Why Pacific Rim: Uprising Fell Short: Value of Scale and Weight in Giant Monster Movies
Rising, the follow-up to Guillermo Del Toro's 2013 triumph, disappointed many of his fans. Although both movies have enormous robots fighting similarly big monsters, the sequel lacked the same sense of awe and scale that made the first so appealing. One important distinction between the two movies clarifies why Uprising wasn't as good: the way the weight and size of the Jaegers and Kaiju were handled.
The Significance of Scale in Giant Monster Movies
The first Pacific Rim was outstanding in creating its giant robots and monsters to really feel massive. Often setting viewers on the ground or rooftops, the camera work gave a realistic perspective. Aerial views were used to replicate the perspective of a helicopter, so augmenting the sense of scale. This method ground the action, giving the Jaegers and Kaiju a real mass.
Sadly, Pacific Rim abandoned this deft photography. Often circling the Jaegers and Kaiju, the camera used digital views lacking the grounded sense of the original. The sequel thus lost scale, which made the giants seem less massive. Viewers were positioned far back, so lessening their visual impact, instead of staring up at these soaring leaders.
The absent component is weight.
Beyond scope, the original Pacific Rim also effectively captured the weight of its characters. Reflecting their great weight and mass, the Jaegers and Kaiju moved with a deliberate, nearly slow-motion quality. This weight brought realism and helped the action to seem strong and forceful.
Pacific Rim: Rising, though, lacked this vital component. The Jaegers and Kaiju defied physics by moving too fast, so compromising their scale. Action scenes that felt odd and unconvincing followed from this. The movement seemed more appropriate for Michael Bay's Transformers than for the grounded, weighty robots of del Toro's Pacific Rim.
The Value of Scale and Weight for Monster Movie Success
A typical difficulty for monster films is building a convincing sense of weight and scale. While some movies—like Michael Bay's first Transformers, Cloverfield, and the 2014 Godzilla film—successfully attained this, others have faltered. Faster-paced action in later MonsterVerse films, for example, clashes with the slow movement of the monsters, so reducing their size and impact.
Filmmakers might learn a great deal from Pacific Rim's shortcomings. Although spectacle is crucial, it's also vital to take scale and weight into account so that big characters feel really massive and strong. Ignoring these components might cause a reduced sense of impact and awe, so compromising the general success of a giant monster film.
