Strange Film

Rating: 9/10 (22 July 2009)

Peter Travers gave this film zero stars. It has been almost universally panned. Panned by critics everywhere . . . The movie earned $500 million worldwide as of yesterday. What it is, is not easily known. It is a strange film. The pacing is so relentlessly frenetic and certain. Everything falls according to law. The message of the film, if one should choose to believe there is one is not even known by the film itself; that is to say it, as a film, has no awareness of itself. Every scene is vividly and painstakingly detailed. We are immediately presented with two distinct worlds. A kid going to college and an intergalactic dispute involving two rivals of a robotic alien race. There is not a dull moment in the film. It jumpcuts through ludicrous transitions. Everything is over the top. The stereotypes are overblown. If you have not seen Megan Fox, you will not forget the way she was introduced to you in this film. It also possesses an unmistakable 80's feel while also seeming like it came from the future. Everyone is intense, paranoid and certain. Every scene is some completely different venture. It falls into bizarre, hypnotic, Dawson's Creek sequences. Everyone in the movie is on stimulants. One thing that took me my surprise was how committed the characters were to this alternate reality. Some evil robots called Decepticons are trying to obtain a dark artifact on earth to revive their old earthbound ancestors, hence, the "fallen". Meanwhile, Optimus Prime and the Autobots are hunting for the last of the Decepticons and trying to protect the artifact. The immense detail and variety we are presented with in this film places it on a separate pedestal. There are goodies everywhere. We are made to understand the story, and there isn't a single bit that slips by. I am truly perlexed as to what sank this film in the minds of intellectual America, i.e., the critical elite, and how they failed to see the sweeping clarity of the ideas and what the whole picture is. The movie has a strange, supernatural relevance and I would not be surprised to see it become a cult classic. There are just too many great lines, insane ideas, outrageous reactions, society commentaries and amazing robot battles. It's also funny and the humor in the movie is just, what is the word? Yes, that's the strangest part of the movie: the humor. The range of jokes and events we are presented with, electric shocking, moms banging into hanging pots, lines like, "Whoa. We shouldn't share stories with each other. Ever." not to mention, "I'm under the scrotum!" and an appearance by John Turturo who was the last person I ever expected to see in this film and had no idea was going to be in it. Rainn Wilson, also (Dwight from The Office) has a turn as a smarmy lecturer who says "I have reached the climax of my lecture." The cinematography. It flows at a strange pace. It's always perfect. Too perfect? On topic. Too commercial? One huge commercial? Do you know those commercials you see at the beginning of movies at the theater for Pepsi or some other company that has enough to spend on a feature budget? This film looks like that all the way through. This film is 9 different films spliced into one. It rambles down a bunch of pathways a long way. There is a Methamphetamine quality, or Adderall tone to it. The focus is so sharp and unwavering. Optimus Prime is the great American. Red and Blue with white eyes. Turns into a truck. This movie catapults so far into bizarre territory that any review of it by current standards would not make any sense. It is one, long, continuous epic American commercial for America itself, but I think it plods into a new consciousness that is as terrifying to get used to as some of the robots themselves. The detail and thought and consideration that went into this film adds up to something that explains something larger than life. It is like an endless infinity Pepsi commercial. The exaggerations, the puns, the absolutely bizarre dialogue. This is not a normal movie. This is not a summer blockbuster, although it was masquerading as one. The movie strikes at the heart of everything, on all cylinders, and when it's over, it's done. It didn't forget anything. I have read many other reviews of this movie, baffled as to how anyone came to such conclusions. I think over time many prominent reviewers will recant and write a new review. As for an explanation of such a violently divided movie experience, I can only suggest it is something to do with consciousness. The widespread reaction to the film is as peculiar as the movie, and sometimes applause is not all an indication of success. But there is a wild artistry and current of madness and abandon running through this picture. It's markedly different. It is succinct and separate from any other film in its neighborhood. It tries a crazy thing. I should hope prominent reviewers such as Roger Ebert and Peter Travers watch the film again and write another review.