I’m not blown away very often. Movies have surprised me before, but I’m not sure it has ever happened this much.
We’ve been seeing previews for this movie for awhile. And it’s not like I wasn’t going to see it. As I’ve alluded to previously, I LOVE ROBOT FIGHTS. I’ve seem them all. From the straight shitty (Robot Jox) to the disappointing (Bay’s Transformers) to the surprisingly good (Real Steel). I feel the 1986 animated Transformers to be highly superior to the live action version. I am a veteran of Robotech and Gundam. I’m the only person who watched Sym-Bionic Titan and who liked Matrix:Revolutions. This is all to say, I’ve seen most everything the genre has to offer and am not a likely candidate to be blown away by Gundam Wing vs Godzilla and Friends.
I figured Guillermo Del Toro would give us an entertaining effort like he did in Hellboy 2 and that the movie would be a better than average summer tentpole because of his involvement.
I was incorrect.
This movie is fucking amazing.
The plot (which I assumed would just be the normal weak excuses for massive robot fights) was actually great. It’s still an action movie but it’s got a knack for knowing when you’d like to be cynical and fucking that right up for you. There’s a dimensional rift in the pacific and gigantic horrible monstors the size of Cuthulu regularly visit from it. These are called kaiju. After almost dying out humanity is able to create giant war machines to combat these beasts, called jagers. The machines link to the human brain but you need at least two to run it as the load is too big for one mind. And it is better if the two minds are close in some way because the minds have to link to each other to accomplish this.
I don’t want so spoil the wonderful world that they’ve created here by telling you too much. Veterans will recognize the usual anime tropes, but they’re done extremely well. Idris Elba is like a samurai Lou Gosset Jr. Sorry Morpheus, but you’ve been topped. Charlie Hunnam, who I havent seen since Green Street Hooligans, is an awesome point man for this movie. Those of you who know Charlie Day from Always Sunny in Philidelphia will love his scientist character. Rinko Kikuchi and Ron Pearlman round out a wonderful cast.
This movie is epic. G-Gundam, meets Iron Eagle, and that isn’t the half of it. It’s larger than life. It blew me away.
See this movie in the theater. Now.