I’ve always thought that 3D movies in the cinema were a bit naff, a bit of a gimmick. For every film that actually benefited from 3D visually like Avatar there have been hundreds which – to my mind anyway – were only shot in three dimensions because it was ‘cool’ – a flavour of the month thing. Pacific Rim, however, is definitely a film which falls into the former categroy as opposed to the latter.

In 2D the film would be visually stunning enough, but in 3D the size and scope of the set-piece battles are truly amazing. Some of the battle scenes that take place between the Jaeger’s (giant robots piloted by human crews) and the monster ‘Kaiju’ (beasts in Japanese) in downtown Hong Kong are quite simply incredible!

Which is a good thing really, because you’re not going to be watching this film for the plot driven story or the scintillating thespian feats of the actors.

That’s not to say that EVERY actor in this film is terrible. Charlie Hunnam is solid in the lead role of Raleigh Becket, the washed up Jaeger pilot with a haunted past and Rinko Kikuchi is great as the female lead Mako Mori who lost her parents as a child.

In my opinion Idras Elba also deserves an Oscar nomination for being able to deliver his incredibly cheesy dialogue with the same kind of weight and gravitas that most people reserve for Shakespearian soliloquies.

You’re going to have to suspend your disbelief though, because if you question this film too much on an intellectual level you’re probably going to wind up hating it.

The story line has more holes in it than a block of Swiss cheese, some of the dialogue is quite literally cringe worthily bad and the two actors who play the Australian Jaeger pilots have possibly the worst Aussie accents I’ve heard in a film since Quentin Tarantino’s effort in Django Unchained.

It is certainly not director, Guillermo del Torro’s most cerebral film, nor is it his best. I thought he could of perhaps better explored the rather interesting concept of ‘The Drift’ which occurs when the two Jaeger pilots synch their minds with each other and with their robot warriors.

Still, if you’re looking for a seriously entertaining popcorn flick full of bright colours, loud noises and awesome visuals than I cannot recommend Pacific Rim highly enough. Just make sure to park your brain in neutral before you take your seat!

Good for: Young people who play too many video games and fans of giant monster movies.

4 out of 5 stars.