A new trailer for Pacific Rim Uprising, the sequel to recent Oscar nominee Guillermo Del Toro’s 2013 monster movie, was released online on Thursday, and it promises a movie that retains most of the original parts, but has been fashioned into a bigger, brighter and louder movie.
The plot focuses on Jake Pentecost (son of Stacker, played by John Boyega) this time around. He isn’t like his father, who was the towering commander who helped humans in their war against the monsters in the first film. Jake has no purpose, until a new attack shakes one into him. Together with a team of young soldiers, they hop into brand new Jaegers (the giant robots we’ve created to fight the kaiju) and save humanity.
Like his father, who was played by Idris Elba in the first movie, Jake too gets to make an inspirational speech. It’s not nearly as iconic as Elba’s “Cancelling the apocalypse” battle cry, but it’s a cool nod to the familial thread that runs through these films.
{{/usCountry}}Like his father, who was played by Idris Elba in the first movie, Jake too gets to make an inspirational speech. It’s not nearly as iconic as Elba’s “Cancelling the apocalypse” battle cry, but it’s a cool nod to the familial thread that runs through these films.
{{/usCountry}}First time feature director Steven DeKnight brings a very different tone and colour pallette to the sequel. Gone are the philosophical and spiritual undertones of Del Toro’s movie - which spent a lot of time explaining the science behind the Jaegers - gone is the dark, brooding atmosphere, and the intricate world building. Pacific Rim 2 is vibrant to look at, and features a younger cast. Returning players include Rinko Kikuchi as Mako Mori and Charlie Day as Dr Newt Geiszler. New actors include Scott Eastwood, Cailee Spaeny and Jing Tian.
The first film wasn’t a major commercial success - it made a little over $400 million against a $200 million budget - but significantly, it made over $100 million in China, which gave a green light to the sequel. It’s scheduled for release on March 23.
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