More than meets the eye

Rating: 10/10 (29 June 2007)

Just like every other adolescent boy back in the mid-80's, I was a big fan of the original Transformers cartoon series. I was so much of a fan in fact, that I have since steered clear of any of the other spin-offs: from the CGI version to Beast Wars to whatever else is out there. I felt that nothing could meet my standards since the bar was set so high. Then I had proof in my 6-year old son: he has seen some of the newer versions and did not seem to liken to them the same way everyone else did to the original. One day my son told me he saw a preview for the new Transformers movie and he could instantly tell I was excited (...any reservations I had about this potential flop, I kept to myself). We rented the original movie and my son was hooked after watching it. There is no single thing I can point out that makes it so good (so I'll take the easy way out and say), it just is.
So anyway, I went to the screening in DC last night and had reservations about the whole thing right up until the opening scene...and then I was blown away. The movie was everything that I had hoped for plus more. First, the visuals: anytime you have the likes of Bay, Spielberg, or DreamWorks working on a film, you're golden. Put them all together and you are left with your jaw on the floor. The sound effects were great too. When the first robot transformed (very early on in the film), it made that sound that has been ingrained in my head since the 80's and gave me chills. At that moment, practically everyone in the audience roared in unison. The only pauses in action (and there was a LOT of it) came during the comic relief. With a movie like this, one would normally expect the comedy (if any) to be mediocre but in this case it was top notch. I laughed out loud more watching this film than I have watching some comedies. For any parents out there though, just a heads up - there is a masturbation joke (I personally didn't mind it even though I was there with son...you sort of have to anticipate this sort of stuff being that it's rated PG-13). The writers really brought their A-game for this one. For me, dialogue is one of the most critical elements of a film and can easily make or break it. It wasn't the typical cheesy or dumbed down material you'd expect for a movie based on a comic book or cartoon series. The dialogue largely contributes to what makes this a solid movie as opposed to a mere special effects free for all. And there are definitely throwbacks to the original scattered all over the place, with my fav being when Optimus says "Roll out!" Transformers is a great movie that every kid at heart will enjoy. It extends beyond the greatness of the original series in many ways and will easily create a new generation of Transformer fans. I can't wait until it hits theaters so I can go see it again.