MSRP: £24.99
Bumblebee Film Review
Sparking unexpected life into a bloated and ruined franchise is Bumblebee, the first good Transformers film in years?
After a slew of mind-numbingly excessive, inane, at times incoherent Transformers sequels courtesy of an ego-driven Michael Bay, it is understandable why even diehard fans of the original 80s toy and animated show franchise would be sceptical about a Bumblebee spin-off. However, wrested from Bay's grasp, and put in the hands of Travis Knight - making his live action directorial debut here, having helmed tremendous animated projects like Kubo and the Two Strings before - this single ostensible solo effort (although its subsequent success has prompted talk of further sequels/spin-offs) may have put Transformers back on the map as more than just banal bombast, boasting hitherto unseen character development and subsequent investment, prevailing fun, and well-crafted, tense, and coherent skirmishes between giant transforming robots - pretty much everything any fans of the original series and toys could have ever asked for.
Although completely retconning it would have been nigh-on impossible, at least insofar as there's no official designs on immediately severing all ties with the established franchise as a whole, Knight has done his best to push towards a more classical Generation 1 Transformer depiction - not least in the spectacular Cybertron flashbacks, which are easily the highlight of the action quotient of the film. The transforming is more fluid, and the robots less like nanotech, with the film also benefitting from a stripped-down portrayal of the warring Autobots and Decepticons, allowing the simple 2 vs. 1 format to build out these characters and distinguish them.
The human counterparts are, of course, a real breath of fresh air, with Hailee Steinfeld (who did outstanding voice acting in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse as the loner Spider-Woman) taking the lead portraying an 18 year old teenager in the 80s, going through her own crises even before a massive transforming robot lands in her lap. Steinfeld perfectly inhabits the troubled teen outcast, strong willed but equally put upon by her more popular peers. John Cena is a curious choice for the tough soldier with a grudge against the Autobot intruder, having enjoyed a brief spurt of action fun (12 Rounds was surprisingly competent) before channelling his efforts almost exclusively towards comedy, which has actually proven fairly effective. Here, his comic edge could have easily derailed the movie, but he often proves a much needed witty component with a few real laugh out loud moments ("They literally call themselves Decepticons. That doesn’t set off any red flags?") and a semi-decent, despite being fairly predictable, character arc.
Getting the Transformers right after so much time spent getting them wrong must have been a supreme challenge, but the refocus on character and story is key here. Steinfeld's lead gives this a wonderful heart; her character could have made the central focus in its own movie, which is precisely as it should be - Bumblebee almost incidental to an already strong tale, given his own equally interesting arc which plays out in parallel, with intersections. The return of (physical) form to the Robots in Disguise is welcome too, and, if anything, this gives fans hope for the war on Cybertron that they have always dreamed of. Where do they go from here? An Optimus movie, or a Bumblebee sequel? It probably doesn't matter; if they keep Knight at the helm, or get someone equally inspired, at least fans can relax now knowing the once-ruined franchise is finally in safe hands.
Although completely retconning it would have been nigh-on impossible, at least insofar as there's no official designs on immediately severing all ties with the established franchise as a whole, Knight has done his best to push towards a more classical Generation 1 Transformer depiction - not least in the spectacular Cybertron flashbacks, which are easily the highlight of the action quotient of the film. The transforming is more fluid, and the robots less like nanotech, with the film also benefitting from a stripped-down portrayal of the warring Autobots and Decepticons, allowing the simple 2 vs. 1 format to build out these characters and distinguish them.
Getting the Transformers right after so much time spent getting them wrong must have been a supreme challenge, but the refocus on character and story is key here
The human counterparts are, of course, a real breath of fresh air, with Hailee Steinfeld (who did outstanding voice acting in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse as the loner Spider-Woman) taking the lead portraying an 18 year old teenager in the 80s, going through her own crises even before a massive transforming robot lands in her lap. Steinfeld perfectly inhabits the troubled teen outcast, strong willed but equally put upon by her more popular peers. John Cena is a curious choice for the tough soldier with a grudge against the Autobot intruder, having enjoyed a brief spurt of action fun (12 Rounds was surprisingly competent) before channelling his efforts almost exclusively towards comedy, which has actually proven fairly effective. Here, his comic edge could have easily derailed the movie, but he often proves a much needed witty component with a few real laugh out loud moments ("They literally call themselves Decepticons. That doesn’t set off any red flags?") and a semi-decent, despite being fairly predictable, character arc.
Getting the Transformers right after so much time spent getting them wrong must have been a supreme challenge, but the refocus on character and story is key here. Steinfeld's lead gives this a wonderful heart; her character could have made the central focus in its own movie, which is precisely as it should be - Bumblebee almost incidental to an already strong tale, given his own equally interesting arc which plays out in parallel, with intersections. The return of (physical) form to the Robots in Disguise is welcome too, and, if anything, this gives fans hope for the war on Cybertron that they have always dreamed of. Where do they go from here? An Optimus movie, or a Bumblebee sequel? It probably doesn't matter; if they keep Knight at the helm, or get someone equally inspired, at least fans can relax now knowing the once-ruined franchise is finally in safe hands.
Bumblebee 4K Blu-ray Picture
Bumblebee 4K Blu-ray Sound
Bumblebee 4K Blu-ray Extras
Conclusion
Bumblebee 4K Blu-ray Review
The first six Transformers movies (including Transformers: Bumblebee) are also available on 4K in a lavish Steelbook Collector's Box Set:
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