Transformers: Robots in Franchise

 

Michael Bay: Does my Bee look big in this?
(Image courtesy of collider.com)

Michael Bay (Pearl Harbour, Transformers) is a director never too far from complaints. He is often panned for his occasionally favoured tehnique of 'if-it's-on-screen-blow-it-up', and Transformers 3 isn't shielded from those comments either. Even Shia LeBeouf (Holes, Indiana Jones) has hopped on the slander-wagon and spoken out about Dark of The Moon (Much like he did for it's predecessor Revenge of The Fallen). So, in some respects I actually feel quite bad for Bay (left), no matter how unforgivable Pearl Harbour was... when your lead actor bitches about your film, that's gotta hurt a little.

I can see why the movies have garnered this kind of negativity over the years. The first installment was interesting and new. The second installment was simply lacking in all manner of areas, and just needed something more... (Attack of the Clones, anyone?). And both of them had a lot of flaws to counterbalance the good. So, Bay's third effort really needed to do something quite special to save itself.


There are a few different ways to look at Transformers, from a story perspective, Dark of the Moon isn't great, nor is it good for that matter. There were a few nice touches in there, such as the Lunar Landing being a secret investigation into a crashed Autobot ship on the moon but there was a lot of cack too - including predictable betrayals, a bizarre murder-conspiracy, an obvious ending etc... So, what next? Fine, the story is average, but what about the characters? They can save it, right? Unfortunately, they too were nothing great, and often too over-the-top for the film Alan Tudyk (Firefly) would've been just about acceptable as the off-the-wall-eccentric-but-genius character but there were a few too many of the same (Ken Jeong and John Malkovich I'm looking at you). Rosie Huntington-Whitely was... well, we'll talk about her another time (...Maybe somewhere that my girlfriend won't read it) but for me, the major saving grace was Sci-Fi royalty Leonard Nimoy as Sentinel Prime (below, right), you'd be surprised at how well he can voice an aging robot, plus he looked awesome - a Transformer with a beard? Yes please. But, was that enough? Alas, it wasn't...

Sentinel Prime, voiced by Leonard Nimoy
(image courtesy of iwatchstuff.com)

So, the story is flat, the characters are lacking... what about the visuals? Bingo. After what I can only assume was a lot of time and money invested in editing and CGI... that 'something special' was found in the visuals department (Well, according to the $162.1m/£100.4m box office figures for it's opening weekend, I'd say that it was). Well done, Michael!

The key thing to remember with Dark of the Moon, is to really take it for what it is. Simply put, it's a boy trying to save a girl, amidst the chaos of two opposing worlds at war, simpler still... it's an action movie. And whether you dislike him or not, Michael Bay can do action. And in this case, he has done it very well.
This is the most visually appealing installment by a mile, and has had a lot of work put into it which really shows. It was shot almost entirely using the Cameron/Pace 3D camera and the rest using 35mm for the rest of the shots, to pick up the finer details. Definitely a wise choice, because that is what this film was all about, visuals.

What this film lacks in sensible and original scriptwriting and interesting character development, it makes up for tenfold in the "Holy shit, did you see that?!" department. From the spectacular wide shots, to the slow-motion transformation of beautiful cars into badass robots (Seeing every piece of metal move is really something), to the sheer scale of the destruction of Chicago... this film oozes epic imagery. The jewel in the crown though, is the spectacular 3D footage of a platoon of Military Paratroopers gliding above the streets of war-torn Chicago using flight suits, genuinely breathtaking stuff. That scene alone made up for a lot of the films core issues for me. With better characters and a more tweaked story, this scale of 3D filming could well be the shape of things to come for the action movie, and I for one am excited.

  

Megan who?: Rosie Huntington-Whitely shows us her shocked face.
(Image courtesy of weloveheronline.blogspot.com)

The Verdict

Honestly, I feel that I can quite comfortably say that Transformers 3 is at the peak of 3D Cinema at the moment, utilising the technology to the best of it's ability and making a damn good looking product at the end of it. I'll not be able to do this films stunning imagery enough justice simply writing about it, so if you're into robots, explosions, space travel or 1 hour long action sequences (and you have the money to waste in these times of financial horror), head on over to your cinema and check this out in 3D. I'd give it an easy 8, maybe a 9/10 for visuals, but because of it's severe need for a solid story behind it and a slight change in tone from the characters... Transformers 3 has earned itself a reasonable... 6/10*

(* Note: It would've been a 7 but THAT first scene with RHW in spectacular 3D just wasn't long enough... I'm sure if you've seen the movie, you'll know what I mean... meow.)

Best of British: The Waiting Room

The Waiting Room (2007)
Image courtesty of Amazon.co.uk

For the first of our reviews on British made movies, my girlfriend Sarah and I sat down and chose to watch 'one for the couples', and we both found love in 'The Waiting Room', the cinematic debut by television director Roger Goldby about the chance meeting of two people and the impact it has on their lives. Call me soft, but I thought the film was absolutely wonderful, at heart I'm a romantic, so a tale of love at first sight done well will do more than enough to keep my attention. The film follows the lives of Stephen and Anna and gives us an intimate look at what goes on behind closed doors. Anna is a single mother having having an affair with her next door neighbour's husband, he's infatuated with her but she is ultimately lonely in life. Stephen lives with his girlfriend and works at a care home for the elderly, everything seems sweet between them until his girlfriend suggests the idea of having children and with his uncertainty about the idea comes the cracks in their relationship. Then one otherwise normal day, Stephen and Anna are brought together in the waiting room of a train station and instantly make a powerful connection, from this moment onwards we are shown how this meeting effects their lives and the people involved with them. Still interested? I definitely was.

At approximately 101 minutes long, the film was an absolute treat to watch and didn't outstay it's welcome, although I couldn't shake the vibe it felt a little more like I was watching a TV series as opposed to film, but this wasn't a big problem and it shouldn't be for anyone else watching it either. Ralf Little (The Royle Family, 24 Hour Party People) plays the role of Stephen, the troubled  but loveable nice-guy, something which he does very well. There are some very touching scenes involving him and his care-patients, some of which, thanks to some beautifully 'real' writing, tugged at my heartstrings and admittedly I did shed a tear on a few occasions. For me though, the show was stolen by Anne-Marie Duff (Shameless, Nowhere Boy) in the role of Anna. She, in my opinion is an incredibly underrated British actress who I am yet to tire of watching. She's beautiful on screen, and always gives an incredibly natural and emotional performance. Her and Ralf form an excellent pairing, really aiding the film's sense of reality and even moreso, giving the viewer hope that the fabled 'love at first sight' really can happen in a world where life doesn't seem to deal you the best of hands all of the time.

Ralf Little and Anne-Marie Duff cross paths in 'The Waiting Room'
Image courtesy of Guardian.co.uk

The film has an incredibly warm feel to it, set under the bright skies and cool temperatures of the English Autumn, the colors on show are vivid and very comforting. When combined with stylish shots and a truly beautiful overlaying score written by Edmund Butt, the film's atmosphere is completely enveloping. With the right balance between subtle humour, heartwarming dialogue and thoroughly touching moments it's a must see for anybody who isn't afraid of love and it's many complexities. Plus it is proof that you don't have to turn to big budget hollywood hits filled with impossible gestures for romance, this is just as real if not moreso than some of the big RomCom names out there. Us Brits do romance very well, and this movie is all you'd need to convince anyone of that.

The Verdict

I'm giving 'The Waiting Room' a 6/10. It was a thoroughly pleasurable experience to watch, well written dialogue and fantastic acting all round, although more interaction between Little and Duff would've been much appreciated and that 'TV Show' vibe did niggle at me. The soundtrack is perfect for the film, and the setting is just right too, creating a really authentic 'feel-good' atmosphere. Definitely a must-see for any of you old romantics out there. So if you're interested in this delightful story of love, loss and everything in between then take my advice; Take a night off, buy a bottle of wine and a copy of 'The Waiting Room', then settle down on the sofa with your other half and simply enjoy this superb film, it has a much more general appeal to both genders unlike some of the key players in romance, so men needn't be afraid of watching this either. It's a perfect couple's retreat for the evening.