No Longer My Transformers...But...

Rating: 8/10 (5 July 2011)

I adore the Transformers. For me, they rank third behind Superman (and the DC Comics Universe as a whole) and "Star Wars." There was something so intrinsically and viscerally cool about normal looking vehicles and contraptions that could turn into giant, sentient robots. I ate up the original Generation One toys and the three seasons of the Sunbow cartoon up with such relish, and pretty much believed that these characters and this story could never be fully realized in a live-action movie.
Of course, I was wrong with 2007's "Transformers," a film I enjoyed then and thoroughly love now. It filled me with such nostalgic gladness, but I knew even then that, despite hearing Peter Cullen's baritone protruding from the metallic lips of an honest-to-God, real (well, CGI, anyway) Optimus Prime, that this was no longer my time or my era. Generation One was dead and gone, and something entirely different had replaced it. However, I felt that the spirit of "The Transformers" remained and that was good enough for me.
Then, came the train wreck that was 2009's "Revenge of the Fallen." Blame for this debacle comes in many forms, not the least director Michael Bay's rush to start production on the film in the oncoming wake of the Writers Guild strike. The film was sloppy, poorly edited, choppy, and at times, really offensive. Yet, there were good things about it, just not enough to make me want to see the movie more than once.
"Dark of the Moon" corrects many of the mistakes of "Fallen," and expands and expounds upon the original film. It hearkens back somewhat to Generation One, but really does ring the death knell for that era of the franchise. This Optimus Prime, despite the same voice, is not the same Prime we all grew to love and look up to. This is a character that comes off as an actual general at war and a leader of a displaced race seeking refuge and peace. This Prime made the hard decisions to finally stop the Decepticon menace and fully embrace Earth as his home and mankind as his protectorate. That make me love this version of the character and look up to him even more than his G1 self.
Now, "Moon" is overlong, by about an hour. Excise the goofy, sophomoric, potty (literal) jokes, the stupid characters like Sam's parents, Agent Simmons -- hell, most of the human characters, then you have a nice, fast-paced, stream-lined action film. I never really cared for these people, at least not in the way I cared for the Transformers, particularly the Autobots, and what's oddest to me is that the newest additions to the cast of characters, like Carly, were the most intriguing and interesting.
The entire Chicago battle sequence is breath-taking and shows Michael Bay at his gratuitous best. The guy knows how to film battle scenes and ILM's CGI work is seamless and realistic. Everything about this movie seems expensive, but in a good way.
And what can I say about the original Galvatron, legend Leonard Nimoy, portraying good-guy-turned-villain Sentinel Prime? Well, it's good to hear Galvatron's voice one last time.
I don't know what will happen next with the Transformers' live-action franchise, but I'm intrigued to see it continue on in the hands of another set of filmmakers and designers. I'd love to see the blocky, chunky Transformers of the G1 era return, and maybe even hear Frank Welker as Megatron at last...but I doubt it'll happen. Why? Simply because these just aren't my Transformers any more.
And I'm okay with that.