There's no doubt that Japanese culture is seeping into the West. Anime is a hot commodity. Japan is the cornerstone of revolutionary video game technology. Old Samurai films like "The Hidden Fortress" and "Seven Samurai" inspired Hollywood classics like "Star Wars" and "The Magnificent Seven." It's safe of say that Japan has come a long way from being our archenemies in the days of WWII. And now, in a summer full of blockbusters that update classic Western comics and TV shows, we have two films deeply rooted in the Land of the Rising Sun. I am speaking, of course, about "Pacific Rim" and "The Wolverine," films I have had the pleasure of watching recently.
If I were to describe how "Pacific Rim" affected me, I'd say it made me cry tears of nerdy joy. That's literally what ran through my mind as I exited the theater. Guillermo Del Toro, the director of cult hits such as "Pan's Labyrinth" and the "Hellboy" films, basically made a love letter to mecha anime and kaiju films with this movie. For those not aware of these very Japanese genres, "mecha" refers to giant robots, and "kaiju" giant monsters. Shows like "Neon Genesis Evangelion" and films like "Godzilla" personify these genres, both of which have huge fan followings. If you're a fan of either of these genres, "Pacific Rim" will deliver in spades.
The basic plot follows veteran Raleigh Beckett and rookie Mako Mori as they pilot the antique robot Gipsy Danger, one of the last Jeagers (the mechas of the film) built in a now twelve year long war with Kaijus, giant beasts that have breached our dimension through a portal beneath the sea. The Jeagers and Kaiju all have fantastic nicknames, like Stryker Eureka, Crimson Typhoon, Leatherbeack, Otachi, and Knifehead. Seeing these titans duke it out high above the sky or deep below the waves is a genuine thrill, and worth the price of admission alone. Unlike the "Transformers" films, the action here is crisp and easy to follow, not to mention done on a scale not often seen in film. You don't really get a sense of how massive these things are until one of the Jeagers uses a cruise liner to club an incoming Kaiju.
While the entertainment value comes mainly from the giant robot-monster action, the film never forgets the humans who pilot these mechanical behemoths. Beckett and Mori have good chemistry together, even if Beckett is a little bland for a protagonist. He has issues stemming from witnessing his brother's death at the hands of a Kaiju, but heals after he Drifts with Mako and sees how a Kaiju orphaned her as a girl. The Drift is another main element of the film, detailing how two pilots are needed to man a Jeager through sharing memories. It's a fascinating concept that emphasizes the bond between characters.
In the midst of all the action, the true heart of the film is how completely different people come together in times of crisis. Two bickering mad scientist characters, who nearly run away with the film, are a perfect example of this, as is Idris Elba as Marshall Stacker Pentecost, the commanding presence who easily gives off the best performance. His rousing speech about cancelling the apocalypse is probably the most uplifting monologue in a summer blockbuster since the U.S. President united mankind in "Independence Day."
Despite all this praise, don't go in expecting anything deep. This is, after all, a giant robot-monster movie. A really well done giant robot-monster movie, in fact. This won't get any awards for acting (not to say that it's bad, just nothing memorable aside from Elba). It's meant, first and foremost, to entertain audiences with a simple yet moving story of mankind's response to attacks from giant beasts. Unlike, say, "Power Rangers," there's a sense of realism and genuine danger to the proceedings, but it never goes into complete seriousness and always remembers to be fun. "Pacific Rim" is a nerd's dream come true, and for fans of Japanese mecha animes and kaiju flicks, it's practically Heaven.
"The Wolverine," on the other hand, has a bit of a pedigree to it. And I'm not just talking about the infamous legacy of the previous "X-Men" films, which have ranged from really good (X2, First Class) to decent (X1) to horribly embarassing (X3, Wolverine: Origins). The pedigree I'm referring to is, first and foremost, the film's inspiration from Frank Miller and Chris Claremont's epic Japan saga, as well as the references to numerous Japanese gangster flicks, revenge thrillers, and neo-noir. Unlike its predecessor, this film is set post-X3, following a Logan traumatized by his killing of Jean Grey along with his survivor's guilt stemming from his immortal mutation. Through this great set-up, we get a much more vulnerable Logan who undergoes a mental and spiritual journey influenced by the culture of Japan.
The film begins with a WWII flashback, where Logan, a Japanese P.O.W., saves a soldier named Yashida from the nuclear bombing of Nagasaki. It's an intense and powerful sequence, showing the devastation of the atomic bomb as well as Logan's gruesome survival of it. It sets the stage perfectly for what's to follow, hammering home Wolverine's immortality and Yashida's obsession with mutation. In the present day, Yashida's agent Yukio brings Logan to Japan to pay respects to the old man, now dying of cancer and CEO of a powerful corporate empire. He offers to transfer Logan's healing ability into himself, saving his life while giving Logan the mortality he secretly craves. Logan refuses, but thanks to a mysterious woman named Viper, his healing is repressed anyway, making him mortal just in time for ninjas and Yakuza mobsters to target Yashida's heir and granddaughter, Mariko.
If it seems overly complicated, it is. Corruption and inner family turmoil abound in a conspiracy that ultimately talks about what it means to be immortal and live a life with (or without) purpose. For a superhero film, this is heady stuff. Oddly enough, this is probably the least comic-booky of all the X-Men films, at least until the last act, where the mutant battles return in full force. Other reviewers say it derails the picture, but I disagree. For a majority of the film, we see a Wolverine more brutal than before, thanks in part to the loss of his healing ability. When it returns towards the end, the threat he has to face is still actually capable to killing him, raising the stakes and making the battle personal despite the mass of CGI.
What really sets this film apart from previous X-flicks, and from a lot of superhero films, is how personal it all is. This is, first and foremost, Logan's story, unlike the Origins film whose goal was to set up as many mutant cameos as possible. We see Logan compared to a Ronin, a samurai without a master, as he strives to get over the loss of Jean (who haunts him as a ghost) and find purpose again when he falls for Mariko. While the film takes liberties with the Japan saga, it manages to keep the central characters and tone intact, making for an excellent character-driven film focused on developing Wolverine instead of forwarding the mutant mythos. Granted, there are still nods to the wider X-universe, but Logan is still the driving force, and that alone makes this film one of the better X-movies.
Logan himself is played once again by Hugh Jackman, in what I believe is his best performance as the character to date. He's played the role enough times to really get under Logan's skin, and has mastered both his inner rage and his more vulnerable side. Speaking of crawling under someone's skin, the snakelike Viper, while gorgeous and deadly, contributes little to the overall proceedings. I have a hard time justifying exactly why she was part of the plot, other than to reinforce her ties to the Silver Samurai like in the comics.
As for the Samurai, they do take liberties with him, making him Old Man Yashida encased in a giant samurai mech suit instead of a mutant who can charge his sword (funnily enough, the original Samurai is in the film as a human archer, and the Samurai we do get can charge his sword anyway). The Samurai made for an engaging villain, though not up there with the likes of both Magnetos, Brian Cox's William Stryker or Kevin Bacon's Sebastian Shaw. He embodied the theme of the price of immortality, and made for one hell of a final showdown. Thankfully, both his battle with Logan and his overall character, while different from the comics, isn't an embarrassment the way Deadpool was.
The real stars are Yukio and Mariko, the women of the Yashida clan (one the official heir, the other an adoptee). They have amazing chemistry with Logan, particularly Mariko, probably Logan's strongest love interest to date. Yukio makes for a great sidekick, and she's both incredibly strong while vulnerable due to her worry for Mariko and Logan and the angst brought on by her mutant ability (she can foresee people's deaths).
But when you look at the film as a whole, the real star of the show is the Japanese setting, which gives this film a unique flavor. In a stand-out fight sequence, Logan brawls with Yakuza members atop a bullet train. He faces over 40 ninjas who pin him down with poison arrows. He engages in a brutal sword fight with Clan Yashida patriarch Lord Shingen. And then, of course, there's the matter of the final battle against a gigantic robot samurai warrior. Japan covers every inch of the film, and the movie comes off better for it.
It may not rank with the great Yakuza flicks or Samurai epics, but the fact that it strives for that is impressive. The Silver Samurai fight at the end does revert to superhero formula, but it's refreshing to know that it's only Logan's life at stake and not the fate of the world, as in fellow hero films "Iron Man 3" and "Man of Steel." Saving the world is hinted at in an end-credits sequence, but I didn't mind because it was more a tease for next year's "Days of Future Past," which was utterly brilliant and had me geeking out with memories of the original X-trilogy.
Both "Pacific Rim" and "The Wolverine" succeeded because they were loving homages to different aspects of Japanese culture. One captured the lighthearted fun of the Japanese mecha and kaiju genres while the other sought to be a Yakuza thriller mixed with Japanese noir and a samurai epic. Both movies have their flaws, to be sure, but they are entertaining films that work regardless. It's great to see filmmakers who love Japanese culture bring it to life on the big screen, resulting in two films that, amid their CGI set pieces, still manage to remain small and personal. Nerds everywhere should rejoice at these two films. But that's not all they have to rejoice about. Tune in soon for my reaction piece to last week's San Diego Comic-Con, and all the fantastic news contained therein.
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