So yesterday I had the privilege of watching two of the most recent monster movie releases one after the other; Pacific Rim and Monsters University. So I thought I would review both of them in one big monster blog post. So please read on and I hope you enjoy my reviews.
Pacific Rim
Pacific Rim only recently caught my interest as film to go see in the cinema. When the first trailer came out I wasn't all too impressed but with the latest trailers and featurettes I decided this was something I really wanted to see, after all who doesn't want to see giant robots fighting giant monsters? Ok so maybe if you're a 12 year old boy this film is going to appeal to you more than the general movie-going audience. But let me just say this, whoever you are, go watch this film on the biggest screen and go watch it in 3D, because it is an experience! This film is director Guillermo Del Toro's tribute to the anime and manga genre, the film follows a war between mankind and species of monsters who make their way through a portal at the bottom of the pacific ocean. Mankind's defences are bunch of giant robots called Jaegers, piloted by two people whose brains are connected through something called the drift. Cue a lot of incredible action, cheesy dialogue and a bunch of fun. Story wise Pacific Rim is very cliche and it's characters are very stereotyped, so much so that film is on the verge of becoming a parody of itself. The story is still a lot of fun but its the action and effects that will blow your mind, making this one of the coolest movies of 2013. The acting is ok and carries the film enough until the next big action sequence but none of these actors are going to win Oscars for their performances. Idris Elba is the only guy who stands out to me but maybe thats because i'm loving the guy in Luther at the moment, just get ready for a lot of 'Today we will cancel the Apartheid!' jokes when Elba plays Nelson Mandela in A Long Walk to Freedom later this year. Like I said at the start, watch this film in 3D, it's one of those films where the extra dimension really adds to the awesomeness of the film. For all this film's flaws, it is still really cool and as much fun as you can have in the cinema, I for one know this will not be the last time I see Pacific Rim, therefore I am giving it a rating of 3.5/5. This film is very cool and kicks a lot of ass, so please go see it instead of Grown Ups 2 this summer!
Monsters University
I want to start this review by saying Monsters Inc. is one of my favourite Pixar films, when I first saw it i fell in love with the characters of Mike and Sulley, so i was excited to see them return in the prequel, especially as the story was looking at their university lives, a stage of my life that I am in right now. We get to see in Monsters University where and how the friendship between the two characters started, bringing back a lot of nostalgia jokes, back story and more importantly and fun. I did have one problem with Pixar making the prequel, how were they going to make this exciting when we already know the outcome of the film? Well thankfully I was not to worry as Pixar are the masters of storytelling, adding in a lot of twists and turns that make Mike and Sulley's road to the top of Monsters Incorporated a rocky and unknowing one. Like last years Brave, Pixar didn't give away everything in the trailer! Now this wasn't to same standard as Monsters Inc. but it was still a lot of fun. We may still be waiting for Pixar to bring out there next original masterpiece but at least we get to see their most beautiful looking animation yet. Animation films really have gotten a lot better in quality and Pixar still seem to be just ahead of the game, this film looks incredible! There is a lot more depth to the characters compared to previous films and you can't help but feel that the only way is up for the animation studio, pardon the pun. Pixar are the masters of storytelling and seem to be able to grab the audience no matter what the age without the use of throwaway innuendo gags like other animation films. I really enjoyed this film and it was great to see some of my favourite characters back on the big screen, it may not have been Pixar's best film to date but it sure was one of their best looking! I am giving Monsters University a rating of 4/5. The short film beforehand called The Blue Umbrella was also really good, with almost photo like quality animation, it was good to see the animators of Pixar show off their artistic talent rather then just bring out another short Toy Story spin off.
What did you think of the films? Do you agree with me? Please comment below.
Thanks for reading!
Pacific Rim
Pacific Rim only recently caught my interest as film to go see in the cinema. When the first trailer came out I wasn't all too impressed but with the latest trailers and featurettes I decided this was something I really wanted to see, after all who doesn't want to see giant robots fighting giant monsters? Ok so maybe if you're a 12 year old boy this film is going to appeal to you more than the general movie-going audience. But let me just say this, whoever you are, go watch this film on the biggest screen and go watch it in 3D, because it is an experience! This film is director Guillermo Del Toro's tribute to the anime and manga genre, the film follows a war between mankind and species of monsters who make their way through a portal at the bottom of the pacific ocean. Mankind's defences are bunch of giant robots called Jaegers, piloted by two people whose brains are connected through something called the drift. Cue a lot of incredible action, cheesy dialogue and a bunch of fun. Story wise Pacific Rim is very cliche and it's characters are very stereotyped, so much so that film is on the verge of becoming a parody of itself. The story is still a lot of fun but its the action and effects that will blow your mind, making this one of the coolest movies of 2013. The acting is ok and carries the film enough until the next big action sequence but none of these actors are going to win Oscars for their performances. Idris Elba is the only guy who stands out to me but maybe thats because i'm loving the guy in Luther at the moment, just get ready for a lot of 'Today we will cancel the Apartheid!' jokes when Elba plays Nelson Mandela in A Long Walk to Freedom later this year. Like I said at the start, watch this film in 3D, it's one of those films where the extra dimension really adds to the awesomeness of the film. For all this film's flaws, it is still really cool and as much fun as you can have in the cinema, I for one know this will not be the last time I see Pacific Rim, therefore I am giving it a rating of 3.5/5. This film is very cool and kicks a lot of ass, so please go see it instead of Grown Ups 2 this summer!
Monsters University
I want to start this review by saying Monsters Inc. is one of my favourite Pixar films, when I first saw it i fell in love with the characters of Mike and Sulley, so i was excited to see them return in the prequel, especially as the story was looking at their university lives, a stage of my life that I am in right now. We get to see in Monsters University where and how the friendship between the two characters started, bringing back a lot of nostalgia jokes, back story and more importantly and fun. I did have one problem with Pixar making the prequel, how were they going to make this exciting when we already know the outcome of the film? Well thankfully I was not to worry as Pixar are the masters of storytelling, adding in a lot of twists and turns that make Mike and Sulley's road to the top of Monsters Incorporated a rocky and unknowing one. Like last years Brave, Pixar didn't give away everything in the trailer! Now this wasn't to same standard as Monsters Inc. but it was still a lot of fun. We may still be waiting for Pixar to bring out there next original masterpiece but at least we get to see their most beautiful looking animation yet. Animation films really have gotten a lot better in quality and Pixar still seem to be just ahead of the game, this film looks incredible! There is a lot more depth to the characters compared to previous films and you can't help but feel that the only way is up for the animation studio, pardon the pun. Pixar are the masters of storytelling and seem to be able to grab the audience no matter what the age without the use of throwaway innuendo gags like other animation films. I really enjoyed this film and it was great to see some of my favourite characters back on the big screen, it may not have been Pixar's best film to date but it sure was one of their best looking! I am giving Monsters University a rating of 4/5. The short film beforehand called The Blue Umbrella was also really good, with almost photo like quality animation, it was good to see the animators of Pixar show off their artistic talent rather then just bring out another short Toy Story spin off.
What did you think of the films? Do you agree with me? Please comment below.
Thanks for reading!
