Transformers
Jul. 23rd, 2007 12:57 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gervase_fenI'm probably five years too old to be properly nostalgiac for the original toys, although I did read all of the comics that my youngest brother bought when he was ten. So when Megatron says "Starscream, you fail me again" I can sort of nod along appreciatively at the reference. I know that Bumblebee should be a VW Beetle, but I'm not scandalised that he's a Camaro.
Anyway, like the robots themselves, this is a hybrid, made up of lots of other action movies - there's a bit of True Lies in there, a touch of Black Hawk Down, and the domestic scenes play out ET again but supersized (imagine if ET was 20 foot tall, and skulking around the garden trying not to be seen by Elliot's family.)
Michael Bay delivers the mega million dollar money shots at the end, and there are some pleasingly old-school back projection FX shots that reminded me a lot of the Terminator (this film may be directed by Bay and produced by Spielberg, but really it's the best James Cameron action film in a decade.)
As a fan of the West Wing, I was thrilled to see Ron Butterfield heading up an above top secret government agency - and pulling rank on Jon Voight's Secretary of State for Defense. Elsewhere, the acting from the juvenile leads is either adequate (Shia LaBoeuf as Witwicky, engaging but over-doing the nervous teen gabbling schtick) or rubbish (Megan Fox, not as good as Witwicky's pet lame chihuahua.)
I looked at my watch at least four times, but would probably go and see the sequel, if they can afford to film it.
Anyway, like the robots themselves, this is a hybrid, made up of lots of other action movies - there's a bit of True Lies in there, a touch of Black Hawk Down, and the domestic scenes play out ET again but supersized (imagine if ET was 20 foot tall, and skulking around the garden trying not to be seen by Elliot's family.)
Michael Bay delivers the mega million dollar money shots at the end, and there are some pleasingly old-school back projection FX shots that reminded me a lot of the Terminator (this film may be directed by Bay and produced by Spielberg, but really it's the best James Cameron action film in a decade.)
As a fan of the West Wing, I was thrilled to see Ron Butterfield heading up an above top secret government agency - and pulling rank on Jon Voight's Secretary of State for Defense. Elsewhere, the acting from the juvenile leads is either adequate (Shia LaBoeuf as Witwicky, engaging but over-doing the nervous teen gabbling schtick) or rubbish (Megan Fox, not as good as Witwicky's pet lame chihuahua.)
I looked at my watch at least four times, but would probably go and see the sequel, if they can afford to film it.
