Transformers One

The success of Bumblebee seems to have breathed new life into the Transformers films, resulting in the sequel Transformers: Rise of the Beasts and the prequel film Transformers One (TF One), which marks the franchise’s return to theatrical feature animation since 1986. Despite a more tempered reaction to the initial trailer, thanks in part to the mild confusion over the overall timeline post-Bumblebee caused by executive flip-flopping, I remained cautiously optimistic for TF One, enough to pick up an Optimus Prime popcorn bucket from a local Cinemark as well as jump at the chance to purchase tickets for an early TF One Fan Event for the Wednesday of release at a local AMC. Within that time, though I had heard positive word of mouth from previous early screenings, I also went so far as to hold off on buying any actual toys until I had seen the movie for myself to form my own opinion, regardless of availability. Upon finally getting the chance to see it, I genuinely found it to be the best piece of Transformers media I had seen (aside from the current Skybound comic) since Bumblebee.

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts

Following the success and positive reception to the 2018 Bumblebee film, Paramount Pictures and Hasbro began to rethink the direction of the live-action Transformers universe, including a mix of live-action and animated films. Around this time, following a period of G1 oversaturation, Hasbro seemed to collectively remember that other portions of the brand exist and that not everyone started with or has nostalgia for the 1984 version, and so the first of these films, the live-action Rise of the Beasts, borrows characters and concepts from Beast Wars, the first new iteration of Transformers from 1996. While I do have some experience with the Beast Wars cartoon, as well as the Beast Machines sequel series, I will admit that I don’t have any clear memory of it, since I watched it on DVD when I was a kid, and out of order at that, plus it was not my gateway into the franchise (for me it was the 2001 Robots in Disguise series). Still, I became curious about it due to how good the last film was and that the director, Steven Caple Jr. (Creed II), is a fan of Beast Wars, giving me some hope for its quality despite trailers presenting an increasingly-worryingly complex plot. After getting to attend a Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Early Access Fan Event screening at AMC, my fears were assuaged and it turned out far better than I could have expected.

Second Look - Transformers: The Last Knight

Note: This review contains spoilers for Transformers: The Last Knight.

When I first watched Transformers: The Last Knight (TLK), I was able to view it in a theater one day early as part of AMC’s Optimus Prime Time event, which included a special lanyard and a T-shirt, both of which I still own even after having since downsized my Transformers collection. My original review of the film, which I wrote that night and posted the following day, was a lot more positive, likely influenced by having seen it in a theater that appeared to be filled with other Transformers fans. After having rewatched Age of Extinction (AOE), I decided to give The Last Knight another shot to round out my reevaluation of the live-action films prior to Bumblebee. This time, however, my view on it is a lot more negative.

Second Look - Transformers: Age of Extinction

Note: This review contains spoilers for Transformers: Age of Extinction.

Three years after Transformers: Dark of the Moon, a fourth live-action Transformers film, subtitled Age of Extinction, was released with the intent of kickstarting a new trilogy. When I first watched this film in the theater, and on subsequent viewings, my outlook on it was generally positive, as I had found it to be vast improvement over the first three installments to the point where I saw it as the best of the series. After Bumblebee proved to be a genuinely good movie in its own right, I decided to go back and reevaluate how I felt about this movie, viewing it through a Blu-ray release that featured the presentation of the IMAX version. While I still like it on some level, I noticed more of its flaws this time around.

Second Look - Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Note: This review contains spoilers for Transformers: Dark of the Moon.

After taking another look at the storytelling mess that is Transformers:Revenge of the Fallen, I decided it might be worth taking another look at Transformers: Dark of the Moon, in light of how the Bumblebee film’s high quality got me to reevaluate the previous films. Though it was difficult finding the right time to do so due to its length, I managed to find a long-enough period of time after I finished revisiting the video game prequel to the movie. While the film itself is still a vast improvement over the previous film and has some great moments in it, there are some issues with its pacing that prevent it from being more enjoyable than it actually is.

Second Look - Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Note: The following review contains spoilers for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and potentially other Transformers stories.

Following the success of the 2007 Transformers film, a sequel was inevitable. This sequel, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (ROTF), was released in 2009 to negative reviews, not helped by the script being one of many victims of a then-recent Writer’s Guild of America strike. Though I reviewed this film already, I’ve been wanting to re-review it for a while as I wasn’t sure whether the thoughts presented in it were entirely my own. For this, I decided to watch the movie again, this time via the Walmart-exclusive Big Screen Edition Blu-ray; though I’m not one to actively support Walmart, this set is unique in that it also includes the IMAX footage, a rarity amongst home video releases. Upon what is approximately my third or fourth viewing of this movie, I can safely say that, even as a Transformers fan, I genuinely did not enjoy it.

Bumblebee

Following the failure of Transformers: The Last Knight at the box office, the next scheduled film in the Live-Action Film Series, a prequel titled Transformers Universe: Bumblebee Bumblebee: The Movie Bumblebee, was set to be the last one while Hasbro rethinks the direction of the franchise. The change in Director from Michael Bay to Travis Knight, in addition to the trailers, had me curious about how this movie would turn out, since Knight’s directorial debut, Kubo and the Two Strings, turned out really well. Upon being able to see a recent early screening of the movie two weeks before its official release (in which it will go head-to-head with Aquaman), it turned out to far exceed my expectations in the best possible way.

As the war for Cybertron rages on, while the Autobot cast from the 2007 movie loads into escape pods, Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) sends Bumblebee (Dylan O’Brien) to Earth to establish a base of operations for the Autobots. On 1987 Earth, Bumblebee crash-lands, interrupting a military exercise. Following a battle with the Decepticon Blitzwing (David Sobolov), Bumblebee blacks out. Meanwhile, teenager Charlie Watson (Hailee Steinfeld) is facing challenges in her daily life, including not getting along with her family and holding a job at Hotdog on a Stick, wishing she could have her own car. On her birthday, she stumbles upon a yellow Volkswagon Beetle, which turns out to be Bumblebee in disguise. As Bumblebee starts to get along with Charlie, the Decepticons Shatter (Angela Bassett) and Dropkick (Justin Theroux) are hot on his trail.

The story is written very well, telling a story that works (mostly) well as a prequel to the 2007 movie while being very easy to follow and able to stand up on its own. This is backed by some very good casting, especially on the parts of Hailee Steinfeld as Charlie Watson and pro wrestler/internet meme John Cena as Agent Jack Burns, in addition to some very well-timed and largely tasteful humor. There are a number of moments between Charlie and Bumblebee that evoke The Iron Giant in a good way, taking a note from the Transformers: Prime cartoon, which feels better than the human/robot relationships in the other live-action movies. As a prequel, there are at least a handful of retcons that more observant viewers of these films may notice (such as, among other things, the origin of Bumblebee’s lack of a voice box and some backstory of Sector 7), though the story is overall good enough that these discrepancies can be overlooked.

One thing of note is the general design of the robot characters is different than in previous live-action films, though generally for the better. The designs are sort of a happy medium between the G1 cartoon and the live-action aesthetic, being much more heavily streamlined than in Age of Extinction and The Last Knight. On Cybertron, the robots (and the planet Cybertron) much more closely resemble the G1 incarnations while taking cues from the Fall of Cybertron game, whereas the Earth designs of the characters Blitzwing and Bumblebee take more liberties (the latter being a cross between G1 and the 2007 movie in robot mode) while new characters Shatter and Dropkick (the latter of whom isn't wholly original; it’s complicated) make use of the aforementioned streamlined “movie” look. As noted in a special behind-the-scenes video following the screening, they actively tried to give each robot a unique silhouette and color scheme, which, combined with Travis Knight’s animation experience and there being a much smaller robot cast this time around, worked out very well in the end.

Though there are a lot more quiet moments in this movie, the few action scenes are just as intense as ever, though improved by the shrunken robot cast. Bumblebee only ever battles one or two Decepticons at any time, making them much more intimate and increasing the tension of each fight. This is helped by the more conservative presence of explosions, making them feel much more well-deserved. The final battle with Shatter and Dropkick, who feel a lot more fleshed out than most other past Decepticons, is a true spectacle, as are flashback scenes to the war on Cybertron, thanks to more intimate framing that makes you feel like you're in the middle of the action.

Bumblebee is very solid and legitimately the best of the Transformers Live-Action Film Series. The change in Director to Travis Knight provides a much-needed change of pace and an overall much different feel from the other live-action movies; I would even dare say it’s what the 2007 movie should have been. Transformers fans, whether they enjoy the live-action movies or not, will find some entertainment in this movie, as it represents the best of what the film series has to offer (more die-hard fans will also enjoy some seemingly Easter egg references to other incarnations of the brand). Non-fans are likely to find some entertainment as well, as the movie is more accessible to casual viewers than previous films. The idea has been floating around that there is potential for this film to be good starting point for Hasbro to reboot the live-action films and/or use it as a starting point for a planned cinematic universe; if this turns out to be true, I wouldn’t mind either way.

To read more Transformers-related reviews, see our Transformers Review Hub.

Second Look - Transformers (2007)

Note: This review contains unmarked spoilers relating to the Transformers Live-Action Film Series.

While the Transformers brand had not been dormant since the 1980s, its popularity did stagger a bit, to where it managed to run continuously in some form for about 20 years without really hitting mainstream popularity. In 2007, the first ever live-action movie based on the brand, simply titled Transformers, was released to mixed reception, however it did manage to bring more attention and renewed interest to Transformers as a whole, which eventually lead to a tetralogy of films before shifting more towards the direction of a Cinematic Universe. In honor of the 10^th anniversary of this film, we present a second look at Transformers (2007).

Years ago, war was waged on the planet Cybertron over the Allspark, a special cube that is the source of Transformers life. To prevent the Decepticons from using the Allspark for their own gain, the Allspark was launched into space, only for Cybertron to begin slowly dying, resulting in a mission to retrieve the cube from planet Earth, where it eventually landed. On a US military base on Qatar, the Decepticon Blackout stages an attack to steal important data by disguising himself as a downed military copter, with William Lennox (Josh Duhamel) and a group of other military men to fend for themselves. Meanwhile, Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) is buying a used car, one which turns out to be more than meets the eye.

The story is pretty easy to follow and, by comparison to other movies in the Live-Action Film Series, is pretty light on overt references to preceding Transformers lore. Regardless, while it is written pretty decently, it is not without its flaws. In particular, there are some scenes involving toilet humor that could have been removed to make a stronger narrative, a particularly infamous scene being Bumblebee (voiced by various audio clips early on, Mark Ryan at the end) taking a piss on Agent Seymour Simmons (John Turturro). One other scene that could definitely have been shortened significantly is a scene where the Autobots wait outside Sam’s room as he searches for his grandfather’s glasses. When his parents enter the room, his mom (Julie White) comes to the conclusion he had been pleasuring himself; it’s safe to say that the length and awkwardness of this entire scene are not the only reasons it received an edit for some television broadcasts.

In spite of this, the movie is actually really funny in places, especially in scenes involving actors Bernie Mac (as used car salesman Bobby Bolivia) and Anthony Anderson (as computer expert Glenn Whitman). There is also plenty of action in the movie, although it’s usually more interesting to watch whenever it involves the military, to the point where one can wonder why William Lennox is not the main character in place of Sam Witwicky, if only because Sam’s side of the story seems to have been written a bit more awkwardly than Lennox’s side. In scenes not involving the military, however, two standout action sequences are the fight between Autobot Bumblebee and Decepticon Barricade (Jess Harnell), and the intense highway battle as the Autobots and Decepticons travel to Mission City for the final battle; a highlight in the latter is Decepticon Bonecrusher (Jimmie Wood) making use of his vehicle mode tires as though they were roller skates.

Optimus Prime (right) and Bonecrusher (left) battling on the highway.

There are still some small plot holes in the movie, although most, if not all, of these gaps have since been filled in by tie-in media, mostly in the numerous comic books for the first three movies released by IDW Publishing (to be more fully resolved by writer/editor John Barber’s material for the Dark of the Moon tie-ins). This includes one particular hole in that Barricade, in spite of being featured in the highway battle, does not appear in the battle in Mission City; the Reign of Starscream sequel comic answers this by showing that Barricade crashed somewhere on the highway.

While it is a flawed story, it is still fairly enjoyable in spite of this. However, what makes the film particularly noteworthy is its impact on later installments in the Transformers franchise. The Allspark is a concept introduced in this film, which would go on to be featured as a major plot device in the 2008 Transformers Animated cartoon, which also took inspiration from this film for the initial Cybertronian design for Megatron. Another impact on Animated was the decision to change the character of Hot Shot in the planning stages to Bumblebee, explaining his personality shift from previous incarnations, although Hot Shot would later appear in the series via a minor cameo in Season 3. This movie’s depiction of Bumblebee also notably had an impact on the later Transformers: Prime cartoon, in that Bumblebee speaks through various sounds before regaining the ability to speak at the end; he would continue to be voiced in the (as of this writing) currently-running 2015 Robots in Disguise cartoon, a sequel series to Prime. This is to say nothing of Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) featuring a mouth in this movie to allow for wider range of expression, which has since been adopted into other media for this reason.

Optimus Prime as seen in the 2015 Robots in Disguise cartoon, also voiced
by Peter Cullen.

The robot characters themselves are animated spectacularly well, with the animations managing to hold up after 10 years. Due to the way they are designed, it can be really interesting to see all the moving parts on the robots, including while idle, acting as a good display of skill on the part of the animators at Industrial Light and Magic. That being said, the robot designs have since been simplified starting from Age of Extinction, adding more solid parts and brighter colors to make them easier to keep track of for some audiences. If you’re an observant viewer, however, it is still possible to tell the characters apart on screen in part due to their varying silhouettes, though the smaller robot cast in this movie compared to later installments certainly helps when watching the climactic battle in Mission City.

The acting of the robot characters is good, most especially Peter Cullen notably returning to voice Optimus Prime beginning from this movie after having not voiced the character since the original 1984 cartoon. Peter Cullen has since become more of a staple in most Transformers media, proving his sheer passion for the character in the quality of his acting. Megatron, however is not voiced by Frank Welker in this movie, rather he is voiced by Hugo Weaving, who does an interesting take on the character as he does a good effort in emulating Welker. Welker himself would not actually voice the character again until The Last Knight, though he did have a presence in the movies beginning from Revenge of the Fallen, among them voicing Galvatron in Age of Extinction. Charlie Adler does an interesting take on Decepticon Starscream, although he would continue to improve with the character’s increased screentime in the following two movies (before Starscream’s death in Dark of the Moon).

The music by Steve Jablonsky, while good, is unfortunately not particularly memorable, though the score has since been released on CD for those who are curious. The licensed music, on the other hand, stands out from the other background music, in particular the song “What I’ve Done” by Linkin Park, which has an association with the movie perhaps on par with the association Stan Bush’s “The Touch” has with the 1986 movie. Also noteworthy is the song “This Moment” by Disturbed, which makes an appearance during the ending credits.

While the movie isn’t exactly being celebrated to the same extent as the 1986 animated feature, there is still some effort to pay homage to the movie’s 10^th anniversary. As part of the Japanese release of the The Last Knight toyline (over there called Transformers: The Last Knight King), Takara Tomy has a special subline called Transformers Movie The Best, featuring repaints of previously-released Movie toys to make their paint schemes more accurate to their on-screen counterparts. Ironically, however, none of the toys featured are actually from the original Movie toyline, though their heart is definitely in the right place.

This, for example, is based on a toy from the Revenge of the Fallen toyline.

As part of the movie’s continuing legacy, as mentioned previously, the Live-Action Film Series has since evolved into a Cinematic Universe, beginning with The Last Knight. There are, however, some rather noticeable retcons that more observant viewers can spot between the 2007 movie and The Last Knight. For instance, while The Last Knight makes a big deal about Bumblebee being able to speak again, including through some dialogue making overt reference to when Bumblebee was last heard speaking, the moment loses some of its intended impact when one remembers that Bumblebee was, in fact, able to speak at the end of this movie, only to be immediately forgotten in the sequels and related media taking place after the 2007 film. Then there’s the nature of the Allspark, which gets forgotten about by the end of Age of Extinction and for the entirety of The Last Knight, in favor of introducing the character Quintessa as their creator in reference to the Quintessons from the Generation 1 continuity. The Last Knight also seems to stretch the truth a little in regards to how long the Transformers have been on Earth, even factoring in other tie-in media, in a similar fashion to how the Marvel Cinematic Universe started to contradict what was presented in Iron Man regarding how long the organization S.H.I.E.L.D. has been around.

Though things have definitely changed about the Live-Action Film Series since its initial release, Transformers (2007) is still enjoyable to watch after 10 years, though it does have some rough edges that would eventually be improved upon in later installments. While divisive, the movie can still be credited for bringing the Transformers franchise back into the public eye and creating renewed interest in the brand after nearly 20 years. As a bonus, this movie also saw the return of Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime, and later Frank Welker as Megatron, in subsequent media. It’s not a movie for everyone, however I would still recommend giving it a fair shot if you are at all curious about it, especially since the movie itself has had its own impact on Transformers media.

[OLD] Transformers: The Last Knight

This film has been re-reviewed. Read it here: https://trophyunlocked.blogspot.com/2023/06/second-look-transformers-last-knight.html

Following the release and success of Age of Extinction, an effort has been made to turn the Transformers Live-Action Film Series into a Cinematic Universe as a way to cash-in on the recent trend to emulate the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This includes releasing a new Transformers film every year, or at least for the next three years, starting with the fifth installment, subtitled The Last Knight. In my anticipation to see this movie after enjoying the previous installment, I was able to view an early screening at AMC in 3D IMAX, in what was called the Optimus Prime Time event, in which attendees to the screening also received a free T-shirt and lanyard commemorating the event. While the movie certainly has flaws, I still enjoyed the movie, which I see as a good sign for the new direction of the Transformers Live-Action Film Series going forward.

In medieval England, the Knights of the Round Table are struggling in an epic battle, prompting the wizard Merlin (Stanley Tucci) to summon the aid of the Knights of Iacon, whose existence he had previously kept secret. In the present day, the world has fallen into chaos in the wake of Optimus Prime’s departure at the end of Age of Extinction, with Transformers being hunted down by a new group called the TRF. Meanwhile, on Cybertron, Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) has met his maker, Quintessa (Gemma Chan), who subsequently brainwashes him, now under the name Nemesis Prime, into carrying out her plan to restore Cybertron at the cost of Earth.

The plot of the movie is generally easy to follow, although I will admit that the plethora of new characters introduced may muddy things for some people, as it now gives them more things to keep track of. That said, the movie seems to have embraced going in a sillier direction where it does not take itself so seriously, which I think will help the new Cinematic Universe in the long run. Though there is plenty of humor and well-spaced action scenes, a lot of the humor comes from an increase in cursing and rude gestures, however these things are not new to this continuity. On the subject of continuity, there are plenty of call-backs not only to previous installments in the Live-Action Film Series, but also to a number of things previously established in the Transformers mythos.

The visual effects are spectacular as always, especially in 3D, with each robot designed in a way to help them stand out, such as bright colors and more streamlined designs. There are, however, still a good amount of moving mechanical parts to provide some solid eye candy for those looking for it. The acting is also good, with some voice actors providing multiple roles in a way that still sound unique from each other. A couple stand-outs include Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime (as always) and Sir Anthony Hopkins as Sir Edmond Burton, the latter of which provides a good source of humor and helps tie the story to its medieval theme.

Transformers: The Last Knight is an excellent installment in the Transformers Live-Action Film Series and a great celebration of the series' 10^th anniversary. The story manages to make great use of its medieval theme, though, while not a complicated plot, there’s evidently at least a couple of retcons to try and make it work and the huge number of new characters can make some viewers not follow the fight scenes as easily. Still, this movie proves to be a step in the right direction for the new Cinematic Universe and is easily a must-see for both Transformers fans and fans of the Live-Action Film Series in particular.

RED 2

As part of the 2013 Summer of Reboots and Sequels, one movie to be released recently is not only a comic book movie, but also a sequel, to the 2010 movie RED, this one simply titled RED 2. While I really enjoy the original RED (it's one of my favorite comic book movies ever), in fact finding it better than the original comic book of the same name, I wasn't sure what to think of the announcement of a sequel to the movie. Knowing how sequels are usually not quite as good as the original, save for rare exceptions like Spider-Man 2, I was afraid that RED 2 was not going to be as awesome or funny as the original (A Good Day to Die Hard probably left a bad taste in my mouth). Fortunately, upon seeing the sequel, my fears have been alleviated.

While shopping at a Costco, Frank Moses (Bruce Willis) and his girlfriend Sarah Ross (Mary-Louise Parker) run into Marvin Boggs (John Malkovich), who believes he is being followed. While Sarah shows excitement over seeing some more action, Frank doesn't believe Marvin and tries to avoid him; as Marvin drives away from the Costco, his car soon explodes. After attending Marvin's funeral, where Frank believes he is faking his death (apparently he does this a lot), trouble finds Frank once again as he is taken for interrogation. Meanwhile, a man named Jack Horton (Neal McDonough) is trying to get to Moses, with the intent of not only killing him, but also getting information out of him regarding a secret project called Nightshade.

The story serves as a nice continuation of the first RED movie and is actually pretty well-written. New characters are introduced well and returning characters have consistent characterization. There are also a few plot twists within the movie, but they feel like genuine surprises and feel rather natural, rather than seeming to come out of nowhere like other twist-laden films. While the story is very definitely nothing like the comic on which it is based, they managed to take the heavy (good) changes made in the original and run with them down a nice path. And since sequels tend to want to feel bigger, the story sees the gang traveling to different locales during their mission. One of these locations happens to be Moscow, just like in another recent Bruce Willis feature, but with the way things happen in RED 2, I couldn't help but think that this is how that other movie should have been written the whole time.

One thing the original RED was good about was its humor. Thankfully, RED 2 sees a return of its predecessor's brand of humor, having consistently great timing with its jokes to boot. Like the first film, this is probably one of the only movies I have ever laughed the hardest at, and despite certain jokes already being in the trailer, I found them to be much funnier in context. The jokes hit more often than miss, and their delivery helps keep a consistent atmosphere with the first that feels more fun, rather than taking itself wholly seriously the entire time.

Helen Mirren returns as the entertaining Victoria Winslow from the original RED.

Like with the first RED, RED 2 was, I think, cast really well. It's nice to see actors that return from the first movie reprise their original roles, while newer actors do a good job playing their parts. One role that I think deserves mention, based on him getting poster billing and playing a semi-major role, is Lee Byung-hun as Han Jo-Bae, a man who is hired to kill Frank Moses over the course of the movie. Having seen him in both G.I. Joe movies (so far?), while I'm not one of his major fans, I do think he was a good choice for the character he plays in this movie. As for the music, while it does its job well in setting up the tone of a scene, it's not especially memorable, though it is a little more memorable than most others. Also, although I don't normally talk about this, I do think its sort of a nice touch that the protagonists are often seen wearing outfits that contain at least some sort of hint of red in them, since it's a subtle way of tying into the film's title.

One last thing I think should be brought up is the opening animation and scene transitions. The film opens on listing some of the major credits, all the while showing scenes from the original comic in a motion comic style in homage to the source material. Unlike other motion comics I have seen, however, this one feels like its more alive and I applaud the animation team that managed to pull off something of good quality that only lasts for a few moments. Then there's the scene transitions; whereas the first one pulled off some great transitions in the style of postcards, the sequel pauses the last scene in a comic book style before transitioning to an opening shot of the next major country the characters visit. While it does take you out of the story flow a little bit, I still enjoyed the way these transitions were pulled off.

RED 2 is a very enjoyable unnecessary sequel to a great comic book movie, in fact being at least on par with the original RED (which one is better may be up for debate). This is a great recommendation for people looking for a good action flick this summer that doesn't take itself too seriously, although you might want to watch the original RED first in order to get more familiar with the characters. Fans of the original RED will definitely have a good time watching this movie and may end up laughing hard in their seats. If a third RED movie is ever made, I hope they keep doing what they've been doing with the other two, because whatever they're doing, it seems to be working.

And as far as DC offerings so far this summer, RED 2 is much more enjoyable than Man of Steel.