Reviewed: Transformers: Dark of the Moon [2011]

15 - 157mins - Action/Adventure/Sci-Fi - 29th June 2011

Our summer of sequels continues with the Transformers returning to the big screen with their third outing. After the rather disappointing Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen I have to say that my hopes were not particularly high for this one.

Dark of the Moon is set several years after the second movie where Sam (Shia LaBeouf) is struggling to get a job and return his life to normal and yet this still hasn't stopped him from bagging the most attractive girl in the city- Carly (Rosie Huntington-Whiteley). At the same time, the Autobots discover that a Cybertronian spacecraft crash landed on the Moon during the 1960's and race against the Decepticons to reach it first and protect the secrets that it holds. The two storylines overlap and voila the plot is born.

As always the visuals impress and are the best in the franchise so far but I ended up asking myself how is this different from the previous two and it led me to this answer- there isn't that much of a difference at all. Bay has upped the ante somewhat in regards to the amount of CGI he has crammed into the movie so expect more fighting, more action and a whole lot more slowmo. While many will think great more action, I see it as part of the problem though. There is only so many times that I can be impressed with a vehicle transforming into something else, in slow motion, before it becomes repetitive and I felt like I reached my limit in this film.

Aside from the first 10 minutes which dealt with the space race of the 1960's, it took a while for the film to get going. For the last hour or so though, I was enjoying what the film had to offer where it took on a Black Hawk Down kind of persona during battle scenes in the city.

Several issues I had: at 157 minutes the film tended to drag in several places and led to a rather rushed final scene that should not have been; the comedy element was greatly reduced despite a cameo from Ken Jeong aka Mr Chow from The Hangover; the new love interest did not impress with her acting skills at all and was more than likely brought in merely as token eye candy for the viewers, which she did succeed in; and most importantly, the plot had more holes in it than a Swiss cheese being used as target practice on a shooting range. And that is an understatement. Also there has been zero continuity between the trilogy of films so far which does not go down well with me.

I was more impressed than I thought I was going to be but as I said expectation had been lowered due to the extremely poor second film. I have to be careful here because I think the impressive graphics have partly blinded me to the rest of the cracks that appear in the film. All I can say is if you enjoyed the first movie or like good visuals then you will enjoy this one and if you didn't or want an involved and interesting plot that develops itself and the characters as the movie progresses then you won't get that here.

Rating: B-

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Movie Review: Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)

If you're watching the third film in the Transformers movie franchise for any other reason than to see giant robots smash everything around them into tiny pieces, you'll likely be disappointed. The plot is even more of a convoluted, melodramatic mess than its predecessor and an overabundance of characters, both human and machine, leave the story a confusing mishmash of borrowed ideas - from bad sci-fi flicks. Michael Bay's infamous love of slow-motion and revolving cameras accents an eye-rolling silliness that might not have been as apparent otherwise, and the creators' desires to conjure up increasingly bigger and badder Transformers forces the action to steer towards the realm of unfathomably unrealistic. At least the state-of-the-art special effects complement the colossal automatons - because little else does.

Though a two-time savior of Earth from the threat of the evil, advanced alien race of Decepticons, Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) still finds himself unemployed and unable to contribute to the ongoing efforts to keep the planet safe. When an ancient Cybertronian device is discovered on Earth, the leader of the peacekeeping Autobots, Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) determines to reactivate their previous leader, Sentinel Prime (Leonard Nimoy) to help protect the technology from the scheming Decepticon Megatron (Hugo Weaving). With the battle once again returning home, Sam, his former military allies, his new girlfriend Carly (Rosie Huntington-Whiteley), and the dauntless Autobots must wage war against insurmountable odds to free their home from total destruction.

Although Megan Fox wasn't the main appeal of the first film (admittedly she was about the only thing left in the second feature worth looking at), surprisingly, her replacement will cause audiences to miss her presence. Model-turned-one-time-actress Rosie Huntington-Whiteley doesn't add anything to the incredibly lengthy project and her role is made visually apparent with repeated shots of form-fitting clothing, slender legs and pouty lips. It's almost as nagging as the leftover characters continually dropped into the storyline from the previous outings: John Turturro, Tyrese Gibson and Josh Duhamel no longer have a purpose, but are brought back for the sake of a larger, recognizable cast (and perhaps contractual obligations).

The new additions are certainly no better. John Malkovich, Alan Tudyk and Ken Jeong are among the most noteworthy, all inserted purely for comic relief - the one element a Transformers movie couldn't possibly use less. Their characters are part of a series of bizarre inclusions that continue to stretch the weirdness boundaries of the Transformers universe - along with puerile presidential footage alterations, Witwicky screaming incessantly, overdramatic slow-motion and ridiculous speeches intended to be rousing. On top of that are the abundant cliches - a female National Intelligence Director insistent on preaching chain of command lingo and barking orders to deaf ears, stagey posing before and after battles, a destructive chase sequence on a highway, an overconfident, impossibly wealthy businessman who interferes with Sam's self esteem, and a final, epic, sustained fight that stretches over 30 minutes.

It's only the third movie and writer Ehren Kruger has completely run out of ideas, while director Michael Bay proves once again that his obsession with slow motion and cameras moving in circles around actors can ruin any moment. The editing remains incredibly annoying while the choreography continues to be overly complex, the robots largely indistinguishable, and the action exhaustive. Transformers just aren't fun anymore.

- The Massie Twins (GoneWithTheTwins.com)

The Massie Twins are identical twin film critics who have been professionally reviewing movies full time for over 5 years, appearing on TV, radio, online and in print. They are members of the Phoenix Film Critics Society and the Internet Film Critic Society and their work can be seen at GoneWithTheTwins.com

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Transformers 3 Costumes - If You Liked The Movie Then Wear The Costumes

With the third installment of the Transformers franchise of movies just out, no doubt fans of the movies will be flocking to see it. Many movie critics think this is the best of the franchise so far. And to some extent, the story looks to be the best. So if you have had the opportunity to see the movie and liked it, why not get your own Transformers 3 costume? There are quite a lot to choose from. And if you haven't seen the movie yet, why not wear your costume to the movie theater and really make an impression.

The basic synopsis of the movie is that a spacecraft that has technology that could tilt the balance in the seemingly never ending battle between the Autobots and the Decepticons has been found on the moon. There is a great rush to get to this spacecraft and use the technology to get the upper hand. Ultimately, the battle reaches it's climax on Earth with all the characters from the previous movies involved (except for Megan Fox's character Mikaela Banes but let's not go into that).

Like all the big budget action/adventure/sci fi genre movies, the film is packed with special effects and epic stunts. In fact, as is the current trend, the film has been shot in 3D to make the action and effects just that little bit more visceral and put you in the midst of the action. The film may not have a lasting cultural impact on our existence but it's a great piece of entertainment to while away an afternoon.

So, like most of these movies, there is plenty of merchandise that can be purchased. There are games, action figures and, most importantly, for the purpose of this article anyhow, costumes.

Transformers 3 costumes are all about the Robots. Let's face it, as nice and heroic as Sam Witwicky is, nobody really want's to dress up as him. We want to be one of the Cybertronic robots of course.

You can get a full range of costumes for pretty much all the main Transformers. You can be one of the Autobots or be the villainous Decepticons. Whatever takes your fancy or mood at the time.

If you want to go full on, you can get the full theatrical costumes. These are complete costumes that make you look like the Robots. They are possibly the closest thing you can get to being the real thing. The full theatrical costumes are quite expensive but well worth it if you are a diehard fan of the Transformers and the movies.

If your passion does not go to a full outfit, then you might want to get get something a little more comfortable. You can get the T-shirt and mask combination costume. This is your standard T-shirt, with a print of the body of the particular robot and a separate face mask of the robot. The face mask does not completely cover the face and can be slipped on and off depending on your wishes.

The Transformers 3 costumes are available for men and women and most also include child sizes. You can get the popular Bumblebee, Ironhide and the heroic leader Optimus Prime on the goodies side. And on the baddies side, you will find Megatron.

Transform yourself into Bumblebee, Ironhide or Optimus Prime at Transformers 3 costumes, including the complete Bumblebee 3D costume

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Movie Plot Thoughts: Transformers 3 Dark of the Moon

In the weeks leading up to quite possibly the most anticipated movie of the summer (although the Boy Magician - Harry Potter - will surely give it a run for its money), Transformers Dark of the Moon has characteristically released tidbit-after-tidbit of its plot. The much-maligned franchise hasn't successfully done this in four years, since the blockbuster Transformers 2007 live-action film, as Revenge of the Fallen was a cinematic desert - huge yet insubstantial. Fans nationwide are primed with anticipation, if only out of the accurate reasoning that the third movie couldn't possibly be any worse than film 2.

With all that said, since the Writer's Strike excuse that was used for the paucity and lack-of-focus of Revenge of the Fallen (surely they could have gotten a fan to write the plot, right? It would have been better than what they ended up with) is no more, what can we expect Dark of the Moon to be about? It is clear they've picked a good element around which to revolve it; the space-race between the US and USSR gets max points just for its significance alone. The revelation in the most recent batch of post-Superbowl Transformers commercials that human beings might have sided with the Decepticons does one of the best things an action film can do for the audience: post them strongly on one side over another side. Don't be surprised if the audience is rooting only for the Autobots, and the only humans that get any love whatsoever are Sam and girl! Especially when the trailers seem to suggest that the human government, or some elements of it, knew of the Decepticons long before the general public, and sought to use them for personal reasons - which pretty much sums up human history.

The introduction of a new villain, Shockwave, also leaves us wondering what role - if any - Megatron will play in Dark of the Moon. The Decepticon leader, as evidenced by his admonition to Starscream in Revenge of the Fallen: "Even in death, there is no rule but mine!" clearly doesn't do well as second-fiddle. In the comics, Shockwave was his general on Cybertron, left there to continue the bad fight as Megatron chased the AllSpark and Prime across the universe. Will Transformers 3 involve some kind of showdown between the brutal-looking Shockwave and the Decepticon-leader? Are humans using the Decepticons to try and control the populace in some way, only to have it (Surprise!!) backfire? We'll see in less than a week.

Christina Thomas is an Astrophysics grad student who has recently become very interested in web development and internet marketing in her (very) limited free time. she enjoys, first and foremost, taking her nephews to all things Transformers! Come and check us out at:

http://cybertron-transformers.blogspot.com/2011/06/last-post-superbowl-transformers.html

http://cybertron-transformers.blogspot.com/p/autobots.html

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