Robots Gone Wild Transformers 2007

I have a confession to make...I never watched the Transformers cartoons. In my younger years my family did not own a TV and the only cartoons I watched were Saturday morning cartoons on the rare occasions we stayed in motel rooms while travelling. My husband, on the other hand, was one of those kids who sat wide-eyed with his friends fifteen years ago and watched every Transformer episode ever made. When one of those friends suggested we all go to see Transformers when it came out I thought it sounded like fun...for the evening without the kids, of course, not for interest in the movie itself.

We start with army helicopters making their way across a desert wasteland - in what is identified as the Middle East - with cargoes of soldiers headed back to base and, from their conversation, out of the war.

Their going-home preparations are interrupted by an unidentified radar blip incoming from the desert. Escort jets are sent and they identify the thing as a US Army helicopter...one that got shot down not long before and had no business flying into base. This helicopter changes into a massive robot who starts blowing things up.

Back in the States, Sam Witwicky is trying hard to raise money and grades to get his very first car, mainly by selling his grandfather's explorer stuff on eBay. He lucks out and gets an old Camaro, and shortly thereafter a gorgeous blue-eyed dark-haired beauty he's been ogling. Everything's great. Until he finds out his car is alive; that it is, in fact, an alien robot.

Basic plot summary: the Camaro, a robot called Bumblebee, summons his friends (four other robots who turn into various automobiles) to find the All Spark and stop the bad robots who also wish to find it. For the sake of those not familiar with Transformers, I won't reveal any more so you'll have some plot surprises waiting.

First off, the computer-generated images were absolutely mind-boggling! The credits reveal Hasbro - a well-known producer of computer games - had a hand in creating this film along with Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg. The action scenes look absolutely fantastic in the theater, but those of us who saw it agreed it probably wouldn't be nearly as interesting of a movie on a regular home television. If you have a 50"+ flat screen, though, this is the DVD to buy when it comes out in stores.

As far as the cast, Jon Voight put in a nice performance as the Secretary of Defense, though his part in the movie was considerably less than the roles I am used to seeing him in. I had never heard of Shia LeBeouf prior to seeing this movie (though a Google search tells me he has played in several other films), but I must say I was very impressed with his performance as the insecure, bumbling teenager-turned-hero Sam Witwicky. Though the acting was pretty good for a basically action movie, there didn't seem to be all that much stress on the human characters with the exception of Sam and his new girlfriend (Megan Fox).

The robots are what really take center stage, mainly deathmatch scenes and high-speed chases, of which both are pretty spectacular. All through the movie I couldn't help but wonder just how long it took to create even a minute of this movie. The only thing I would have liked to see is at least a couple of scenes that zoom out to give us a better picture of what is happening and where everyone is at a given time...all the action scenes with the exception of the arrival of the first robot are shown very close-up which does make for a fascinating viewing, but also tends to be a little confusing to watch.

I cannot say how closely this movie followed the original cartoons or the comics, but I can say that as someone totally unacquainted with Transformers I still absolutely loved the movie. There is some mature humor involved, as my husband put it, "it's for those of us who watched it as kids but aren't kids anymore", and the first half of the movie was absolutely hilarious! If you're planning on taking your kids, though, pay close attention to that rating because you might not want them repeating some of those humorous scenes.

In short, this is a great action movie, better than most I've seen that originated in comics or cartoons. I think this movie will be enjoyed by action lovers whether they are fans of Transformers or not. If you are a fan, I am told it is a pretty accurate film with only a couple of omissions (which I'm sure they'll cover in the sequel). It's time to relax and go see a movie!