Capsule Summary (minimal spoilers):

Pacific Rim Uprising is a sequel to the original Pacific Rim film from 2013.  It takes place 10 years after the final battle of that movie. The world is rebuilding, but slowly. Everyone’s still on edge, waiting for the Kaiju’s return, but so far, things are quiet on that front.

I definitely enjoyed myself with this sequel. Giant Jaegers (robots) fighting humongous monsters is such a silly  concept that you have to regard it as just a popcorn film, not to be taken seriously. This movie’s aware of it, and has a little fun at times. There’s a silly internet meme that shows up out of nowhere, and it’s just so absurd that it really made me laugh.

The runtime of the film is 1:51, so it takes a little while with the story, but not too much. There is a little scene as the credits start, and some robot animations as they roll, but nothing afterward.

The first movie made rather good use of 3D, so I opted to see the sequel in 3D also. It’s not as good for that, so don’t feel it’s necessary to see the film that way.

I do recommend the film.

Main Review:

Nations are rebuilding, and things are going back to the way they were. Jake Pentecost (John Boyega), son of the commander of the Jaeger pilots, lives outside society. Many of the areas devastated by the Kaiju attacks are still a chaotic place, discarded by the nations who are focusing elsewhere. “Better to live in half a (destroyed) mansion rather than a crappy apartment,” he says as the film starts. He’s decided to live in that world, amongst the scavengers and  criminals, who barter to survive.

While on a hunt for Jaeger parts, he is arrested, along with a young girl, Amara (Callee Spaeny), and re-drafted into the Jaeger force. Jake sees a lot of himself in Amara. Given who his father was, there are many expectations for what he can do.

Meanwhile, the Jaeger program is facing competition from the Shao Corporation, which is creating drones that would replace the Jaegers. They’re much easier to control. and can be deployed everywhere. As the decision is being made to use the drones or not, an unusual attack occurs, and it causes a new kind of chaos. Not good, not good at all.

There are a few twists in the story from there, and it had its unpredictable moments, as well as a few predictable ones, but so what?  It’s giant robots fighting monsters! What are you expecting, high art? Grab your popcorn, turn off your brain, sit back and enjoy!

Pacific Rim Uprising hits all the right marks, and has a little fun with itself along the way. I had a lot of fun at the movie.  I do recommended it, because it’s exactly what it purports to be.

Capsule Summary (minimal spoilers):

A Wrinkle in Time is a new film from Disney, based on the popular novel of the same name, written by Madeleine L’Engle. This movie is an adaptation of the original, and has been ‘modernized’.

Meg (Storm Reid) and Charles Wallace (Deric McCabe) live with their mother. Their father went missing several years ago, and was on the verge of making a scientific discovery. After meeting some eccentric neighbors, they are convinced to go on a special journey to rescue him. It appears that Meg is a child with gifts, which she has ignored.

This is a very lavish film, with a decent cast. All the beauty and majesty of it is weakened by a lack of depth. As the story is geared towards children, perhaps my separation from that market segment is coloring my opinion, but the film, overall, was not satisfying. Perhaps the film could have been improved with a 3 hour runtime, but that works against childhood patience.

I suspect that adults expecting to see the book mirrored on screen will be disappointed, as well. Maybe their children won’t be, and that’s what matters.

Main Review:

Meg is a child of great potential. She has become sullen and withdrawn after her father’s disappearance. Even her classmates hate her because she doesn’t fit in. It is her brother, Charles Wallace, who is the one to bring her out of the funk, by introducing her to two odd neighbors, Mrs. Whatsit (Reese Witherspoon) and Mrs. Who (Mindy Kaling), two extremely colorful and eccentric women. They hint that they know something of her father, and introduce Meg, Charles Wallace, and friend Calvin (Levi Miller) to Mrs. Which (Oprah). The three women convince the children to go on a journey to find and rescue their father (Chris Pine) from, well, something, or somewhere dark.

Thus begins the typical Disney Children’s adventure. That can be summed up as Children with lost or missing parents who go on an adventure, and meet all sorts of interesting things and people along the way. Almost ALL Disney stories begin that way. Once on the journey, the kids meet unusual people and see incredibly lavish and lush things, including the three women, themselves. The movie is such a pleasure to look at, no matter where your eyes go.

There is a bit of an abrupt turn in the story, as if the screen writers intended to have more exposition and imagery, but it was cut for time. I won’t go into detail, but to me, it felt like Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, but without the tea party.  I felt shorted and disappointed.

I’ll state once again that I’m not the target demographic for the film, so maybe I’m expecting too much. I was in with an audience of parents and children, who perhaps loved it more than I ever could, so that’s where I’ll stop.