Has Enough Going For It Despite Being a Big Mess

Rating: 7/10 (24 June 2009)

The first live action Transformers film, just like any other film by director Michael Bay, yielded mixed opinions though most were at least entertained by it. With the sequel, Revenge of the Fallen, we see the film playing to its predecessors' strengths and weaknesses very largely, but the general scenario (in regards to judging the film) has changed a bit. In some ways this helps the film, while in others it's hindered by this.
Revenge of the Fallen's plot is simply all over the place, mostly due to the constant shift in settings. The starting point of the story is that the Autobots are now helping humans track down other Decepticons with Sam going to college and having to deal with Bumblebee, his girlfriend and one of this parents being more...unconventional than usual. But things only wind up getting more messy for Sam as the situation with the Autobots starts going in a not-so hot direction. By the time the film has ended, the viewer has gone and visited Sam's house, a college, a military base, airplane museum and Egypt.
While the film's plot does have more substance than its predecessor (which, granted, isn't exactly a challenge), it doesn't flow out nearly as smoothly, with practically every essential plot point being delivered very briefly and over-stressed without elaboration. In some ways, it almost feels as if the film doesn't care about losing the audience in its plot details, though anyone who pays attention, has seen the first film and is even faintly familiar with the original back-story shouldn't have too much trouble keeping up.
Stories are not where Bay has ever succeeded at, but rather the action is what he's noted for. And here, just like Transformers from 2007, the action is big, loud and overzealous. In fact, this film is to its predecessor what Gears of War 2 was to its predecessor action-wise: bigger, better and more bad-ass. The action has been captured much better than before, though it isn't without a few random explosions and "chaos cuts" that ultimately show nothing. That said, everything in these sequences are quite impressive to look at and are guaranteed to make the viewer's eyes pop. What most will likely remember is the rumble in the forest during the middle of the film, it's definitely the best scene in the film.
A few other select areas have seen a bit of improvement, but only slightly. The acting is a small step above that of the first one (with some obvious exceptions), the Transformers are properly given more screen time than the first film and there are a couple nice throwbacks to the original TV show (Starscream + Megatron=Not so pretty scenario).
However, there are also areas the film still falters on and, even in parts that are improved from the first, still hold it back. What most will likely hold against this film the most (and already have) is how the runtime really drags on a lot more this time around (despite only being six minutes longer). Even during action scenes the film's length will definitely show its cracks, which has made many already dislike the film. And while the acting is a step above the first film, this isn't to say it's good, and once again, the machines have more/better personalities than the humans (well, generally, the twins aren't exactly what I'd call "necessary inclusions").
This also brings up the amount of Transformers we see in the film, which has hit a pretty large number. However, many of these inclusions don't feel in the least bit necessary and others who could've (and should've) been emphasized/fleshed out more were barely included (I can only recall Ratchet having one brief, quiet line). If anything, the film details the Decepticons side almost as much, if not a bit more than the Autobots (though fans of the show probably won't mind this). Some of the machines we see in the film impress us (with one near the end being, well, big), though for every likable one there seems to be another than we could've easily done without.
While there's a lot that can be complained about in Revenge of the Fallen, it's still very possible to like and enjoy it. There's a greater sense of urgency with the higher stakes presented in the film, we see more of the Transformers themselves this time around (finally getting a bit of real screen time), the attempts at comedic scenes, while still falling flat, aren't nearly as lousy as those in the first film and again, the action is quite entertaining and is usually impressive (with some interesting twists here and there).
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is a film that will likely cater to only select viewers who are tolerable of long run-times and lacking (to say the least) plot lines. For my money, I'd say it's better than its predecessor despite still having some key issues, but it's a tough recommendation since there are a lot of easy turn-offs present throughout. If you go into this film expecting mindless action, you'll get enough of that, but your endurance may very well be tested and it's pretty much given you'll get more than you bargained for (whether this turns out to be good or bad is entirely subjective). I myself enjoyed the film very much despite its flaws and will likely watch it again down the line.