Exciting Yes. But Also Disappointing

Rating: 6/10 (25 June 2009)

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is as exciting as summer blockbusters go. The signature Michael Bay explosions are definitely there. The machinery and the cars were all a great sight to see, as well as Megan Fox. The robot transformations scenes, the chase scenes, the fight scenes, all very excellently staged and executed as far as visual effects are concerned.
However, for this particular blockbuster, I think the main problem is story-telling. When we understand what the Fallen meant, it seemed insignificant already. Focus is seriously lacking. It seems that story telling fell secondary to the explosive special effects and occasionally lame comedy schticks (particularly from Sam's mom and his roommate Leo).
Part of this problem is time management. Everything in the script took too long to tell on screen. One example of a particularly over-long sequence is the climactic run of Sam to deliver the Matrix to Optimus Prime. It was one very extended series of indistinguishable gun battles interrupted by seemingly endless scenes of our two heroes running. Of course, these running scenes had to be in slow motion in order to emphasize Megan's jiggling anatomy for the boys in the audience (haha!)
As a whole, it is OK for a lazy afternoon with the kids, as we did so today. The kids found it awesome and extreme, as could be predicted. However, we know there could have been better story-telling by its director, who seemed to be more concerned with the superficial embellishments rather than the core spirit of the story.