Published: July 13, 2007 11:49 am         

‘Transformers’ mostly worth it

Autobots vs. Decepticons. Every male in his 20s knows what I am talking about.

A classic time of my youth has finally been brought to the big screen in “Transformers,” and I have been anxiously awaiting this for months now.

In terms of summer blockbusters, the movie fits all of the necessary criteria:

• Tons of action.

• Phenomenal special effects.

• Enough humor to keep you entertained.

There was just one small problem with the movie: the plot. It stunk.

The premise of the film revolves around a cube that provides the robots’ energy hurling itself toward Earth and said robots leaving their home planet of Cybertron to chase after it.

The first interaction between human and Transformer centers around two soldiers in the Middle East (Tyrese Gibson and Josh Duhamel) who spot the creatures and proceed to shoot the daylights out of them — without killing them, of course. It is then generally assumed, by soldiers, the CIA, Jon Voight (who plays the secretary of defense) that all robots are bad. (Hint: The Decepticons have red eyes, the Autobots, blue.)

Meanwhile in the U.S., Sam Witwicky (Shia LeBeouf), a high schooler looking to buy his first car, conveniently buys Bumblebee, an Autobot that transforms into a Camaro.

I feel that the movie stalls when the people get involved. Interaction between Witwicky and the Autobots is solid, though the CIA and government getting involved provides too much of a grey area, as they are pretty much shooting any and all robots on sight. In terms of people, less is more with this film. The Transformers themselves were given enough personality to carry the film.

Optimius Prime is the leader of the Autobots, though he isn’t introduced until about an hour into the film (with the original voice — O.P. is worth the wait.) Transformer purists have to wade through the first 45 minutes of nonsense before the movie gets good. Director Michael Bay has an uncanny ability to add too much melodrama into a story that doesn’t need it, as was the case with other Bay films “Pearl Harbor” and “Armageddon.” Also, Prime’s showdown against Megatron in the final scene is a bit too drawn-out and over-the-top for my taste.

A ridiculous amount of not-so-subtle advertising took place in this movie, to the point where it is pretty annoying. We get it, Bumblebee is a Camaro. Jazz is a Solstice. The CEOs of Chevrolet and Pontiac must be bathing in $100 bills after hearing how much money the movie is making.

There are several subtle references to the classic cartoon/action figures. For example, on the car lot, Bumblebee is parked next to a Volkswagen Beetle, which every fanatic knows was Bumblebee’s alter ego back in the day. Also, Sam references the car being “more than meets the eye,” which is the slogan of the toy. (Sadly, very little research was done on my part prior to the film. I just know this stuff.)

The bottom line is there is a lot to like about the film, and if you are willing to get past all of the stuff that’s not so good, it’s entertaining.

“Transformers” is rated PG-13. It is 2 hours and 20 minutes long.

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justin.cripe@goshennews.com