Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is not a very good movie. I think we can establish that right away. After the enormous popularity of the first film made a sequel essentially inevitable, I was extremely excited to see what Michael Bay and company could come up with for a second go-round with Optimus Prime, Sam Witwicky and the rest. Sadly, the flaws in Fallen are too big to ignore, and even though the movie is sometimes fun, it's safe to say that it could've been a lot better.
It's tough to describe the plot of Fallen, but suffice to say that most of the main characters are back from the first film, though most of them are in slightly different situations. Sam Witwicky is off to college, his parents are taking him, and Megan Fox's character Mikaela isn't going with him. Optimus Prime and the Autobots are fighting alongside Josh Duhamel's Lennox and Tyrese Gibson's Epps in a new joint operation between human and machine forces. Oh, and Megatron is at the bottom of the ocean. Throw in some stuff about ancient robots on Earth, and there's the story.
Hopefully everyone can realize that Transformers isn't about story. However, that fact makes the film's length, a hefty 150 minutes, a bit inexcusable. That's a long time to sit through a movie. I understand that the two highest-grossing movies of all time are lengthy ones, but The Dark Knight this ain't. It's not Titanic either.
I would list the plot holes, but I'm getting over a cold, and I need to get some sleep eventually. I'll just say that the movie is full of them. There are plenty of lists online, read them if you'd like to have a laugh.
Plot holes aside, the film's biggest flaw is so overt and ridiculously obvious that I cannot believe it made it past all the people who must've seen the early cuts of Fallen before its release. Skids and Mudflap, two Transformers who Michael Bay claims in an AP interview were "for the kids," are, in a word, racist. They talk like gangsters, have gold teeth and bling, and even sport monkey ears to top it all off. One question for Michael Bay and the rest of the film's crew: WTF?
Those glaring flaws are enough to bring Fallen down quite a few notches. However, I'd be lying if I didn't say I had a good time. Several reviewers have claimed that Fallen was a complete bomb, and I'll respectfully disagree. One of my biggest problems with the first film, the shaky fight cam, has been fixed this time around. Seeing Optimus Prime fight the Decepticons is an absolute joy, no matter what other flaws Fallen possesses.
Like I said before, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is not a very good movie. It's way too long, the plot holes are endless (yes, even for a movie based on 80's action figures), and the blatant stereotypes are not only offensive, they're distracting too. If all that turns you off, and it should, then don't go see Fallen. I'll admit that I was a bit of a sucker for the amazing fight scenes in the film, and I'd love to see those again. I had a blast despite the lack of quality, but that doesn't mean you will too. If the critics' consensus is any indicator, you probably won't.
No comments:
Post a Comment