This is the best Transformers film since the 2007 original – which isn’t saying too much as the franchise has set a very low bar.
Not including the Bumblebee spin-off, this sixth ‘Robots in Disguise’ instalment is a serviceable ride – headlined by a likeable turn from In the Heights’ Golden Globe-nominee breakout star Anthony Ramos.
The chemistry between his ex-military electronics expert Noah Diaz and Pete Davidson’s Porsche Carrera-disguised Autobot Mirage, is probably the most enjoyable thing about the movie – along with the heartwarming relationship between Noah and sickle-cell disease-suffering little bro’ Kris (Dean Scott Vasquez).
And thankfully for once, during the inevitable robot battles, you can actually tell what the heck is going on. Which is a huge bonus, as so many of the other films were such a mess. Michael Bay’s hap-hazard direction definitely hasn’t been missed.
In the past, the homeworld of the Maximals – an advanced race of Cybertronians with ‘Beast’ modes, come under attack from the planet-eating dark God, Unicron (Colman Domingo). For comic-book fans, he’s the Transformers’ version of Galactus.
At the behest of Unicron, the Terracons – led by Peter Dinklage’s Scourge – seek out the Maximals’ greatest piece of technology, the Transwarp Key, which can open portals through space and time. But some of the Maximals – including new gorilla-disguised leader Optimus Primal (Ron ‘Hellboy’ Perlman) – use the key to flee to Earth, before their planet is destroyed.
In 1994-set Brooklyn, when the once-hidden key releases an energy pulse that is detected by Autobot head-honcho Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen), Bumblebee and co, they have to locate it before the Terracons do – or Earth will be destroyed by Unicron.
And unfortunately for Noah, and museum intern Elena (Dominique Fishback) – who inadvertently get caught up in proceedings after discovering the key – they get roped into the world-saving mission.
Which for the most part, is ‘better than the majority of past Transformers films’ fare, as it jumps from one action set-piece to the next, and with characters – both human and robot – that you actually care about. Which is novel in itself.
It would be hard to say it’s a return to form – but let’s say it’s a positive step in the right direction.
Especially with the twist at the end that could just ignite a brand-new Hasbro movie universe – which definitely raises the series above the tragically woeful lows of The Last Knight.
This could just be the starting block for the Transformers to truly transform.
ESP Rating: 3/5
Gavin Miller
Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough, Out Now
Cast: Anthony Ramos, Pete Davidson, Dominque Fishback, Peter Cullen, Ron Perlman, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Yeoh, Liza Koshy, Luna Lauren Velez, Dean Scott Vazquez, Colman Domingo & Michael Kelly
Running Time: 2 Hrs 7 Mins
Director: Steven Caple Jr
Go to www.showcasecinemas.co.uk for all the latest film information & showtimes at Peterborough’s Showcase Cinema De Lux
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