Pacific Rim

[GeneChing]

Pacific Rim Official Trailer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vKz7WnU83E)

[GeneChing]

Pacific Rim - Official Wondercon Trailer #2 (HD) Guillermo Del Toro (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxnQi1qAvdM)

Did I see a sword fight? There - at 1:52! I'm totally calling dibs on reporting on this for KFM (assuming we're invited to a screener). :cool:

[Dragonzbane76]

Jax's from Sons of anarchy is the main character. Looking forward to this.

[GeneChing]

It wasn't a sword fight. It was a jo staff (http://www.martialartsmart.com/25-jo.html) fight. ;)

Official KFM review forthcoming this Friday.

[doug maverick]

ok saw a screening last night that was attended by some of the cast ill be brief and pretty much spoiler free.

sorry to beat you too it gene but im sure yours will be more thought out and comprehensive.

ok so ill start with what i didnt like.

the film suffered from both too much and a lack of exposition. or rather the exposition was misplaced. things that didnt really need explaining were over explained and things that really needed to be fleshed out were breezed over.

the first ten minutes and the voice over were pointless. should have just started at the first kaiju/jhaeger battle.

the dialogue could have been beefed up a bit.

ok what i did like



the action. was amazing...

the mythology was fantastic

idris elba... this dude just crushed anyone who had the misfortune of being in a scene with him.

the cast in general.. all fantastic character actors

the 3d. on par with avatar...sit at the back of the theater to get the full effect.

the film is a solid 7.5

ill wait till after genes review to post something more in depth.

[GeneChing]

I agree with your comments for the most part.

Who was at the screening you were at?

[GeneChing]

Here's my official review: PACIFIC RIM: Giant Robots, Giant Monsters and Martial Arts (http://www.kungfumagazine.com/ezine/article.php?article=1100)

[doug maverick]

the japanese actress And the dad from the aussy team, forgot his name but he is from the unit.

im calling this movie the best big summer movie.

[Empty_Cup]

Before the movie a girl described Pacific Rim to me as "Power Rangers on steroids."

...

After seeing the film I thought that was pretty accurate.

[doug maverick]

Before the movie a girl described Pacific Rim to me as "Power Rangers on steroids."

...

After seeing the film I thought that was pretty accurate.

im trying to see the flaw in that statement.

[mickey]

Greetings,

The following came out in the mid 1970's. The unique feature was in having a person inside the robot. this was a start departure from Gigantor (robot controlled from afar) or Ultra Man robotic being summoned by child.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bB28mphrMM


Here is a collection of toy robots from the early 1970's. Known as Ding A Lings. Check out the King Ding A Ling at a little past 2:00.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cueS_4HlMi8


mickey

[GeneChing]

But at least we got this out of Idris. Idris was great in PR. He stole the show.

Pacific Rim star Idris Elba: I want to do a kung fu film (http://metro.co.uk/2013/07/15/pacific-rim-star-idris-elba-i-want-to-do-a-kung-fu-film-3883608/)
Monday 15 Jul 2013 4:44 pm

http://metrouk2.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/ay11393541509-jul-2013-los-e1373533199330.jpg?w=650&h=462&crop=1#038;h=729
Idris Elba: I want to do a kung fu filmIdris Elba wants to star in a kung fu film (Picture: Xposurephotos.com)

Pacific Rim actor Idris Elba has revealed he wants to star in a kung fu film.

The actor told Time Out that he was keen to play lots of different roles in his career.

He said: ‘I’ve got the philosophy that I want to do everything at least once.

‘I haven’t had the opportunity to do a kung fu film yet, but trust me, I will get one at some point.’

He added: ‘What’s the point in being an actor if you play the same role over and over again?

‘I’m not a clown who puts on a face and does the same routine every night, I’m supposed to try and depict every single person I can.’

Elba also spoke about the huge publicity drive for his new sci-fi blockbuster Pacific Rim, which pits giants robots against giant aliens.

‘When you’re in a movie like this the gear-up for the release is completely different to what I’m used to.’

The actor also DJs under the name Driis and said he doesn’t want to be seen as just an actor.

He said: ‘I have many different strings to my bow and I want to f***around with them all. I don’t want to just be an actor, I want to do other things.’


Weekend Report: 'Pacific Rim' Loses to Family Sequels (http://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3702&p=.htm)
by Ray Subers
July 14, 2013

Gauging by Internet hype, Pacific Rim was easily the most-anticipated movie opening this weekend. General audiences weren't quite as enthusiastic, though, and the monsters vs. robots action movie wound up behind Adam Sandler's Grown Ups 2 and animated hit Despicable Me 2.

Overall, the Top 12 earned $187.9 million, which is up 22 percent year-over-year.

In first place, Despicable Me 2 fell 47 percent to $43.9 million this weekend. That's generally in line with last month's Monsters University, though the drop is a bit steeper than that of the first Despicable Me (42 percent). Through 12 days, Despicable Me 2 has earned $228.4 million, and will pass the first movie's $251.5 million total by Friday. Based on its current trajectory, it should wind up being the Summer's second-highest-grossing movie with around $350 million.

In second place, comedy sequel Grown Ups 2 opened to $41.5 million from 3,491 locations. That's slightly better than the first Grown Ups, which took in $40.5 million over its first weekend in 2010. It's also the fourth-highest live-action debut in star Adam Sandler's 20-year career (first place belongs to The Longest Yard with $47.6 million).

After poor performances from Jack and Jill ($74.1 million) and That's My Boy ($36.9 million), many speculated that audiences were tiring of Adam Sandler's shtick. That may be the case, though Grown Ups 2's opening suggests that audiences were simply rejecting off-brand, misguided efforts from Sandler, not Sandler himself. The marketing didn't rest on Sandler alone, though: it made clear that most of the gang was coming back from the original, and had a few stand-out gags as well (the deer pee and cliff jump scenes may be crude, but they're also very memorable). Exit polling indicated that the audience was 53 percent female and 54 percent under the age of 25, which suggests that this was a draw among family audiences.

While Grown Ups 2 opened higher than the first movie, it's unlikely to match that movie's $162 million total. It received a poor "B" CinemaScore—in line with Jack and Jill—and isn't going to get the holiday boost that the first Grown Ups had over the Fourth of July weekend. Still, Grown Ups 2 is well-positioned for a final gross of at least $120 million.

Playing at 3,275 theaters, Pacific Rim debuted to $37.3 million this weekend. That's the highest opening ever for director Guillermo Del Toro ahead of Hellboy II: The Golden Army, which took in $34.5 million on the same weekend in 2008. Still, it's not a particularly strong start: among recent non-sequel sci-fi, it's about on par with Oblivion ($37 million), and way off from World War Z ($66.4 million).

The movie performed particularly well in IMAX, which accounted for $7.9 million (19 percent) of the opening. Its 50 percent 3D share was the highest so far this Summer, though that's mainly a statement on how weak 3D has been at the domestic box office lately.

Going in to the weekend, some tracking suggested Pacific Rim was in for a truly terrible start (below $30 million). While it wound up opening noticeably better than that, its $38.3 million debut is still a little disappointing. Because director Guillermo Del Toro isn't a mainstream selling point, and because the movie was entirely free of true movie stars, Warner Bros. marketing made the primary selling point the monsters vs. robots action. While that proved very appealing to a niche "fan boy" audience, the movie remained inaccessible to general moviegoers. Without their support, there's only so high a movie can go on opening weekend.

As expected, the audience skewed younger (67 percent under the age of 35) and male (61 percent). It received a good "A-" CinemaScore; combine that with decent reviews, and it's likely that Pacific Rim has solid holds over the next few weeks. Still, it's unlikely that the movie winds up much higher than $110 million, which means that its ultimate success will be almost entirely dependent on international performance.

In its third weekend, The Heat fell 44 percent to $14 million. To date, the Sandra Bullock/Melissa McCarthy movie has earned $112.4 million, and is on pace to be the highest-grossing comedy of the Summer with over $150 million.

After a disappointing start over the Fourth of July weekend, The Lone Ranger plummeted 61 percent to $11.5 million. In comparison, Johnny Depp's Public Enemies—also a poorly-received Independence Day opener—only dipped 45 percent at the same point. The mega-budget Western has now earned $71.5 million, and will likely fall just short of reaching $100 million total.

[doug maverick]

its going to be bigger overseas then the states.. which is weird cause this movie should be doing tranformers money.

[GeneChing]

Pacific Rim towers over competition in China (http://www.filmbiz.asia/news/pacific-rim-towers-over-competition-in-china)
By Kevin Ma
Tue, 06 August 2013, 09:15 AM (HKT)
http://www.filmbiz.asia/media/BAhbB1sHOgZmSSIsMjAxMy8wOC8wNS8xNy8zOS8zOS84NDIvcG FjaWZpY19yaW0uanBnBjoGRVRbCDoGcDoKdGh1bWJJIg01MDB4 MTAwMAY7BlQ?suffix=.jpg&sha=8d1f4b75

Pacific Rim continued to dominate the box office in China at the weekend, following its RMB52.3 million opening day on Wednesday.

The 3-D sci-fi film made RMB179.1 million (US$29.2 million) between Friday and Sunday. It has taken RMB279.6 million (US$45.6 million) after five days on release. Two years ago, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011) made RMB188.2 million in its first four days on release. Pacific Rim now holds the record for Warner Brothers' biggest opening weekend in China.

Rim's opening impacted the second weekend of Furious 6. Justin LIN 林詣彬's action film took a steep dive to RMB57.5 million (US$9.39 million) over the three day weekend. Due to a strong performance during the week, Furious has made RMB338.6 million (US$55.2 million) after 10 days on release. Furious accounted for 24% of screenings nationwide over the weekend, compared to approximately 36% for Rim.

Despite three Hollywood films — including White House Down — taking up 67% of screenings nationwide, local fares remained relatively strong.

Children's film I Love Wolffy 2 我愛灰太狼２ – the spin-off of animated series Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf — was third-placed behind Pacific Rim and Furious 6, making RMB42.4 million (US$6.92 million) in its first four days on release. In 2012, the original I Love Wolffy 我愛灰太狼 made RMB38.1 million in its first three days of release. It opened opposite The Silent War 聽風者 and Lockout.

Despite having only 7% of screenings on its opening day, youth drama Young Style 青春派 made RMB15.9 million (US$2.59 million) in its first three days, surpassing White House Down's third weekend. It is already LIU Jie 劉傑's highest grossing film as director.

Hollywood looks certain to dominate Chinese cinemas until three domestic films open on Thursday: GUO Jingming 郭敬明's Tiny Times 2.0 小時代　青木時代, GAO Qunshu 高群書's Crimes of Passion 一場風花雪月的事 and CHU Chia-lin 朱家麟's Saving Mother Robot 瑪德２號. Two additional domestic films will open this weekend, for Chinese Valentine's Day: Eva JIN 金依萌's One Night Surprise 一夜驚喜 (9 Aug) and period drama The Palace 宮　鎖沈香 (13 Aug). The translation 'pleasant goat' still amuses me.

[GeneChing]

...its all about China for films now.


'Pacific Rim' Hits $100M in China, Passing 'Avengers' and 'Kung Fu Panda 2' (http://www.thewrap.com/movies/article/pacific-rim-hits-100m-china-passing-avengers-and-kung-fu-panda-2-111561)
Guillermo del Toro's giant robots epic is up to $286M at the foreign box office
Published: August 18, 2013 @ 5:11 pm
By Todd Cunningham

http://www.thewrap.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/scale_width_640/2013/Aug/18/111561/main_image/pacificbigformonusethis.jpg

"Pacific Rim" raised its overall total in China to more than $100 million after staying in the No. 1 box office spot with a $14 million third weekend.

Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros.' "Pacific Rim” brought in roughly $20 million from 58 territories in all this weekend. Its international total is $286 million and it is at nearly $385 million worldwide.

Director Guillermo del Toro's giant robots epic is the second movie to cross the $100 million mark in China this year. Disney's "Iron Man 3” has amassed more than $120 million there since opening in June.

Already the highest grossing Warner Bros. movie in China, "Pacific Rim" moved up the list of all-time highest-grossing U.S. films there, passing "The Avengers” ($84 million) and "Kung Fu Panda 2” ($92 million). The leader is "Transformers 3,” which made $172 million there in 2011.

"Pacific Rim” hasn't been able to match the success it's had in China in Japan. After two weeks there, it has taken in just over $9 million.

After China, the biggest foreign markets for "Pacific Rim” have been Russia with $20.5 million, South Korea with $18 million and Mexico with $15.8 million.

[Raipizo]

I thought the movie was okay, they left many holes in the plot. There was some action but a lot of dialogue which I guess is okay. I just didn't see the big hype about this movie.

[doug maverick]

seems that china is the only place where original non super hero blockbusters can exist..lol,,i think del toro was smart to place the film in hong kong.

[Lucas]

what is non-super hero. i confuse :confused:

[Raipizo]

Well yeah. Reminded me of the old Godzilla style monster movies :p

[GeneChing]

seems that china is the only place where original non super hero blockbusters can exist..lol,,i think del toro was smart to place the film in hong kong. I totally agree. Very diplomatic on many levels. I was just hoping for more from the triplets. They seemed like interesting characters that could have been developed much further.


what is non-super hero. i confuse :confused:
You, sir, are a non-superhero. :p

[doug maverick]

I totally agree. Very diplomatic on many levels. I was just hoping for more from the triplets. They seemed like interesting characters that could have been developed much further.


You, sir, are a non-superhero. :p

that was the big failing in the film..under developed characters. also a small note nobody is noticing.. the second lead was a black character and he was the only recognizable name on the bill. once again proving to hollywood that black does travel..just had to point that out as a black filmmaker.

[GeneChing]

Dinosaurs vs Monsters at China box office (http://www.filmbiz.asia/news/dinosaurs-vs-monsters-at-china-box-office)
By Kevin Ma
Mon, 26 August 2013, 22:45 PM (HKT)

Despite competition from a Pixar film and a comedy starring XU Zheng 徐崢, Jurassic Park (1993) topped the China box office this weekend.

The 3-D version of the Steven SPIELBERG film made RMB96.39 million (US$15.7 million) Friday to Sunday. After six days, it has made RMB198.1 million (US$32.4 million). The re-release grossed US$45.4 million in North America in April.

Pixar's Monsters University – the opening film of this year's Shanghai International Film Festival 上海國際電影節 – was second placed at the weekend with RMB80.2 million (US$13.1 million) over three days. It is Pixar's best opening yet in China.

SHAO Xiaoli 邵曉黎's Fake Fiction 摩登年代, starring Lost in Thailand 人再囧途之泰囧's Xu as a con artist posing as a magician. The comedy was third-placed at the weekend with RMB33.5 million (US$5.47 million).

On Saturday, Pacific Rim's total gross was RMB674.5 million (US$110 million), passing Let the Bullets Fly 讓子彈飛 (2010) as the 10th highest grossing film of all time in China. After 26 days, it has now made RMB679 million (US$111 million).

Dante LAM 林超賢's action-drama Unbeatable 激戰 crossed the RMB100 million mark (US$16.3 million) on Sunday, its 10th day of release.
I feel ya, Doug. Elba was really the only character in the film that was really worth watching. The rest was all robots and monsters.

[GeneChing]

...off doug's facebook. :p


Pacific Rim Is The Highest Grossing Live-Action Movie Worldwide Of The Year Based On New IP (http://comicbook.com/blog/2013/08/30/pacific-rim-is-the-highest-grossing-live-action-movie-worldwide-of-the-year-based-on-new-ip/)
By: Scott Johnson on August 30, 2013

Pacific Rim Box OfficeThere’s been a lot of debate over the summer as to if Pacific Rim was a successful movie or not. Pacific Rim did not have a great opening at the U.S. box office, but it has proven to be a hit internationally.

At the domestic box office, Pacific Rim has continued to creep up the box office charts, and the film now ranks in top twenty highest grossing movies of the year at the domestic box office. At $99.3 million, Pacific Rim is also very close to becoming the twentieth movie of the year to cross the $100 million mark at the domestic box office.

Looking at Pacific Rim’s worldwide box office reveals an even better story for the film. Pacific Rim is now in the top ten highest grossing movies worldwide for the year. At $397.4 million, Pacific Rim is also very close to becoming only the tenth movie of the year to cross the $400 million mark at the worldwide box office.

The $400 million worldwide number is a very significant number. Because Pacific Rim cost around $190 million to produce, $400 million worldwide has been the number widely reported that the film needed to do in order to break even.

Now, here’s another interesting, but very important trivia fact about Pacific Rim. Of the nine films ranked ahead of Pacific Rim worldwide, eight of them were either sequels or based on pre-existing books or comic book characters. The Croods was the only brand new intellectual property, and it was an animated film. Pacific Rim was the highest grossing live action movie worldwide based on a brand new intellectual property.

It’s a pretty powerful accomplishment for a film that was branded a failure by many in the media right after it was released. If Pacific Rim doesn’t get a sequel, then Hollywood should probably re-assess whether they even want to continue to do big budget live action movies based on new IP, because it doesn’t get any more successful than Pacific Rim (at least this year so far).

[GeneChing]

Scott Mendelson, Contributor
9/02/2013 @ 11:40AM
'Pacific Rim' And More Domestic "Flops" That Became Global Hits (http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2013/09/02/pacific-rim-and-more-domestic-flops-that-became-global-hits/)

One of the more noteworthy bits of box office news this weekend was Warner Bros.’ 3D and IMAX-enhanced Pacific Rim crossing $400 million worldwide and $100 million in America. Now big would-be blockbusters cross $400 million globally well, not all the time, but frequently enough over the last ten years that there are now 175 such films. But here’s the rub: Pacific Rim is the rare English-language film in history to cross $400 million while barely crossing $100 million domestic. For all intents-and-purposes, the $180 million Guillermo del Toro monsters vs. robots epic pretty much tanked in America, grossing about as much as Cowboys and Aliens. What its overseas success represents is an example of a most interesting and arguably increasing anomaly: films that disappointed, if not out-and-out bombed, in America only to do so well overseas that they were relatively profitable anyway. Some notable examples over the years:

Troy (2004)
Would you believe that Wolfgang Petersen’s Troy is one of the biggest-grossing R-rated films of all time? The $175 million Brad Pitt/Eric Bana adaptation of The Iliad was mostly written off as a swing-and-a-miss back in summer 2004. It opened in that ‘second weekend of summer’ doom slot I occasionally write about, where it debuted with a relatively solid $44 million coming off the second weekend of the under-performing summer and much-loathed kick-off film Van Helsing.

The long and violent action picture, well-acted but hamstrung by the need to modernize the source material, was neither loved nor loathed, quietly making its way to $133 million in the states and being mostly written off as “just another film that opened in summer 2004″. But Brad Pitt is a big deal overseas, arguably more so than he is in America. His star power, this being his first pure big-scale would-be blockbuster since Interview With the Vampire, in along with the ‘war has no good guys’ narrative, the general big-scale action on display, resonated outside our shores where it earned a colossal $364 million overseas.

With $497 million total, it’s the sixth-biggest R-rated grosser in global history and the third-biggest non-sequel R-rated film behind just Ted ($549m) and The Passion of the Christ ($611m). The other R-rated champions, by the way, are Terminator 2: Judgment Day ($519m), The Hangover II ($586m), and The Matrix Reloaded ($742m). Troy was a rare example at the time of a non-franchise picture absolutely decimating its domestic total overseas and becoming a blockbuster via foreign dollars.

The Golden Compass (2007)
This is a, if not THE, classic example of why we should sometimes pay attention to overseas numbers before passing judgment. The first of a proposed franchise based on the His Dark Materials fantasy series, The Golden Compass weathered oodles of bad press based on both its $180 million budget and its source material’s negative feelings towards organized religion. The knives were already out, with attacks on both sides either arguing against the book’s anti-Catholic stance or arguing against the film’s softening of said material. Even New Line Cinema’s independence from Warner Bros. was allegedly on the line.

So when the film debuted with “just” $25 million in December 2007, those who live to scream “FLOP!” or “BOMB!” at every possible moment dove in without a life vest. The film had mediocre December legs, earning just $72 million in America. It added more fuel to the rumblings about Nicole Kidman being box office poison (yes, because films like Birth and Fur just scream box office smash) and New Line Cinema folded into Warner Bros. soon after. It wasn’t a direct correlation, as the post-Lord of the Rings period at New Line was not a pleasant one, but that’s for another day (come what may, I still like The Last Mimzy).

But here’s the rub: The would-be flop not only won an Oscar for Best Special Effects (in itself meaningless in terms of finances) but also went on to earn $302 million overseas, including $33m Japan and $53m the UK for a total of $372m worldwide. Now New Line Cinema ironically sold off foreign rights to help pay for the budget, but someone made money off those $302 million worth of overseas grosses. By the time the foreign totals had been tallied, the film’s reputation as a legendary flop was etched in stone, even as films with somewhat similar budget-to-gross ratios (think Batman Begins, Star Trek, Snow White and the Huntsman) went on to get sequels in the last several years.



Continued on next post.

[GeneChing]

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008)
Brendan Fraser had a really good 2008 summer season, even if no one really noticed. Journey to the Center of the Earth was a live-action film in modern 3D way before that was a fad, and the film debuted with $21 million before legging it to $100m domestic and $241m worldwide on a $60m budget. He closed out the summer with The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. A somewhat too-little, too-late third entry in the popular Mummy series, it was basically missing everything that audiences loved about that series save for Fraser and John Hannah, losing co-star Rachel Weisz, director Stephen Summers, and crowd-pleasing bad-ass Oded Fehr. If it looked and felt like one shade away from a direct-to-DVD Mummy sequel, well, I’d agree with you and so did most critics at the time.

The picture debuted with just $40 million, well below the $68m debut of The Mummy Returns seven years earlier and actually below the $43m debut of The Mummy back in 1999. But while the film just barely crossed $100m in the states, it was (this punch line is getting old, I know) a massive hit overseas, becoming one of those barely-over-$100m domestic/over-$400m worldwide hits that are rare enough to still be noteworthy. It earned $401m worldwide, less than $415m of The Mummy and the $433m of The Mummy Returns, but not so far below those totals to be an aberration. Setting the film in China to capitalize on the 2008 summer Olympics was a cynical but successful play, although China ($17m) wasn’t remotely the film’s biggest territory (outside America, that would be Russia with $27m).

The third Mummy movie, also starring Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh, was the last was of the franchise, as even major profits for the $145 million picture wasn’t enough to wash out the taste of one too many bites of the apple. There are talks of a reboot, which I hope don’t happen since the franchise’s success is more about the actors involved than the special effects. The first two films, with their emphasis on actor chemistry over CGI overload, have aged remarkably well, showing the potential for high-quality franchise thrills when we actually care about the characters involved.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)
We’ve talked quite a bit this year about the mini-trend of cheaper, smaller-scale sequels attaching 3D for the sake of overseas grosses, translating into a smaller domestic take but a larger overseas one (think G.I. Joe: Retaliation or The Wolverine). Intentional or not, this one could arguably be considered the film that started said trend. Disney decided to pass on a third Chronicles of Narnia film after the insanely expensive ($220 million) Prince Caspian grossed “just” $419 million versus the first film’s $745m take.

So Fox picked up the rights of the Walden Media-produced series, and a third film was commissioned to be both cheaper ($155 million this time) and set to release in the same mid-December slot where The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe scored five Decembers prior (Prince Caspian debuted the third weekend in May, 2008). Alas, the domestic results were pretty grim, opening with just $24m (compared to the $67m and $55m debuts of the first two entries) and ending with $104m the states (compared to the $291m and $141m domestic results of the first two entries).

But thanks partially to the 3D conversion and partially due to Fox’s genuine magic touch overseas (really, go luck up some alleged Fox domestic flops and marvel at the overseas totals), the film grossed nearly three times its US total, for a $415 million total. While that was $4m less than Prince Caspian, it was also cost $65m less to make. Most presumed this franchise was DOA back in December 2010. And due to Walden no longer having the rights and needing to wait a few more years before they can be purchased again, it may be awhile before we see a fourth Narnia film. But the relative consistency shows that there is an audience for this seven-volume adventure saga.

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
The much-delayed and oft-ridiculed Paramount fairy-tale reinvention was supposed represent everything wrong with big-scale filmmaking. Instead it may have shown studios the pathway for the future of international cinema. The film finally debuted in January 2013 with a decent $20 million opening weekend, and it ended with $55m, not horrible for a $50m film but theoretically no franchise starter either. But it made three times its domestic gross overseas, earning $170m in foreign markets and bringing its cume to an eye-popping $225m.

The project that spent most of its pre-release life as a glorified joke will now be getting a sequel. We’ll see if stars Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arteton bother to return, but we are indeed getting a second chapter in the ongoing saga of Hansel and Gretel reimagined as witch-killing mercenaries. Now Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters is not the first lower-budget horror-tinged action film to score huge overseas. Sony has found huge overseas bounties for their ongoing Underworld and Resident Evil franchise. 2010′s Resident Evil: Afterlife, the first in 3D and coming just under a year after Avatar, earned $60 million in America (a series high, but not by a massive margin) but $236m overseas for a stunning $292m worldwide total.

But the Underworld (whose last entry earned $62 million here and $97m over there) and Resident Evil franchises were both established by the time they were able to add 3D to enhance overseas grosses. Hansel & Gretel is a new would-be franchise, built cheap enough so that it didn’t have to be a world-beating blockbuster to thrive. In an era when we have $400m worldwide grossers like, um, Pacific Rim, that still struggle to make real profits due to huge budgets, the future of would-be blockbuster cinema may be cheaper fantasy films that thrive overseas more so than in America. We’ll see if Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters becomes a glorified game-changer as studios look for a way to tighten their budgetary belts.

And that’s a wrap for this respective trip down box office memory lane. This is not a remotely comprehensive list of worldwide hits that all-but failed in America, but merely representative sampling of what may well become the new normal as the American film market becomes less important over the next decade. Now that still doesn’t mean we should be getting a sequel to Pacific Rim. At $180 million, the Legendary Pictures-produced and Warner Bros.’ distributed sci-fi actioner will still have to wait until home viewing revenues to see any profits, and there is no reason to presume that a sequel will exponentially grow to justify the theoretically increased budget.

But thanks to China and other receptive overseas markets, Guillermo del Toro doesn’t have a big budget black mark on his resume, which should make it easier to get his next film greenlit. In the meantime, those who really enjoyed Pacific Rim will be happy to know that their favorite robots-vs-monsters epic is no longer considered a worldwide flop. Now go out and rent The Golden Compass. It’s actually pretty solid.
Hansel and Gretel surprised me here. I thought about doing a KFM review of that but then decided against it because I was too busy at the time.

I totally agree on Golden Compass.

[Stickgrappler]

Continuing with my project of making animated GIFs from the movies of the Balisong knife, today's set is from Pacific Rim.

http://www.stickgrappler.net/2013/10/balisong-knife-in-movies-pacific-rim.html

Enjoy!


http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kcobKCu0hT4/Ulx5pxB7jBI/AAAAAAAAEI0/MKpSTh-rI7I/s1600/PacificRim-Balisong-400-3-sg.gif

[Stickgrappler]

Some nice non-"jäger" (giant robot/"mecha") martial arts-related scenes in Pacific Rim. So of course I had to make some animated GIFs to share with you.

Today's set features some great 4' staff moves as well as the good old Shaolin Salute!

http://www.stickgrappler.net/2013/10/pacific-rim-2013-animated-gif-set-1.html

Enjoy!

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--ZvbVFSDlCM/Ulx2BZNAV9I/AAAAAAAAEIQ/vt0M_HIbyzE/s1600/PacificRim-400-01-b-sg.gif

[Stickgrappler]

I made 7 more animated GIFs of the 4’ staffwork from Pacific Rim.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-E2yR63p4wUE/UlzL49mjfXI/AAAAAAAAELI/Xw-9UQDwIVU/s1600/PacificRim-400-02-g-sg.gif

6 more here:
http://www.stickgrappler.net/2013/10/pacific-rim-2013-animated-gif-set-2.html
Enjoy!

[GeneChing]

Perhaps I'll split this off into it's own thread when this production gets more underway.


Guillermo del Toro Says He’s Still Writing the PACIFIC RIM Sequel with Travis Beacham (http://collider.com/pacific-rim-2-sequel-news-guillermo-del-toro/)
by Adam Chitwood Posted 2 days ago

http://collider.com/wp-content/uploads/guillermo-del-toro-slice1.jpg

Filmmaker Guillermo del Toro made a splash this summer with his massive “monsters vs. robots” epic Pacific Rim. Though the Warner Bros. film carried a hefty budget, the pic did solid business at the box office, bringing in over $400 million worldwide. Del Toro always envisioned sequels to the pic in order to further flesh out the Pacific Rim world, and last we heard a follow-up was looking likely from a studio standpoint given the pic’s success at the global marketplace. Though the sequel still has yet to receive an official greenlight, del Toro recently revealed that he and screenwriter Travis Beacham are still working on the script for Pacific Rim 2. Hit the jump for more.

pacific-rim-2-sequel-guillermo-del-toro-charlie-hunnamSpeaking with IGN to promote the release of Pacific Rim on Blu-ray, del Toro confirmed that he is indeed hard at work on scripting the follow-up:

“We are writing the sequel. Travis Beacham and I are writing, so that is active. The decision to greenlight or not, that’s definitely above my pay rate.”

The Blu-ray sales of the film can’t hurt the follow-up’s chances, and hopefully the studio will make a firm decision in the coming months. It’s unclear whether the decision lies with Legendary Entertainment or Warner Bros. given that the two have since parted ways, but fans are no doubt crossing their fingers for a positive outcome either way.

Del Toro is rather busy for the next two years so he may not be in a position to direct the Pacific Rim follow-up, as he’s currently shooting the pilot for his FX series The Strain and he begins production on his next feature, Crimson Peak, in February.

[sanjuro_ronin]

I still think that Asian porno of the same name was far better.
:D

[GeneChing]

That's a classic MK comment above. :rolleyes:


7:31 am ET
Jul 3, 2014
Film
Guillermo Del Toro on ‘Pacific Rim 2,’ ‘At the Mountains of Madness’ and More (http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2014/07/03/guillermo-del-toro-on-pacific-rim-2-at-the-mountains-of-madness-and-more/)
By Michael Calia

http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/BN-DN579_GDT_E_20140703062952.jpg
Guillermo Del Toro at the ‘Pacific Rim’ premiere last July in Los Angeles.
Dee Cercone/Everett Collection

Guillermo Del Toro is a busy man.

His new vampire horror series, “The Strain,” will soon premiere on FX, he’s currently in postproduction on the upcoming Gothic horror film “Crimson Peak,” and he starts designing the recently announced “Pacific Rim” sequel in mere weeks.

But that’s not all. The prolific director, producer and writer talked to Speakeasy in a wide-ranging, exclusive telephone interview, touching on what to expect from his plans for the “Pacific Rim” universe, how he thinks “Pacific Rim” compares to that other giant monster movie produced by Legendary Pictures, and whether he hopes that his dream project, a long-gestating adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s “At the Mountains of Madness,” will make it to the big screen.

Here’s part one of our interview. Check in soon for part two, which covers “The Strain.”

You’re in a bit of a horror mode right now, between “The Strain” being set to debut and “Crimson Peak” in postproduction. What can audiences expect from the latter?

It’s the first time I’ve tackled an adult story in English. When I had that terrible experience with “Mimic” in 1997, I decided to go for more action-oriented, comic book-oriented things to be done in English, and to do my more personal, my more adult-themed things in Spanish. Up until “Crimson Peak,” it’s been that way. With “Crimson Peak,” it’s the first time I’m able to articulate some adult concerns with a very elegant and sedate and visually rich world because I found great support with Legendary Pictures. Legendary basically has become a home for me, and I made it abundantly clear that “Crimson Peak” wouldn’t be something with cats jumping out at you. It was creepy, and it was eerie, but it was going to play by more idiosyncratic rules than the normal horror movie. And they were completely supportive of it.

With this support from Legendary, do you have any hope that your adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s “At the Mountains of Madness” will be made?

That’s exactly what I discussed with them. I said to them, that’s the movie that I would really love to do one day, and it’s still expensive, it’s still … I think that now, with the way I’ve seen PG-13 become more and more flexible, I think I could do it PG-13 now, so I’m going to explore it with [Legendary], to be as horrifying as I can, but to not be quite as graphic. There’s basically one or two scenes in the book that people don’t remember that are pretty graphic. Namely, for example, the human autopsy that the aliens do, which is a very shocking moment. But I think I can find ways of doing it. We’ll see. It’s certainly a possibility in the future. Legendary was very close to doing it at one point, so I know they love the screenplay. So, we’ll see. Hopefully it’ll happen. It’s certainly one of the movies I would love to do.

http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/BN-DN584_GDTmim_DV_20140703065002.jpg
Guillermo Del Toro directing on the set of 1997′s ‘Mimic.’
Miramax/Courtesy Everett Collection

If it doesn’t work out, what are the chances we see (Lovecraft’s) Cthulhu appear as a kaiju in a “Pacific Rim” movie?

(laughs) Not really. I think there’s a really strong possibility we can do it (“At the Mountains of Madness”) at Legendary because now they are at Universal, and Universal, you may remember, almost greenlit the movie. The fact that we now have two studios together that love the material, and if they support each other, they are risking a lot less. It would be great to do it, but I’ve understood that you don’t plan your career, it just happens.

Without spoiling anything, what can fans expect from “Pacific Rim 2″?

We are three years away, so to spoil anything would be fantastically silly of me. What I can tell you: [screenwriter Zak Penn] and I really went in, we started with [screenwriter Travis Beacham] about a year and a half ago, kicking ideas back and forth. And, admittedly, I said to Zak, let’s keep kicking ideas till we find one that really, really turns the first movie on its ear, so to speak. (…) It was hard to create a world that did not come from a comic book, that had its own mythology, so we had to sacrifice many aspects to be able to cram everything in the first movie. Namely, for example “the Drift” (editor’s note: the neural link between pilots of the giant robots, or jaegers), which was an interesting concept. [Then there was] this portal that ripped a hole into the fabric of our universe, what were the tools they were using? And we came up with a really, really interesting idea. I don’t want to spoil it, but I think at the end of the second movie, people will find out that the two movies stand on their own. They’re very different from each other, although hopefully bringing the same joyful giant spectacle. But the tenor of the two movies will be quite different.

What can you tell me about the animated “Pacific Rim” series? Do you know which network will carry it?

We are talking about all the possibilities in terms of networks. We’re formulating ideas that are, again, interesting and not the usual route, but the series tackles the stories that happened to pilots working in the Shatterdome (editor’s note: a building where jaegers are built and maintained and pilots train), but also cadets learning how to become pilots. All of this happens prior to the first movie, and it gives you a little more depth into the background of certain characters that will appear in the second movie. So it’s really expanding the material. I was incredibly happy with the comic book series that came about from a graphic novel called “Tales From Year Zero,” and we are continuing the tales for the next three years. So by the time the second movie comes out, you will have probably one year of the animation airing, and you will have three years of the comic book series ongoing, so we are trying for all these things to be canon, to be in the same universe, to not wing anything, so that if anyone … a lot of kids, for example, have discovered “Pacific Rim” through the toys. They come in through the toys, and then they watch the movie, and then they learn this, they learn that through the movie or the comic book series, so we’re trying to make it canon so we can expand the universe. And by the time we come into the second movie, you have a good feel for the world, and we can dedicate ourselves to character and ideas and spectacle.

What did you feel about Gareth Edwards’ “Godzilla”? Do you feel like you have to top it?

Well, it’s a very different tone. What is great about Gareth is that he went for a really, an almost-Spielberg shock-and-awe tone that is very different from “Pacific Rim.” The thing is, when you deal with a world that has a single anomaly, meaning you have basically one monster or two battling each other, then you can take a darker tone and be metaphorical. Or when you have a single robot — namely, for example, Brad Bird’s “The Iron Giant” — you can, once again, be more reflective and build deeper into a theme than when you have to … this is a world where giant robots are possible, giant monsters are possible. So the tone has to be … I decided that it had to be more like an adventure movie. I used two analogies that were pretty invisible in the first movie: one was a sports movie, and the other was a western. I tried to bring characterization on the move. My main two characters, both [Charlie Hunnam] and [Rinko Kikuchi], play characters that have less lines than any other characters in the movie almost. They talk very little. You know them by the way they behave, the way they do and do not. In “Godzilla,” what was great is that you had this Spielbergian sense of scope and adventure, and a much darker tone. So, they don’t intersect tonally at all.

http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/BN-DN580_pacrim_D_20140703064328.jpg
Charlie Hunnam, left, and Rinko Kikuchi in ‘Pacific Rim.’
Warner Bros./Courtesy Everett Collection

Do you plan on expanding the cast and adding new characters in “Pacific Rim 2″?

I’m hoping to bring the same idea I had in the first movie, that was to make it multicultural and humanistic as much as possible, to make characters from many nationalities or gender, to make them equal in the scope of the adventure, in the day-to-day of the adventure. So, we’re bringing a few characters that are new and hopefully doing good work managing those that survived the first movie. (laughs)

When do you expect production to start on “Pacific Rim 2″?

I start designing in six weeks. It takes me nine months to design a movie like that. People see the movie, and they have to see that we designed everything in the movie, from ID cards or patches, pamphlets, posters, signs, sets. I start with a core team for about six months designing the jaegers and the kaiju, you know, so we know how many kaiju, how many jaegers. We are creating some new jaegers and a lot of new kaiju. We start [designing the production] in August.

Follow @Michael_Calia on Twitter, or write to him at michael.calia@wsj.com

[GeneChing]

I like Boyega. He is hilarious in interviews.


‘Star Wars’ John Boyega Takes Lead In ‘Pacific Rim’ Sequel (http://deadline.com/2016/06/john-boyega-pacific-rim-sequel-star-wars-the-force-awakens-1201767756/)
by Mike Fleming Jr
June 6, 2016 9:30am

https://pmcdeadline2.files.wordpress.com/2016/06/john-boyega.jpg?w=446&h=299&crop=1
REX/Shutterstock

EXCLUSIVE: Legendary Pictures has set Star Wars: The Force Awakens star John Boyega for the lead role for the second installment of its Pacific Rim franchise. Steven S. DeKnight is directing the film, which will begin production in the fourth quarter of this year, based on the world created by Guillermo del Toro and Travis Beacham. Boyega will play the son of the character played by Idris Elba in the del Toro-directed original film. Universal will release the film worldwide, everywhere but China. The 2013 original grossed $411 million.

Thomas Tull, Mary Parent, Jon Jashni, and del Toro will produce the action adventure film along with Boyega and Femi Oguns under their Upper Room Productions shingle. Cale Boyter is executive producer. The picture is a beach head project for Legendary, under the leadership of Parent, who became Tull’s vice chairman of Worldwide Production after Jashni exited to start his own venture. The principals have confirmed to Deadline they found their man in Boyega.

https://pmcdeadline2.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/pacific-rim-robot-pilots__130704194309.jpg?w=301&h=202&crop=1

“It is undeniable that with all his talent and natural charm, John stands out amongst today’s generation of young leading men,” said Parent.

Said del Toro: “I am very proud and happy to welcome John into a fantastic sandbox. The Pacific Rim universe will be reinforced with him as a leading man as it continues to be a multicultural, multi-layered world. ‘The World saving the world’ was our goal and I couldn’t think of a better man for the job.”

Boyega, whose breakout came with Attack The Block, next stars with Tom Hanks and Emma Watson in The Circle, and follows The Force Awakens with Star Wars: Episode VIII, as well as the animated BBC miniseries Watership Down opposite James McAvoy and Ben Kingsley. Boyega will make his stage-starring debut on the West End in Woyzeck at The Old Vic, next year.

He is repped by WME and Identity Agency Group in the UK and Hansen Jacobson.

[GeneChing]

Pacific Rim 2 (http://www.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?69735-Pacific-Rim-2)

[sanjuro_ronin]

There is a porn version of this...

[boxerbilly]

There is a porn version of this...

There is a porn spoof on all the hits.

[GeneChing]

Lakeith Stanfield to play first African samurai in Netflix's Yasuke anime (https://ew.com/tv/lakeith-stanfield-yasuke-anime-netflix/)
Netflix revealed a slate of upcoming anime releases, including a Pacific Rim anime.

By Nick Romano October 27, 2020 at 10:36 AM EDT

https://imagesvc.meredithcorp.io/v3/mm/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstatic.onecms.io%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F6%2F2020%2F10%2F27%2Fl akeith-stanfield-yasuke-1a.jpg
CREDIT: NETFLIX; NEILSON BARNARD/GETTY IMAGES
Lakeith Stanfield is getting animated again for Netflix, though this next role isn't quite like Guy on BoJack Horseman.

The Uncut Gems and Sorry to Bother You actor will lead the voice cast of Yasuke, a new anime in which Stanfield portrays the first African samurai of the same name.

Set in war-torn feudal Japan with mechs and magic, Yasuke follows the warrior as he struggles to maintain a peaceful living after a lifetime of violence. He's thrown back into battle when a local village becomes the epicenter of warring daimyo and he's tasked with transporting a mysterious child who's targeted by dark forces.

The series hails from director-creator-executive producer LeSean Thomas with character designs by Takeshi Koike. Animation production will come from MAPPA, which worked on Attack on Titan: The Final Season.

News of the project was announced Monday night during Netflix's Anime Festival in Japan that was then livestreamed online. Five brand-new anime projects were announced: the stop-motion Rilakkuma’s Theme Park Adventure, a modern adaptation of the popular manga Thermae Romae Novae, survival story High-Rise Invasion, the four-part Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan, and a yakuza-turned-househusband story The Way of the Househusband. The streamer also revealed new looks and updates on 11 others.

https://imagesvc.meredithcorp.io/v3/mm/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstatic.onecms.io%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F6%2F2020%2F10%2F27%2Fp acific-rim-1.jpg
CREDIT: NETFLIX
Pacific Rim: Black tells of an Australia overrun by Kaiju, the gargantuan creates that rose out of the Pacific Rim in Guillermo del Toro's original film. The entire continent has been evacuated. Teenage siblings Taylor and Haley remain to search for their missing parents, teaching themselves how to pilot a battered Jaeger robot. Craig Kyle and Greg Johnson serve as co-showrunners.

New looks also arrived for the CG anime Resident Evil series, as well as EDEN, Vampire in the Garden, Godzilla Singular Point, Transformers: War for the Cybertron Trilogy, Trese, B: The Beginning Succession, Baki Hanma, and Spriggan.

These moves mark the latest push by Netflix to become a streaming destination for anime. According to the company, more than 100 million households around the world watched at least one anime title on Netflix between October 2019 and September 2020. Netflix logs one household view when a single user account watching at least two minutes of a show or film. Multiple profiles within the same account could watch the same thing or a single profile could watch the same title multiple times, but Netflix still counts that as one household view. Anime titles also appeared on the platform's Top 10 list in almost 100 countries in 2020.

threads
Yasuke (http://www.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?70199-Yasuke)
Pacific Rim (http://www.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?64982-Pacific-Rim)