Transformers
Unless you’ve been living in a cave for the last few months, you’ve probably heard about the Transformers movie. Based on the iconic toy line of robots that can transform into all sorts of vehicles, from cars and trucks to fighter jets and tanks, it’s been hoped that it will be one of the big blockbusters, a rare non-sequel in a summer of threepeats.
I can say with confidence that this movie delivers, and it manages no small feat: to take a toy line from the Eighties and Nineties, and make it not just interesting, but fascinating, both for fans of the show, and total newcomers.
The plot follows young Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf of Disney Channel and Holes fame) as he prepares to get his first car. His father (Kevin Dunn) has agreed to pay for half, and he drives Sam to the local used car lot, where Sam is drawn to a battered 1975 Camaro. Of course, this is no ordinary car.
 The robot design is stellar. Seen here is Autobot leader Optimus Prime. |
Rather, it’s Bumblebee, one of the heroic Autobots who have traveled to Earth to retrieve the Allspark, an ancient artifact with unimaginable power, able to create worlds, and bring life to the lifeless. Of course the Decepticons, led by Megatron also want the Allspark, and the two sides have been fighting over it for millennia.
In all honesty, though, the story, although far better than the standard summer blockbuster fare (Live Free or Die Hard, I’m looking at you), it mostly exists as a vehicle for action sequences. And what action sequences they are! Amazing live action stunts blend seamlessly with awe inspiring CG to deliver something just short of sensory overload, and it always manages to hover just this side of too much.
