan. Arguably this was even worse!

Time for Knifehead! His design is definitely impressive and he dealt a lot of damage. His head makes for a good dagger and he can shred through metal as if it weren’t even there. Knifehead is only a level III Kaiju, but that’s more than enough to deal some hurt. Most of the Jaegers can’t really keep up with him for long and he’s definitely up there as one of the coolest Kaiju.

Let’s not forget about Leatherback! He has a very powerful EMP which can disable the electricity in a very wide radius. Because of this, just about every Jaeger is useless against him. His raw power is immense and he seems to be one of the physically strongest Kaiju in the film. The EMP scene is still one of the best in the film, because it was pretty unexpected.

We also have Otachi, one of the stronger level IV Kaiju. She was definitely a pretty serious threat and it was a very cool moment where she spread out her wings. Gypsy Danger definitely took a lot of damage in that fight and it was nearly the end. One hit from her acid attack and the opposing Jaeger will start melting. Otachi has been compared to Rodan in the past and for good reason. They’re both pretty cool Kaiju who can fly. Not to mention that winged type Kaiju are pretty rare.

As Godzilla is King of the Monsters, Slattern seems to be King of the known Kaiju. He’s the first level 5 that we have seen, although I’m sure that there are plenty more down below. He’s pretty big, but he’s barely stronger than a level 4. Gypsy Danger took him on without much effort, but I guess that’s the risk of being a Kaiju. No matter how strong you are, your size can be a double edged sword. I thought Slattern was pretty under powered in the film, but maybe they had to rush the ending a little.

One thing that I didn’t like in this film, was the portrayal of the Kaiju’s intelligence. The aliens seem to be sending them out at their leisure and learning from their mistakes. Unfortunately, the Kaiju don’t seem to be very bright. (Like running into the sword!) Mostly, the Kaiju seem to try and strike randomly at the Jaegers, without a real plan. If they had fought carefully, they would have obliterated the Jaegers with ease.

Pacific Rim was definitely a solid film. It avoided the unnecessary romance scenes that most films end with. Becket and Mako stay as friends/co-pilots, and the music score was pretty good. (Godzilla fans should notice a certain music!) Pacific Rim is one film that you need to see in theaters to get the full experience. These Kaiju battles need to be watched in their full glory. Now that America has created a solid Kaiju film, this is only the beginning! Next year, their true test arises in the form of Godzilla. I highly recommend checking this film out and all audiences can appreciate it. Mecha fans, Kaiju fans, and Summer Blockbuster fans will all love it.

Overall 7/10