A SOLID review of this movie!!! (Not just bitching)

Rating: 8/10 (28 June 2009)

Most of the reviews of this movie were so bad that even me, a die hard Transformers fan, was worried walking into the theater.
Having seen it, I don't know what everyone's problem is.
If you liked the original cartoon, you'll like this. It captures all the elements that made the original series so great. It's not Lord of the Rings. It's a toy commercial.
I guess I'll address some of the main complaints I've heard so far:
-Skids and Mudflap ruined the movie. -They weren't as bad as Jar Jar. No character could be. Sure the movie would have been better without them, but as I recall in the cartoon the humans would mostly hang around the smaller Autobots and at least the twins ones were given a bit of personality (annoying as they were...)
-Soundwave was a disappointment. -I thought it was a good idea to have him as a satellite. It seems like they couldn't quite decide how to portray him realistically yet remain true to his original character and alternate mode. He still does his thing, ejects Ravage from his chest, monitors communications. It was cool to have Frank Welker back in the role although I wish his voice had more vocoder and less Dr. Claw (or whatever that guys name was from Inspector Gadget). Hope to see more of him in #3. Oh yeah, Ravage was pretty cool too. Loved how they gave him his flank cannons like the original toy and cartoon.
-The plot was stupid. -Of course it's going to be a juvenile. It's Transformers. What did you expect. The movie even makes fun of the lack of plot at one point. (...agent Simons talking to Jetfire in the desert).
-Too many explosions. -What do you expect from a Michael Bay film involving a bunch of giant robots with giant guns.
-Too much camera movement and slow motion. -The constant camera movement made scenes that would otherwise be unbearable slightly less so. The slow motion allows you a closer look at the robots which is a good thing. On that note though, it would have been nice to see some more wide shots of the transformations to get a better idea of the complexities involved in the process. It does get hard to see what's going on at times.
-It wasn't as good as the first movie. -100% wrong. It actually corrects many of the problems from the first movie. There is more robot/human interaction and less focus on Sam. The pace is faster and moves the movie along quicker. More classic Transformer names as well. In the end, it left me wanting more but not feeling ripped off.
-Megan and Shia cant act. -Megan is never really given a chance to do anything other than look sexy. Does her character serve any other purpose? No. Who cares. Shia's acting is limited as well, but again who cares. The frantic character he always ends up playing works well in this case. All that Hollywood partying seems to have caught up with him it seems tho. On the IMAX screen he looked about 35 years old. His double chin was the size of my bed.
-Devestator wasn't on screen long enough. -I agree on that one. Would have liked to see more of him (and Demolisher too). My question about Devestator was; if Long Haul forms part of Devestator when he was climbing on the pyramids with agent Simmons then, how could he be in a different place fighting Bumblebee and co. at the same time. I guess the toys had doubles/repaints and even in the cartoon the Decepacons had all those jets that looked the same. Also, the set from the final battle in Egypt looks an awful lot like the middle eastern desert set used in the first movie.
Other notes:
-Most of the Autobot dialog could very well have been lifted from deleted scenes from the first film. You don't hear much out of anyone except from the twins and Optimus. Jetfire was the exception to this, fortunately. His character was great.
-Starscream is more reminiscent of his 80s cartoon counterpart in this installment. In fact all the dialogue in the movie reminded me of the cartoon. Total cheese, but appropriate for a kids movie.
-The CG wasn't as good as the first movie.
-Jetfire has an Australian accent for some reason.
-Transformers now cry, fart and hump legs.
-How did Blackout come back from the dead?
-Cybertron didn't sit right with me. Too barren and moon-like. Some interesting elements there, but too far removed from the cartoon in my opinion. One of the many parts of this movie that remind me of the Matrix.
-Wheelie was a great concept but the voice ruined the character. Whoever was doing the bad Joe Pesci impression was making me cringe.
-Nice touch that they included the insecticons, although unfortunately only briefly.
-I wasn't looking forward to seeing Arcee, but after seeing the film wished there had been more of her.
-The dog humping gets old fast.
-Could have done without the "robo bug down the throat" scene lifted directly from The Matrix. Anybody notice Hugo Weaving almost reprising his dialogue from The Matrix in that particular scene as well...?
-Did I see a small sharktacon in the kitchen wars scene? It was just out of the corner of my eye...
Over all, a fun movie. Worth seeing if you want to turn off your adult brain for two hours and escape into the juvenile lore of Transformers.
Check out my Transformers remix at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTSa4l1H8Aw