More Robots than the First, Less Plot

Rating: 5/10 (1 July 2009)

I did not grow up with the original Transformers cartoons. My older brother did and I was able to watch the cartoon somewhat when I was little, but it was not enough to make me a huge fan. Enough to make me like it, but that's about it. When I saw the first Transformers, I was impressed. Yes, the robots played second fiddle to the human characters, but the movie had a plot to follow. The humor was there but not in your face and the comic-relief characters were actually funny. Now, the 'fanboys' of the Transformers cartoon had a tendency to hate the movie because there weren't enough Transformers and said they wanted more of them.
Well, they got their wish.
"Revenge of the Fallen" definitely has more robots than the first one. Where they came from is briefly explained before it is dropped, however, and unless you were a die-hard fan of the cartoon, you wouldn't know who these new characters were because the audience is never completely introduced to them! My brother had to tell me the names of most of them. Not only are they not introduced, but, except for a handful of them, they only get a short time on screen. The Autobots from the first film, except for Optimus Prime and Bumblebee, only appear briefly, if at all. The new Autobot Twins fall short of doing their job. I'm sure they were meant for the kids and for comic-relief, but they were just annoying, even to me and I have a high tolerance for annoying characters (I actually did not mind Jar Jar in Star Wars, to give you an idea.) They served no purpose to the plot whatsoever. They were fine when they were introduced in the beginning fight, but they never left. They just tagged along with the protagonists and were pretty much ignored by everyone. Wheelie, a small Decepticon with a smart ass attitude, wasn't really annoying, especially compared to the Twins. He would have been good for comic-relief and he actually has a role in the film. Not a large one, but he does do something for the plot.
Speaking of plot, this movie has a poor excuse for one. It's there, but it's difficult to follow. The first thirty to forty-five minutes or so was decent. It was a nice setup and connected well to the first film. But once the conflict was introduced, everything became chaotic. The romance is not engaging at all as any issue Sam and Mikaela have to deal with is solved within a scene or two. Issues and characters are dropped with no explanation as soon as they have no importance to the plot anymore, while characters like Leo stay in the entire movie yet contributes nothing to the film. The plot builds up sloppily and the ending is anti-climatic. They obviously wanted to wrap up the plot completely at the end and they are obviously setting up for a sequel. The anti-climatic ending could've been fixed, I feel, if Micheal Bay would have left some plot points, what few there were, open to conclude in the next film, similar to "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest." It wouldn't have save the messy and weak plot, but it might have made the ending less of a disappointment.
One thing that bothered me more than the lack of plot was the excessive amount of swearing and sexual humor. If the first film would've been similar, this wouldn't bother me. But because the first film had only a handful of scenes dealing with swearing and sexual humor, it comes off as very immature in this film. No, this is not a kids film, but considering its popularity with children, you'd think Micheal Bay would've toned such things down, not jack it up. It adds a very tacky dimension to the film.
There are a few redeeming qualities. Visually the film is wonderful. The robots are just as impressive as the first film and the fight scenes are just as epic. The music was good. Those who wished for more robots than humans got it. There are many nods to the cartoons which fans will appreciate. The acting isn't horrible, in fact it's pretty good, even though the characters are flat.
Overall, this is what I expected the first film to be like. I'm sure many people did and when we all saw the first film, we were blown away at how surprisingly complex it was for a film based on toys and an 80s cartoon. This film, however, is no where near that impressive. Is it worth seeing? Sure, especially if you're a Transformers fan, but don't waste your time and money to go to a theater to see it. Wait for it to come out on DVD and buy it then or rent it. It's nothing amazing, but it's not the worst movie out there. It's a good movie to watch on a rainy day, but not one to see over and over.