Pacific Rim

I have found it incredibly hard to review this film.
The first time I watched Pacific Rim it was in 2D. The credits began to role and I had a great big grin on my face. Unfortunately, on the way home myself, my sister and my fiance began to pick it apart. So, there was only one thing for it- we had to watch it again. And so we did, in 3D this time. Once the credits rolled for a second time I decided that I loved the film and any criticism was merely nit-picking. However, I will say save your money and watch it in 2D as the 3D didn't add anything extra.

On one hand the film has serious themes. World wide war, alien invasion, human sacrifice, revenge, death and doomsday. Pretty heavy stuff. Idris Elba gives the performance of his life, selling it as a army general! Add to all that the awesome Jaegers (huge ass robots), the ugly looking aliens (Kaiju), the amazing fight scenes between the aforementioned beasties and the stunning graphics this film was a huge success.
On the other hand the film was pure cheese. It was difficult to take the Australian characters seriously when they were angry because of their accents, the two scientists (Newt and Herman) were outrageously funny and Ron Pearlman was the icing on the cake. All made for a good laugh.
While both areas worked alone pairing the ever serious Idris Elba with cheesy 'lol' moments I struggled to decide whether it worked. In the end I was glad there was no solid romance (just hints) because I feel that would have spoiled everything. I am also in two minds about Charlie Hunnam's transition to the big screen (we'll have to wait and see what his next role is like!).

On the whole, everything worked. A roller coaster of emotions. Definitely worth watching if you love robots, Idris Elba, films about the apocalypse or just a decent action movie with plenty of braun. I would also suggest watching it more than once (if you can afford it) as there is a lot going on and I picked up on things the second time round I'd missed before. Including a scene after the credits, very short but it's there!
<3 Idris Elba <3
<3 'by jove' handshake <3
4 stars ****