Pacific Rim Guillermo Del Toro commentary track
I watched all 5 seasons of episodic commentaries for Leverage, and it was an embarrassment of riches with regards to insight into the production, writing, and if they could get the director in on the session, directing and cinematography aspects of making live-action audiovisual stories.
The main regulars of the commentaries were the writers , and many of the directors former actors and writers, so most of the commentary was focussing on the writing aspects, pointing out the effect made, which the audience consumes, than the process used to create it.
Guillermo is fully a director. The primary writing aspects of characterization and plot are assumed to be understood, and he focusses on the production details he used to build subtext and ambience, soak every moment and background in the movie's themes. He speaks on the things behind the obvious that most of the audience will not even realize had such impact on their perception. Guillermo is all about the craft.
HE IS ALSO A GIANT RAGING FANBOY AND IT'S AWESOME. He spends about 20 minutes talking about how the Kaiju genre originated in Gojira, and how so many factors in the creation of Gojira, primarily in that it was not made as a genre piece but simply as well a piece of film as could be achieved by the medium at that time, which is how all of the great breakouts of genre are. (Pacific Rim itself is built using classic Sports Film structure, because its ultimate themes about humanity and unity and trust between people are the ones that that genre champions.)
Then he goes on about the origins of the mecha genre, and how it is defined not by its premise, but its themes. (Robots have autonomy, but mecha is all about the pilot.) He also speaks on their relevance to culture, western and Japanese. Western culture tends to have a distrust of the unknown in technology, as epitomized in the Frankenstein story, but that Japanese culture treats technology as Excalibur, and so the mecha genre is really more about heroic mythology. The Frankenstein-esque unease is directed at the spiritual and supernatural field, so Gojira is undefeatable by humans, and some of the most Japanese anime are the likes of Mushi-shi. In contrast, the Wild West is to be conquered by our heroic pioneers. So the Kaiju and Mecha genres hold opposite attitudes in Japanese vs. Western culture, and Pacific Rim plays with that, and in doing so, make them fresh twists on both genres. The technology of the Jaegers is mistrusted by the politicians, but established as the force to root for by the audience, and is only goes wrong when the human element isn't in sync. The Kaiju are the unknown to be feared, but it is never in question that humanity can bond together to overcome them as an obstacle.
Guillermo's little jabs about some of the less desirable aspects of genre and Hollywood blockbusters, and how he sought to avoid them in Pacific Rim, are great. So much diversity in this movie.
Also, EVERYTHING IS AT FIELDS in this movie. It's great. Guillermo may have given the most credit to the originals of the genre, but he instrinsically understands and embraces the themes about humanity that Anno imbued to the giant robot genre.
Guillermo gives this great speech about the importance of popcorn entertainment, and importances of said popcorn entertainment having non-ironic heart, refusing to let his crew work with a post-modern attitude. Popcorn entertainment needs to be ultimately optimistic and have faith and belief in itself.
Homg the mentions of Harryhausen. You have not seen claymation until you've seen Harryhausen masterpieces.
The main regulars of the commentaries were the writers , and many of the directors former actors and writers, so most of the commentary was focussing on the writing aspects, pointing out the effect made, which the audience consumes, than the process used to create it.
Guillermo is fully a director. The primary writing aspects of characterization and plot are assumed to be understood, and he focusses on the production details he used to build subtext and ambience, soak every moment and background in the movie's themes. He speaks on the things behind the obvious that most of the audience will not even realize had such impact on their perception. Guillermo is all about the craft.
HE IS ALSO A GIANT RAGING FANBOY AND IT'S AWESOME. He spends about 20 minutes talking about how the Kaiju genre originated in Gojira, and how so many factors in the creation of Gojira, primarily in that it was not made as a genre piece but simply as well a piece of film as could be achieved by the medium at that time, which is how all of the great breakouts of genre are. (Pacific Rim itself is built using classic Sports Film structure, because its ultimate themes about humanity and unity and trust between people are the ones that that genre champions.)
Then he goes on about the origins of the mecha genre, and how it is defined not by its premise, but its themes. (Robots have autonomy, but mecha is all about the pilot.) He also speaks on their relevance to culture, western and Japanese. Western culture tends to have a distrust of the unknown in technology, as epitomized in the Frankenstein story, but that Japanese culture treats technology as Excalibur, and so the mecha genre is really more about heroic mythology. The Frankenstein-esque unease is directed at the spiritual and supernatural field, so Gojira is undefeatable by humans, and some of the most Japanese anime are the likes of Mushi-shi. In contrast, the Wild West is to be conquered by our heroic pioneers. So the Kaiju and Mecha genres hold opposite attitudes in Japanese vs. Western culture, and Pacific Rim plays with that, and in doing so, make them fresh twists on both genres. The technology of the Jaegers is mistrusted by the politicians, but established as the force to root for by the audience, and is only goes wrong when the human element isn't in sync. The Kaiju are the unknown to be feared, but it is never in question that humanity can bond together to overcome them as an obstacle.
Guillermo's little jabs about some of the less desirable aspects of genre and Hollywood blockbusters, and how he sought to avoid them in Pacific Rim, are great. So much diversity in this movie.
Also, EVERYTHING IS AT FIELDS in this movie. It's great. Guillermo may have given the most credit to the originals of the genre, but he instrinsically understands and embraces the themes about humanity that Anno imbued to the giant robot genre.
Guillermo gives this great speech about the importance of popcorn entertainment, and importances of said popcorn entertainment having non-ironic heart, refusing to let his crew work with a post-modern attitude. Popcorn entertainment needs to be ultimately optimistic and have faith and belief in itself.
Homg the mentions of Harryhausen. You have not seen claymation until you've seen Harryhausen masterpieces.