Movie Review: Transformers

Okay so I grew up with Transformers. I watched the cartoon religiously every day. I had most of the cars, although my preference was always for autobots. Strange since I seem to love the villains in almost everything else. My favorite was the bright yellow VW bug called Bumblebee. These were real metal models that transformed into robots. The new toys are just plastic and somehow lose some of their appeal for me. 

So I was a bit hesitant sitting down to watch this movie. My older brother absolutely loved it which should be a sign that I'll hate it. He and I don't always agree on films. But I didn't hate it. The movie was campy and silly in places (imagine autobots tiptoeing over a lawn to keep from crushing the grass) but it also had tongue firmly planted in cheek. There were some great scenes where the movie made fun of the series. The early scene with Bumblebee and the VW bug, the tag line repeated throughout the movie. It had a couple lines that made me laugh out loud. I was surprised. 

The action was well done although a little dizzying. The acting was fun, nobody tried to hard to be serious. Even Optimus Prime's over the top sentiment was possible to overlook. Some of his dialogue was terrible though. 

My only real issue with the movie was the glaring plot hole I found in the end of the movie. First why would the military attempt to take this hunted object to a crowded city. If I were them I would want to be as far away as possible from innocent civilians. And these were some seriously naive civilians. You would think that when the entire worlds communication system shuts down the people wouldn't treat it as a normal day. When they reach the city there are still people driving around like it is a typical day. If all of the world lost cell phone use, that city would have known about it in seconds. Trust me I've seen how many people are on their cell phones at the same time. They would know. 

All and all fun. Good popcorn movie as long as you don't think too much about it. I would still claim that Iron Man was a ton better and I'm excited to see Hellboy 2 which I have high expectations for. But I could easily watch Transformers again. After all Shia LaBeouf is amazingly cute. And yes I feel dirty saying that.