There are two types of moviegoers, story/plot fans and action/special effects fans. Those of you that love a good story and good acting will detest Transformers: Dark of the Moon. If you're a fan of special effects and seek entertainment on the big screen, a few hours of escape and some righteous butt-kicking and loud explosions, you've already enjoyed Transformers and might even have forgiven Michael Bay and team for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. You'll like Transformers 3, and there's no question, it's going to open big this weekend, especially with Bay actively encouraging people to see it in 3D and encouraging theater owners to crank up the projectors so that the 3D version isn't dull and lifeless.The story starts out surprisingly strong, with a conspiracy that reaches back fifty years to the Cold War, the Apollo program and even the disastrous meltdown of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor. With overlap from X Men: First Class and the yet-unreleased horror film Apollo 18, the first 45 minutes or so were really good, far better than I expected. Then the entire film collapsed into incoherence propelled forward just as much by setups for sarcastic repartee and embarrassing homophobic jokes as by anything to do with the increasingly MIA storyline.
Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBoeuf) is back as the clumsy nerd-done-well, though after jettisoning the annoying Mikaela (Megan Fox) he's now living with equally gorgeous Carly (Rosie Huntington-Whiteley). Inexplicably, they're in a relationship and sharing a funky warehouse apartment that has enough space that Autobot Bumblebee can actually come up a freight elevator and park in the living room. Even though Sam's unemployed.
See, there I go again, expecting a storyline that's logical, a film that makes sense, and some sort of narrative thread that has elements introduced, explained and resolved as the film proceeds. That's just not what Transformers: Dark of the Moon is about, however, so if you're one of those story-driven film fans, you will want to skip this film. On the other hand, if you're just looking for a big screen entertainment with truly amazing visual effects, this is escapism at its finest. Turn off your brain so you don't worry about story and don't grimace every time Huntington-Whiteley is trying to act and you might just find this a great ride.
Continue reading Review: Transformers: Dark of the Moon.
Michael Bay is one of those film directors that people seem to either love or hate. I know of many film aficionados who cringe when they hear that Bay is involved in a project. His signature style is certainly big, loud, flashy, with big, big special effects and, too often, a weak or completely incoherent story line.