• Release year: 2024
• Director: Josh Cooley.
• Producers: Michael Bay, Aaron Dem, Tom DeSanto, Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Don Murphy, and Mark Vahradian.
• Screenplay by: Eric Pearson, Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari.
• Cinematography by: Christopher Batty.
• Music by: Brian Tyler.

Shotgun Commentary: one of the biggest surprises of the year. Unless you still expected something from the transformers franchise, that is.

Review

After countless disappointing sequels that tirelessly searched for a new low to reach, here comes Transformers One to ruin the whole thing. Amidst the ashes of mediocrity left by everything with the Transformers tag attached to it since 2009 (don’t fight it, just accept it), a new feature has risen with a level of quality that seemed impossible a couple of days ago.

Action with purpose

Transformers One has done what the franchise should’ve a long time ago: go back to animation. Flawed rendering and CGI left behind, this instalment has finally achieved what none of its predecessors could, creating clean transformer fights where it’s clear which piece belongs to whom. There are plenty of action scenes (almost most of the film, being honest), so it is crucial that the audience can see what is actually going on, especially considering most of those scenes include dozens of transformers moving at once.

From humour to heartbreak, curiosity, tragedy, excitement, and pure adventure, each action scene has its own gravity and message. The use of this genre to convey so many different emotions is absolutely beautiful and adds an unexpected complexity to the storytelling. Of course, none of this could’ve worked quite as well without Brian Tyler in charge of the soundtrack. With an incredible track record that includes films like Abigail (2024), Ready or Not (2019), and Now You See Me 2 (2016), it comes as no surprise that his work is, yet again, completely breathtaking.

Wait, what?

As much as one can enjoy saying nice things, it’s time to highlight a pretty big amount of nonsense that accompanies the brilliant action, hiding underneath it and hoping nobody would notice it’s there. Firstly, why would a transformer work out? Their pieces don’t get bigger or smaller unless…well, stuff happens. But it has nothing to do will exercise, why would a machine need to exercise if it can’t build muscle or resistance? It is a silly thing, but it does get send you on a pretty big spiral of thoughts from which you’ll need to find your way back before you miss the whole film.

Now, to more important issues, in a world that has the same gravity as Earth, why would anyone build buildings upside down?! From all the futuristic, robotic designs they could’ve gone with, upside-down buildings? Really? It’s almost as ridiculous as their obsession for cursing knowledge and wishing for ignorance and slavery. Surely, sometimes ignorance is preferable, but slavery? Why would anyone in their right mind wish for that?

Then again, the whole story is a bit like a Gruyère in that sense, if you keep asking questions about everything that doesn’t make sense, you won’t watch the film at all. When do they transform? What makes them transform terribly or amazingly? Why does Cybertron look like Asgard?… It’s endless, really.

All too familiar

The characters hold most of the weight of the story, as such, they both make and break the story as they go, and here is why. The characters are pretty well-built, minor development defects aside, they are likeable, relatable, hilarious and complex enough for the story that’s being told. However, the casting is another matter entirely.

While all the actors are quite famous and their voices somewhat recognisable, Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson are a bit much. They are great voice actors, but their voices are so recognisable they can be distracting at times, especially Hemsworth as Orion Pax. Particularly when he starts wielding a huge hammer… Sure, Optimus usually wields either a hammer or a huge sword, but wouldn’t it have been better to give his the sword…?

Even if Sentinel (John Hamm) also has one and you don’t want him to look like the next Sentinel, maybe change his sword and not Optimus’…? If it had been any other voice actor at all, it would be fine, but Hemsworth wielding a sword while Johansson runs around on a bike kicking the hell out of villains, all the while trying to retrieve some blue cubes filled with energy… Sounds a bit too familiar, no?

Sure, you might be thinking “if something works, why change it?”, but the thing is, that’s applicable for John Hamm voicing Sentinel, Buscemi voicing Starscream, and pretty much all the others who play characters similar to their usual roles, but not exactly the same.

Evolve? Who?

Still, there is something in favour of Orion and Elita-1 (Scarlett Johansson): their characters are a delight to follow, and their growth, while predictable, is quite engaging. The same can’t be said for D-16 aka Megatron, voiced by Brian Tyree Henry, who goes rogue in less than it takes you to blink every single time a minor detail doesn’t go his way.

Of course, we know how it’s going to end, but there is no need to make him so contradictory. He switches moods like McAvoy personalities in Split (2016). Worst of all, what makes him snap is not even reasonable. The motive is good, but his reactions make no sense and, while this author can respect a good old-fashioned, one-man rebellion, almost everything else he does is an overexaggeration.

Leaving the best for last, and I’m not talking about the cheeky Jazz (Evan Michael Lee) cameo, let’s talk about B-127 (Keegan-Michael Key). Being brutally honest, the film would be nothing without him. After a while, anything that isn’t action is so void of substance that if Bee wasn’t there to be ridiculous and lift your spirits, the film would have become really tedious. Thankfully, future Bumblebee is adorable, hilarious and savage. Definitely the best addition to the feature, as usual.

All in all, Transformers One is one hell of a good time wrapped up in a bunch of shiny metal parts and liquid blue lights. It is definitely not the kind of movie you go watch for a life-changing experience. Nevertheless, it is one worth watching in cinemas to properly enjoy the adrenaline-filled action sequences.

Thanks to Paramount for big screen access! Transformers One will be released the 11th of October in the UK.

Advice to take from this movie:

• Add a Bumblebee to your life, everything is better with a Bumblebee.
• If your short-tempered friend is incapable of dealing with his emotions, suggest therapy before he totally loses it.
• A wise old warrior is the best character you can add in an action movie.

What’s your take? Have you watched Transformers One? Don’t hesitate to let me know your thoughts in the comments section below, or leave a message in my contact page! For more reviews and cinema-related articles, check out the rest of my blog! 😀