As a fan of the series that entertained me throughout my childhood, it’s hard to be objective on this one. On the one hand, I feel like this is what Transformers fan really wanted and deserved, not the Michael Bay atrocities. On the other, I wonder how much of my opinion is biased because of my love for the series and knowledge of the backstory. If not a fan, my rating would likely be quite a bit lower.
The rise of Optimus Prime and Megatron amidst the power vacuum and civil war on Cybertron is dramatically motivated and fun to watch, and the subtle changes in Megatron’s eye color along the way were a nice touch. While the backstory behind the Decepticon logo is revealed, explaining where the Autobots logo came from was a missed opportunity.
It’s said that Cooley desired to get a voice cast as impressive as that of The Transformers: The Movie, and he has done so. So great seeing contemporary stars like Hemsworth, Johansson, Hamm, and Buscemi getting into the roles and taking them seriously. Loved seeing the origin of Starscream’s scratchy voice. Keegan-Michael Key is perfect as B-127/Bumblebee. The light comedy from all of the characters works well, except for the one crack from Elita-1 as she is whisked away to her potential death.
The animation is stunning and only improves as the movie progresses. Thankful the animators had the courage to conceive and animate a fully fleshed out Cybertron, showcasing it in exquisite wide shots.
Shocked that Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg produced, Hasbro really went all in on this. Sad to see it didn’t quite work out financially, though, and that the plans for a proposed trilogy have likely fallen apart. Interesting that it was an Australia/Canada co-production.
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