Guillermo del Toro‘s monsters vs. robots epic Pacific Rim will be an action spectacular. Based on what we’ve seen so far, you’d be forgiven for thinking that all the action was computer generated and the actors spent all their time in a green room battling imaginary foes. Well, that wasn’t the case as we find out in this awesome new featurette.

del Toro knows that, where possible, practical effects are more effective than digital, even in blockbusters like this. Here he constructed a four-story Jaeger head into which the pilots were strapped. This head was fully automated and capable of rapidly moving any direction, including down – 15 feet down! The actors found themselves hooked up to a two tonne rig and thrown about like they were on an amusement park ride – more appropriately described later as a “torture machine” because del Toro didn’t want his actors to feel safe. What a lovely man.

I’d pay to have a go on this at Movie World. How about you?

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When legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes—a washed up former pilot and an untested trainee —who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse.

Directed by Guillermo del Toro the film stars Idris Elba, Charlie Hunnam, Rinko Kikuchi, Ron Perlman, Burn Gorman, and Charlie Day.

Pacific Rim open 11 July, 2013.