Some things just piss me off and that is what my Renegade Rant is normally for. However, I’m just going to talk about this quickly here and move on because Guillermo Del Toro will win this argument this summer. Michael Bay was at CineamCon and talked about “rip-off robot movies.” The first thing people thought of was Pacific Rim.
Those people – and Michael Bay in general – are idiots if they think Pacific Rim is a rip-off of anything Michael Bay has ever done. You know, I got even madder when I read the reaction to people who saw some preview footage and audibly said it looked like the next Transformers movie.
Straight up, I like Michael Bay movies for what they are – spectacles. I liked the Transformer movies because I understand they are movies about giant robots fighting and to look for deep meaning in those movies makes the viewer kind of an idiot. The movies are not bad, the viewers who expect them to be more than what they are are just fools.
With that said…
Guillermo Del Toro can do spectacle – just look at the scenes from Hellboy 2 or the amazing worlds of Pan’s Labyrinth. However, for Del Toro, the spectacle comes secondary to his vision for the story. First and foremost, Del Toro is a storyteller and one of great fantasy works. His stories will build a world that he can then infuse with fantastical creatures and creations.
Yes, Pacific Rim is a movie about giant robots fighting giant monsters, but don’t expect mindless clanging and quick-cut fights. Del Toro has a true love for classic monster movies. Expect this movie to be made with love and craft, more than just action beats and a loud soundtrack.
Or, as Guillermo Del Toro said:
“We are far, far, far away from that in a very willing fashion,” del Toro says. “For good or bad, this is my movie. This is my universe and my creation, and I do not create through comparison.”
“The fights don’t occur in well-lit, supercool, car commercial-looking environments,” del Toro says. “They occur in the middle of a raging sea storm or in a savage snowstorm. They happen in a universe that is incredibly saturated.”
Expect to be thrilled with it, but don’t expect it to be another of the “rip-off robot movies.” Guillermo Del Toro is not Michael Bay and Pacific Rim won’t be the “next Transformers movie.”
Source: The Hollywood Reporter