Dark of The Moon sustains with overlong explosion-laden redundancy, but not without some improvement over its predecessor

Rating: 6/10 (18 June 2017)

Behold the third entry of the Transformers saga. After the mediocre sequel that was 'Revenge of The Fallen' in 2009, Michael Bay has made his return to the director's wheel with a second sequel that manages to breath a just a little more life back in the franchise. It is loud and it is a very special effects heavy with lots of explosions, lots of destruction, lots of innuendo, and lots of screaming -- all of which is packed into a bloated 154-minute runtime. In addition, it slightly improves upon one major aspect that plagued the previous film, and that is boasting a more coherent plot with slightly more ambition. On the other hand, this does not eliminate the problems in Ehren Krueger's script which sporadically hinder the loud and overlong experience. Another change in this entry lies in the casting of Victoria Secret model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley who steps into the damsel-in- distress role, replacing Megan Fox was fired prior to production. This film tells the story of Optimus Prime (voiced by Peter Cullen) who leads the Autobots in a race against the Decepticons lead by Megatron (voiced by Hugo Weaving) to retrieve a mysterious Cybertronian artifact discovered by NASA back in the 1969 Apollo 11 mission. Meanwhile, Sam Witwicky (played by Shia Labeouf) has graduated college and has just landed his first white-collar job to support him and his new girlfriend Carly (played by Rosie Huntington-Whiteley). When he and Carly are unexpectedly dragged into a heated war between autobots and the decepticons, they must enlist the help of the National Intelligence Agency, head by Mearing (played by Frances McDormand), to aid them in yet another battle on Earth.
Michael Bay normally falls short of ambition when it comes to storytelling. The premise, which unlike the previous two installments, boast a surprising amount of substance dealing with the Space Race during the JFK administration. The story to is able competently connect landmark political history with the Transformers universe. But when it comes to sustaining the plot, that is where things falter. In return, he tries to make up for this an enormous slew of eye-dazzling action sequences complete with extravagant special effects and enough explosions to put dozens of firework shows at once to shame. Then it comes to the big question: are these massive special effects do enough to distract from the thinly developed plot? For a while, they do, especially for those with longer attention spans to parades of visual effects than the narrative. Bay indulges in his signature blow-em-up style with countless shots of the giant metal monsters punching, shooting, and slashing each other to pieces, a gimmick that gets taken to a bulky advantage in the final act during the climatic battle in downtown Chicago. The destruction of the skyscrapers is spectacular and fun to sit through, but goes on for so long to the point where it gets a little numbing. On the surface side, the performances are about as good as actors can get in the franchise. Shia Labeouf is fine in the role, and working along his side is Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, the model-turned-actress who turns into a rather one-note performance. Her role is rendered to feel identical to the fashion in which Megan Fox's character is written in the previous films, and that is serving as a sex symbol for teen boy, especially as she is introduced in the first ten minutes in a shot showing her lingerie- clad bottom. Arguably the most surprising new face in the cast is Frances McDormand who, like the actress she is, turns in a competent performance. Needless to say, it is nothing that shouts for wide recognition as is the rest of cast here including Ken Jeong who has a minor (and gravely obnoxious) role during the first half.
Transformers: Dark of the Moon is an overlong, but somewhat competent special-effects action thrill ride that is likely to please those hungry for some explosive visual heft signature to Michael Bay's trademark directorial style, but disappoint those seeking for something more ambition. As far as many of Bay's films go, this one sustains a level of entertainment that is not too low, but too high either. Don't go in expecting something ambitious.