Very crowded but not very satisfying

Rating: 7/10 (3 July 2011)

Like too many movies recently, this rides the unnecessary 3D bandwagon for no reason. It adds nothing but increased ticket cost and eyestrain. No question, the effects are great (and would have been equally so in 2D), but the plot is very disjointed, with many odd segments that really make no sense, even when well done. The best performances were John Malkovitch and the barely credited Alan Tudyk. They were just great to watch, but so far off the main plot line, I was just not sure why they were there. I did love hearing Leonard Nimoy's voice as an autobot, but again, it was just too much in an already over-stuffed film.
Let's face it, an overly long feature movie based on kids' mechanical toys is certain to have its detractors, but it does have a lot of rapid fire eye candy, and is a great summer movie. I did enjoy it, but I can't help but wish it had skipped the 3D, and invested that money in better editing, writing and some attention to continuity. It's always depressing to see a major production that really fails to be great, despite huge effort and expenditure, because it simply forgets the key rule of movie making. Have a great story, and tell it well.