TRANSFORMERS: THE LAST KNIGHT Review

Twenty minutes into the fifth Michael Bay directed Transformers film, this one subtitled The Last Knight, Optimus Prime comes face to face with a robot God named Quintessa (as voiced by Gemma Chan) if that gives one any indication as to how insane these movies have truly become. No? Not good enough? How about the fact Anthony Hopkins' character (or the fact Anthony Hopkins is in a Transformers movie) has a Transformer butler that the film acknowledges is more or less a rip-off of C-3PO? Not far enough? Let's go ahead and make the robot butler a sociopath of sorts, shall we? Point being, there is no seeming cohesion between any parts of the many layers that make up The Last Knight as well as most of its predecessors. Personally, I walk into a new Transformers film with the expectation of being bombarded by sound, image, and story and am more or less pleased if I can walk away saying I understood the main point of the plot and was, at the very least, entertained. Of course, without such expectations one could view these things as complete messes, as mind-numbing fun, or fall somewhere in between where it's easy to recognize the idiocy of the picture, but acknowledge the merit in big, colorful, summer blockbuster filmmaking. Many will make jokes, but Bay is one of the more unique directors working today by virtue of the fact he consistently operates on such a scale that it's almost inconceivable he could craft something that wasn't inherently bloated; every aspect of his process and his product has to be big and this latest endeavor is no different. While Age of Extinction felt like something of a breaking point in terms of the director going so far into his wheelhouse that he couldn't possibly possess any more tricks we are still here three years later and Bay, along with returning cast members Mark Wahlberg, Josh Duhamel, John Turturro, and Stanley Tucci, have somehow managed to at least match if not best their previous Bayhem effort. The Last Knight is scattered, plot-heavy, overly complicated, and generally non-sensical to the point of genuine hilarity, but there is still a craft to it all and the fact Bay can somehow orchestrate these massive characters, set-pieces, and story into something resembling a movie while at the same time maintaining a visual aesthetic that is bar none one of the best you'll see on the big screen today is truly impressive and deserves at least a little bit of credit.

Final Trailer for TRANSFORMERS: THE LAST KNIGHT

Nearly a decade on from the first time Michael Bay graced us with his vision of the eighties cartoon series about two opposing factions of transforming alien robots who engage in a battle and we're on the fifth entry in this massive (and massively lucrative) franchise. In the interim between Transformers flicks Bay has shown some interesting tendencies as a director with the genuinely thrilling, funny, and entertaining Pain & Gain as well as the admirable if not overlong and somewhat indulgent 13 Hours. I've always appreciated Bay's visual style and the mastery he has over it as well as the simple energy he seems to possess in pushing himself and his crew to the limits so as to deliver the biggest kinds of blockbusters he can, but I don't think anyone would debate, including Bay himself, that what he's crafting is little more than junk food. Movies that will appease the masses and afford escapism to those willing to pay for two and a half ours of such, but not much else. There is no substance to the spectacle and unfortunately the same looks as if it can be said for the board room concoction that is The Last Knight. That said, this latest trailer for the film makes it look incredibly bad ass and I'm still very much excited to see Bay's latest foray into maximizing the IMAX experience on an IMAX screen. The question that will follow this unique anticipation is, "will I enjoy The Last Knight?" Only time will tell. Age of Extinction, the previous Transformers film that traded Shia LaBeouf for Mark Wahlberg, was a close tie for the worst in the series with Revenge of the Fallen still retaining that title. Extinction was a re-boot that didn't know how to re-boot itself. I can only hope that this time around writers Matt Holloway, Art Marcum, and Ken Nolan give the director a more straightforward, lean story that gives audiences what they came for with little to no more ambition, but I won't hold out too much hope. Transformers: The Last Knight sees the return of Wahlberg as well as starring Laura Haddock, Anthony Hopkins, Isabela Moner, Jerrod Carmichael, Gemma Chan, Stanley Tucci, John Goodman, John Turturro, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson and opens on June 23rd, 2017.

Teaser Trailer for TRANSFORMERS: THE LAST KNIGHT

Well, here we are. Nearly a decade on from the first time Michael Bay graced us with his vision of the eighties cartoon series about two opposing factions of transforming alien robots who engage in a battle that starred Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox. Ten years later and both LaBeouf and Fox have long since left the franchise, but Optimus Prime and Bumblebee (and apparently Bay) have little where else to go. In the interim between Transformers flicks Bay has shown some interesting tendencies as a director with the genuinely thrilling, funny, and entertaining Pain & Gain as well as the admirable if not overlong and somewhat indulgent 13 Hours. I've always appreciated Bay's visual style and the mastery he has over it as well as the simple energy he seems to possess in pushing himself and his crew to the limits so as to deliver the biggest kinds of blockbusters he can, but I don't think anyone would debate, including Bay himself, that what he's crafting is little more than junk food. Movies that will appease the masses and afford escapism to those willing to pay for two and a half ours of such, but not much else. There is no substance to the spectacle and unfortunately the same looks as if it can be said for the board room concoction that is Bay's fifth Transformer film, The Last Knight. I'll see Bay's latest foray into maximizing the IMAX experience and I'll no doubt be wowed by the scale of the action set pieces as it is clear from this first look that Bay isn't skimping on the explosions despite the energy level for the franchise seeming to wane. Will I enjoy The Last Knight-only time will tell. Age of Extinction, the previous Transformers film that traded LaBeouf for Mark Wahlberg, was a close tie for the worst in the series with Revenge of the Fallen as it felt like a total slog, a re-boot that didn't know how to re-boot itself. I can only hope that this time around writers Matt Holloway, Art Marcum, and Ken Nolan give the director a more straightforward, lean story, but I won't hold out too much hope just yet. Transformers: The Last Knight sees the return of Wahlberg as well as starring Laura Haddock, Anthony Hopkins, Isabela Moner, Stanley Tucci, John Goodman, John Turturro, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson and opens on June 23rd, 2017.