As a war between humankind and monstrous sea creatures wages on, a former pilot and a trainee are paired up to drive a seemingly obsolete special weapon in a desperate effort to save the world from the apocalypse.
When monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity's resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes - a washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi) - who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind's last hope against the mounting apocalypse.Written by
Del Torro
The rolling end credits include "SPECIAL THANKS" to other genre directors who presumably inspired Guillermo del Torres: James Cameron (Avatar et.al.); David Cronenberg (The Fly et.al); Alfonso Cuarón.(Gravity); Alejandro González Iñárritu ( The.Revenant). See more »
Goofs
Before the Jaeger passes through the Breach the pilots do a damage check and mention "Left leg: crippled". A second later, the right leg is shown to be crippled, while the left leg appears to be fine. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
Raleigh Becket:
[narrating]
When I was a kid, whenever I'd feel small or lonely, I'd look up at the stars. Wondered if there was life up there. Turns out I was looking in the wrong direction. When alien life entered our world, it was from deep beneath the Pacific Ocean. A fissure between two tectonic plates. A portal between dimensions. The Breach. I was fifteen when the first Kaiju made land in San Francisco.
[pause]
Raleigh Becket:
By the time tanks, jets and missiles took it down, six days and 35 miles later, ...
[...] See more »
Crazy Credits
A war room map of the Earth opens up at the Pacific area, representing the Breach (with some Pan Pacific Defense Corps badges falling in), and revealing the film title. See more »
Alternate Versions
In the North American release, the scene where Mako is introduced has her and Raleigh speaking in Japanese. Some international releases have this scene dubbed in English - not in Denmark and Norway though, where the Japanese is intact. To the exception of France where all Japanese dialogs are subtitled even in french dubbed versions. See more »
Unlike some, I had no problem with the high concept of the piece: Transformers vs Godzilla. It had a lot of potential. And when the movie concentrates on what we are all here to see (giant creatures and robots beating on each others with oil tankers and smashing through skyscrapers) it is very successful. But when things get quiet... less so. Too much time spent on "Top Gun" like fighter pilot shenanigans. Not enough nuance in the characterizations. An ultra linear plot with few attempts to confound expectations. The acting isn't bad - and isn't required to be great in this sort of film - but it is nothing special either. Sort of universally "meh". Good for a Blu Ray rental.
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Unlike some, I had no problem with the high concept of the piece: Transformers vs Godzilla. It had a lot of potential. And when the movie concentrates on what we are all here to see (giant creatures and robots beating on each others with oil tankers and smashing through skyscrapers) it is very successful. But when things get quiet... less so. Too much time spent on "Top Gun" like fighter pilot shenanigans. Not enough nuance in the characterizations. An ultra linear plot with few attempts to confound expectations. The acting isn't bad - and isn't required to be great in this sort of film - but it is nothing special either. Sort of universally "meh". Good for a Blu Ray rental.