Pacific Rim: Uprising
(L to R, foreground) CAILEE SPAENY as Amara, JOHN BOYEGA as Jake and SCOTT EASTWOOD as Lambert in "Pacific Rim Uprising." The globe-spanning conflict between otherworldly monsters of mass destruction and the human-piloted super-machines built to vanquish them was only a prelude to the all-out assault on humanity.
There are human actors on the screen in Pacific Rim: Uprising, yet they hardly seem necessary to fulfill goals driven more by finances than creativity.
This sequel to the 2013 special-effects bonanza is similarly loud and dumb in its follow-up confrontation between human-operated robots and giant monsters with world peace in the balance.
While the original film at least had a somewhat original concept and plenty of visual panache courtesy of director Guillermo del Toro, this uninspired installment seems content merely to churn out more of the same. Apparently it’s meant to lure fanboys out of their basements who are waiting anxiously for the next Transformers movie.
The story picks up a decade after its predecessor left off, and includes a mix of new and returning faces. Jake (John Boyega), the son of the hero from the original film, is lured back to the Pan Pacific Defense Corps by his adopted sister (Rinko Kikuchi). The idea is that both of them will become cadets whose duty is to maneuver robot avatars known as Jaegers.
The adversaries for their ragtag team of pilots are twofold — first, a collection of unmanned Jaeger drones unleashed by a greedy Chinese corporation, and later, a resurgence of giant creatures called kaiju who emerge from the ocean with Tokyo in their sights.
Some quality performers aren’t given anything to work with, but there are checks to cash and bills to pay. The chaotic action set pieces are staged with incoherent fervor by director Steven DeKnight, a television veteran (“Daredevil”) making his feature debut.
Any fleeting excitement dissipates quickly thanks to a screenplay that lacks ambition almost to the extent that it feels like a narrative give-up. There’s no effort to develop any characters, human or otherwise, or to bridge the high-concept action sequences with anything of substance — such as a meaningful exploration of Kaiju legends or advancements in the robot technology, for example.
Perhaps the film deserves credit for being transparent about those shallow intentions, whether it’s to sell action figures or dutifully set up the next sequel. Some Pacific Rim-inspired earplugs might be a profitable venture.
Yet it also eliminates any emotional stake moviegoers might be inclined to invest in the outcome. This is a battle between good and evil, after all, in which the rooting interest otherwise seems obvious.
Rated PG-13, 111 minutes.