An incredible visual display but it could have been much better

Rating: 8/10 (5 July 2007)

Growing up on the "Transformers" I knew I would see this movie and I pretty much got what I thought I would get. The thing about a movie directed by Michael Bay is you know what your going to get just like you know what your going to get when you see a movie directed by Martin Scorsese or Tarantino. First off, even though I am not a huge fan of big Summer blockbusters and movies loaded with CGI, I must admit that this movie has some of the most awe inspiring action sequences I have ever seen on film. I must hand it to Michael Bay for being a master of the visual but god is his storytelling really bad. I just could care less if the characters in all of his movies died. The writing is so corny with all the usual lame one liners and cameos by the usual suspects like Bernie Mac. Even with all the flaws I looked the other way because the robots looked so great. My main problem with the film was that they could have made it so much more authentic to the cartoon. Basically taking the best elements of each. For example, in the original show the transformers get most of the dialogue. In the movie the Decepticons barely talk to each other at all. What the hell is that ? Starscream and Megatron don't even resemble the original characters at all but I must admit Optimus Prime is very cool except for him having lips. They even got the original voice which was a nice touch. I am actually hoping for a sequel because I am hoping they will fix some of the problems that kept this from being one of my favorite action movies ever. To capture the true flavor of the original the movie must be a little darker at least for me. It's about a civil war for god sakes ! Of course I know that Hollywood will always compromise quality for money. I know they have to sell toys and market to kids and adults. Overall, I got what I expected and the action scenes made up for the lame dialogue and story. I finally found a Michael Bay movie that I can watch. It's a miracle.