I won’t lie to you, I loved the first Michael Bay
Transformers movie in 2007. It was big,
loud, and the Transformers were super cool. I was familiar with the
Transformers from the 80s cartoons, but the movie updated them in a slick way. I saw most of the sequels, but not the last one,
because Bumblebee was my favorite, and it looked a bit like he might not make
it through that last one.
In any case, in the 2007 Transformers, Bumblebee is already
on earth, masquerading as a yellow VW bug in a used car lot owned by Bernie
Mac. He then partners up with Sam
Witwicky, calls the rest of the Autobots and fights Megatron and the
Decepticons. This movie begins prior to
those events. Bumblebee is shown with
the other Autobots, already in full-on 80s version car-modes, in a war on
Cybertron. The Decepticons are winning,
and Optimus Prime scatters his troops, sending Bee to earth. Once he arrives, he encounters a military
group running some training exercises, and just as they are about to turn on
him, a pair of Decepticons arrive.
In the ensuing battle, Bee loses his speaking abilities, and
his memory as he goes offline. Having
lost track of him, the Decepticons partner up with the military. Bumblebee ends up hiding in a junkyard until
he is discovered by Charlie, a 17-year old who is not entirely sure how to deal
with the loss of her father, her younger brother, her mom’s new boyfriend, and
her across-the-street neighbor with a crush on her. After waking up Bee, the two hang out and
become buddies, just in time to help each other escape once the Decepticons
find out where he has been.
Placing this movie where they do, they could either keep
this version going, in effect re-booting the entire franchise. Or, they could
stop, and this movie functions as a prequel to the others. Either way, this is one of the best in the
series. It’s a smaller, tighter story, with only a few transformers in it. Director Travis Knight made a really fun
flick with everyone’s favorite Transformer.
Bee’s lack of speech, plus some really cute reactions make him feel like
a pet, and he inevitably works his way into your heart. The effects are
astounding, and he looks amazing in both robot and car form. There are still probably too many humans in
this robot movie, but they are entertaining enough.
- Hailee Steinfeld is charming as Charlie. She’s a teenager, so she over-reacts to everything. I enjoyed the aspect of her continuing to work on the car her father left her to feel close to him. I also appreciate that she slowly grows to appreciate her mom’s boyfriend, as he tries to do the right thing for her.
- Jorge Lendeborg Jr. plays the across-the-street neighbor, Memo. He’s the comic relief, and does a great job at that. Also, surprisingly muscular for the dude who is supposed to be the ‘nerd’.
- John Cena continues to be incredibly watchable as Agent Burns, the military dude who begins to realize they are on the wrong side.
- John Ortiz plays Dr. Powell, who thinks we should partner up with the Decepticons. Come on, guy, they are literally called Decepticons.
- Glynn Turman plays General Whalen, who thinks it’s a good idea to take all the information they can from the Decepticons and then turn on them, because that’s going to go well.
Overall, the movie is super fun, and it looks great. If you
liked Bumblebee before, you’ll love this. If you were a fan of the 80s
Transformers cartoons, you’ll love this.
If you like 80s music, you will sing out loud with the soundtrack
repeatedly – which I did. No shame.
8 out of 10 – really fantastic. I particularly love the bit
where Bumblebee gets into the house and accidentally destroys most of it.
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