Movie Review - (TF6) Transformers Bumblebee

[GoktimusPrime]

When I heard about the ratings change I was worried we wouldn't see squelching of human flesh beings, but Dropkicks 'make a human exploding liquid' gun is frigging awesome

Heh, agreed. It's a funny looking yet really-horrific-when-you-think-about-it kind of weapon.

I loved Shatter, and do hope she can be revived for a future movie. Megs was ad infinitum. She's adorably psychopathic, and I want a studio series deluxe or Voyager toy of her in jet mode.

I love Shatter too, but I feel that it's better than they don't bring her back. Besides, who knows? Maybe they can give us even cooler villains in the future.

But how awesome is it that we actually have likable Decepticon characters in a live action Transformers film?! More likable than most Autobots in Bayformers! I cared more about Shatter's demise than I did about Quejack in DOTM.

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Bumblebee's fist pump is obviously in reference to The Breakfast Club which, of course, starred Judd Nelson. But one interesting thing that my daughter mentioned to me yesterday, as a person with no knowledge of The Breakfast Club but who has seen TFTM... she thinks that Bumblebee's fist pump is a reference to this:

[Ralph Wiggum]

Just saw the movie, had some time to kill in Singapore before my flight so decided to see it.

Pretty much shits all over the Michael Bay movies, which admittedly isn’t that hard. No ridiculous slow-mos or zoomy camera action. A focus on character and story. And FINALLY no ridiculous cube/sunkiller/crashed spaceship/seed/knights/unicron trope.

I’d be happy for this to be a reboot, after the dogs breakfast of everything after TF2007.

On a side note, Toys R Us are still around in Singapore however the store I usually went to massively downsized to a much smaller store 1/8th its normal size.

[GoktimusPrime]

Differences between the test screening and final version of Bumblebee -- seems to indicate that Bumblebee was intended to be a more definitive prequel for Bayformers but was later changed to be a reboot. These tend to be decisions from the studio rather than the director, but it does explain why the continuity is rather ambiguous, as well as Jack Burn's hatred towards Bumblebee. The final cut still explains it as him being nearly killed during the training exercise and seeing how dangerous Cybertronians can be, but the original version gave Burns more gravitas. But apparently the test audience didn't respond as well to a hard-core John Cena so they made him more light-hearted, and a lot of people have said that some of the funniest lines have come from Burns.

I haven't bought a special edition of a Transformers film since 2007 (I've purchased bare bone versions of the sequels), but this makes me want to get the bonus special feature DVD. Hopefully it will show some of these deleted scenes, especially the one of a G1-style Megatron frozen in ice!

P.S.

[gamblor916]

I was sitting in my seat before the movie started and I'd say the cinema was about half full. Five minutes before previews start a whole bunch of kids come in with 2 minders, shirts emblazoned with their child care company logos. Kids all had popcorn and sugar drinks and taking photos with their phones. I was thinking about walking out then and there. Then the lights went down, phones turned off and the movie started. There were laughs during the funny scenes, silence during the more serious parts especially the scene with Charlie and her mother. Cheering during the action scenes then clapping and cheering as credits started to roll. I have to say this was one of the more enjoyable movie going experiences.

[Ralph Wiggum]

Anyone notice how less in-your-face the product placement was for this movie? Even moreso, the lack of ridiculous pandering Chinese product placement despite it being co-produced by a Chinese studio (though of course the setting of the movie may have helped).

The more I think back to how Michael Bay et al. handled the previous movies, the more I shake my head.

[GoktimusPrime]

Yeah, I've been watching the Bayformer repeats on TV and I'm finding really hard to sit through after having seen Bumblebee. Before Bumblebee the Bayformer movies were easier to watch, but having experienced a good live action Transformers film it's difficult to go back.

And yes, less of almost every Bayism. In fact, I don't recall any product placement, even if it were time-appropriate. Other than the vehicles they used and the TaB soft drink can, I don't recall too many other brand logos. There's less (or none) of so many Bayisms in general.

[CHILENO20]

Can anyone remember what TAB tasted like? I can't for the life of me.

Staying on the actual topic, finally saw it last night. Loved all the easter eggs and the movie itself! Truly shows that Bay fudged it up completely. Like mostly everyone else, goes right to the top as the best Transformers film along side '07. Even my partner who is admittedly not a transformers fan, got a lot of the 80's references and even the '86 film. Sure some plot holes to nit pick, like how Charlie and Memo got on to a military base so easily (don't think anyone brought that up), how Bee ended up at Hank's yard or how Charlie walked away with barely a scratch after her skip got hit with a damn missile, but these are minor compared to the overall film. And way less compared to the absolute crap of the previous 4 films. Now I will admit that I got the tickets for free thanks to an eBay promotion but I would happily pay to see it again. Travis Knight knew what he was doing, lets hope the rest of the future films come out like this.

[GoktimusPrime]

Can anyone remember what TAB tasted like? I can't for the life of me.

I do. I can still find them at some independently owned Asian stores/supermarkets. TaB still exists, it's just become a fairly obscure soft drink brand whereas it was everywhere in the 80s.

Sure some plot holes to nit pick, like how Charlie and Memo got on to a military base so easily (don't think anyone brought that up),

Heh, good point. Also, why did the Sector 7 guys need to use explosives to blow up the door to their own base? Do they not have regular access?

how Bee ended up at Hank's yard or how Charlie walked away with barely a scratch after her skip got hit with a damn missile, but these are minor compared to the overall film.

Bumblebee ending up at Uncle Hank's yard doesn't seem like a story issue with me. It's not explained but it's not unbelievable. We see Bumblebee scanning a VW Beetle before he passes out, so obviously some time between then and Charlie's 18th birthday Bumblebee ended up in that yard. It's the kind of scene that might be cool in a Director's Cut or something, but it's not essential to the plot.

Charlie did get scratched up, but it's not implausible. Sam, Mikaela, Leon, Simmons, Bumblebee and the Twins casually travelling from Petra Jordan to Giza Egypt within only a matter of hours and somehow bypassing the plethora of Israeli security checkpoints is downright impossible. Also have a direct line of sight to the ocean from Giza is impossible. And an abandoned aircraft yard behind the Smithsonian (which even Michael Bay admitted was bullspit). Not to mention an army of Decepticons conveniently living in the Moon that was never activated until the third movie!
"Oh no, the Autobots have taken the AllSpark and are hiding it from us in this puny human settlement, oh wait, we have an ARMY on the Moon!"
"Aw man, they're going to destroy the Star Harvester, oh wait, we have an ARMY on the Moon!"

Travis Knight knew what he was doing, lets hope the rest of the future films come out like this.

So do I, but I'm not liking our chances given how few people have bothered to watch this movie in cinemas. I've seen this movie 3 times now - once was with a free ticket, but the other two times I paid for out of my own pocket. The Bayformer sequels I've always watched with free or discount coupons. I refused to pay full (or any) price to watch those films (and still feel ripped off), but I'll gladly pay to watch Bumblebee!

[GoktimusPrime]

Tha_Phantom and I got together and recorded a video where we discussed what we thought about the Bumblebee film.
Part 1: what we loved
Part 2: nitpicking!

[Dan]

I saw the movie (alone) for the second time today. it allowed me to reflect on a few more things, as follows:

* I fact-checked, and all songs in the soundtrack were released in or before 1987 so it's accurate to the setting, not just another 80s-themed party playlist like other movies offer. I'm considering buying it, and it will be pretty much the only non-transforming Transformers produce I've ever bought.

* There are so many lovely little touches, like the symbolic 'objects may be closer than they appear' at the end.

* Some of the awkward family interactions are more awkward once you know they're coming.

* Screw scale. The triple-changers seem to change into really small aircraft. Then again maybe that's exactly what they do. It's not like they have to be sized to carry humans, and only have to look right at a distance. Do Decepticons give a damn about scale?

* I went this afternoon on a weekday. There was a smattering of audience including some parents with kids, a gang of mixed gender teens, and even what looked like a double date of four grandparents. There was laughing and a general good vibe in the cinema. We might not be going in droves, but we're a good cross-section and we're enjoying what we see.