Michael Bay's Big, Loud and Exhausting Franchise is Fueled by Heavy Metal Chaos and Pure Adrenaline
by robotGEEK
It's surprising to admit, but I've never seen any of Michael Bay's Transformers films until now, except for the first one. Admittedly, Michael Bay is a polarizing director because just even the mention of his name emits a strong reaction from literally everyone. And I'll admit, while I really loved his early stuff like The Rock, Bad Boys, and hell, even Armageddon, I've not been the biggest fan of his since. I don't really care for how he shoots films these days - the nonstop zany camerawork, quick edits and handheld style is hard for me to get into, and it's these very reasons that I tend to not really like a lot of current directors either because they all pretty much follow this trend. Just look at the guys who took over the Bad Boys franchise who somehow make Bay look tame compared to how they chaotically shoot. But I digress.
Over the holidays I threw on the first film just to have something big and loud to watch having just seen the hella fun Battleship (2012), which reminded me a lot of a Transformers film. So I thought, since it's the holidays, why not just power through the entire franchise because finding a franchise I hadn't seen before is something I enjoy doing from time to time. I think we all know going into these that we're not going to get great art or anything, or even anything with a deep message or meaning. I think most of us go into these simply because we can shut out brains off and just watch something that's big, loud and impressively made, and that's exactly what I was looking for and honestly, these films delivered.
I should mention that one of the reasons I held off on watching these was because I just do not like the new Transformers designs. Having grown up on the cartoon, toys and magnificent feature length animated film, I had no desire to watch something that took such a wild detour from the traditional style we grew up loving. But yea, one day I saw the first film was on Netflix and thought, "what the hell, it's been nearly 20 years, lets give it a go". And I'm happy to say that for the most part, I'm glad I did. Like any long-running franchise, it's a mixed bag of quality from film to film for sure, but even in the bad ones, there are certainly things to admire, even if the film as a whole just wasn't very good. Let's begin.
Transformers (2007)
I think the first thing that caught me off guard was Shia LeBeouf. I had forgotten he was in some of these when he was younger, and most importantly, I had forgotten how funny and charming he could be because um, we all know what he's like these days. His physical comedy in these films was a pleasant surprise and it was a pleasant reminder of the kind of actor he used to be. The film in general was good and enjoyable. I wouldn't say it's one of the best ones, but I liked what Bay was doing and how he shot it. This was at the point in his career where he began experimenting with his particular style, but still keeping the chaos at bay so to speak. That would come later. I guess restrained would be a better word, and it worked well. At the end of the day, it was enjoyable, but didn't knock my socks off, and I still didn't like their designs.
Transformers: Revenge of The Fallen (2009)
This might be one of the weakest and roughest to sit through in the series. Everyone returns, but the energy is really off and I couldn't figure out why. It felt like one of those situations where they have all this money (the budget certainly looks bigger) and talent but it all feels like it's just going through the motions and there's just no love or heart in it. I was surprised, because I tend to love the sequels more than the first films. Ultimately it lays down some groundwork for things to come, but that's pretty much it. It felt tedious and rushed. One things for sure though, I was constantly surprised at all the familiar faces that pop up in all of these films. There are actors you would never expect to see in a Transformers film, but I think that adds to the fun.
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
Loved this one. For me personally, this is where the franchise comes alive and the action is just insane. Chaotic doesn't even begin to describe it, and even within the chaos, there is some mightily impressive set pieces in here. I found myself thinking, "there is so much beauty in this chaos", because the action, with it's mix of very impressive CGI, practical effects, insane stunts and a plethora of pyrotechnics done in a way I'd never seen before, it was all just so impressive. Whether you liked the story or not, I think we can at least all admit it's visually and technically impressive. This would also be the last one with Shia. I'm not sure if he was under contract to do a trilogy or whatever, but he did the first 3 and this was the last time we see him. Contract obligation or not, I'm sure he was ready to move on since these films look incredibly grueling to make. For me though, this one felt epic in a way I wasn't expecting and I loved that about it. In fact, I might just say that this was my favorite one.
Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)
I quite enjoyed this entry as well. Mark Wahlberg replaces Shia LeBeouf in the lead and you know, he's actually pretty good. Mark might not be the strongest actor, and to be honest, sometimes he looks like he's just going through the motions in some films (I don't blame him though, the dudes a workhorse and makes a ton of films), but I really felt he was putting in the work here. I felt it was a solid follow-up to the events of the previous entry, Dark of the Moon, and pretty much kept kept everything in check regarding the tone, action, plot, effects and general vibe. Kelsey Grammar shows up in villain mode and does a fantastic job. There was a moment where he was coldly threatening Wahlberg at some point and I swear he could easily have voiced any of the robots because he sounded an awful lot like Peter Cullen for a minute. But that voice. It's so impressive. Because Michael Bay was using IMAX cameras for some of this one, he had to restrain the frenetic camerawork he typically uses since these cameras were so damn big and heavy back then, and the visual language was so much easier to take in and appreciate. The guy can deliver some stunning images sometimes, and he delivered that here as well as the previous entry. Sadly, this would the last Transformer film I enjoyed as the franchise begins to lose its legs with the next one.
Transformers: The Last Knight (2017)
With Ehren Kruger (Top Gun: Maverick, F1) exiting as screenwriter, the film suffers. After 4 pretty solid entries, this 5th one feels tired. The cracks are starting to show in the foundation and it was a bit too ridiculous (it's a Transformers movie, I know) for my taste. I can't even say that I was impressed by anything here really. I'm sure there were some impressive action, but I can't recall anything specific that stuck out. Mark Wahlberg returns, Anthony Hopkins joins the cast and it was just all too silly for me.
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023)
Much like with The Last Knight, this one feels tired and the franchise has definitely overstayed it's welcome by this point. Introducing The Maximals (robot/animal hybrids) doesn't do the film any favors, although switching Michael Bay for Steven Caple, Jr., gives the film a completely different feel and vibe. And on the plus side, you can actually see whats happening in the action because Caple, Jr. doesn't throw the camera around the way Bay does. But that's about all the praise I have left for this one because it definitely feels like it's time to say goodbye at this point. To be honest, I didn't even finish it.
Final Thoughts:
I'm glad these films exist because we need mindless epic entertainment sometimes. These are great films to watch with your kids or younger siblings, and despite the varying quaity from film to film, there is a lot to love about them, even the bad ones. Dark of the Moon and Age of Extinction (Parts 3 & 4) were my favorites, Revenge of the Fallen is the weakest, and the last 2 have worn out their welcome by this point. These films are not easy to make, and the amount of technical wizardry needed to pull them off is so impressive. Not many directors can handle that amount of chaos happening in a single frame all at once. At their core, these films are heavy metal chaos charged with pure adrenaline and carnage, and there's something to admire about that. It's funny, there are plenty of moments where I just could not tell who was fighting who or what was going on because of the way Michael Bay shoots and how they designed the robots, but I didn't necessarily care either.
You may have noticed I left out Bumblebee (2018), but that's on purpose since it's a solo film and I think it works best on it's own. Funnily enough, it's one of the better Transformer films too. I've read that Michael Bay wants to do one more, as he sees this franchise as his baby and would like to return for another outing, but at this point he's been making these for nearly as long as James Cameron has been working on the Avatar films, and sometimes it's best to just move on.
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