Top Of Mind

Transformers is why we go see movies.

All the hype aside, Transformers brings us back to the good old days of (mostly Spielberg) movies - Goonies, Gremlins, Raiders, Young Sherlock Holmes, ET - all the great movies of the 80s. I must admit that those are the movies that formed my opinion of what movies ought to be and I am happy to see that type of movies return.

Yes, I know Michael Bay directed the movie, but the tone and manner of the movie is all Spielberg. Supposedly Spielberg at one point described the Transformer movie as ‘about a boy and his car’ - and despite all the action and special effects, this is what Transformers is all about. It reminded me of Corvette Summer in many ways.

Transformers has all the elements of a typical Spielberg movie of the 80s - a geeky protagonist with a lot of heart saddled with a dysfunctional family, a not-so-distant relatively that leaves something behind, a hot unattainable chick (seemingly), stupid government types, stupid government types who are funny, lots and lots of action, cool special effects and awesome moments that make you go wow and great moments of laugh-out-loud humor.

Despite the unusual name Shia LaBeouf is the typical Spielberg protagonist and he fit’s right into the movie - starting with him trying to hawk his insane grandfather’s stuff at school to the moment when he is seemingly stalked by his ‘crappy old Camaro.’ to the moment towards the end where he is trapped atop a building with nowhere to run. I look forward to see him in the next Indiana Jones movie.

The movie is filled with memorable characters - from the Special Forces soldiers played by Josh Duhamel & Tyrese Gibson to the ‘hot,’ Megan Fox. She has her moments and helps move the movie along as only a love interest could. Then there are Kevin Dunn & Julie White who play the parents and provide some really funny moments along with Mojo the Chihuahua. Of course we cannot forget John Turturro - who plays the wacky Sector 7 man.

While the characterization of the Autobots and Decepticons are a bit thin, the special effects that animate them are topnotch, believable and just plain awesome to watch. The special effects are one of the most realistic and awe inspiring I have seen in a movie in a while - from way the transformation takes place to the Scorponok (Scorpion) attack in the desert, to the Sector 7 chase of Optimus Prime, to the final showdown in the city-streets.

A bit of a disclaimer; I was never a fan of the original Transformers series. Although I have seen some episodes including the much maligned Beast Wars, I always thought that the idea was great, but the execution was plain cheesy. However, today, after seeing the Michal Bay movie, I am a believer.

So would I recommend it? Well, it goes like this. If you grew up in the 80s with such movies as Goonies, Gremlins, Raiders, Young Sherlock Holmes, ET, and thought they were awesome, go see this. The magic is back.