Mech Daddy
When Steven Spielberg announced in 2004 he was going to make a Transformers movie, it was a moment when fanboys triumphed and geekdom was vindicated. 3 years later, this is the big one. Forget emo web slingers and silver surfers and pirates with mascara. 2007 was always going to be about the smackdown between Autobots and Decepticons – just like so many evenings on television 20 years ago.My pulsed raced as I entered the cinema and took my seat. Memories came rushing back – but they were not complete or coherent. It was as though 20 years seemed too long ago …
Suddenly, a familiar, awesome voice filled the theatre as Optimus Prime (voiced by the original’s Peter Cullen) began his prologue. In an instance, I was transported and the nostalgia was complete.
The next 2 hours 15 min was the best time I’ve had in a cinema for as long as I can remember. From the opening attack by the terrifying Blackout to the final shot where Prime looks the skies, hoping that the last of his race hear his call, this movie is all gold.
The comedy was great, the action rock-hard, and the CGI staggering. Angels must have shed tears when Optimus Prime transformed for the first time.
Sure, the story was feather-light and while you don’t have to leave your brains at home, it can pretty much cruise on stand-by throughout the movie. Hey, it’s Michael Bay afterall. But the stars are the robots, and every dollar spent on ILM is onscreen.
Having said that, Shia Labeouf was very watchable and Megan Fox…well, I’d pay to see her play a kitchen sink.
It is easy to mock any perceived importance of a movie based on a toy line (or one directed by Mr. Bay), but just like how audiences were blown away by Jurassic Park’s dinosaurs 14 years ago, Transformers achieved the rare feat of putting on screen something truly fresh and awe-inspiring. No one has seen any of this stuff before, which is why it’s going to be one of the biggest hits of the year and hopefully validate the genre to allow more robot franchises to grace the silver screen. The possibilities are mouthwatering – Voltron, Macross / Robotech, BattleTech, Evangelion, Gundam…
80s cartoons are at least looking to be the next wave for Hollywood studios, with development starting on classics such as He-Man, Thundercats and G.I Joe. It’s going to get crazy and some of these movies are probably just plain, bad ideas. But the fun is in the talk and anticipation – just like how we used to wait agonizingly for next week’s episode to see how the Autobots are going to whoop the Decepticons’ mechanical asses; how G.I. Joe will save the world from COBRA’s evil clutches; how MASK will foil the insidious plans of VENOM once again….
Transformers kicked it off in serious style. It’s fingers crossed from here onwards.
Finally, this is just sacreligious:
How Cartoon Network is Killing My Childhood
