WEBVTT 00:00:00.010 --> 00:00:03.069 It's almost two on the nose where each of the 00:00:03.069 --> 00:00:07.710 Jaegers are stereotypically their nations, like 00:00:07.710 --> 00:00:11.869 the Chinese dragon and the poor Russians like 00:00:11.869 --> 00:00:15.570 their Ivan Drago's. They're in a Cold War era 00:00:15.570 --> 00:00:19.250 tank. It's like, you know, if I was a Russian 00:00:19.250 --> 00:00:22.589 today, I'd be like, we get past that image of 00:00:22.589 --> 00:00:42.210 us, please. Hello, and welcome to Camp Kaiju 00:00:42.210 --> 00:00:44.869 Monster Movie Podcast. We're your hosts, Vincent 00:00:44.869 --> 00:00:47.890 Hannum. And Matt Levine. And we're talking about 00:00:47.890 --> 00:00:50.429 all our favorite monster movies. The good, the 00:00:50.429 --> 00:00:53.270 bad, and even the downright campy. And asking 00:00:53.270 --> 00:00:56.509 if they stand the test of time. Traditional Kaiju, 00:00:56.630 --> 00:00:58.929 creature features, space invaders, the supernatural, 00:00:59.270 --> 00:01:01.950 and everything in between. All strange beasts 00:01:01.950 --> 00:01:05.209 welcome here. Camp Kaiju is brought to you by 00:01:05.209 --> 00:01:08.269 Zack Linder and the Zack Pack. Powered by Coldwell 00:01:08.269 --> 00:01:10.519 Banker Realty. Whether you're looking for your 00:01:10.519 --> 00:01:13.319 dream home, a savvy investment property, or expert 00:01:13.319 --> 00:01:16.400 guidance in home rehab and flipping, the Zach 00:01:16.400 --> 00:01:19.079 Pack has you covered. Check the link in the show 00:01:19.079 --> 00:01:29.219 notes for more information. We always thought 00:01:29.219 --> 00:01:34.239 alien life would come from the stars. But it 00:01:34.239 --> 00:01:44.950 came from deep beneath the Pacific. The first 00:01:44.950 --> 00:01:51.629 kaiju made land in San Francisco. The second 00:01:51.629 --> 00:01:56.129 attack hit Manila. Then the third one hit Cabo. 00:01:57.650 --> 00:02:01.629 Then we learned this was not going to stop. In 00:02:01.629 --> 00:02:05.409 order to fight monsters, we created monsters 00:02:05.409 --> 00:02:23.349 of our own. was born. Two pilots. Our minds, 00:02:23.349 --> 00:02:29.590 our memories. Connected. The man and machine 00:02:29.590 --> 00:03:50.139 become one. pretty cool. Pacific Rim. All right. 00:03:50.259 --> 00:03:52.719 We are doing it. Guillermo del Toro's Pacific 00:03:52.719 --> 00:03:56.699 Rim and. Who better to join us on this episode 00:03:56.699 --> 00:04:02.659 but Sean Childers. Hello. Hello. Sean, welcome 00:04:02.659 --> 00:04:06.180 back, first of all. Number three. Not that I'm 00:04:06.180 --> 00:04:08.379 counting or anything. That's right. I forget 00:04:08.379 --> 00:04:11.699 about Tusk. Oh, how can you forget about Tusk? 00:04:11.699 --> 00:04:14.960 Exactly. Especially considering that today we 00:04:14.960 --> 00:04:17.980 have to say rest in peace, Grace Smith, Kevin 00:04:17.980 --> 00:04:22.240 Smith's mother. Oh. I was not aware, man. Yeah, 00:04:22.279 --> 00:04:24.699 she apparently died last night after lots of 00:04:24.699 --> 00:04:28.459 complications. So rest in peace, Grace. Yeah. 00:04:28.579 --> 00:04:32.279 Rest in peace. Influenced a seminal filmmaker, 00:04:32.540 --> 00:04:36.579 for sure. Oh, yeah. Yeah. But how are you guys 00:04:36.579 --> 00:04:40.699 doing? Doing all right. Yeah. It's been a long 00:04:40.699 --> 00:04:44.620 work week, and it's only Tuesday. I feel that. 00:04:45.160 --> 00:04:47.180 Yeah, it's December. The holidays are coming 00:04:47.180 --> 00:04:49.279 up, which is like a great time of year. It's 00:04:49.279 --> 00:04:51.860 very festive. It's very cold and snowy. I feel 00:04:51.860 --> 00:04:55.000 like everybody I know is like not 100 % health 00:04:55.000 --> 00:04:57.540 wise, you know, I would say I'm like 90%. So 00:04:57.540 --> 00:05:00.600 I'm not terrible. But as Sean said, the kaiju 00:05:00.600 --> 00:05:02.860 crud is out there affecting a lot of people. 00:05:03.500 --> 00:05:07.019 Indeed. Sean, is it cold and snowy where you 00:05:07.019 --> 00:05:13.379 are? Oh, no, no, it is not. It's just miserable. 00:05:13.639 --> 00:05:20.399 Just nothing but sun and darkness. I know that 00:05:20.399 --> 00:05:22.319 completely goes against each other, but still, 00:05:22.339 --> 00:05:25.540 no, it's just really, really hot here. Where 00:05:25.540 --> 00:05:28.480 are you, Sean? I'm over in Florida. I'm technically 00:05:28.480 --> 00:05:30.980 in central Florida, but I live in the middle 00:05:30.980 --> 00:05:34.120 of nowhere in Florida. Wow. It actually looks 00:05:34.120 --> 00:05:35.600 like you're recording in like the middle of a 00:05:35.600 --> 00:05:37.560 swamp right now, like deep in the Everglades. 00:05:37.560 --> 00:05:39.600 There's like nothing behind you. You'll never 00:05:39.600 --> 00:05:44.740 find me. Sean's off the grid. Yeah, there'll 00:05:44.740 --> 00:05:46.540 be some gators in the background throughout the 00:05:46.540 --> 00:05:50.800 recording. I live on a retirement community where 00:05:50.800 --> 00:05:52.680 they used to have a golf course and all the golf 00:05:52.680 --> 00:05:55.980 courses were filled in. Oh, man. Oh, my gosh. 00:05:57.300 --> 00:06:01.689 Well, Sean, you are the host of. a podcast yourself. 00:06:01.949 --> 00:06:04.649 Would you mind telling us about that? Yes, and 00:06:04.649 --> 00:06:06.069 if you don't mind, I'm going to intro it real 00:06:06.069 --> 00:06:08.829 quick. My name is Sean, a .k .a. Ken Tsukedi, 00:06:08.990 --> 00:06:13.189 and I have a podcast known as Big Mecca, but 00:06:13.189 --> 00:06:16.250 not huge. It's where I host it with a couple 00:06:16.250 --> 00:06:18.129 of my buddies and sometimes some special guests, 00:06:18.209 --> 00:06:23.610 where we talk and rate and review different mecca 00:06:23.610 --> 00:06:26.350 and mecca -related things like Transformers, 00:06:26.410 --> 00:06:30.509 Transformers, Pacific Rim, more Transformers, 00:06:30.509 --> 00:06:35.970 and then also upcoming Real Steel. Yeah. So I 00:06:35.970 --> 00:06:38.610 was just on. I was guest hosting. Thank you, 00:06:38.610 --> 00:06:41.230 Sean. On an episode, you guys were talking about 00:06:41.230 --> 00:06:45.069 Transformers, the animated movie. Or is it the 00:06:45.069 --> 00:06:48.990 Transformers, the movie? Yeah, Transformers, 00:06:48.990 --> 00:06:53.290 the movie. I hate their naming convention. When 00:06:53.290 --> 00:06:57.259 does that episode drop? Good question. I still 00:06:57.259 --> 00:07:00.959 need to edit, but we are actually in the process 00:07:00.959 --> 00:07:04.139 of finishing season two. That final episode of 00:07:04.139 --> 00:07:06.360 season two comes out this week. And originally 00:07:06.360 --> 00:07:08.480 we were going to have Transformers movie five 00:07:08.480 --> 00:07:11.959 the last night come out. But that movie is the 00:07:11.959 --> 00:07:15.379 best I can say is it's atrocious. So we were 00:07:15.379 --> 00:07:18.959 recording it. We reviewed it. And unfortunately, 00:07:19.139 --> 00:07:21.279 my computer decided that it didn't want to save 00:07:21.279 --> 00:07:23.540 any of that. So it's just not going to go up. 00:07:23.600 --> 00:07:25.959 So instead, we've decided to have our final episode 00:07:25.959 --> 00:07:29.300 being the newest mecha anime that came out, Mobile 00:07:29.300 --> 00:07:31.860 Suit Gundam G -Quox, where it's the final episode 00:07:31.860 --> 00:07:36.019 where we talk and rate the finale. So tune in 00:07:36.019 --> 00:07:38.959 for that. That's awesome. That's not exactly 00:07:38.959 --> 00:07:42.680 my niche, but I love mechas when they show up 00:07:42.680 --> 00:07:46.579 in my monster movies. So yeah, I can't wait to 00:07:46.579 --> 00:07:49.259 listen to all that you got going on on your own 00:07:49.259 --> 00:08:21.620 pod. Thank you. Let's just merchandise discounts. 00:08:22.120 --> 00:08:25.139 Otherwise, you can get in touch with us, me and 00:08:25.139 --> 00:08:27.459 Matt. You can reach us at CampKaiju at gmail 00:08:27.459 --> 00:08:31.319 .com, CampKaijuPodcast .com, Instagram, or our 00:08:31.319 --> 00:08:37.159 voicemail number, 612 -470 -2612. And back to 00:08:37.159 --> 00:08:40.000 Patreon. Thank you, our wonderful Patreon supporters, 00:08:40.379 --> 00:08:45.700 Jason, Chris, Sean Childers in the house, Peggy, 00:08:45.799 --> 00:08:50.200 our anonymous patron, and a new... Member of 00:08:50.200 --> 00:08:54.559 our ranks, superfan Don has made the leap to 00:08:54.559 --> 00:08:58.960 become a Patreon supporter. Thank you, Don. Yeah, 00:08:59.000 --> 00:09:01.200 that's awesome. Thank you, Don. Yeah, and we've 00:09:01.200 --> 00:09:03.960 got some comments from Don later on about our 00:09:03.960 --> 00:09:07.820 giant spider invasion episode. So stick around, 00:09:07.879 --> 00:09:10.120 listeners, to at least the halfway point of this 00:09:10.120 --> 00:09:14.200 episode. But then you can stop after the halfway 00:09:14.200 --> 00:09:17.659 point. No need to finish it out. No, this entire 00:09:17.659 --> 00:09:20.720 episode is just going to be a Tusk redo. Oh, 00:09:21.059 --> 00:09:24.779 I'm not prepared for that. Hey, that was a popular 00:09:24.779 --> 00:09:29.620 episode. You go back in the data. It connected 00:09:29.620 --> 00:09:34.169 with people. I'm not surprised. All right, so 00:09:34.169 --> 00:09:36.990 this episode here, Pacific Rim, will be dropping 00:09:36.990 --> 00:09:41.889 in December of 2025. Folks, listeners, sign up 00:09:41.889 --> 00:09:44.909 at Patreon at any point in time in history. But 00:09:44.909 --> 00:09:48.070 if you do so in the next few weeks before 2026, 00:09:48.330 --> 00:09:52.149 we will send you a tote bag, TBD on the details 00:09:52.149 --> 00:09:54.110 of that. But it'll be a bag that you can tote 00:09:54.110 --> 00:09:58.750 things in. And stay tuned for some additional 00:09:58.750 --> 00:10:02.470 features in 2026, maybe a Zoom happy hour with 00:10:02.470 --> 00:10:05.210 that. I guess you could say that's totally cool. 00:10:07.169 --> 00:10:10.269 Nice. All right. I can put that on the bag, maybe. 00:10:10.429 --> 00:10:12.970 I'll customize it. If people want to sign up 00:10:12.970 --> 00:10:16.830 for Patreon, you know, it's worth it. Sean, if 00:10:16.830 --> 00:10:19.850 you have an idea. I have ideas, but you won't 00:10:19.850 --> 00:10:23.129 want them right now. All right. You will put 00:10:23.129 --> 00:10:26.330 a pin in that one. It's just going to be my face 00:10:26.330 --> 00:10:32.090 doing the walrus, you know. Unrated bonus footage. 00:10:36.309 --> 00:10:38.029 Yes. Matt, you want to talk about what's coming 00:10:38.029 --> 00:10:41.330 up on Camp Kaiju? Yeah, so coming up soon is 00:10:41.330 --> 00:10:44.289 our annual holiday slash season announcement 00:10:44.289 --> 00:10:47.230 for our next season of Camp Kaiju. This is a 00:10:47.230 --> 00:10:49.190 good, this is always one of my favorite episodes 00:10:49.190 --> 00:10:51.629 of the year. It's a good excuse for, you know, 00:10:51.629 --> 00:10:53.750 not only me and Vincent, but also like all of 00:10:53.750 --> 00:10:56.549 our guest stars throughout the year to join us 00:10:56.549 --> 00:10:58.529 for a little holiday happy hour, maybe drink 00:10:58.529 --> 00:11:00.629 some eggnog and talk about what's coming up on 00:11:00.629 --> 00:11:03.490 the next season of Camp Kaiju. So check that 00:11:03.490 --> 00:11:05.870 out for a sneak preview of all the episodes. 00:11:06.470 --> 00:11:09.549 12 episodes, right? That we'll be talking about 00:11:09.549 --> 00:11:12.009 in the next season of Camp Kaiju. Six from you, 00:11:12.090 --> 00:11:17.590 six from me. That episode will be dropping at 00:11:17.590 --> 00:11:21.750 the end of the year here in 2025. Past guest 00:11:21.750 --> 00:11:25.870 stars, as well as our Patreon supporters. And 00:11:25.870 --> 00:11:28.909 who do we have signed up so far for this special 00:11:28.909 --> 00:11:31.149 action -packed episode? We have Sean Childers 00:11:31.149 --> 00:11:36.450 in the house. He's going to be back. Sean Pryor 00:11:36.450 --> 00:11:40.269 hopes to be there. our other favorite Sean, and 00:11:40.269 --> 00:11:44.649 Beth Bredlaw, who featured on our Eberra Horror 00:11:44.649 --> 00:11:47.649 of the Deep episode. So that's cool. It's like, 00:11:47.730 --> 00:11:50.529 you know, a who's who of the past. We got some 00:11:50.529 --> 00:11:54.370 deep cuts. You know, if you didn't catch Beth's 00:11:54.370 --> 00:11:56.950 episode, go back and catch that one. But yeah, 00:11:57.090 --> 00:11:58.950 it's going to be a lot of fun. I'm excited to 00:11:58.950 --> 00:12:02.129 meet some people. And that's just it. Yeah, I 00:12:02.129 --> 00:12:05.850 like fostering that community so we can all nerd 00:12:05.850 --> 00:12:08.980 out together. Exactly. Yeah, that'll be great. 00:12:09.059 --> 00:12:11.379 I'm glad we didn't criticize Eberra too much 00:12:11.379 --> 00:12:13.899 to dissuade Beth from coming back for the holiday 00:12:13.899 --> 00:12:17.700 episode. I think she still likes us, so that's 00:12:17.700 --> 00:12:19.639 a win. Yeah, that's good. That's good to hear. 00:12:22.259 --> 00:12:27.740 All right. Let's get into this big, bad mamma 00:12:27.740 --> 00:12:31.720 jamma of a film, Pacific Rim. What are our personal 00:12:31.720 --> 00:12:36.179 histories with this movie? Sean. Let's hear from 00:12:36.179 --> 00:12:40.240 you first. I saw this movie on release for my 00:12:40.240 --> 00:12:43.460 birthday when it came out. Not only that, I saw 00:12:43.460 --> 00:12:46.299 it multiple times in theaters. I bought the Blu 00:12:46.299 --> 00:12:48.820 -ray when it came out. I got the 4K edition. 00:12:49.000 --> 00:12:52.100 I got the big giant box that has part of Gypsy 00:12:52.100 --> 00:12:53.919 Danger on the front where it's like a plastic 00:12:53.919 --> 00:12:59.879 shell. It's my lifeblood. Obviously, spoilers, 00:13:00.039 --> 00:13:05.120 but this is my top tier movie. Sorry, but yeah, 00:13:05.220 --> 00:13:07.779 I just love this movie. This movie's so good 00:13:07.779 --> 00:13:10.539 on so many levels, whether it's as cheesy as 00:13:10.539 --> 00:13:13.659 it wants to be, or whether it's super serious, 00:13:13.679 --> 00:13:16.000 but you can tell that they're trying to not crack 00:13:16.000 --> 00:13:20.059 a smile. It's just, I love it. Yeah, I think 00:13:20.059 --> 00:13:22.080 you're not alone in that sentiment, that's for 00:13:22.080 --> 00:13:24.460 sure. I also saw this movie upon release for 00:13:24.460 --> 00:13:26.919 my birthday. When is your birthday, Sean? July 00:13:26.919 --> 00:13:30.870 15th. Okay. Mine is July 24th. So I think I waited 00:13:30.870 --> 00:13:32.690 a week after it came out and then I saw it back 00:13:32.690 --> 00:13:36.190 in 2013. But after that, which was great. It 00:13:36.190 --> 00:13:37.789 was a great birthday movie. You know, a summer 00:13:37.789 --> 00:13:40.450 blockbuster, obviously. So much fun. After that, 00:13:40.509 --> 00:13:42.070 though, I feel like my experience with The Pacific 00:13:42.070 --> 00:13:44.009 Rim was totally different than yours, Sean, because 00:13:44.009 --> 00:13:46.870 that is the only time I had seen this movie up 00:13:46.870 --> 00:13:50.049 until yesterday again. Oh, wow. So yeah, I liked 00:13:50.049 --> 00:13:52.389 it. I hadn't seen it in a while. Good to revisit 00:13:52.389 --> 00:13:54.909 it. I, you know, another spoiler. I don't know 00:13:54.909 --> 00:13:57.250 if I like it as much as Sean, but that is a, 00:13:57.350 --> 00:14:01.470 perhaps a difficult, a difficult bar to, to hit, 00:14:01.549 --> 00:14:06.049 you know? Yeah. I, I put the, the tears up there 00:14:06.049 --> 00:14:10.809 pretty high. Yeah. I, maybe I'm in the middle 00:14:10.809 --> 00:14:13.110 of you guys, but I did not see it when it came 00:14:13.110 --> 00:14:15.750 out. I didn't even, I didn't even know. I hadn't 00:14:15.750 --> 00:14:17.889 even heard of it. How do we remove Vincent from 00:14:17.889 --> 00:14:23.429 this? Yeah. This is my show. Sean is the host 00:14:23.429 --> 00:14:27.049 now. We don't need that. Trust me, you don't. 00:14:27.769 --> 00:14:30.570 No, I'm thinking about where I was in 2013. That 00:14:30.570 --> 00:14:33.370 was a weird year for me. I was going to college, 00:14:33.389 --> 00:14:35.950 but also kind of part time. And I just really 00:14:35.950 --> 00:14:37.850 wasn't going to the movies a lot. I had other 00:14:37.850 --> 00:14:40.370 things going on. But it must have been the year 00:14:40.370 --> 00:14:44.370 after or two years later. I saw it at home. My 00:14:44.370 --> 00:14:48.009 brother had the DVD. I immediately I fell in 00:14:48.009 --> 00:14:50.350 love with it at the time. I've seen it a few 00:14:50.350 --> 00:14:54.309 times since. Last night I watched it with the 00:14:54.309 --> 00:14:57.950 audio commentary from Del Toro, which was a real 00:14:57.950 --> 00:15:01.450 treat. And most of, I would say most of my notes 00:15:01.450 --> 00:15:05.830 tonight, A, came from the wiki, but I recognized 00:15:05.830 --> 00:15:10.409 that wiki from the audio commentary. So my notes, 00:15:10.549 --> 00:15:12.570 wiki notes, they're all from Del Toro's mouth, 00:15:12.710 --> 00:15:17.600 which, you know, that sounds weird, but... I 00:15:17.600 --> 00:15:19.080 was going to say, did you manage to get like 00:15:19.080 --> 00:15:21.139 a little puppet of him and you recorded or something? 00:15:21.559 --> 00:15:25.860 This episode is dedicated to Del Toro's mouth. 00:15:31.220 --> 00:15:40.820 Sean, you are our resident Mecca expert. I wouldn't 00:15:40.820 --> 00:15:43.340 say that I'm an expert, but I delve into it. 00:15:44.159 --> 00:15:48.940 Yeah, you dabble. Could you speak to the origins 00:15:48.940 --> 00:15:52.200 and the legacy of the mecha genre? Let me try 00:15:52.200 --> 00:15:56.879 to find my bifocals here. All right. So without 00:15:56.879 --> 00:16:00.620 reading too much into it, basically, the mecha 00:16:00.620 --> 00:16:04.580 genre is where you've got giant robots that look 00:16:04.580 --> 00:16:09.100 like humanoid type. creations that generally 00:16:09.100 --> 00:16:12.899 go against either other creatures or other giant 00:16:12.899 --> 00:16:15.919 sized robots. And they're all usually piloted 00:16:15.919 --> 00:16:19.240 either by one or sometimes two people. But if 00:16:19.240 --> 00:16:21.399 you get into the super robot genre, sometimes 00:16:21.399 --> 00:16:23.480 you get combiners that end up having three or 00:16:23.480 --> 00:16:26.480 more. Based on the wiki, what it says here is 00:16:26.480 --> 00:16:27.899 that the first thing that we ended up getting 00:16:27.899 --> 00:16:32.879 was a 1940s short manga called Electric Octopus. 00:16:33.580 --> 00:16:36.360 And then from there, we ended up moving into 00:16:36.360 --> 00:16:39.879 an actual mecha series that was created as a 00:16:39.879 --> 00:16:43.559 manga first by Mitsutaro Yokoyama called Tetsujin 00:16:43.559 --> 00:16:47.980 28. We ended up seeing a bunch of different things 00:16:47.980 --> 00:16:50.419 that come after that. But the biggest thing that 00:16:50.419 --> 00:16:54.559 happened right after that was in 72, where author 00:16:54.559 --> 00:16:57.980 Go Nagai, who is huge in the manga and anime 00:16:57.980 --> 00:16:59.919 world, he ended up creating something called 00:16:59.919 --> 00:17:03.500 Mazinger Z, which is considered the first. Super 00:17:03.500 --> 00:17:09.579 Robot. And that is a wild show. Hell is involved. 00:17:09.859 --> 00:17:13.259 Giant creatures are involved. Multiple pilots 00:17:13.259 --> 00:17:16.240 that just start screaming, thinking about the 00:17:16.240 --> 00:17:18.940 hot -bloodedness of everything. It's just so 00:17:18.940 --> 00:17:22.519 good. This came out in the 70s, so this predates 00:17:22.519 --> 00:17:24.680 even Dragon Ball Z doing that type of thing. 00:17:25.140 --> 00:17:28.920 Wow. Then you get into even more Super Robot 00:17:28.920 --> 00:17:30.980 stuff, but the biggest thing that came out was 00:17:30.980 --> 00:17:35.009 in 1979. Yoshiyuki Tomino ended up creating Mobile 00:17:35.009 --> 00:17:37.789 Suit Gundam, which they don't consider as super 00:17:37.789 --> 00:17:40.470 robot. They actually consider that as like the 00:17:40.470 --> 00:17:42.950 real robot series where it's basically taking 00:17:42.950 --> 00:17:45.490 a bunch of different stories, usually political 00:17:45.490 --> 00:17:49.109 based or war based, and then creating basically 00:17:49.109 --> 00:17:52.630 just giant war stories or, you know, different. 00:17:53.710 --> 00:17:55.930 Can't think of the word. Basically, just creating 00:17:55.930 --> 00:17:58.490 these giant war stories that involve just these 00:17:58.490 --> 00:18:00.390 giant robots, but they seem real enough that 00:18:00.390 --> 00:18:02.609 you're like, oh, man. I could see this happening. 00:18:02.789 --> 00:18:04.730 I don't want it to happen because that would 00:18:04.730 --> 00:18:08.690 ruin everybody and everything. But it just blew 00:18:08.690 --> 00:18:12.150 up from there. And then if we skip ahead a bunch 00:18:12.150 --> 00:18:14.049 of years, we end up getting video games like 00:18:14.049 --> 00:18:16.549 Armored Core. Armored Core is where you just 00:18:16.549 --> 00:18:19.349 pilot giant mechs taking on other giant mechs. 00:18:19.349 --> 00:18:21.410 Or, you know, in the latest one, I think you 00:18:21.410 --> 00:18:24.569 go against something that's as big as an AT -AT 00:18:24.569 --> 00:18:29.400 from Star Wars. And it's just insane. But probably 00:18:29.400 --> 00:18:31.339 the biggest thing that a lot of people will either 00:18:31.339 --> 00:18:34.960 love or hate is Neon Genesis Evangelion, which 00:18:34.960 --> 00:18:40.059 basically blends psychological and religious 00:18:40.059 --> 00:18:42.799 influences into the mecha genre. And you get 00:18:42.799 --> 00:18:46.319 this giant messed up... I don't even want to 00:18:46.319 --> 00:18:49.799 say that it's... Yeah, we'll go with it. Giant 00:18:49.799 --> 00:18:53.940 messed up masterpiece. It's just bonkers. But 00:18:53.940 --> 00:18:58.750 anyways, Pacific Rim, yeah. Do you have a favorite 00:18:58.750 --> 00:19:01.130 of the mecha subgenre aside from Pacific Rim? 00:19:02.549 --> 00:19:05.769 Yes, and it's going to sound weird considering 00:19:05.769 --> 00:19:09.650 what I'm about to say. There is a show that I 00:19:09.650 --> 00:19:11.549 absolutely love, and I've talked about this before 00:19:11.549 --> 00:19:14.009 on here. It's called a dual parallel trouble 00:19:14.009 --> 00:19:20.970 adventure. It's basically the harem genre where 00:19:20.970 --> 00:19:24.430 it's all these women loving this one dude. but 00:19:24.430 --> 00:19:27.390 combine it with a sci -fi theme where it splits 00:19:27.390 --> 00:19:30.410 realities. You got one, you know, him going from 00:19:30.410 --> 00:19:33.789 one area, one era to another going universe hopping. 00:19:34.029 --> 00:19:35.990 And then all of a sudden there's a giant robot. 00:19:36.089 --> 00:19:40.130 That's the cause of everything. Whoa. Wow. Only 00:19:40.130 --> 00:19:43.690 12 episodes, but it's so good. There are so many 00:19:43.690 --> 00:19:46.029 shows you mentioned that just sounds so insane 00:19:46.029 --> 00:19:49.450 in the best ways. Honestly, some of the Gundam 00:19:49.450 --> 00:19:51.670 ones are like, even though they're older, they're 00:19:51.670 --> 00:19:54.869 really approachable because it's very mature. 00:19:55.130 --> 00:19:58.069 It's not like something where you can sit down. 00:19:58.089 --> 00:20:00.509 They do have these, but they don't really have 00:20:00.509 --> 00:20:03.190 Gundam with kids in mind, even though it was 00:20:03.190 --> 00:20:06.150 generally broadcast for like teenagers and young 00:20:06.150 --> 00:20:09.329 adults. It's very, very adult oriented, not like 00:20:09.329 --> 00:20:11.890 in terms of sex, but in terms of just the sheer 00:20:11.890 --> 00:20:14.750 amount of horrific, horrific wartime violence. 00:20:16.319 --> 00:20:19.720 It's honestly a really good watch. Would you 00:20:19.720 --> 00:20:22.819 say that Ultraman is part of the mecha genre? 00:20:23.339 --> 00:20:28.240 Good question. So, no, that is considered part 00:20:28.240 --> 00:20:30.380 of the tokusatsu genre, which we will be covering 00:20:30.380 --> 00:20:34.819 under Toku for Two, my other podcast. But there 00:20:34.819 --> 00:20:40.059 is a sub show. or sub -series from Ultraman called 00:20:40.059 --> 00:20:43.420 Gridman, which, if you remember from in the early 00:20:43.420 --> 00:20:45.680 90s when Power Rangers came out, there was another 00:20:45.680 --> 00:20:48.240 show that tried to compete with it called Superhuman 00:20:48.240 --> 00:20:52.799 Samurai Cyber Squad. Now, I believe that was 00:20:52.799 --> 00:20:56.680 Matthew... I forget his name. Anyways, he was 00:20:56.680 --> 00:21:00.339 on Blossom at some point, I think. It was basically 00:21:00.339 --> 00:21:04.039 Ultraman inside of a computer fighting Kaiju, 00:21:04.140 --> 00:21:06.930 but then his... best friends would power him 00:21:06.930 --> 00:21:09.450 up by jumping into the computer and forming giant 00:21:09.450 --> 00:21:11.869 armor pieces that basically transform, turning 00:21:11.869 --> 00:21:14.630 him into a robot. Since then, they've actually 00:21:14.630 --> 00:21:17.230 managed to make two anime series and a movie 00:21:17.230 --> 00:21:22.289 called SSSS Gridman and SSSS Dinozanon and Gridman 00:21:22.289 --> 00:21:24.289 Universe, where it basically combines it all. 00:21:24.390 --> 00:21:26.930 And they even allude to the original Gridman 00:21:26.930 --> 00:21:29.210 show and Superhuman Samurai Cyber Squad altogether. 00:21:30.029 --> 00:21:33.779 Wow. That's awesome. I like the Ultraman that 00:21:33.779 --> 00:21:35.900 I've seen, which is not very much. Vincent and 00:21:35.900 --> 00:21:37.819 I saw Shin Ultraman a couple years ago, which 00:21:37.819 --> 00:21:40.359 I thought was fantastic. So, so good. I've always 00:21:40.359 --> 00:21:42.420 been curious, like, what exact subgenre that 00:21:42.420 --> 00:21:44.720 fits into. So that's very helpful. Thank you. 00:21:45.180 --> 00:21:47.900 Absolutely. Yeah, Tokusatsu. It's weird with 00:21:47.900 --> 00:21:51.539 Tokusatsu because the way it, because with Kaiju 00:21:51.539 --> 00:21:53.400 and everything else involving Godzilla, you know, 00:21:53.400 --> 00:21:55.599 you would consider that like suitmation, but 00:21:55.599 --> 00:21:57.299 then you got Power Rangers that come in and do 00:21:57.299 --> 00:21:59.180 the exact same thing, but on a smaller scale. 00:21:59.819 --> 00:22:02.259 And then you've got the whole Sentai genre. Then 00:22:02.259 --> 00:22:04.500 you've got Kamen Rider. Kamen Rider doesn't really 00:22:04.500 --> 00:22:07.019 use Mecha, but they end up doing the whole thing 00:22:07.019 --> 00:22:09.200 with different suits, different transformations, 00:22:09.420 --> 00:22:12.259 as they call henshins. And then from there on, 00:22:12.359 --> 00:22:14.859 it just balloons into so many different things. 00:22:15.460 --> 00:22:19.480 Wow. That's amazing. Yeah. I know that was a 00:22:19.480 --> 00:22:22.980 lot. Sorry. No, I went on a magic carpet ride 00:22:22.980 --> 00:22:25.259 there listening to you talk about this rabbit 00:22:25.259 --> 00:22:28.710 hole that kept getting deeper and deeper. why 00:22:28.710 --> 00:22:30.670 do you think i have these podcasts now so i can 00:22:30.670 --> 00:22:33.710 do it so i can watch everything you know the 00:22:33.710 --> 00:22:36.509 monster movie umbrella is as massive as that 00:22:36.509 --> 00:22:39.650 too and i've i've nerded out i've like done a 00:22:39.650 --> 00:22:41.789 whole diagram like on a big piece of paper like 00:22:41.789 --> 00:22:45.250 a spider web of of all the offshoot subgenres 00:22:45.250 --> 00:22:47.490 of monster movies maybe that's something i'll 00:22:47.490 --> 00:22:50.650 share on the for patrons yeah because there's 00:22:50.650 --> 00:22:55.299 just so many so so many oh Del Toro, on his audio 00:22:55.299 --> 00:22:58.839 commentary, he was commenting on the Japanese 00:22:58.839 --> 00:23:01.619 relationship to technology versus the American 00:23:01.619 --> 00:23:04.440 relationship for technology. And in his words, 00:23:04.519 --> 00:23:06.660 he was saying Americans generally fear technology, 00:23:07.079 --> 00:23:10.359 but the Japanese really embrace it. And that 00:23:10.359 --> 00:23:13.799 has allowed them in their pop culture to turn 00:23:13.799 --> 00:23:19.200 meccas into almost godlike beings and infuse 00:23:19.200 --> 00:23:22.900 them with a mythology. I just found that pretty 00:23:22.900 --> 00:23:26.509 interesting. The mecca genre, it's not an American 00:23:26.509 --> 00:23:29.289 thing. Like, if we have it, it's only because 00:23:29.289 --> 00:23:34.130 we borrow from the Japanese. Yep. Yeah. I mean, 00:23:34.150 --> 00:23:36.230 there's a lot of different adaptations that we 00:23:36.230 --> 00:23:37.910 have, too. Did you ever get around to watching 00:23:37.910 --> 00:23:40.710 the Scarlett Johansson Ghost in the Shell movie? 00:23:41.250 --> 00:23:45.730 No. I did not hear good things. I will say this, 00:23:45.750 --> 00:23:48.190 not as a defender of all the things that people 00:23:48.190 --> 00:23:51.390 are rightfully upset about. It's an okay movie. 00:23:51.930 --> 00:23:55.009 It's worth a watch just once. But the whole thing 00:23:55.009 --> 00:23:58.609 about it is technology is fully advanced to the 00:23:58.609 --> 00:24:01.890 point where people embrace it and transcend. 00:24:02.650 --> 00:24:05.369 And that's all I'm going to leave you with. Okay. 00:24:05.829 --> 00:24:12.769 I like stuff like that. This summer. Our world 00:24:12.769 --> 00:24:15.829 will come under attack. The mayor has declared 00:24:15.829 --> 00:24:19.549 a state of emergency. By the most evil force 00:24:19.549 --> 00:24:24.369 ever known, he has armies at his command. And 00:24:24.369 --> 00:24:36.210 only one power on Earth can stop him. Welcome 00:24:36.210 --> 00:24:47.980 to my nightmare. Ultimate adventure begins. Hi, 00:24:48.140 --> 00:24:51.440 honey. I'm home. You garlic -sucking bingo brain! 00:25:03.200 --> 00:25:06.359 We're the Power Rangers. Where's my autograph 00:25:06.359 --> 00:25:41.000 book? Avengers. More power. Usually. It's a new 00:25:41.000 --> 00:25:45.279 age of combat. Human beings, genetically engineered 00:25:45.279 --> 00:25:48.960 to be the best fighters in history. Two champions. 00:25:49.059 --> 00:25:55.299 It isn't over until someone wins. At war with 00:25:55.299 --> 00:26:01.960 each other. I have already killed you. Two invincible 00:26:01.960 --> 00:26:04.740 men. Let's finish it, Alexander. Here and now. 00:26:05.539 --> 00:26:09.220 The ultimate killing machines. I'm gonna get 00:26:09.220 --> 00:26:51.440 in this thing! And I'm gonna kick your... Ladies 00:26:51.440 --> 00:26:53.740 and gentlemen, over the years Toonami's given 00:26:53.740 --> 00:26:56.019 you some of the greatest cartoon shows ever made. 00:26:56.480 --> 00:26:58.920 Now we're proud to present our newest addition, 00:26:59.220 --> 00:27:02.759 a program about love, honor, sacrifice, revenge, 00:27:03.180 --> 00:27:06.240 and a whole lot of destruction. Let's get things 00:27:06.240 --> 00:27:50.559 started! Gundam fight all set, ready, go! Guillermo 00:27:50.559 --> 00:27:53.559 del Toro, his first feature was Kronos back in 00:27:53.559 --> 00:27:56.779 1993, I think, which was a good introduction 00:27:56.779 --> 00:27:58.920 to kind of like his style and his thematic interests. 00:27:59.019 --> 00:28:02.900 It's sort of a Frankenstein -Dracula hybrid with 00:28:02.900 --> 00:28:05.460 like some themes about, you know, like gothic 00:28:05.460 --> 00:28:08.059 horror is in there, like strange contraptions, 00:28:08.079 --> 00:28:12.559 you know, the undead. life beyond death, things 00:28:12.559 --> 00:28:15.640 like that. He was kind of like one of the trio 00:28:15.640 --> 00:28:18.740 of Mexican filmmakers who rose to prominence 00:28:18.740 --> 00:28:22.859 in the 1990s, along with Alfonso Cuaron and Alejandro 00:28:22.859 --> 00:28:26.460 Gonzalez Inarritu. So Del Toro, very much a horror 00:28:26.460 --> 00:28:29.099 director. We've talked about Mimic on the podcast 00:28:29.099 --> 00:28:32.180 before. Maybe not his best movie, but certainly 00:28:32.180 --> 00:28:34.759 a very interesting movie, I would say. You know, 00:28:34.819 --> 00:28:37.339 he's very versatile. He has continued to make 00:28:37.339 --> 00:28:41.680 movies in both Mexico and Spain, I believe. The 00:28:41.680 --> 00:28:44.680 Devil's Backbone was made in Spain. I think Pan's 00:28:44.680 --> 00:28:46.799 Labyrinth was kind of an international co -production 00:28:46.799 --> 00:28:49.640 with both Spain and Mexico. He's made a lot of 00:28:49.640 --> 00:28:51.920 movies in Hollywood, too. Frankenstein being 00:28:51.920 --> 00:28:54.660 the most recent example of that. He made Pinocchio 00:28:54.660 --> 00:28:57.519 for Netflix a couple years ago as well. Nightmare 00:28:57.519 --> 00:29:00.200 Alley. Nightmare Alley, yeah, one of my favorites. 00:29:00.220 --> 00:29:02.119 I really liked the Nightmare Alley remake a lot. 00:29:02.759 --> 00:29:05.920 Crimson Peak is another one. You know, Blade 00:29:05.920 --> 00:29:07.859 II, that was kind of like one of his first big 00:29:07.859 --> 00:29:10.559 Hollywood movies. The Hellboy movies, he directed 00:29:10.559 --> 00:29:13.140 those as well. So definitely a good example of 00:29:13.140 --> 00:29:15.420 a Hollywood director who also makes movies outside 00:29:15.420 --> 00:29:18.359 of Hollywood and is able to inject a lot of personality, 00:29:18.660 --> 00:29:22.279 a lot of artistry and imagination into, you know, 00:29:22.279 --> 00:29:24.220 like Pacific Rim, even big budget mainstream 00:29:24.220 --> 00:29:27.460 Hollywood movies. And, you know, I think... From 00:29:27.460 --> 00:29:29.539 my own personal perspective, I think you see 00:29:29.539 --> 00:29:33.400 like the fanboy love for like the genres and 00:29:33.400 --> 00:29:35.720 the like previous influences that he's paying 00:29:35.720 --> 00:29:38.240 homage to. But, you know, there's depth to it. 00:29:38.319 --> 00:29:40.119 There's like always an attempt to kind of like 00:29:40.119 --> 00:29:42.960 add to it and make it his own. So really a unique 00:29:42.960 --> 00:29:47.960 kind of eclectic director. The only film of his 00:29:47.960 --> 00:29:50.400 I haven't seen other than Frankenstein, shame. 00:29:50.960 --> 00:29:53.000 But maybe by the time this releases, I'll have 00:29:53.000 --> 00:29:56.660 seen it. Is Hellboy 2, The Golden Army. Other 00:29:56.660 --> 00:29:59.900 than that, I have seen all of his movies. Generally 00:29:59.900 --> 00:30:02.720 a big fan because what you say, I love his... 00:30:02.720 --> 00:30:05.839 He not only honors the genres he's working in, 00:30:05.900 --> 00:30:08.599 but he does really try to make them his own too. 00:30:09.420 --> 00:30:12.420 Related to that, del Toro wanted in Pacific Rim, 00:30:12.480 --> 00:30:14.400 he wanted to honor the kaiju and mecha genres 00:30:14.400 --> 00:30:19.400 of his youth. He states he grew up watching tokusatsu 00:30:19.400 --> 00:30:23.460 and Godzilla movies in the 1960s in Mexico. And 00:30:23.460 --> 00:30:26.420 he said, quote, He wanted to be conscious of 00:30:26.420 --> 00:30:29.000 the heritage, but not a pastiche or an homage 00:30:29.000 --> 00:30:32.160 or greatest hits of everything. I didn't want 00:30:32.160 --> 00:30:35.359 to be postmodern or referential or just belong 00:30:35.359 --> 00:30:37.259 to a genre. I really wanted to create something 00:30:37.259 --> 00:30:39.460 new, something madly in love with those things. 00:30:39.980 --> 00:30:42.500 I tried to bring epic beauty to it and drama 00:30:42.500 --> 00:30:46.920 and operatic grandeur. So, yeah, just speaking 00:30:46.920 --> 00:30:50.380 to that individuality in his films. You know, 00:30:50.380 --> 00:30:52.640 he's like a humanist director. He seems to like 00:30:52.640 --> 00:30:55.180 people. He cares about his characters. The Shape 00:30:55.180 --> 00:30:57.000 of Water is another big movie that I forgot to 00:30:57.000 --> 00:30:58.619 mention, but I think that's one of the best examples 00:30:58.619 --> 00:31:01.220 of that, where it's kind of an homage to Creature 00:31:01.220 --> 00:31:03.200 from the Black Lagoon, but very much a romantic 00:31:03.200 --> 00:31:05.380 movie with a lot of compassion for the characters. 00:31:05.660 --> 00:31:08.359 And I think... You know, I might have some criticisms 00:31:08.359 --> 00:31:10.140 about this, but I think we see that in Pacific 00:31:10.140 --> 00:31:12.279 Rim as well, where, you know, the characters 00:31:12.279 --> 00:31:14.380 have tragic backstories. They have things that 00:31:14.380 --> 00:31:16.220 they're trying to overcome. And it's kind of 00:31:16.220 --> 00:31:19.680 a pacifist, humanistic movie, even though it's 00:31:19.680 --> 00:31:23.299 about mechas fighting kaijus, you know? Yeah, 00:31:23.339 --> 00:31:27.160 absolutely. Which makes it the second one all 00:31:27.160 --> 00:31:29.119 the more sad, even though I still enjoy it. The 00:31:29.119 --> 00:31:31.420 second one is a sharp turn from what this movie 00:31:31.420 --> 00:31:34.660 is. Ooh, I've only seen it once. I don't quite 00:31:34.660 --> 00:31:39.170 remember it as well. Perhaps, you know, well... 00:31:39.170 --> 00:31:42.230 I see what you're hinting at. I won't review 00:31:42.230 --> 00:31:46.470 Pacific Rim Uprising. As decent as it is, I think 00:31:46.470 --> 00:31:50.890 it's only decent. I've never seen it, so I'll 00:31:50.890 --> 00:31:52.509 have to add that to the list. Now would be a 00:31:52.509 --> 00:31:55.470 good time to do so. It's basically Pacific Rim 00:31:55.470 --> 00:31:57.549 The Next Generation. Just take all the kids from 00:31:57.549 --> 00:32:01.210 Degrassi and put them in Giant Mecha. That sounds 00:32:01.210 --> 00:32:03.089 kind of terrible, to be honest, but I'll still 00:32:03.089 --> 00:32:09.339 give it a try. What about the ever lovable Atlantic 00:32:09.339 --> 00:32:12.940 Rim? That's from the Asylum. It's a pretty bad 00:32:12.940 --> 00:32:15.119 movie. Kind of intrigued to watch that also. 00:32:15.660 --> 00:32:18.859 Yeah, I saw that years ago. MST3K did an episode 00:32:18.859 --> 00:32:22.960 on it with their revamped series. It might be 00:32:22.960 --> 00:32:25.039 the best way for me to watch it then. Honestly. 00:32:25.259 --> 00:32:29.440 Years ago, Guillermo del Toro was touring an 00:32:29.440 --> 00:32:32.160 exhibition of his private collection of monster 00:32:32.160 --> 00:32:35.839 movie memorabilia and props from his films. And 00:32:35.839 --> 00:32:38.539 at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, this thing 00:32:38.539 --> 00:32:40.940 had a residency for like six months. And I went 00:32:40.940 --> 00:32:44.720 to that. The only movie I had seen up to that 00:32:44.720 --> 00:32:49.200 point of his was Pacific Rib. And I felt like 00:32:49.200 --> 00:32:52.759 such a dweeb because that's not his like most 00:32:52.759 --> 00:32:55.599 well -known movie. I hadn't even seen Pan's Labyrinth. 00:32:55.720 --> 00:32:59.099 And my friend was like, Vince, what? Pacific 00:32:59.099 --> 00:33:02.599 Rib's the only Del Toro film you've seen? Still 00:33:02.599 --> 00:33:05.950 haven't either. What? Pan's Labyrinth? I haven't 00:33:05.950 --> 00:33:07.329 watched it. You haven't seen Pan's Labyrinth? 00:33:07.430 --> 00:33:10.049 I own it on DVD and I have not watched it yet. 00:33:11.470 --> 00:33:14.509 It's part of the ever -increasing backlog. You 00:33:14.509 --> 00:33:17.349 should change that immediately. I mean, when 00:33:17.349 --> 00:33:19.190 you're stuck watching the Transformers original 00:33:19.190 --> 00:33:22.170 animated movie three times in a week. No, I get 00:33:22.170 --> 00:33:25.869 it. Trust me, I get it. Same cinematographer 00:33:25.869 --> 00:33:31.109 as Pacific Rib. Guillermo Navarro also shot... 00:33:31.630 --> 00:33:34.529 Del Toro's The Devil's Backbone, Kronos, and 00:33:34.529 --> 00:33:38.170 Hellboy. And Navarro won the Oscar for Best Cinematography 00:33:38.170 --> 00:33:41.589 for Pan's Labyrinth. I feel like the phrase dark 00:33:41.589 --> 00:33:44.890 fairy tale is like epitomized by Pan's Labyrinth. 00:33:44.890 --> 00:33:48.349 Like that phrase was meant to define that movie. 00:33:48.410 --> 00:33:51.009 You know what I mean? Yeah, it's pretty dark. 00:33:51.210 --> 00:33:54.509 Yeah, very, very good. The screenplay of Pacific 00:33:54.509 --> 00:33:59.019 Rim is... co -written by del toro and travis 00:33:59.019 --> 00:34:02.420 beachum the story is by travis beachum the biggest 00:34:02.420 --> 00:34:05.200 other credit i saw to his name was clash of the 00:34:05.200 --> 00:34:08.800 titans from 2010 very much in the same vein as 00:34:08.800 --> 00:34:12.559 pacific rim in terms of epic mythological monsters 00:34:12.559 --> 00:34:15.920 but ultimately very different was that the one 00:34:15.920 --> 00:34:17.679 with liam neeson where he goes release the kraken 00:34:17.679 --> 00:34:23.039 yes okay so maybe beachum has a knack for epic 00:34:23.039 --> 00:34:27.110 one -liners release the kraken Today we are canceling 00:34:27.110 --> 00:34:30.090 the apocalypse. Let's talk about the select cast. 00:34:30.769 --> 00:34:33.989 First off, this is my introduction to Rinko Kikuchi. 00:34:34.150 --> 00:34:40.170 She did the role fantastically. I loved every 00:34:40.170 --> 00:34:42.469 moment that she was on screen where you could 00:34:42.469 --> 00:34:45.070 actually see everything that they were trying 00:34:45.070 --> 00:34:47.829 to have a Raleigh nitpick with her. Where she's 00:34:47.829 --> 00:34:50.610 constantly judging him and everything about her 00:34:50.610 --> 00:34:53.030 personality. And then the way that she was able 00:34:53.030 --> 00:34:56.199 to display all that. Wonderful. But one thing 00:34:56.199 --> 00:34:58.400 that you may not know is that she was actually 00:34:58.400 --> 00:35:02.679 in a movie called Kumiko. I think it's Kumiko 00:35:02.679 --> 00:35:05.940 the Wanderer or Kumiko the Hunter. Everyone knows 00:35:05.940 --> 00:35:11.400 the movie Fargo, right? Yeah. So this movie is 00:35:11.400 --> 00:35:15.860 about a woman who went searching for the missing 00:35:15.860 --> 00:35:19.739 money of Fargo. And it's apparently based on 00:35:19.739 --> 00:35:22.130 a true story. where she actually went looking 00:35:22.130 --> 00:35:24.170 for it, and so it's basically kind of like a 00:35:24.170 --> 00:35:27.409 biopic about that. But yeah, I saw that, and 00:35:27.409 --> 00:35:30.929 it was fantastic. What was it called? I think 00:35:30.929 --> 00:35:32.929 it's Kumiko the Treasure Hunter. I've seen that 00:35:32.929 --> 00:35:34.829 as well. It is very, very good. I like that movie 00:35:34.829 --> 00:35:38.489 a lot, too. Yes. Cool. And you can't find it 00:35:38.489 --> 00:35:41.590 digitally. Hmm. You actually have to rent it 00:35:41.590 --> 00:35:44.570 or buy it physically now. I didn't know that. 00:35:44.610 --> 00:35:47.670 I always kind of... I like that when that happens. 00:35:47.750 --> 00:35:50.349 It can be inconvenient if you're just trying 00:35:50.349 --> 00:35:52.010 to find it on streaming. But as somebody who 00:35:52.010 --> 00:35:54.110 likes physical media, I kind of appreciate it 00:35:54.110 --> 00:35:56.090 when that happens. Oh, yeah. I had to get mine 00:35:56.090 --> 00:35:58.170 through Amazon as soon as I saw that it was at 00:35:58.170 --> 00:36:00.949 least one copy available. So it was worth it. 00:36:01.590 --> 00:36:05.889 Cool. So Idris Elba plays Marshall Stacker Pentecost. 00:36:05.969 --> 00:36:09.050 He's kind of the no -nonsense head of the operation 00:36:09.050 --> 00:36:13.719 who is leading the charge to, you know... Sorry, 00:36:13.739 --> 00:36:16.880 lead the Jaeger fight against the Kaijus. So 00:36:16.880 --> 00:36:19.380 highly respected military leader who has dedicated 00:36:19.380 --> 00:36:22.300 his life to defending humanity from the Kaiju. 00:36:22.440 --> 00:36:24.380 I could have just read that off the Google Doc. 00:36:24.440 --> 00:36:25.820 That would have been a lot easier. Sorry about 00:36:25.820 --> 00:36:30.219 that. But yeah, Idris Elba, huge fan. I think 00:36:30.219 --> 00:36:33.179 I first saw him in The Wire, as a lot of other, 00:36:33.199 --> 00:36:36.280 at least American audiences did. He played Stringer 00:36:36.280 --> 00:36:39.980 Bell, a very kind of intense, sort of frightening, 00:36:40.079 --> 00:36:43.340 but also complex and in some ways admirable character 00:36:43.340 --> 00:36:46.280 in that show. He's been in a lot of movies and 00:36:46.280 --> 00:36:48.320 TV shows. Some of the films that he's been in 00:36:48.320 --> 00:36:51.769 include 28 Weeks Later, American Gangster. He's 00:36:51.769 --> 00:36:54.469 one of the voices in Zootopia 2, so you can hear 00:36:54.469 --> 00:36:57.030 him out in theaters right now. He's in some other 00:36:57.030 --> 00:37:00.349 TV shows as well, like Luther. He had a memorable 00:37:00.349 --> 00:37:02.769 sort of guest starring role on The Office in 00:37:02.769 --> 00:37:05.309 addition to that. But yeah, again, like I always 00:37:05.309 --> 00:37:07.010 know him as Stringer Bell, and it's still kind 00:37:07.010 --> 00:37:09.789 of weird to me to see him in like fun roles. 00:37:10.190 --> 00:37:12.309 Pacific Rim is kind of a fun role, but he's still 00:37:12.309 --> 00:37:14.909 like a no -nonsense sort of tough guy character 00:37:14.909 --> 00:37:18.130 in some ways. Still very, very different than 00:37:18.130 --> 00:37:20.349 his role on The Wire. And he always, you know, 00:37:20.349 --> 00:37:22.809 just like a sense of gravity, a sense of sort 00:37:22.809 --> 00:37:25.469 of like weight and complexity to the characters 00:37:25.469 --> 00:37:27.750 he plays. I don't know if that's true of Zootopia 00:37:27.750 --> 00:37:29.630 2 as well, but I think you could say that of 00:37:29.630 --> 00:37:32.670 Marshall in Pacific Rim. So let me ask you this. 00:37:33.309 --> 00:37:36.130 Considering how old The Wire is, in this day 00:37:36.130 --> 00:37:38.250 and age, would you recommend The Wire to somebody 00:37:38.250 --> 00:37:41.909 who is not aware of it? Yes, that's my favorite 00:37:41.909 --> 00:37:44.809 TV show of all time. It's the most complex TV 00:37:44.809 --> 00:37:47.250 show I think that's ever been made. I think it's, 00:37:47.250 --> 00:37:49.570 you know, it's about the city of Baltimore and 00:37:49.570 --> 00:37:51.809 like practically every social structure in that 00:37:51.809 --> 00:37:54.710 city, the police, the drug trade, healthcare, 00:37:54.889 --> 00:37:58.070 education, news. It's, yeah, like that is my 00:37:58.070 --> 00:38:00.650 favorite show. It's brilliant. And, you know, 00:38:00.730 --> 00:38:02.849 Idris Elba is only one of like a huge ensemble 00:38:02.849 --> 00:38:05.530 cast of characters, but I would say maybe the 00:38:05.530 --> 00:38:07.929 most memorable character on that show, which 00:38:07.929 --> 00:38:11.219 is saying a lot. Nice. See, now it's my time 00:38:11.219 --> 00:38:13.380 to hang my head in shame. I've never seen The 00:38:13.380 --> 00:38:17.960 Wire. Me neither. So it's all right. Wow. Amazing. 00:38:18.079 --> 00:38:20.320 I love it. I'll watch some mecha movies and TV 00:38:20.320 --> 00:38:22.980 shows. And I hope that you guys watch The Wire 00:38:22.980 --> 00:38:25.239 as well. That's my recommendation. Deal. I'm 00:38:25.239 --> 00:38:27.739 busy watching 80s Twilight Zone right now. So 00:38:27.739 --> 00:38:29.519 it's going to have to be a pass for now. That's 00:38:29.519 --> 00:38:34.659 fair. Yeah. Love that too. Yeah. I'll talk about 00:38:34.659 --> 00:38:38.150 Charlie Hunnam, not Hannum. But it is strange 00:38:38.150 --> 00:38:40.190 seeing his last name and being like, oh, that's 00:38:40.190 --> 00:38:44.070 so close to mine. I'm still the most famous Hannum. 00:38:44.349 --> 00:38:48.329 Gotcha, Charlie. He plays Raleigh Beckett, a 00:38:48.329 --> 00:38:50.869 former Jaeger pilot who's called back into action 00:38:50.869 --> 00:38:53.750 after his brother is killed in battle. This is 00:38:53.750 --> 00:38:56.590 early on in the film, so it's very much a survivor's 00:38:56.590 --> 00:39:01.570 guilt story of redemption for Raleigh. He's kind 00:39:01.570 --> 00:39:04.409 of the new guy on the squad. Well, he's the old 00:39:04.409 --> 00:39:08.960 guy, but... What he's getting into is a few years 00:39:08.960 --> 00:39:11.340 have progressed. So he's got something to prove 00:39:11.340 --> 00:39:17.199 to the others. Del Toro talked a lot about approaching 00:39:17.199 --> 00:39:23.019 Pacific Rim as a sports drama. And throughout, 00:39:23.320 --> 00:39:26.480 he makes the comparison of like Raleigh, he's 00:39:26.480 --> 00:39:29.059 the new guy on the team. He has to prove himself. 00:39:29.219 --> 00:39:31.989 The team has to come together. Oh, there's like 00:39:31.989 --> 00:39:34.789 that locker room fight that always happens. They 00:39:34.789 --> 00:39:38.289 lose their first game only to come back and win 00:39:38.289 --> 00:39:42.429 the championship ultimately. And I totally buy 00:39:42.429 --> 00:39:46.250 it. So I find that an interesting take from del 00:39:46.250 --> 00:39:48.909 Toro. And that's what I mean. Like his mind just 00:39:48.909 --> 00:39:50.650 thinks about these things in a different way. 00:39:51.050 --> 00:39:54.369 And like, how can I put my own spin on it? I'll 00:39:54.369 --> 00:39:56.630 think of it as a boxing movie or a baseball movie 00:39:56.630 --> 00:40:00.440 or something. That's honestly a really perfect 00:40:00.440 --> 00:40:04.480 analogy. Oh, my God. Yeah, right. So that's Charlie 00:40:04.480 --> 00:40:08.639 Hunnam. We have Charlie Day. He plays a supporting 00:40:08.639 --> 00:40:11.739 character. He plays Dr. Newton Newt Geisler, 00:40:11.860 --> 00:40:14.340 an eccentric and brilliant scientist obsessed 00:40:14.340 --> 00:40:17.519 with studying the kaiju. And we have Ron Perlman, 00:40:17.699 --> 00:40:20.840 a longtime collaborator with Del Toro. Even back 00:40:20.840 --> 00:40:24.960 in Kronos, Ron Perlman has a part. And he plays 00:40:24.960 --> 00:40:27.619 a character called Hannibal Chow. who is a black 00:40:27.619 --> 00:40:31.519 market, a black marketeer who makes a living 00:40:31.519 --> 00:40:36.099 dealing. I do organs. Yeah. A pretty fun character 00:40:36.099 --> 00:40:38.340 over the top. All the supporting characters are 00:40:38.340 --> 00:40:41.440 pretty over the top. Wouldn't you say? Absolutely. 00:40:42.039 --> 00:40:46.980 Yeah. They, they all lean in one direction and 00:40:46.980 --> 00:40:50.590 they, they go hard with it. Totally. And like, 00:40:50.610 --> 00:40:52.469 I think especially the Charlie Day and the Ron 00:40:52.469 --> 00:40:54.929 Perlman characters, as well as Newt's like partner 00:40:54.929 --> 00:40:57.750 in crime, played by Bert Gorman, I think is the 00:40:57.750 --> 00:40:59.630 name Bern Gorman. Is that right? Bern Gorman. 00:40:59.789 --> 00:41:01.869 Yeah. Those three, especially some of the other 00:41:01.869 --> 00:41:03.809 supporting characters are, in my opinion, are 00:41:03.809 --> 00:41:06.769 kind of like stock, you know, soldier tough guy 00:41:06.769 --> 00:41:08.550 type things. But those three definitely lend 00:41:08.550 --> 00:41:11.289 a lot of like pizzazz to the movie. Not that 00:41:11.289 --> 00:41:14.449 it needs any more of it, but you know. So it's 00:41:14.449 --> 00:41:16.309 funny that you bring up Bern Gorman. If anybody's 00:41:16.309 --> 00:41:18.420 a fan of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. There 00:41:18.420 --> 00:41:21.559 was an episode where Charlie basically does his 00:41:21.559 --> 00:41:25.099 own flowers for Algernon type thing. And Bernd 00:41:25.099 --> 00:41:26.860 Gorman is the scientist that they bring because 00:41:26.860 --> 00:41:28.820 of the fact that they had the relation from this 00:41:28.820 --> 00:41:34.059 particular movie. That's awesome. I read that 00:41:34.059 --> 00:41:36.420 Guillermo del Toro also had like a very small 00:41:36.420 --> 00:41:38.420 cameo in some It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia 00:41:38.420 --> 00:41:40.960 stuff. I feel like it was like spinoff though. 00:41:41.179 --> 00:41:43.380 Does that sound familiar? Are you guys It's Always 00:41:43.380 --> 00:41:46.019 Sunny fans? That's interesting. I need to look 00:41:46.019 --> 00:41:48.869 that up. I don't know. Del Toro did. an FX show 00:41:48.869 --> 00:41:54.710 called The Strain. Maybe FX Fox was just trying 00:41:54.710 --> 00:41:57.090 to do like a little cross promotion. I don't 00:41:57.090 --> 00:42:00.329 know. That's pure conjecture on my part. That 00:42:00.329 --> 00:42:02.150 could be. I'm going to try to find this because 00:42:02.150 --> 00:42:03.610 I thought it was really interesting, but please 00:42:03.610 --> 00:42:05.789 feel free to go on without me. Yeah, no worries. 00:42:05.809 --> 00:42:07.510 I'll talk about a little bit more of the casting. 00:42:08.590 --> 00:42:12.070 Del Toro really wanted to play with archetypes 00:42:12.070 --> 00:42:17.400 in this movie. He wanted to, again, honor the 00:42:17.400 --> 00:42:20.400 original media that he was watching as a kid 00:42:20.400 --> 00:42:22.260 and that we all love. So if you watch an old 00:42:22.260 --> 00:42:25.900 Godzilla movie or a 50s American sci -fi movie, 00:42:26.159 --> 00:42:27.920 you're going to have the Charlie Hunnam character, 00:42:28.139 --> 00:42:29.380 you're going to have the Pentecost character, 00:42:29.679 --> 00:42:33.739 the young woman trying to prove herself as an 00:42:33.739 --> 00:42:38.059 independent woman. And so, and like the kooky 00:42:38.059 --> 00:42:40.139 scientist characters. Del Toro said, you know, 00:42:40.139 --> 00:42:41.920 he doesn't want to put Charlie Day in just like 00:42:41.920 --> 00:42:46.150 a lab coat and goggles. He wants to have him 00:42:46.150 --> 00:42:49.869 have tattoos and Buddy Holly glasses. So like 00:42:49.869 --> 00:42:52.610 you get the idea that this is the stock character 00:42:52.610 --> 00:42:57.570 of kooky scientist, but clearly with a spin on 00:42:57.570 --> 00:43:00.730 it. So that was the DNA throughout a lot of the 00:43:00.730 --> 00:43:05.329 casting choices. Yeah, it's a really, I mean, 00:43:05.329 --> 00:43:08.730 I could listen to those oral talk all day. It 00:43:08.730 --> 00:43:11.329 was really great. And also like mind numbing 00:43:11.329 --> 00:43:15.110 sometimes because he is so. particular about 00:43:15.110 --> 00:43:17.329 every single choice everything in this movie 00:43:17.329 --> 00:43:21.730 was a choice every color every lighting aspect 00:43:21.730 --> 00:43:27.070 so to hear him wax wax on about his own movie 00:43:27.070 --> 00:43:30.590 it's it was like you need a break after that 00:43:30.590 --> 00:43:33.849 because he gets he goes deep this is why i need 00:43:33.849 --> 00:43:36.630 matt to watch the second one because it's completely 00:43:36.630 --> 00:43:41.460 different right i bet yeah Yeah, without Del 00:43:41.460 --> 00:43:43.679 Toro, like, in the director's chair, I feel like 00:43:43.679 --> 00:43:45.179 this movie, too, would be completely different, 00:43:45.280 --> 00:43:49.039 you know? Oh, absolutely. In the second movie, 00:43:49.119 --> 00:43:52.199 this isn't spoiling anything, but as you mentioned 00:43:52.199 --> 00:43:54.980 how in the first movie, Del Toro makes everything 00:43:54.980 --> 00:43:57.940 a specific choice. In this one, they kind of 00:43:57.940 --> 00:44:00.940 just go throw something at the wall and see if 00:44:00.940 --> 00:44:05.679 it sticks. And there's a scene where it's supposedly 00:44:05.679 --> 00:44:10.059 a montage -type deal. But then after going through 00:44:10.059 --> 00:44:11.519 all the different things that they need to do, 00:44:11.619 --> 00:44:14.440 they just focus on two characters just standing 00:44:14.440 --> 00:44:15.900 there and talking. You can't hear what they're 00:44:15.900 --> 00:44:18.400 saying. And there's nothing really going on in 00:44:18.400 --> 00:44:19.960 the background. It's just basically almost like 00:44:19.960 --> 00:44:22.000 a static image. And they're playing the Pacific 00:44:22.000 --> 00:44:25.639 Rim theme. And they hold that shot for like 20 00:44:25.639 --> 00:44:29.179 seconds. And then until the beat ends, they just 00:44:29.179 --> 00:44:32.960 keep it. It's like, why? Just, I like that movie, 00:44:33.019 --> 00:44:39.690 but come on. Get on with it. Wow, I read an interview 00:44:39.690 --> 00:44:41.550 with del Toro where he said that like he doesn't 00:44:41.550 --> 00:44:44.179 really Like there's like a second unit and like 00:44:44.179 --> 00:44:46.760 a third unit and maybe like, you know, B -roll 00:44:46.760 --> 00:44:48.980 footage and stuff like that. But he's there for 00:44:48.980 --> 00:44:51.340 all of that. Like he doesn't let anybody else 00:44:51.340 --> 00:44:54.619 like direct anything without his input or like 00:44:54.619 --> 00:44:56.840 his awareness, which I just think speaks to what 00:44:56.840 --> 00:44:59.300 you said. And I read that he had, you know, he 00:44:59.300 --> 00:45:01.960 worked 17 or 18 hours a day, like seven days 00:45:01.960 --> 00:45:03.659 a week for like most of the shooting schedule 00:45:03.659 --> 00:45:06.659 of the film. So, you know, yeah, that all just 00:45:06.659 --> 00:45:09.280 backs up what you said. Like he is the vision 00:45:09.280 --> 00:45:12.449 of the film and has a hand in all of it. He did 00:45:12.449 --> 00:45:17.690 kind of outsource the beginning of Pacific Rim. 00:45:17.730 --> 00:45:20.329 There's a prologue with a lot of found footage, 00:45:20.389 --> 00:45:25.230 newscasts and whatnot, just setting the scene 00:45:25.230 --> 00:45:27.769 of this invasion from the ocean and the kaiju 00:45:27.769 --> 00:45:30.869 coming up. And Del Toro, again on the commentary, 00:45:31.190 --> 00:45:35.570 he did have a friend of his direct those found 00:45:35.570 --> 00:45:39.809 footage moments because he admitted... He kind 00:45:39.809 --> 00:45:42.349 of gave himself a backhanded compliment. He said, 00:45:42.449 --> 00:45:45.369 I can do a lot of things, but I can't do found 00:45:45.369 --> 00:45:50.610 footage. Or he might have said, I'm really good 00:45:50.610 --> 00:45:53.309 at a lot of things, but not found footage. And 00:45:53.309 --> 00:45:56.670 I was like, yeah, man, feel yourself. But pass 00:45:56.670 --> 00:45:58.829 it off, too. He does recognize, you know, I'm 00:45:58.829 --> 00:46:03.570 not good at that. That's cool. And I like those 00:46:03.570 --> 00:46:06.889 moments. I really like the prologue. It establishes 00:46:06.889 --> 00:46:10.630 a world. It's starting to lay some foundational 00:46:10.630 --> 00:46:13.969 rules for this world. Like what we're dealing 00:46:13.969 --> 00:46:16.630 with, what culture, what the culture within the 00:46:16.630 --> 00:46:19.510 world is, is how they're approaching the monsters. 00:46:20.590 --> 00:46:23.010 By the way, I did confirm that Guillermo del 00:46:23.010 --> 00:46:26.909 Toro plays Pappy McPoyle on two episodes. Oh 00:46:26.909 --> 00:46:31.369 my God. All right. I remember that exact one. 00:46:31.409 --> 00:46:33.050 There was a moment where he's in a courtroom 00:46:33.050 --> 00:46:38.050 and he lets the bird loose. Yeah. Oh my gosh. 00:46:38.849 --> 00:46:41.710 I think I must have seen those episodes, but 00:46:41.710 --> 00:46:43.650 I didn't recognize him at the time. So I'm going 00:46:43.650 --> 00:46:45.730 to have to go back and check those out. Yeah, 00:46:45.789 --> 00:46:47.670 it's pretty cool. I'm glad that you brought the 00:46:47.670 --> 00:46:50.289 name up because I'm like, oh, it's killing me 00:46:50.289 --> 00:46:53.650 not remembering. Just the name itself conjures 00:46:53.650 --> 00:46:57.130 a very specific image. Well, let's talk a little 00:46:57.130 --> 00:46:59.010 bit about the production backstory of this here 00:46:59.010 --> 00:47:02.349 film. I did try to streamline a lot of this. 00:47:02.829 --> 00:47:04.610 Obviously, with newer films, there's just so 00:47:04.610 --> 00:47:07.949 much out there you could read into it. But in 00:47:07.949 --> 00:47:10.949 2006, this movie started when the screenwriter 00:47:10.949 --> 00:47:13.130 Travis Beecham, apparently he was walking down 00:47:13.130 --> 00:47:15.510 the beach in Santa Monica, and he looked out 00:47:15.510 --> 00:47:18.250 in the ocean and he envisioned a giant robot 00:47:18.250 --> 00:47:20.329 and a monster fighting each other in the fog. 00:47:21.159 --> 00:47:24.679 And he then thought of the idea of that, okay, 00:47:24.719 --> 00:47:28.380 maybe these giant robots are piloted by two crew 00:47:28.380 --> 00:47:31.780 members, but then what if one of them died? So 00:47:31.780 --> 00:47:34.340 that's how he started to kick around a story 00:47:34.340 --> 00:47:39.199 about loss and survivor's guilt. He wrote a 25 00:47:39.199 --> 00:47:42.920 -page spec script, sold it to Universal, and 00:47:42.920 --> 00:47:46.739 that's when del Toro comes on board. Kind of, 00:47:46.739 --> 00:47:50.170 kind of, sort of. This was in 2010. Four years 00:47:50.170 --> 00:47:53.550 has gone by. Del Toro's planning to direct At 00:47:53.550 --> 00:47:55.849 the Mountains of Madness, an H .P. Lovecraft 00:47:55.849 --> 00:47:59.449 story that various directors, I think even John 00:47:59.449 --> 00:48:02.190 Carpenter has tried to make this movie. Clearly 00:48:02.190 --> 00:48:04.849 nobody's made it yet. Are you guys familiar with 00:48:04.849 --> 00:48:08.389 the story At the Mountains of Madness? No. Vaguely. 00:48:08.550 --> 00:48:13.429 It's about explorers, adventurers in the South 00:48:13.429 --> 00:48:17.139 Pole, and they... go into a cave, and they come 00:48:17.139 --> 00:48:20.159 upon the ruins of an ancient civilization, and 00:48:20.159 --> 00:48:23.760 there are monsters lurking within. So it's right 00:48:23.760 --> 00:48:27.599 up Del Toro's alley. But he had this project 00:48:27.599 --> 00:48:30.199 fall through, ultimately. He wouldn't compromise 00:48:30.199 --> 00:48:33.480 on a budget and R rating. So then he signed on 00:48:33.480 --> 00:48:35.699 to direct Pacific Rim, because before this, he 00:48:35.699 --> 00:48:37.940 was just agreeing to produce and co -write Pacific 00:48:37.940 --> 00:48:41.699 Rim. But Mountains of Madness fell through, and 00:48:41.699 --> 00:48:43.360 he's like, all right, I'll do Giant Kaiju instead. 00:48:45.130 --> 00:48:47.469 I can take over here just for the next couple 00:48:47.469 --> 00:48:50.050 bullet points. So then Del Toro and Beecham spent 00:48:50.050 --> 00:48:52.590 a year on the screenplay, fleshing out ideas 00:48:52.590 --> 00:48:55.289 like what would a kaiju birth look like, kaiju 00:48:55.289 --> 00:48:57.909 perspective from a little child, a very memorable 00:48:57.909 --> 00:49:01.809 flashback in the movie. The story, which Beecham 00:49:01.809 --> 00:49:04.070 initially conceived as one of loss, moving on, 00:49:04.170 --> 00:49:06.809 survivor's guilt, those themes kind of deepened 00:49:06.809 --> 00:49:09.630 throughout their collaboration. Del Toro wanted 00:49:09.630 --> 00:49:12.510 the film to be operatic and romantic, embracing 00:49:12.510 --> 00:49:16.539 certain character archetypes. So, filming took 00:49:16.539 --> 00:49:20.000 place from November 2011 to April 2012 in Toronto 00:49:20.000 --> 00:49:23.760 at Pinewood Studios. It was shot in 103 days. 00:49:24.480 --> 00:49:26.539 A lot of different directors are sort of given 00:49:26.539 --> 00:49:28.500 thanks at the end of the film. James Cameron, 00:49:28.579 --> 00:49:30.780 I know, is one of them, as well as some of del 00:49:30.780 --> 00:49:33.960 Toro's influences, like Ishiro Honda, Ray Harryhausen, 00:49:33.960 --> 00:49:36.380 I believe, as well. David Cronenberg also is 00:49:36.380 --> 00:49:38.199 thanked in the end credits. He helped out with 00:49:38.199 --> 00:49:40.980 lending a lot of the crew for the film and putting 00:49:40.980 --> 00:49:43.199 the crew together, since he's a Toronto native. 00:49:43.789 --> 00:49:46.889 that's awesome i didn't even realize that no 00:49:46.889 --> 00:49:50.289 neither did i i was like whoa this is like all 00:49:50.289 --> 00:49:54.230 -star lineup of director influences yeah then 00:49:54.230 --> 00:49:55.829 i was thinking about james cameron i was like 00:49:55.829 --> 00:50:00.369 man he he is also a master of his own craft with 00:50:00.369 --> 00:50:02.769 monster movies and and things too like i don't 00:50:02.769 --> 00:50:07.210 know and big mecca just any kind of robot yeah 00:50:07.210 --> 00:50:11.530 yeah maybe maybe a little one here and there 00:50:12.099 --> 00:50:14.940 Terminator, Alita, that sort of thing. Oh, yeah. 00:50:15.219 --> 00:50:19.519 Yeah, so good company. So Del Toro wanted to 00:50:19.519 --> 00:50:21.480 honor the kaiju and mecha genres while creating 00:50:21.480 --> 00:50:24.400 an original standalone film. He states he wanted 00:50:24.400 --> 00:50:26.420 to be conscious of the heritage, but not a pastiche 00:50:26.420 --> 00:50:28.909 or an homage or... greatest hits of everything. 00:50:29.030 --> 00:50:31.030 I don't want it to be postmodern, referential, 00:50:31.090 --> 00:50:33.710 or just belong to a genre. I really wanted to 00:50:33.710 --> 00:50:35.829 create something new, something madly in love 00:50:35.829 --> 00:50:37.869 with those things, and he does. He really does. 00:50:38.030 --> 00:50:40.409 I tried to bring epic beauty to it and drama 00:50:40.409 --> 00:50:42.050 and operatic grandeur, kind of like what you 00:50:42.050 --> 00:50:44.829 mentioned earlier. He also drew inspiration from 00:50:44.829 --> 00:50:47.730 a number of media, like paintings such as Francisco 00:50:47.730 --> 00:50:50.530 Goya's The Colossus, Hokusai's The Great Wave 00:50:50.530 --> 00:50:52.909 of Kanagawa, and early sci -fi series like The 00:50:52.909 --> 00:50:55.690 Thunderbirds, you know, the 1964 puppet show. 00:50:56.280 --> 00:50:59.000 He also delineates between more animalistic kaiju 00:50:59.000 --> 00:51:02.260 designs, reptiles, bugs, you know, giant gorilla, 00:51:02.420 --> 00:51:05.559 and more outlandish kaiju designs. The kaiju 00:51:05.559 --> 00:51:08.579 in Pacific Rim, especially the early ones, were 00:51:08.579 --> 00:51:11.019 designed in the Nakajima style, meaning they 00:51:11.019 --> 00:51:14.039 look like traditional man -in -suit kaiju, which 00:51:14.039 --> 00:51:17.300 that makes a lot of sense, especially Knifehead. 00:51:17.480 --> 00:51:21.989 Oh my goodness, Knifehead. Del Toro praises the 00:51:21.989 --> 00:51:23.630 animation work in the film, which is blended 00:51:23.630 --> 00:51:25.949 with practical effects and constructed sets. 00:51:26.150 --> 00:51:31.289 He chose animation over mocap. Yeah, he openly 00:51:31.289 --> 00:51:35.769 credits the suit actor Haruo Nakajima, who played 00:51:35.769 --> 00:51:39.050 Godzilla and so many other famous kaiju in the 00:51:39.050 --> 00:51:43.989 Showa era. And he says that he calls it, quote, 00:51:44.090 --> 00:51:47.710 the Nakajima style to design these creatures 00:51:47.710 --> 00:51:52.599 as if it were. someone inside and that same aesthetic 00:51:52.599 --> 00:51:55.460 it works because honestly you would definitely 00:51:55.460 --> 00:51:58.719 think it kind of makes me feel like the way i 00:51:58.719 --> 00:52:00.619 felt watching shin godzilla a little bit thinking 00:52:00.619 --> 00:52:03.719 that there was actually somebody there yeah and 00:52:03.719 --> 00:52:09.099 i that is just a detail to me guys that if anyone 00:52:09.099 --> 00:52:13.880 if you're not a fan of like showa era kaiju movies 00:52:13.880 --> 00:52:18.989 you may not even know who nakajima is You wouldn't 00:52:18.989 --> 00:52:21.250 and you wouldn't. So like you wouldn't bring 00:52:21.250 --> 00:52:26.010 that prior knowledge into your decision making. 00:52:27.070 --> 00:52:29.190 It's only because he's a fan. He's like, oh, 00:52:29.230 --> 00:52:32.530 yeah, let's make it look like Haruo Nakajima. 00:52:33.030 --> 00:52:36.449 I just I just I just love that. I don't know 00:52:36.449 --> 00:52:40.690 what else to say. There's also a fight where. 00:52:41.469 --> 00:52:43.489 one of the Jaegers is like fighting a Kaiju. 00:52:43.530 --> 00:52:45.210 And I wish I remembered the names of the Kaiju 00:52:45.210 --> 00:52:47.530 and the Jaeger, but I don't, but like, I feel 00:52:47.530 --> 00:52:49.710 like the Jaeger is like pulling the mouth apart 00:52:49.710 --> 00:52:51.889 and then like rip something out of the Kaiju 00:52:51.889 --> 00:52:53.909 and they like cut away maybe because that would 00:52:53.909 --> 00:52:56.309 be a little bit too violent for this movie. But 00:52:56.309 --> 00:52:58.210 to me, that is just always going to go back to 00:52:58.210 --> 00:53:00.610 King Kong and, you know, King Kong, like breaking 00:53:00.610 --> 00:53:03.250 the dinosaur's jaw. I feel like maybe that was 00:53:03.250 --> 00:53:07.170 an homage to that moment as well, but there's 00:53:07.170 --> 00:53:10.780 everything. I mean, even the, when the jaeger 00:53:10.780 --> 00:53:16.860 and ohachi the the swiss army knife of a kaiju 00:53:16.860 --> 00:53:20.219 who flies oh okay yeah yeah yeah they go up into 00:53:20.219 --> 00:53:24.619 space and the jaeger pulls the sword i mean we 00:53:24.619 --> 00:53:26.800 have seen that in the mighty morphin power rangers 00:53:26.800 --> 00:53:30.400 movie and robot jocks to just name two others 00:53:30.400 --> 00:53:34.599 on this podcast we've covered good point yeah 00:53:37.610 --> 00:53:40.110 That is a solid motif. It's such a cool moment 00:53:40.110 --> 00:53:43.969 in this movie. I love it. So cool. Yeah. A hallmark 00:53:43.969 --> 00:53:49.349 of the genre. Yeah. All that to say, I mean, 00:53:49.349 --> 00:53:52.250 this movie was then released in July of 2013. 00:53:52.369 --> 00:53:55.610 You guys were there at the premiere in Mexico 00:53:55.610 --> 00:54:01.489 City, right? I wish. Sir, I've barely been outside 00:54:01.489 --> 00:54:05.449 of Florida. It was released in the US later that 00:54:05.449 --> 00:54:08.800 month. So -so box office in the United States. 00:54:09.320 --> 00:54:12.039 Much more of its gross came from the world box 00:54:12.039 --> 00:54:15.079 office. Forbes even said, quote, the rare English 00:54:15.079 --> 00:54:17.360 language film in history to cross 400 million 00:54:17.360 --> 00:54:21.340 while barely crossing 100 million domestic. So 00:54:21.340 --> 00:54:24.559 kind of like a unusual dynamic there. Critical 00:54:24.559 --> 00:54:27.460 praise was largely positive, but some pretty 00:54:27.460 --> 00:54:30.559 scathing reviews. Well, you can look them up. 00:54:30.599 --> 00:54:32.739 They were just like really long, too. Like some 00:54:32.739 --> 00:54:37.090 critics just went out. Went on a diatribe. Mostly 00:54:37.090 --> 00:54:40.510 about the Cuban drama, the casting of the film. 00:54:41.449 --> 00:54:45.050 To me, and I can link to these reviews too, to 00:54:45.050 --> 00:54:48.690 me it seems like these reviewers just like, they 00:54:48.690 --> 00:54:54.369 don't get it. You know what I mean? I'll try 00:54:54.369 --> 00:54:56.769 to be a little more specific. They don't understand 00:54:56.769 --> 00:55:01.360 the inner workings of a genre movie. Like this. 00:55:01.599 --> 00:55:04.820 We just identified this motif of going into space 00:55:04.820 --> 00:55:07.579 with a sword. And we know when it's done well, 00:55:07.739 --> 00:55:10.079 Pacific Rim. And when it's not done well, Robot 00:55:10.079 --> 00:55:16.480 Jax. Whoa, whoa, whoa. What a callback. How dare 00:55:16.480 --> 00:55:19.780 you. But like a mainstream quote -unquote critic 00:55:19.780 --> 00:55:25.360 isn't going to necessarily have that same knowledge. 00:55:25.519 --> 00:55:29.460 You know what I mean? Right. I do. And also. 00:55:30.010 --> 00:55:31.849 I will save this for the good, the bad, and the 00:55:31.849 --> 00:55:34.789 campy at the end, but perhaps some of those scathing 00:55:34.789 --> 00:55:37.389 reviews might have one or two points. I'm sorry 00:55:37.389 --> 00:55:40.150 to say it. I'll elaborate more on that later 00:55:40.150 --> 00:55:45.110 in the episode. Sorry. It's a throwdown. All 00:55:45.110 --> 00:55:48.369 right, so I just need your address. Yeah, I was 00:55:48.369 --> 00:55:50.170 going to say, like, Sean, don't jump through 00:55:50.170 --> 00:55:51.849 the screen and, like, strangle me right now. 00:55:52.030 --> 00:55:54.590 I'm too lazy. That won't happen. That's good. 00:55:55.110 --> 00:55:58.409 No, Matt, you're good. I'll draw another comp. 00:55:58.809 --> 00:56:01.889 with like Shape of Water, which, you know, I'm 00:56:01.889 --> 00:56:04.929 not going to get into like the details of reviewing 00:56:04.929 --> 00:56:07.369 that movie. But when it came out, you know, you 00:56:07.369 --> 00:56:09.329 heard a lot of people talk about, oh, that's 00:56:09.329 --> 00:56:12.829 like the movie about having sex with a fish man. 00:56:14.289 --> 00:56:19.210 And it's like, well, it's more than that. It's 00:56:19.210 --> 00:56:21.230 a serious movie. So that's what I mean. Like 00:56:21.230 --> 00:56:23.730 people may be writing it off because, oh, it's 00:56:23.730 --> 00:56:26.550 just a dumb monster movie. Like you said, they 00:56:26.550 --> 00:56:30.090 don't understand genre types. Yeah. But other 00:56:30.090 --> 00:56:34.730 flaws, yes, I will even admit to that. Maybe. 00:56:35.510 --> 00:56:37.170 I don't know, Matt. I don't know. You got to 00:56:37.170 --> 00:56:39.690 convince me. Yeah, no, that's fair. But it's 00:56:39.690 --> 00:56:41.849 a very valid point. It's a genre movie. Genre 00:56:41.849 --> 00:56:43.710 elements and critics probably should do a better 00:56:43.710 --> 00:56:46.090 job. Some critics of paying attention to that, 00:56:46.210 --> 00:56:48.510 you know, some legacy for this film. There's 00:56:48.510 --> 00:56:50.690 a there's a thing called the Mako Mori test, 00:56:50.929 --> 00:56:53.989 like the Bechdel test. I actually wasn't familiar 00:56:53.989 --> 00:56:55.949 with that. But if you look it up, it's a thing. 00:56:58.539 --> 00:57:01.619 A set of criteria used to evaluate a film's portrayal 00:57:01.619 --> 00:57:04.940 of women, named after the character Meiko Mori 00:57:04.940 --> 00:57:09.599 in Pacific Rim, and the subsequent sequel, which 00:57:09.599 --> 00:57:12.000 we've talked about, and a Netflix anime, Pacific 00:57:12.000 --> 00:57:14.000 Rim The Black, which ran for a couple seasons. 00:57:14.519 --> 00:57:18.340 So there's some legacy for this film. I think 00:57:18.340 --> 00:57:21.280 fans want there to be more. So just to add into 00:57:21.280 --> 00:57:24.639 that real quick, there is more. There are multiple 00:57:24.639 --> 00:57:28.719 comics. They actually, a couple years ago, Kickstarter 00:57:28.719 --> 00:57:33.119 ended up making this giant anthology graphic 00:57:33.119 --> 00:57:35.699 novel series that I have as a giant box set, 00:57:35.760 --> 00:57:38.179 which I will probably show you at the end. But 00:57:38.179 --> 00:57:41.000 it's huge. And it's basically all different stories 00:57:41.000 --> 00:57:42.719 that you would see throughout the Pacific Rim 00:57:42.719 --> 00:57:45.699 universe. And then they just finished greenlighting 00:57:45.699 --> 00:57:50.460 a second thing where it's basically the un... 00:57:50.460 --> 00:57:53.739 Well, not unwritten at this point, but the unfilmed 00:57:53.739 --> 00:57:56.039 script that was supposed to be Pacific Rim 3. 00:57:57.929 --> 00:58:03.650 So cool. I'm excited. Cool. Yeah. And of course, 00:58:03.650 --> 00:58:06.730 Pacific Rim is under Legendary Pictures, Warner 00:58:06.730 --> 00:58:09.809 Brothers, same as the MonsterVerse movies of 00:58:09.809 --> 00:58:12.829 Godzilla. So in theory, a crossover could happen. 00:58:13.789 --> 00:58:17.510 Like that would just be a dream come true. Unfortunately, 00:58:17.949 --> 00:58:20.090 I just I don't think Pacific Rim had that kind 00:58:20.090 --> 00:58:24.590 of box office to to warrant that kind of venture. 00:58:24.750 --> 00:58:28.300 But man. Godzilla versus these mechs? It'd be 00:58:28.300 --> 00:58:31.900 perfect. It's happened before. With, like, you 00:58:31.900 --> 00:58:35.460 know, Mechagodzilla and things like that. Oh, 00:58:35.539 --> 00:58:37.880 that reminds me. So, Matt, you brought up Ultraman. 00:58:38.000 --> 00:58:41.119 There is a Godzilla character that's like Ultraman 00:58:41.119 --> 00:58:44.599 that is considered a mech. Hmm. I see Vincent 00:58:44.599 --> 00:58:46.940 nodding, so he knows exactly who it is. I didn't 00:58:46.940 --> 00:58:49.420 know it was considered a mech. Maybe we're not 00:58:49.420 --> 00:58:52.179 thinking of the same monster. Oh, wait. So he's 00:58:52.179 --> 00:58:54.199 considered a mech in one of their anime shows. 00:58:54.260 --> 00:58:55.539 I don't know if he's actually considered a mech 00:58:55.539 --> 00:58:59.119 in the movies. Oh, okay. But you know who it 00:58:59.119 --> 00:59:02.039 is. What's that? Sorry. Oh, I was going to say, 00:59:02.079 --> 00:59:04.699 I know Vincent knows who I'm talking about. Well, 00:59:04.739 --> 00:59:08.920 I don't know. Who is it? Oh, God. Why'd you put 00:59:08.920 --> 00:59:10.360 me on the spot here? I shouldn't have said anything. 00:59:11.579 --> 00:59:14.860 You're our resident mecha expert. Yeah, but I'm 00:59:14.860 --> 00:59:18.380 not the Godzilla guy. But I'm not the Ultraman 00:59:18.380 --> 00:59:25.070 guy. Well, there's GRS. No. GRS, who is... They 00:59:25.070 --> 00:59:29.110 stuck a big frill on a Godzilla costume and called 00:59:29.110 --> 00:59:33.409 it a day, which is hilarious. I'm going to remember 00:59:33.409 --> 00:59:36.090 it in a little bit. Just go on. I'm sorry. Okay. 00:59:36.750 --> 00:59:38.829 The only one I can think of is Mechagodzilla, 00:59:38.989 --> 00:59:40.710 but I feel like that does not really count very 00:59:40.710 --> 00:59:43.449 much. Not for what we're talking about. Jet Jaguar. 00:59:44.070 --> 00:59:49.170 Oh. Yeah. Love Jet Jaguar. Ultraman knockoff. 00:59:49.530 --> 00:59:53.469 Yep. Yeah. Do I know Jet Jaguar? What Godzilla 00:59:53.469 --> 00:59:57.889 movies was he in? Godzilla vs. Megalon. Hmm. 00:59:58.269 --> 01:00:01.170 Which we haven't talked about, but maybe you've 01:00:01.170 --> 01:00:04.829 seen it on your own. I don't think I have. All 01:00:04.829 --> 01:00:07.389 right. Add that to the list. Maybe it'll be on 01:00:07.389 --> 01:00:12.050 the holiday preview episode. Whoa. Don't tease 01:00:12.050 --> 01:00:14.650 me with a good time. That movie is a good time. 01:00:14.730 --> 01:00:21.059 It's a blast. Cool. We'll check it out. Okay. 01:00:22.199 --> 01:00:26.780 Well, perfect time for our sponsor break. Camp 01:00:26.780 --> 01:00:28.360 Kaiju is brought to you by Zach Linder and the 01:00:28.360 --> 01:00:30.519 Zach Pack, powered by Coldwell Banker Realty. 01:00:30.699 --> 01:00:32.500 Whether you're looking for your dream home, a 01:00:32.500 --> 01:00:34.679 savvy investment property, or expert guidance 01:00:34.679 --> 01:00:37.500 in home rehab and flipping, the Zach Pack has 01:00:37.500 --> 01:00:39.519 you covered. Check the link in the show notes 01:00:39.519 --> 01:00:44.039 for more information. Guys, Media's mailbox is 01:00:44.039 --> 01:00:46.119 busting these days. I've got two comments for 01:00:46.119 --> 01:00:50.329 us. Ooh. One from Superfan Don, now on Patreon, 01:00:50.590 --> 01:00:54.469 about the giant spider invasion. Superfan Don 01:00:54.469 --> 01:00:57.369 says, this was quite an interesting film, but 01:00:57.369 --> 01:00:59.690 I knew I was going to have fun. A few seconds 01:00:59.690 --> 01:01:02.289 after the opening credits, there he is, Alan 01:01:02.289 --> 01:01:04.869 Hale himself. And the first words out of his 01:01:04.869 --> 01:01:07.469 mouth are, hi little buddy, how can you not love 01:01:07.469 --> 01:01:10.760 that? When they mentioned the Neutron Initiator, 01:01:10.840 --> 01:01:13.219 all I could think of was reverse the polarity 01:01:13.219 --> 01:01:15.960 in the neutron flow from Doctor Who. But a lot 01:01:15.960 --> 01:01:17.860 of people wouldn't get that reference. I admit, 01:01:17.920 --> 01:01:22.039 Don, I am one of them. Don goes on to say, definitely 01:01:22.039 --> 01:01:24.480 an enjoyable movie. I'm curious what the updated 01:01:24.480 --> 01:01:26.880 anniversary version will be like. I hope one 01:01:26.880 --> 01:01:28.980 or both of you guys are able to see it and tell 01:01:28.980 --> 01:01:31.780 us about it. I hope so as well. Thank you, Don. 01:01:31.960 --> 01:01:34.400 Good to see your comments. Yeah, Giant Spider 01:01:34.400 --> 01:01:36.820 Invasion, a very fun movie. And I, too, cannot 01:01:36.820 --> 01:01:39.320 wait to see what the new footage looks like that 01:01:39.320 --> 01:01:42.119 Bill Robain shot for it. Agreed. You can check 01:01:42.119 --> 01:01:45.400 it out. So bad it's good. And then Kaiju Nick, 01:01:45.579 --> 01:01:48.940 we have another fan of the show. He writes in 01:01:48.940 --> 01:01:51.199 in response to Phantom of the Opera. This was 01:01:51.199 --> 01:01:54.900 via our website, CampKaijuPodcast .com. And Kaiju 01:01:54.900 --> 01:01:57.960 Nick says, Well done, Camp Kaiju, on your Phantom 01:01:57.960 --> 01:02:01.099 of the Opera centennial celebration. Don't forget 01:02:01.099 --> 01:02:04.139 this year is also the 100th anniversary of The 01:02:04.139 --> 01:02:06.940 Lost World. I think this is the first feature 01:02:06.940 --> 01:02:09.380 -length film with Willis O 'Brien's stop -motion 01:02:09.380 --> 01:02:12.360 effects. There are earlier examples, but they're 01:02:12.360 --> 01:02:16.139 all short films. Kaiju Nick, thank you for bringing 01:02:16.139 --> 01:02:21.340 that to our attention. Yeah, 1925, Sir Arthur 01:02:21.340 --> 01:02:23.719 Conan Doyle's The Lost World is adapted for the 01:02:23.719 --> 01:02:26.699 screen. It's Willis O 'Brien who went on to do 01:02:26.699 --> 01:02:30.719 King Kong and influenced the entire genre. That 01:02:30.719 --> 01:02:34.260 leads to Pacific Rim. But The Lost World is also 01:02:34.260 --> 01:02:36.880 celebrating 100 years. I think that movie holds 01:02:36.880 --> 01:02:39.500 up. It's in the public domain, obviously. Go 01:02:39.500 --> 01:02:43.880 check it out for yourself. But it is a great 01:02:43.880 --> 01:02:47.940 time with dinosaurs. And the final action piece 01:02:47.940 --> 01:02:50.239 of that movie is dinosaurs are brought back to 01:02:50.239 --> 01:02:53.239 New York City, break their chains, and run amok. 01:02:53.739 --> 01:02:56.019 So it's great. Are you sure you're not talking 01:02:56.019 --> 01:02:57.679 about Jurassic Park The Lost World? That sounds 01:02:57.679 --> 01:03:01.900 almost similar. You know, I think you might be 01:03:01.900 --> 01:03:05.219 right. I think that is also featuring its 100th 01:03:05.219 --> 01:03:11.280 anniversary. Special effects are amazing for 01:03:11.280 --> 01:03:14.039 1925 in that movie. I don't know how Spielberg 01:03:14.039 --> 01:03:17.860 did it. Time travelers, yo. Yeah. All right. 01:03:17.920 --> 01:03:21.880 Peter Lorre, he's been on a wild ride, guys. 01:03:22.039 --> 01:03:25.300 He has been, well, he's in a room next to me. 01:03:25.940 --> 01:03:29.440 He's been talking. I think to a raven. A raven. 01:03:30.039 --> 01:03:34.260 Some kind of bird is calling to him. And he is 01:03:34.260 --> 01:03:38.300 reciting the poem, The Raven. There's some weird 01:03:38.300 --> 01:03:41.000 things happening. I try not to ask. I let him 01:03:41.000 --> 01:03:44.500 do his thing. Wait, wait, wait. Is the raven 01:03:44.500 --> 01:03:48.719 calling the raven to him? To be determined. I 01:03:48.719 --> 01:03:54.440 need to hear this. I'm clear. Maybe it's not 01:03:54.440 --> 01:03:57.860 Peter who's going mad, but Vincent. Don't put 01:03:57.860 --> 01:04:05.980 that on me. He's going Stark Raven mad. Oh, I 01:04:05.980 --> 01:04:09.800 like that. What? What is this? This madness you 01:04:09.800 --> 01:04:15.440 speak of? Did Peter Laurie ever exist or was 01:04:15.440 --> 01:04:20.380 it always me? I can't tell anymore. So many plot 01:04:20.380 --> 01:04:22.820 twists in this episode. Are you the you that's 01:04:22.820 --> 01:04:26.880 really you? Well, well. Well, well, well. Peter 01:04:26.880 --> 01:04:29.280 Lorre is going to talk about a 1944 picture called 01:04:29.280 --> 01:04:32.780 Crazy Nights. And our Letterboxd synopsis reads, 01:04:33.039 --> 01:04:36.539 three crack -brained clowns trapped in a haunted 01:04:36.539 --> 01:04:40.199 house with a runaway gorilla. Oh, my God. Also 01:04:40.199 --> 01:04:43.579 known as Ghost Crazy, three goofballs run up 01:04:43.579 --> 01:04:45.980 against ghosts and a giant gorilla in a haunted 01:04:45.980 --> 01:04:49.539 house with Shemp Howard of the Three Stooges. 01:04:50.179 --> 01:04:52.619 Oh, does it only have Shemp or are the other 01:04:52.619 --> 01:04:54.760 Three Stooges in it as well? I think it's just 01:04:54.760 --> 01:04:58.880 Shemp. Weird. Okay. The good one. That's the 01:04:58.880 --> 01:05:00.900 weirdest thing, Matt, you took from that synopsis? 01:05:01.280 --> 01:05:05.199 Not the crack brain clowns. Good point. I'm so 01:05:05.199 --> 01:05:09.780 used to these weird old kaiju movie, or not kaiju, 01:05:09.820 --> 01:05:12.639 but just monster movie synopses. It's like, yeah, 01:05:12.639 --> 01:05:14.460 that sounds about right. That's not surprising 01:05:14.460 --> 01:05:19.860 to me. Sean Power, what's going on here? That's 01:05:19.860 --> 01:05:21.559 where I'm at with monster movies these days. 01:05:22.059 --> 01:05:24.559 You can only handle so much weird until it becomes 01:05:24.559 --> 01:05:27.940 normal. Yeah, exactly. That's also going on a 01:05:27.940 --> 01:05:47.420 tote bag. I love it. Welcome to the Poverty Row 01:05:47.420 --> 01:05:50.300 Studios on the other side of Hollywood. Yes, 01:05:50.340 --> 01:05:52.679 where the stars were dimmer and the red carpets 01:05:52.679 --> 01:05:55.530 detrived with blood. Together we will watch the 01:05:55.530 --> 01:05:58.289 best of the worst. Movies known for their limited 01:05:58.289 --> 01:06:01.309 budgets, outlandish concepts, and questionable 01:06:01.309 --> 01:06:04.070 performances. But with enough haunted houses, 01:06:04.329 --> 01:06:07.570 ape men, devil bats, and zombies to keep you 01:06:07.570 --> 01:06:11.230 up at night. This is the Poverty Row Picture 01:06:11.230 --> 01:06:15.110 Show. And I dare you to sleep through these nightmares. 01:06:19.050 --> 01:06:22.969 It has been quite a doozy here, though I am dead. 01:06:23.420 --> 01:06:26.820 It appears I cannot entirely shuffle off the 01:06:26.820 --> 01:06:31.539 mortal coils that remind me of my humanity. Well, 01:06:31.760 --> 01:06:35.360 what would I do without my raven friend? He is 01:06:35.360 --> 01:06:39.840 my lovely lady friend. Oh, well, let me just 01:06:39.840 --> 01:06:44.119 apologize that I have not watched Ghost Crazy, 01:06:44.380 --> 01:06:48.239 otherwise known as Crazy Nights, with Shemp Howard, 01:06:48.420 --> 01:06:54.110 one of three of the Three Stooges. Well, looks 01:06:54.110 --> 01:06:56.969 like I will be saving this one for the new year. 01:06:57.150 --> 01:07:02.269 Ring -a -ding, baby. In my time, I have yet to 01:07:02.269 --> 01:07:07.150 finish the raven. My friends, something might 01:07:07.150 --> 01:07:09.650 happen at the end of this. You just wait and 01:07:09.650 --> 01:07:16.389 see. This I sat engaged in guessing, but no syllable 01:07:16.389 --> 01:07:20.530 expressing to the fowl whose fiery eyes now burned 01:07:20.530 --> 01:07:25.300 into my bosom's core. This and more I sat divining, 01:07:25.420 --> 01:07:29.059 with my head at ease reclining on the cushion's 01:07:29.059 --> 01:07:32.480 velvet lining that the lamplight gloated o 'er, 01:07:32.480 --> 01:07:35.900 but whose velvet -violet lining with the lamplight 01:07:35.900 --> 01:07:40.420 gloating o 'er, she shall press, ah, nevermore. 01:07:41.380 --> 01:07:45.139 Then he thought the air grew dancer, perfumed 01:07:45.139 --> 01:07:48.840 from an unseen censer swung by seraphim whose 01:07:48.840 --> 01:07:52.840 footfalls tinkled on the tufted floor. Wretch, 01:07:52.980 --> 01:07:57.320 I cried, thy god hath lent thee, by the angels 01:07:57.320 --> 01:08:01.840 he hath sent thee, respite, respite, respite, 01:08:01.840 --> 01:08:05.880 and repent from thy memories of Lenore. Quaff, 01:08:05.940 --> 01:08:08.840 oh quaff, this kind, repent, and forget this 01:08:08.840 --> 01:08:15.940 lost Lenore. Quote the raven, nevermore. Prophet, 01:08:16.039 --> 01:08:19.500 said I, thing of evil, prophet still, if bird 01:08:19.500 --> 01:08:23.789 or devil. Whether tempter set, or whether tempest 01:08:23.789 --> 01:08:28.130 tossed thee here ashore, Desolate yet all undaunted 01:08:28.130 --> 01:08:31.069 on this desert land, Enchanted on this home by 01:08:31.069 --> 01:08:35.489 horror haunting, Tell me truly, I implore, is 01:08:35.489 --> 01:08:39.689 there, is there balm in Gilead? Tell me, tell 01:08:39.689 --> 01:08:49.500 me, I implore, woke the raven. Prophet said I, 01:08:49.600 --> 01:08:52.539 thing of evil, prophet still, if bird or devil, 01:08:52.739 --> 01:08:56.699 by that heaven that bends above us, by that God 01:08:56.699 --> 01:09:00.899 we both adore, tell this soul with sorrow laden, 01:09:00.899 --> 01:09:05.539 if within the distant Eden it shall clasp a sainted 01:09:05.539 --> 01:09:10.380 maiden whom the angels name Lenore, clasp a rare 01:09:10.380 --> 01:09:13.600 and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore. 01:09:14.279 --> 01:09:19.880 Quote the raven nevermore. Be that word our sign 01:09:19.880 --> 01:09:24.239 of parting, bird or fiend, I shrieked, obstarting. 01:09:24.279 --> 01:09:26.920 Get thee back into the tempest and the night's 01:09:26.920 --> 01:09:30.680 plutonian shore. Leave no black plume as a token 01:09:30.680 --> 01:09:35.960 of that thy soul hath spoken. Leave my loneliness 01:09:35.960 --> 01:09:40.079 unbroken. Quit the bust above my door. Take thy 01:09:40.079 --> 01:09:43.600 beak from out my heart and take thy form from 01:09:43.600 --> 01:09:49.220 off my door. Quote the raven. Never more. And 01:09:49.220 --> 01:09:52.220 the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, 01:09:52.340 --> 01:09:56.840 still is sitting on the pallet bust of pallets 01:09:56.840 --> 01:10:01.000 just above my chamber door. And her eyes have 01:10:01.000 --> 01:10:03.899 all the seeming of a demon that is dreaming. 01:10:04.220 --> 01:10:07.279 And the lamplight door, her streaming, throws 01:10:07.279 --> 01:10:11.100 her shadow on the floor. And my soul from out 01:10:11.100 --> 01:10:14.819 that shadow that lies floating on the floor shall 01:10:14.819 --> 01:10:23.350 be lifted. Nevermore. Oh my golly gee whalers, 01:10:23.529 --> 01:10:27.810 friends. Look at this blinding light. Oh, something's 01:10:27.810 --> 01:10:32.329 happening in the radiance of the beaming light 01:10:32.329 --> 01:10:37.109 of the raven she is transforming into a long 01:10:37.109 --> 01:10:41.229 -haired beauty. Oh my goodness, it is Lenore. 01:10:41.710 --> 01:10:45.710 Lenore, how long it has been. Oh, it was you 01:10:45.710 --> 01:10:48.770 with the raven the whole time. Oh, my goodness. 01:10:48.970 --> 01:10:52.590 Come here. Let me embrace you. Oh, let me kiss 01:10:52.590 --> 01:10:55.569 your sweet lips. Yes, it is your Peter Lorre. 01:10:55.770 --> 01:11:00.149 Yes, never mind my rotted corpse. I am still 01:11:00.149 --> 01:11:04.289 the strong Svelte. My handsome actor you have 01:11:04.289 --> 01:11:09.810 always known. Oh, yes, Lenore. Well, what shall 01:11:09.810 --> 01:11:13.909 we do now? Yes, I agree. We should... We should 01:11:13.909 --> 01:11:16.430 take a vacation from this podcast. We should 01:11:16.430 --> 01:11:20.989 go somewhere warm. But listeners, I will return 01:11:20.989 --> 01:11:25.050 in the new year, in 2026, the Poverty Row Picture 01:11:25.050 --> 01:11:37.229 Show, in Shemp Howard. We will return. True terror 01:11:37.229 --> 01:11:48.560 is the soft, cold caress of... Your hands are 01:11:48.560 --> 01:11:52.880 so cold. A woman whose desires transcend reality. 01:11:54.800 --> 01:11:58.720 The mysterious powers of black magic. These you 01:11:58.720 --> 01:12:03.359 will explore. Now, what is it you need? You got 01:12:03.359 --> 01:12:11.319 some bright blood over back in the house? The 01:12:11.319 --> 01:12:13.500 raven will take you careening through the darkest 01:12:13.500 --> 01:12:18.180 of dangers into the ominous mystery of a master 01:12:18.180 --> 01:12:29.979 magician's evil castle. Afraid, my dear? I offer 01:12:29.979 --> 01:12:33.979 you a choice. The secret of your hand manipulations 01:12:33.979 --> 01:12:41.529 or this against this. Well, don't... Just stand 01:12:41.529 --> 01:12:50.109 there. Do something. Let's break down Pacific 01:12:50.109 --> 01:12:52.590 Rim, the good, the bad, and the campy. Let's 01:12:52.590 --> 01:12:55.270 start with the good. You know, I'll just like 01:12:55.270 --> 01:12:57.829 very briefly say that I love the amount of visual 01:12:57.829 --> 01:13:01.250 imagination and detail that Guillermo del Toro 01:13:01.250 --> 01:13:05.390 and his crew put into seemingly every... shot 01:13:05.390 --> 01:13:07.909 or scene of this movie one of my favorite examples 01:13:07.909 --> 01:13:10.710 is in the middle of a kaiju versus jaeger fight 01:13:10.710 --> 01:13:12.609 we're like in the middle of a building that's 01:13:12.609 --> 01:13:15.369 being totally demolished and the camera you know 01:13:15.369 --> 01:13:18.789 pans over to the newton balls like the little 01:13:18.789 --> 01:13:21.189 metal balls that keep on going back and forth 01:13:21.189 --> 01:13:25.010 that's a good touch i i just want to leave it 01:13:25.010 --> 01:13:27.090 there i feel like sean you should lay this is 01:13:27.090 --> 01:13:29.350 your you're in the spotlight this is your time 01:13:29.350 --> 01:13:33.060 to shine How dare you, sir? I expected more. 01:13:34.000 --> 01:13:35.819 There are other things I like about it, but I 01:13:35.819 --> 01:13:38.319 feel like, yeah, you could say it better. So 01:13:38.319 --> 01:13:41.939 if we're going to go with individual breakdowns 01:13:41.939 --> 01:13:44.300 here real quick, mech designs being number one, 01:13:44.420 --> 01:13:47.539 every single mech has its own unique personality 01:13:47.539 --> 01:13:51.220 to it. You've got Gypsy Danger, where it's just 01:13:51.220 --> 01:13:54.979 giant blue Hulk with a giant middle piece that's 01:13:54.979 --> 01:13:58.340 just a giant thruster, or a nuclear reactor, 01:13:58.479 --> 01:14:03.649 so to speak. You've got the Chinese brother trio 01:14:03.649 --> 01:14:06.590 where they actually have the three arms and they 01:14:06.590 --> 01:14:08.569 try to do the three arm technique. You've got 01:14:08.569 --> 01:14:12.510 the Russian duo. I think they're called Chernobyl. 01:14:13.130 --> 01:14:15.369 You could see that they were basically just to 01:14:15.369 --> 01:14:18.109 be a giant tank and they were supposed to be 01:14:18.109 --> 01:14:21.390 the frontline defense. Striker Eureka, who if 01:14:21.390 --> 01:14:23.250 anybody's ever played the Metal Gear Solid franchise, 01:14:23.430 --> 01:14:26.649 Striker Eureka was also designed by the Metal 01:14:26.649 --> 01:14:30.720 Gear designer. yoji shinkawa and you can see 01:14:30.720 --> 01:14:33.500 the way how his art translates from the game 01:14:33.500 --> 01:14:36.819 to that just the mech designs all around fantastic 01:14:36.819 --> 01:14:41.739 the kaiju again every single one is so different 01:14:41.739 --> 01:14:44.060 from each other until you get to the end where 01:14:44.060 --> 01:14:46.619 the final three kind of blend together for me 01:14:46.619 --> 01:14:50.739 but up until that point every single one they're 01:14:50.739 --> 01:14:52.960 all unique they're all different and you can 01:14:52.960 --> 01:14:55.020 tell the level of aggression in each and every 01:14:55.020 --> 01:14:58.579 single one it's just so good And then lastly, 01:14:58.800 --> 01:15:06.920 Idris Elba. That's it. Yeah. What an actor. All 01:15:06.920 --> 01:15:09.380 he has to do is walk into the frame and you're 01:15:09.380 --> 01:15:10.939 like, I'm paying attention. I want to see what 01:15:10.939 --> 01:15:14.039 this guy does. He just has that natural movie 01:15:14.039 --> 01:15:19.720 star charisma. So grounded. So much power. Don't 01:15:19.720 --> 01:15:24.720 ever touch me. Yeah, that was so good. I loved 01:15:24.720 --> 01:15:28.270 Agreed with the Yeagers. I'll add the Gypsy Danger 01:15:28.270 --> 01:15:31.250 or like in the beginning, Del Toro's shooting 01:15:31.250 --> 01:15:33.930 a lot of things and the costuming is all designed 01:15:33.930 --> 01:15:37.329 like a World War II aesthetic. Bomber jackets, 01:15:37.489 --> 01:15:42.789 the hangers are kind of modeled after manufacturing 01:15:42.789 --> 01:15:46.029 plants from that era. Well, even Gypsy Danger 01:15:46.029 --> 01:15:48.970 is like evoking those fighter planes from the 01:15:48.970 --> 01:15:52.770 time period. I love this movie. Yeah, Matt, it's 01:15:52.770 --> 01:15:56.680 so technically savvy. And it helped that I had 01:15:56.680 --> 01:15:59.439 del Toro in my ear telling me what to look for. 01:15:59.779 --> 01:16:03.180 But there's so much depth in his shots, which 01:16:03.180 --> 01:16:08.140 adds this layer of realness. Initially, he did 01:16:08.140 --> 01:16:10.979 not film this movie with 3D technology. He did 01:16:10.979 --> 01:16:14.319 convert it to 3D later. But you still get that 01:16:14.319 --> 01:16:17.039 sense that he said 3D wouldn't really enhance 01:16:17.039 --> 01:16:19.479 my movie because everything is already layered. 01:16:19.920 --> 01:16:21.760 He got things in the foreground. He got things 01:16:21.760 --> 01:16:24.550 in the background. Every inch of the screen is 01:16:24.550 --> 01:16:28.069 filled with detail, which is just so beautiful. 01:16:29.069 --> 01:16:33.970 And another technical aspect I really love now 01:16:33.970 --> 01:16:37.010 that I pay attention to it is his use of lighting. 01:16:37.149 --> 01:16:41.010 So, for example, in one of the Jaeger kaiju fights, 01:16:41.270 --> 01:16:43.989 which all mostly happen at night, which can be 01:16:43.989 --> 01:16:46.810 a problem to some with your monster movies because 01:16:46.810 --> 01:16:49.350 you can't really see what's happening. I think 01:16:49.350 --> 01:16:52.890 he uses nighttime shots effectively. And creatively, 01:16:53.029 --> 01:16:55.550 because there's a scene, I forget who's fighting 01:16:55.550 --> 01:17:00.390 who, but the monsters and the Jaeger are lit 01:17:00.390 --> 01:17:05.170 by the helicopters whirring above. So it's the 01:17:05.170 --> 01:17:08.569 beams of the helicopters. It's just like creative 01:17:08.569 --> 01:17:11.909 ways to light a scene like that. It's funny that 01:17:11.909 --> 01:17:13.949 you bring up the nighttime shot because, yeah, 01:17:13.989 --> 01:17:17.189 most of the fights in this are nighttime. And 01:17:17.189 --> 01:17:19.010 then when you watch movies like Transformers 01:17:19.010 --> 01:17:21.899 where they do their nighttime shots. And those 01:17:21.899 --> 01:17:27.000 generally wait, is it nighttime? Yeah. Nighttime 01:17:27.000 --> 01:17:29.439 tends to look better in those movies. It's usually 01:17:29.439 --> 01:17:32.180 the daytime shots where they just look like CGI 01:17:32.180 --> 01:17:36.140 blobs. It's really, really messy watching daytime 01:17:36.140 --> 01:17:38.300 shots. And then if you end up watching the second 01:17:38.300 --> 01:17:39.880 movie, somehow they managed to actually get it 01:17:39.880 --> 01:17:42.739 to work. So I don't know what to say about that. 01:17:43.520 --> 01:17:46.579 Yeah. Well, maybe it doesn't matter what you 01:17:46.579 --> 01:17:50.090 do, as long as you do it well. And if you don't 01:17:50.090 --> 01:17:53.210 do it well, well, it doesn't matter. Hill will. 01:17:55.630 --> 01:17:58.489 Yeah, yeah. One thing that I would add to the 01:17:58.489 --> 01:18:01.409 good category for me, if I can add one more thing 01:18:01.409 --> 01:18:04.409 real quick, is just... The movie was shot digitally, 01:18:04.489 --> 01:18:07.270 I think, with epic red cameras. I forget exactly 01:18:07.270 --> 01:18:10.689 what kind of cameras they use, but it looks phenomenal. 01:18:11.109 --> 01:18:14.710 The colors are just so bright and saturated and 01:18:14.710 --> 01:18:17.069 beautiful, especially in the Hong Kong scenes. 01:18:17.270 --> 01:18:19.770 I know Del Toro said something about how he just 01:18:19.770 --> 01:18:22.930 wanted insanely saturated colors in those scenes. 01:18:23.289 --> 01:18:25.829 And I think the digital photography, cinematography, 01:18:25.970 --> 01:18:30.390 really creates that sort of vibrant aesthetic. 01:18:31.500 --> 01:18:33.859 I tend to be kind of a hater with digital cinematography. 01:18:34.000 --> 01:18:37.039 Like, you know, shoot on film, 35 millimeter 01:18:37.039 --> 01:18:38.779 always looks so beautiful. I tend to be a little 01:18:38.779 --> 01:18:41.300 stubborn about that. But this movie proves me 01:18:41.300 --> 01:18:44.199 wrong in that way. And it's kind of, you know, 01:18:44.220 --> 01:18:45.779 it goes back to what you just said, Vincent. 01:18:45.779 --> 01:18:47.300 Like, it doesn't really matter exactly what you 01:18:47.300 --> 01:18:49.680 do as long as you do it well. And they use the 01:18:49.680 --> 01:18:52.119 technology, both del Toro and the cinematographer 01:18:52.119 --> 01:18:55.060 Navarro, to create this really distinct aesthetic. 01:18:55.420 --> 01:18:58.100 And yeah, it's just a really unique look. So 01:18:58.100 --> 01:19:00.300 definitely in the good category for me in this 01:19:00.300 --> 01:19:03.770 movie. Yeah. And I didn't realize how much of 01:19:03.770 --> 01:19:07.810 this movie is actually practical. Like the sets, 01:19:07.890 --> 01:19:11.930 they're on real sets. And for example, the flashback 01:19:11.930 --> 01:19:16.510 to Meiko Mori and she's the little girl. Obviously, 01:19:16.529 --> 01:19:21.590 the kaiju is computer rendered. But on the ground, 01:19:21.609 --> 01:19:24.529 there are puddles of water that shake and vibrate 01:19:24.529 --> 01:19:27.789 with each footfall. That's all practical. So 01:19:27.789 --> 01:19:30.329 it's giving the actor something to act off of. 01:19:31.600 --> 01:19:34.880 And that doesn't really happen these days. It 01:19:34.880 --> 01:19:38.579 would just all be digitally rendered. Marvel. 01:19:39.319 --> 01:19:42.380 Yeah, right? But that commitment to, maybe it's 01:19:42.380 --> 01:19:45.140 like Jurassic Park, right? We're combining the 01:19:45.140 --> 01:19:49.479 tools, and I think that's the best way to use 01:19:49.479 --> 01:19:54.579 computer graphics, honestly. Totally. Yeah, that's 01:19:54.579 --> 01:19:56.640 cool. I've said a lot of good things already 01:19:56.640 --> 01:19:59.479 throughout this episode, so I'll keep it at that. 01:20:00.050 --> 01:20:02.010 All right. But bad things, Matt, this is gonna 01:20:02.010 --> 01:20:05.470 be your time to shine. Oh, man. Once again, I'm 01:20:05.470 --> 01:20:07.729 very worried about offending Sean. Let me just 01:20:07.729 --> 01:20:09.510 say I like this movie. There's a lot to love 01:20:09.510 --> 01:20:12.270 about this movie. So take what I say with a grain 01:20:12.270 --> 01:20:14.909 of salt. But, you know, I do think the nighttime 01:20:14.909 --> 01:20:18.449 and like a lot of like rain, you know, like a 01:20:18.449 --> 01:20:21.229 moving camera. I do think it's kind of hard to 01:20:21.229 --> 01:20:23.069 like really get a good look at how distinct. 01:20:23.710 --> 01:20:25.930 the Kaijus and the Jaegers really are. And I 01:20:25.930 --> 01:20:28.590 do think like the design is creative, but you 01:20:28.590 --> 01:20:30.529 never really get a good look at them. And like, 01:20:30.550 --> 01:20:33.529 I would be hard pressed to like tell one Kaiju 01:20:33.529 --> 01:20:35.909 apart from another in this movie, but for that 01:20:35.909 --> 01:20:39.810 reason. And so, yeah, that's, that's part of 01:20:39.810 --> 01:20:44.130 it for me. I think maybe more, a more significant 01:20:44.130 --> 01:20:48.439 hindrance for me. or frustration is like the 01:20:48.439 --> 01:20:50.739 thinness of the characters' backstories. And 01:20:50.739 --> 01:20:52.800 like, I'm kind of contradicting myself because 01:20:52.800 --> 01:20:55.159 I said before that Del Toro is a humanist director 01:20:55.159 --> 01:20:56.819 who loves his characters, and I think that's 01:20:56.819 --> 01:21:00.260 true. But I think the characters in this movie 01:21:00.260 --> 01:21:03.560 can be defined in like one word, you know, like 01:21:03.560 --> 01:21:08.520 grief, trauma, redemption, underdog. Like, that's 01:21:08.520 --> 01:21:11.600 the level of depth to these characters. Sometimes 01:21:11.600 --> 01:21:14.239 it kind of seems like a screenwriting seminar 01:21:14.239 --> 01:21:16.840 in movie form where it's like, at this exact 01:21:16.840 --> 01:21:19.319 moment, there needs to be a moment of doubt. 01:21:19.439 --> 01:21:20.979 But then at this exact moment, they're going 01:21:20.979 --> 01:21:23.100 to come in and save the day at the last moment. 01:21:23.600 --> 01:21:27.119 And, you know, it's formula. I get that. And 01:21:27.119 --> 01:21:29.260 it's a genre movie. It goes back to what we were 01:21:29.260 --> 01:21:31.899 talking about before. I actually read an interview 01:21:31.899 --> 01:21:35.050 with Del Toro where... he was talking about how 01:21:35.050 --> 01:21:37.810 he cut an hour of content from the movie. Like 01:21:37.810 --> 01:21:40.210 he removed a lot of the character dynamics and 01:21:40.210 --> 01:21:43.010 backstories to focus more on like the kaiju stuff, 01:21:43.090 --> 01:21:45.270 the genre stuff. And he even had a quote where 01:21:45.270 --> 01:21:47.229 he's like, this isn't Ibsen. Like we're not supposed 01:21:47.229 --> 01:21:50.649 to be like, you know, dwelling in like these 01:21:50.649 --> 01:21:53.510 deep complex characters. And I do get that. But 01:21:53.510 --> 01:21:56.569 for me, it's like, they don't even really register 01:21:56.569 --> 01:21:58.670 as human beings. They're kind of like cogs in 01:21:58.670 --> 01:22:00.890 a machine until we get to the kaiju versus Jaeger 01:22:00.890 --> 01:22:04.460 fights. and I really do want more of that human 01:22:04.460 --> 01:22:08.640 subtext. It's a fun movie, but I feel like there 01:22:08.640 --> 01:22:11.619 could be more depth to it. It's a trade -off. 01:22:11.619 --> 01:22:13.560 If you add more of that character depth, maybe 01:22:13.560 --> 01:22:15.380 you do get a little bit less of just that pure 01:22:15.380 --> 01:22:19.260 kaiju genre fun. But, yeah, the characters don't 01:22:19.260 --> 01:22:21.399 do it for me. I think a lot of the dialogue is, 01:22:21.520 --> 01:22:25.039 you know, very basic, and that's kind of putting 01:22:25.039 --> 01:22:28.039 it kindly, in my opinion. So, yeah, the human 01:22:28.039 --> 01:22:31.079 element could be more in this movie. That's fair. 01:22:31.850 --> 01:22:33.329 Totally. Completely disagree, but that's fair. 01:22:33.529 --> 01:22:35.310 And I know, yeah, I feel the need to apologize. 01:22:35.470 --> 01:22:37.810 I'm sorry. You don't need to apologize, but I 01:22:37.810 --> 01:22:40.470 will hunt you down. Come on. We have this conversation, 01:22:40.510 --> 01:22:43.750 though, and it's valid with every kaiju movie. 01:22:44.270 --> 01:22:46.850 And that's not to undercut, Matt, what you're 01:22:46.850 --> 01:22:50.510 saying. It's a legitimate criticism of almost 01:22:50.510 --> 01:22:53.710 every movie we've watched. A lot of them, yeah. 01:22:53.810 --> 01:22:56.329 A lot of kaiju -based movies. Like, oh, give 01:22:56.329 --> 01:23:00.130 me less humans. And there is a stretch, I think, 01:23:00.439 --> 01:23:03.060 We don't have a lot of giant monster battles. 01:23:03.199 --> 01:23:05.239 I think there's a good stretch of this movie 01:23:05.239 --> 01:23:11.000 that is human drama. Does it drag? I'll leave 01:23:11.000 --> 01:23:13.560 that for other people to debate. What's that 01:23:13.560 --> 01:23:16.300 other hour missing from this movie? What's the 01:23:16.300 --> 01:23:20.100 director's cut, the original? I would be into 01:23:20.100 --> 01:23:22.699 that. I would be into knowing, having these characters 01:23:22.699 --> 01:23:25.420 fleshed out more. Yeah. Well, Vincent, you got 01:23:25.420 --> 01:23:27.479 to read the comics in order to find out. But 01:23:27.479 --> 01:23:33.199 I can't read. I watch movies. That explains so 01:23:33.199 --> 01:23:43.920 much. How did I not know this? I guess the only 01:23:43.920 --> 01:23:47.340 bad for me, because, you know, I can't really 01:23:47.340 --> 01:23:49.979 say anything bad on my end. The only bad for 01:23:49.979 --> 01:23:53.800 me is that, again, there aren't that many kaiju. 01:23:54.409 --> 01:23:57.250 mecha fights as vincent said i wish there were 01:23:57.250 --> 01:23:59.909 more i'm glad that we do get to see more during 01:23:59.909 --> 01:24:02.210 those like news casts and you actually get to 01:24:02.210 --> 01:24:03.829 see like little snippets of the battles here 01:24:03.829 --> 01:24:07.430 and there but obviously i want more i want more 01:24:07.430 --> 01:24:11.329 of that spectacle but to counter something that 01:24:11.329 --> 01:24:15.050 matt said at least these human characters despite 01:24:15.050 --> 01:24:18.920 them being live action anime archetypes They're 01:24:18.920 --> 01:24:20.680 still better than the human characters in any 01:24:20.680 --> 01:24:26.340 Transformer movie combined. Yeah, I definitely 01:24:26.340 --> 01:24:31.359 agree with that, yeah. Last thing I'll say, though, 01:24:31.479 --> 01:24:33.859 well, like a criticism of mine that actually 01:24:33.859 --> 01:24:39.039 kept coming up was, I feel like, and this is 01:24:39.039 --> 01:24:42.539 the very thin line I think del Toro is writing 01:24:42.539 --> 01:24:49.720 in making such a pastiche, really. he's not calling 01:24:49.720 --> 01:24:52.399 it pastiche but it is to a certain extent okay 01:24:52.399 --> 01:24:57.819 if you're gonna fill your cast with these strong 01:24:57.819 --> 01:25:03.899 jawed like blonde machismo characters they also 01:25:03.899 --> 01:25:07.640 kind of blend together like the acting is fine 01:25:07.640 --> 01:25:10.840 but it's the casting where Charlie Hunnam and 01:25:10.840 --> 01:25:14.840 his Australian counterparts they just look like 01:25:14.840 --> 01:25:17.020 carbon copies of each other they're just these 01:25:17.020 --> 01:25:21.060 blonde strong men and i'm like i would like to 01:25:21.060 --> 01:25:24.920 see a little more diversity with them because 01:25:24.920 --> 01:25:28.520 they just they just blend together not to say 01:25:28.520 --> 01:25:31.300 this movie is not diverse there is a lot of diversity 01:25:31.300 --> 01:25:34.260 in the movie and behind the camera too obviously 01:25:34.260 --> 01:25:38.720 but there was still an aspect where i was like 01:25:38.720 --> 01:25:41.819 there's a lot of not just yeah there's just a 01:25:41.819 --> 01:25:45.079 lot of men who look the same in this movie They 01:25:45.079 --> 01:25:47.079 solved that with the second movie. I'm just saying. 01:25:47.340 --> 01:25:50.979 They do. They do. Yeah. Yeah. I do think the 01:25:50.979 --> 01:25:53.500 Mako character is kind of like inconsistent for 01:25:53.500 --> 01:25:57.079 me. I like her a lot and I like the actress Rinko 01:25:57.079 --> 01:25:59.539 Kikuchi, right? Is that her name? Yes. I, yeah. 01:25:59.699 --> 01:26:01.380 I, and I really liked the scene where like she 01:26:01.380 --> 01:26:04.140 and Charlie Hunnam like battle in that like training 01:26:04.140 --> 01:26:06.899 sequence. I love that moment. But then, you know, 01:26:06.899 --> 01:26:09.100 when they're in the Jaeger, she doesn't really 01:26:09.100 --> 01:26:11.000 do anything. Like it's always Charlie Hunnam. 01:26:11.020 --> 01:26:12.659 It's like, all right, just like, here's what 01:26:12.659 --> 01:26:14.840 you do with the drift, you know, like here, do 01:26:14.840 --> 01:26:17.439 this, like get ready with this elbow rocket, 01:26:17.579 --> 01:26:19.880 do this. And she's kind of just along for the 01:26:19.880 --> 01:26:22.239 ride. So I, I like her character, but I wish 01:26:22.239 --> 01:26:24.100 she did more in the Jaeger. Cause she's kind 01:26:24.100 --> 01:26:26.539 of, I don't really buy that. She's this like 01:26:26.539 --> 01:26:30.039 great natural fight. her because it's yeah in 01:26:30.039 --> 01:26:32.479 those moments i'm not really buying it but she 01:26:32.479 --> 01:26:35.619 announced the sword yeah that's true that is 01:26:35.619 --> 01:26:39.880 her one yeah that's a cool moment you got me 01:26:39.880 --> 01:26:42.880 you got me on that you talk about some fun moments 01:26:42.880 --> 01:26:45.739 and then wrap it up with our our final takes 01:26:45.739 --> 01:26:49.220 on the film there's a lot of camp there's so 01:26:49.220 --> 01:26:53.039 much camp yeah yeah yeah by the end especially 01:26:53.039 --> 01:26:57.289 like he ramps it up top three are the tanker 01:26:57.289 --> 01:27:02.210 scene. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's just so bonkers. 01:27:03.149 --> 01:27:05.470 Obviously the sword, you know, calling it out. 01:27:05.670 --> 01:27:10.109 Yes. And then, Hey, let's check to see if it 01:27:10.109 --> 01:27:17.810 still has a pulse. Yeah. So good. So can't be 01:27:17.810 --> 01:27:21.090 so good. It's great when they go inside the. 01:27:21.920 --> 01:27:24.640 baby kaiju or no it's the real kaiju and then 01:27:24.640 --> 01:27:27.739 the baby is birthed from this sack like that 01:27:27.739 --> 01:27:33.899 yeah yeah but then the like mid credits like 01:27:33.899 --> 01:27:36.380 you know surprise appearance from ron perlman 01:27:36.380 --> 01:27:38.800 like that's a very campy moment that's that's 01:27:38.800 --> 01:27:43.579 a lot of fun oh shoot i keep thinking i keep 01:27:43.579 --> 01:27:48.159 i keep losing my place oh i just it's just it's 01:27:48.159 --> 01:27:51.020 almost too on the nose where i think it is campy 01:27:51.770 --> 01:27:56.130 Where each of the Jaegers are stereotypically 01:27:56.130 --> 01:28:00.869 their nations, like the Chinese dragon and the 01:28:00.869 --> 01:28:04.050 poor Russians like their Ivan Drago's. They're 01:28:04.050 --> 01:28:08.250 in a Cold War era tank. It's like, you know, 01:28:08.250 --> 01:28:11.350 if I was a Russian today, I'd be like, we get 01:28:11.350 --> 01:28:16.689 past that image of us, please. So I think and 01:28:16.689 --> 01:28:18.149 I don't know if he actually talks about that 01:28:18.149 --> 01:28:20.760 in the. in the commentary, but I think he may 01:28:20.760 --> 01:28:23.619 have borrowed that from an anime called G Gundam, 01:28:23.699 --> 01:28:27.300 which is basically their Dragon Ball Z version 01:28:27.300 --> 01:28:29.819 of Gundam, where it's basically different nations 01:28:29.819 --> 01:28:33.560 fighting for control over resources. And... Robot 01:28:33.560 --> 01:28:38.800 Jax? Basically. And the weird part is that every 01:28:38.800 --> 01:28:43.939 single one is built to represent their nation 01:28:43.939 --> 01:28:47.420 in a specific way, and it can be... incredibly 01:28:47.420 --> 01:28:51.420 offensive I can see how that would the Mexican 01:28:51.420 --> 01:28:57.319 one has a sombrero so yeah and I think Sweden 01:28:57.319 --> 01:29:00.560 is a giant windmill Gundam so oh my gosh yeah 01:29:00.560 --> 01:29:03.600 you might want to look that one up yeah that's 01:29:03.600 --> 01:29:06.220 what I'm talking about so at least del Toro like 01:29:06.220 --> 01:29:09.479 had a little as much taste as he could he wasn't 01:29:09.479 --> 01:29:13.699 gonna go sombrero level Mexican that he is though 01:29:13.699 --> 01:29:22.180 I don't know All right. Yeah. Funny stuff. I 01:29:22.180 --> 01:29:23.859 feel like some of the campiest moments are like 01:29:23.859 --> 01:29:26.100 the lines that Sean said before, like we're canceling 01:29:26.100 --> 01:29:28.800 the apocalypse, you know, like, you know, the 01:29:28.800 --> 01:29:30.939 world is ending. Where do you want to be? Here 01:29:30.939 --> 01:29:33.220 or in a Jaeger? Like that stuff. All that stuff 01:29:33.220 --> 01:29:35.680 is the height of camp in a very entertaining 01:29:35.680 --> 01:29:39.560 way. Yeah. Ooh. Ooh. Okay. So then quick question. 01:29:39.720 --> 01:29:43.260 Who do you think has the better speech? Stacker 01:29:43.260 --> 01:29:46.149 Pentecost or the president? From Independence 01:29:46.149 --> 01:29:51.430 Day. I think the better speech is Independence 01:29:51.430 --> 01:29:54.470 Day because it's longer. It has more of a journey. 01:29:55.170 --> 01:29:58.329 Pentecost speech is actually quite short, I feel 01:29:58.329 --> 01:30:04.590 like. But Idris Elba delivers it just so impactfully 01:30:04.590 --> 01:30:09.250 more than Bill Pullman delivers his. I like that 01:30:09.250 --> 01:30:11.010 he meanders at the beginning where he's not entirely 01:30:11.010 --> 01:30:13.489 sure what he wants to say because he ends up 01:30:13.489 --> 01:30:15.270 repeating himself before he ends up actually 01:30:15.270 --> 01:30:19.390 diving into it. Yeah. True. I would give the 01:30:19.390 --> 01:30:24.710 nod to Independence Day. Sorry. Okay. Sean's 01:30:24.710 --> 01:30:26.050 going to hate me by the end of this episode. 01:30:26.350 --> 01:30:31.550 No, that can't happen. Not yet. Thank you. It's 01:30:31.550 --> 01:30:34.140 only a matter of time. All right, so as usual 01:30:34.140 --> 01:30:37.619 on Camp Kaiju, we have four ratings. Our highest 01:30:37.619 --> 01:30:39.899 rating is it's a timeless classic. It definitely 01:30:39.899 --> 01:30:42.859 stands the test of time. Number two, there may 01:30:42.859 --> 01:30:44.960 be some antiquated moments, but overall it's 01:30:44.960 --> 01:30:47.760 great. It stands the test of time. Number three, 01:30:47.800 --> 01:30:50.140 it may be historically significant or just fun, 01:30:50.279 --> 01:30:52.859 but it does not stand the test of time. And our 01:30:52.859 --> 01:30:55.340 lowest rating, it is not worth revisiting. It 01:30:55.340 --> 01:30:58.979 definitely does not stand the test of time. I 01:30:58.979 --> 01:31:02.659 think this movie... is a classic of the genre. 01:31:02.819 --> 01:31:05.359 I think it does stand the test of time. It's 01:31:05.359 --> 01:31:09.500 relatively recent, but I think it redefines what's 01:31:09.500 --> 01:31:12.939 possible with this genre in terms of visual effects, 01:31:13.300 --> 01:31:17.479 storytelling, and breathing new life into it. 01:31:17.619 --> 01:31:19.340 I think more people should see it, honestly. 01:31:19.619 --> 01:31:22.619 I mean, fans outside of the genre, if you're 01:31:22.619 --> 01:31:25.260 listening, good for you. Go watch this movie 01:31:25.260 --> 01:31:27.600 because I think it does stand the test of time 01:31:27.600 --> 01:31:30.800 and offers a lot of great humor. However cardboard 01:31:30.800 --> 01:31:33.199 the characters may be, at the end of the day, 01:31:33.260 --> 01:31:37.800 I think the monster fights are awesome. Nice. 01:31:39.279 --> 01:31:41.659 I feel like maybe I should go next just so we 01:31:41.659 --> 01:31:43.899 can end the episode on an extremely positive 01:31:43.899 --> 01:31:45.819 note. And because, Sean, you're the guest star, 01:31:45.859 --> 01:31:47.460 and I feel like you should have the last word. 01:31:48.079 --> 01:31:50.520 Does that sound all right? I was going to try 01:31:50.520 --> 01:31:52.220 to see if I could go next just so I could try 01:31:52.220 --> 01:31:54.079 to win you over, but no, it's all right. Whoa. 01:31:56.180 --> 01:31:58.380 Well, I don't know if that's going to happen. 01:31:58.420 --> 01:32:00.439 I'm sorry, Sean. If anybody could do it, I think 01:32:00.439 --> 01:32:05.199 you could. But I don't know. Yeah, I'm sorry. 01:32:05.300 --> 01:32:07.680 For me, it does not stand the test of time. It 01:32:07.680 --> 01:32:10.300 is fun. This movie is fun. I think in some ways 01:32:10.300 --> 01:32:12.020 maybe it is historically significant because 01:32:12.020 --> 01:32:14.720 the special effects are very impressive. Again, 01:32:14.840 --> 01:32:18.600 visually, it's a very just immersive, imaginative 01:32:18.600 --> 01:32:21.430 movie. I would like to see more of the Kaijus 01:32:21.430 --> 01:32:23.569 and the Jaegers. I would like the human characters 01:32:23.569 --> 01:32:25.850 to have more depth. I would like there to be 01:32:25.850 --> 01:32:28.989 a little bit more originality in the story, which 01:32:28.989 --> 01:32:31.210 to me is all kind of like surface level plot 01:32:31.210 --> 01:32:36.050 mechanics. So yeah, I'm, you know, trying to 01:32:36.050 --> 01:32:37.710 play devil's advocate maybe here a little bit. 01:32:37.770 --> 01:32:40.050 But for me, this movie does not stand the test 01:32:40.050 --> 01:32:42.329 of time. It is very fun and people should see 01:32:42.329 --> 01:32:45.329 it. So I agree with you there. I appreciate your 01:32:45.329 --> 01:32:51.090 candor. Sorry. I think we all know where I stand 01:32:51.090 --> 01:32:53.890 with this one, but I'm going to lead in a little 01:32:53.890 --> 01:32:58.329 bit. I don't find this movie offensive in any 01:32:58.329 --> 01:33:00.689 way whatsoever. Granted, there are some stereotypes, 01:33:00.810 --> 01:33:02.710 but it's not a movie where you can put it on 01:33:02.710 --> 01:33:06.250 and somebody be, wow, this is trash. Why am I 01:33:06.250 --> 01:33:08.289 watching this? Because everything just disgusts 01:33:08.289 --> 01:33:11.760 me. No, I don't see that happening. I think it 01:33:11.760 --> 01:33:13.539 could be a little slow, you know, to some people 01:33:13.539 --> 01:33:15.239 because I did try watching it with one person 01:33:15.239 --> 01:33:18.300 and they didn't like it because they thought 01:33:18.300 --> 01:33:19.880 it was going to be incredibly serious rather 01:33:19.880 --> 01:33:23.579 than having its goofy moments. But as we've learned 01:33:23.579 --> 01:33:25.439 and have discussed, there are people who don't 01:33:25.439 --> 01:33:27.600 like specific genre types or don't understand 01:33:27.600 --> 01:33:31.439 it. That being said, it still holds up as one 01:33:31.439 --> 01:33:33.140 of those movies where despite it being cookie 01:33:33.140 --> 01:33:36.279 cutter in terms of plot and character, I think 01:33:36.279 --> 01:33:38.560 it still manages to get everything across really 01:33:38.560 --> 01:33:44.020 well. I think visually it is outstanding. Again, 01:33:44.239 --> 01:33:47.779 Max, Kaiju, everything about it's just phenomenal. 01:33:48.899 --> 01:33:50.619 So that being said, I'm going to give it the 01:33:50.619 --> 01:33:53.859 lowest rating. No, I'm kidding. It is a timeless 01:33:53.859 --> 01:33:56.039 classic. Definitely stands the test of time. 01:33:56.880 --> 01:34:02.039 Yeah, I love it. Yeah, and everything we've said 01:34:02.039 --> 01:34:07.380 from all three of us is accurate. Yeah, I would 01:34:07.380 --> 01:34:09.840 love to hear more people's thoughts on this movie, 01:34:09.960 --> 01:34:15.260 but let us. And yeah, thanks. Can I make a recommendation 01:34:15.260 --> 01:34:19.500 for people? Yeah. So there is the voicemail number 01:34:19.500 --> 01:34:21.479 that you guys have here. I would like it if somebody 01:34:21.479 --> 01:34:24.500 would call in either as Raleigh Beckett or a 01:34:24.500 --> 01:34:26.640 stacker Pentecost and leave a voicemail using 01:34:26.640 --> 01:34:29.079 your best impression of either Idris Elba or 01:34:29.079 --> 01:34:33.140 Raleigh Beckett. There you go. Great idea. Don't 01:34:33.140 --> 01:34:37.539 let Sean down. I was a little worried for a second 01:34:37.539 --> 01:34:39.260 you were going to give my personal number and 01:34:39.260 --> 01:34:41.840 tell people to tell me why I'm wrong. I'm glad 01:34:41.840 --> 01:34:45.899 you didn't do that. No, no, no. I have a little 01:34:45.899 --> 01:34:50.359 bit of professionalism. Don, tell the people 01:34:50.359 --> 01:34:53.979 more about Big Mecca But Not Huge Again and where 01:34:53.979 --> 01:34:56.699 they can find you and follow your podcast. Yes, 01:34:56.699 --> 01:34:59.140 so you can find us both on Spotify, YouTube, 01:34:59.300 --> 01:35:01.520 and I think also on Apple Podcasts. It's called 01:35:01.520 --> 01:35:04.460 Big Mecca, but not huge. You will see a giant 01:35:04.460 --> 01:35:09.060 picture of a factory holding this giant. It just 01:35:09.060 --> 01:35:11.619 looks like a giant piece. I can't really describe 01:35:11.619 --> 01:35:15.020 it because that would be NSFW. But it's, yeah, 01:35:15.260 --> 01:35:17.640 Mecca. But anyways. You can find it on YouTube, 01:35:17.819 --> 01:35:20.579 Spotify, Apple Podcasts. Right now, season two 01:35:20.579 --> 01:35:22.460 is just about to finish. We're working on season 01:35:22.460 --> 01:35:24.939 three. Vincent's going to be on there as a guest. 01:35:25.300 --> 01:35:28.159 We also have other Sean, Sean Pryor. We also 01:35:28.159 --> 01:35:30.140 call him other Sean on there. He shows up too. 01:35:31.180 --> 01:35:33.180 So yeah, it's a fun time. And also check out 01:35:33.180 --> 01:35:38.079 Toku for two. Yeah, definitely. Sean, this was 01:35:38.079 --> 01:35:41.670 a blast. Thanks for coming on, bud. We'll see 01:35:41.670 --> 01:35:45.989 you next week for the holiday party, and we'll 01:35:45.989 --> 01:35:50.909 share with you what we got lined up for 2026. 01:35:52.069 --> 01:35:54.770 Awesome. I can't wait. Yeah. Thank you, Sean. 01:35:54.890 --> 01:35:58.029 It's always a pleasure. I will make up my middling 01:35:58.029 --> 01:36:00.130 review of Pacific Rim to you someday, I promise. 01:36:00.210 --> 01:36:02.090 I'm going to wear a T -shirt the next time I 01:36:02.090 --> 01:36:03.750 show up, and it's going to say Matt was wrong. 01:36:05.640 --> 01:36:07.500 I love it. I feel like I should get one of those 01:36:07.500 --> 01:36:10.720 shirts. Because that's usually accurate. I am 01:36:10.720 --> 01:36:15.159 wrong. A lot of times. No. I can't say that because 01:36:15.159 --> 01:36:17.140 it's some of the things I do agree with, but 01:36:17.140 --> 01:36:21.279 not on this one. Yeah, totally. It's the beauty 01:36:21.279 --> 01:36:26.340 of subjective opinions, you know? Thank you, 01:36:26.340 --> 01:36:28.859 Sean. We'll let you get out of here. Me and Matt 01:36:28.859 --> 01:36:30.199 will talk about you behind your back when you 01:36:30.199 --> 01:36:32.239 leave. That's cool. I already stink. It's fine. 01:36:32.699 --> 01:36:34.399 Thanks for hanging out with us, friends. Please 01:36:34.399 --> 01:36:36.680 rate and review the show and follow us on Patreon 01:36:36.680 --> 01:36:39.439 .com slash Camp Kaiju for additional videos, 01:36:39.659 --> 01:36:42.359 reviews, merchandise, and more. Other ways to 01:36:42.359 --> 01:36:45.520 get in touch, email at CampKaiju at gmail .com. 01:36:45.720 --> 01:36:49.520 Our website, CampKaijuPodcast .com. on Instagram, 01:36:49.659 --> 01:36:55.840 or our voicemail number is 612 -470 -2612. Camp 01:36:55.840 --> 01:36:58.039 Kaiju is recorded in Minneapolis, St. Paul, with 01:36:58.039 --> 01:37:01.039 Menia's mailbox music by Ben Cook -Felts. Thanks, 01:37:01.100 --> 01:37:04.439 friends, and until next time, stay campy. Camp 01:37:04.439 --> 01:37:06.500 Kaiju is brought to you by Zach Linder and the 01:37:06.500 --> 01:37:08.960 Zach Pack, powered by Coldwell Banker Realty. 01:37:09.220 --> 01:37:11.380 Whether you're looking for your dream home, a 01:37:11.380 --> 01:37:14.399 savvy investment property, or expert guidance 01:37:14.399 --> 01:37:17.000 in home rehab and flipping, the Zach Pack has 01:37:17.000 --> 01:37:19.210 you covered. Don't forget to follow the Zach 01:37:19.210 --> 01:37:21.909 Pack on social media for the latest updates and 01:37:21.909 --> 01:37:35.229 insights. In less than an hour, aircraft from 01:37:35.229 --> 01:37:37.369 here will join others from around the world. 01:37:38.850 --> 01:37:41.510 And you will be launching the largest aerial 01:37:41.510 --> 01:37:47.819 battle in the history of mankind. Mankind, that 01:37:47.819 --> 01:37:51.159 word should have new meaning for all of us today. 01:37:52.720 --> 01:37:55.699 We can't be consumed by our petty differences 01:37:55.699 --> 01:38:00.699 anymore. We will be united in our common interest. 01:38:01.920 --> 01:38:05.680 Perhaps it's fate that today is the 4th of July, 01:38:05.939 --> 01:38:09.979 and you will once again be fighting for our freedom. 01:38:11.380 --> 01:38:14.140 Not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution. 01:38:17.420 --> 01:38:21.960 But from annihilation, we're fighting for our 01:38:21.960 --> 01:38:28.380 right to live, to exist. And should we win the 01:38:28.380 --> 01:38:32.779 day, the 4th of July will no longer be known 01:38:32.779 --> 01:38:37.199 as an American holiday, but as the day when the 01:38:37.199 --> 01:38:40.500 world declared in one voice, we will not go quietly 01:38:40.500 --> 01:38:44.560 into the night. We will not vanish without a 01:38:44.560 --> 01:38:49.340 fight. We're going to live on. We're going to 01:38:49.340 --> 01:38:54.800 survive. Today, we celebrate our Independence 01:38:54.800 --> 01:39:19.729 Day. Everyone, listen up. Today, At the edge 01:39:19.729 --> 01:39:28.750 of our hope. At the end of our time. We have 01:39:28.750 --> 01:39:31.489 chosen not only to believe in ourselves, but 01:39:31.489 --> 01:39:37.210 in each other. Today there's not a man nor woman 01:39:37.210 --> 01:39:43.449 in here that shall stand alone. Not today. Today 01:39:43.449 --> 01:39:46.689 we face the monsters that are at our door and 01:39:46.689 --> 01:39:51.319 bring the fight to them. Today we are canceling 01:39:51.319 --> 01:39:51.720 the apocalypse!