TRANSFORMERS (2007)

TITLE
Transformers

STARRING
Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Jon Voight, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, Anthony Anderson, Rachael Taylor, John Turturro

WHAT THE BOX DOESN'T TELL YOU
So, I didn't know the story and that tends not to matter because Optimus Prime (an Autobot) explains it all in the second act to Sam Witwicky (LaBeouf) and his soon-to-be girlfriend (Fox). The box doesn't really mention the levity employed by the film though it is really Transformers strong suite, in addition to some very impressive CGI, which ten years from now we will all probably gasp at thinking it was remotely evolved.

WHY I WOULD RENT IT AGAIN
I know, I should be hanging my head in shame right? Since when do I like the summer blockbuster? At least in adulthood it is a rarity that I've fallen prey to the mass commercialism of such a film. Burger King, eBay, The Strokes (wait did they have to pay for that advertisement or did LaBeouf just show up in that shirt?). You get what I am saying - these movies are about product placement, cross promotion, and for God's sake, selling some toys, DVDs, soundtracks, etc.

That said they did the following and they did it well:
Casting - great job, I just love that little kid from the Even Stevens, Tyrese was totally underplayed and probably under paid, and when was the last time Anthony Anderson was completely ridiculous, yet loveable for it?
CGI - Bravo, and thanks Michael Bay for your obsession with filming in part or whole around downtown Detroit (because I like to think it looks like L.A. too.)
Autobots - The scene when they are in the backyard evading the parents, hysterical!!

And the things we had to suffer through:
Suspending our disbelief: On countless occasions, but let's think about it, Autobots learned English through the Internet....when was the last time you saw proper English on the Internet, and seriously what about the Megatron whose been frozen since before we had computers???
Scenes - Making out on Bumblebee while the other Autobots watch, you're kidding right? This is a family film and we did not need to see that!
Weapons - We'd just go nuclear, because if the Autobots and Decepticons can travel light years here, they are already way more advanced (as is their weaponry) and we would have but once choice.

WILL MY GIRLFRIEND/BOYFRIEND LIKE IT?
Totally! At least that's the phrasing we used when last I held a Transformer in my hand.

SPECIAL FEATURES
Well, what all the special features tell you is that the 2009 sequel has at least this film to live up to, and that's a lot considering Michael Bay is real hit or miss kind of director.

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