Transformers Review

Man. Geeks have a hard time missing good stuff at the movies this year. Grindhouse (movie geeks), Spider-Man 3 (comic book geeks), and now Transformers (cartoon/action figure geeks). I mean, I am so pleased with this movie, because I had no idea what to expect, I had no idea what people were saying about it, and I had no idea I was going to see it until about twenty minutes before the show. And let me say, the movie does not disappoint.

Basically, Transformers, good Autobots and bad Decepticons, come to Earth in search of the Allspark, which was the cause of a war on Cybertron (the Transformers' home planet). But the humans don't know that the robots in disguise are looking for this Allspark. But then these attacks come, these insane attacks, and why? Oh yeah, and a kid named Sam, long descendant of a guy who discovered Megatron, has his great-grandfather's (guy who discovered Megatron) glasses, which hold the location of the Allspark. Along the way, Sam picks up the insanely hot Mikaela, and then the army gets involved, and then there's a ton of fighting.

Tons of fighting. I mean tons and tons and tons. That's all the movie is. There's a bunch of huge fights, and each is more exhilirating than the last. The slow motion sequences in particular accentuate each action set. Explosions with scraps of buildings and vehicles abound, you will never wonder where the action went.

Highlighting the sequences are the amazing visual effects. The Transformers are some of the most detailed characters ever created, and every time they transform is more interesting than the last. Just the amount of detail is staggering. Oh yeah, and they make the Camaro awesome. I want that car. It's even yellow and black! Ah so cool.

Shia LaBeouf definitely steals the show from the rest of the cast. I mean let's be honest. It's a Transformers movie, so there are going to be cheesy lines. Yet somehow Labeouf seems to be able to deliver them well. And he has his comedic moments which work very well. I'm telling you, Mr. LaBeouf is coming along very well as an actor. I wouldn't be surprised if we see some Oscar-worthy performances from him soon. I mean, he was good in this, but it wasn't really an acting movie. I wonder how many stunts he did?

It's all good, all the time...right? Well it's good, but it's far from perfect. For one, the script and story give a feeling of tacked on, rather than integrated. Granted, the Transformer lines are good and all, but the story is a bit lacking. The script doesn't help. I didn't really feel for anyone besides Shia, and even more so Bumblebee. That hacker and her friend? I don't even remember how they came out. And I know you have to have the soldier stereotype, but he was very hollow. You could even say that about Shia's character at times. The movie is exhilirating, though a bit shallow.

But do you really care? The movie was a good length, and it flew by. I thought it ended at a good time, just so we want a little more (I smell a sequel). I mean, it is quite ironic that the movie really isn't more than meets the eye, but what does meet that eye is spectacular and enthralling. I wholeheartedly recommend it.

4/5