TRANSFORMERS ONE lacks humour and is unconvincing

Transformers One (English) Review {2.5/5} & Review Rating

Director: Josh Cooley

Transformers One Movie Review Synopsis:
TRANSFORMERS ONE tells the untold origin story of Optimus Prime and Megatron. Orion Pax (Chris Hemsworth) is a cog-less miner robot who lives in the city of Iacon, which is located on the planet Cybertron. His best friend is D-16 (Brian Tyree Henry) and like other miners, they also look upto Sentinel Prime (Jon Hamm), the beloved head of Cybertron. Sentinel is trying to find the Matrix of Leadership; in its absence, Cyberton’s Energon rivers have dried up. As a result, Orion and many others are mining to find the Energon. One day, Sentinel Prime announces a holiday and organizes Iacon 5000, a racing competition in which the Transformers participate. Orion convinces D-16 to participate in the race using jetpacks. They lose but become the talk of the town. Sentinel Prime acknowledges their effort but the authoritarian security bot Darkwing (Isaac C Singleton Jr) banishes them in sublevel 50. Here, both meet the eccentric B-127 (Keegan-Michael Key). In the heap of garbage on this level, they find a chip that has a recording of one of Cybertron’s long-lost founders and the holder of the Matrix of Leadership, Alpha Trion. The chip also has a map of the Matrix of Leadership. Orion Pax, D-16 and B-127 escape from the sublevel and attempt to find the Matrix. They are reluctantly joined by ex-miner head Elita-1 (Scarlett Johansson). The adventurous journey opens their eyes and also turns friends into foes. What happens next forms the rest of the film.

Transformers One Movie Story Review:
Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari’s story is entertaining, especially for the fans of the series. Eric Pearson, Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari’s screenplay is engaging but is unexciting in places. The dialogues are normal and some one-liners raise laughs.

Josh Cooley’s direction is decent. He packs a lot in just 104 minutes and yet, it doesn’t look like he’s recklessly rushing through the narrative. The animation is appealing and different from the one seen in films of Disney and DreamWorks. The climax is very engaging and will keep viewers glued to their seats. There might also be claps and hoots in some of the scenes.

On the flipside, though the animation is great, it also gets overwhelming. This is especially true during the fight scene when there are too many characters and extras in a frame. One might even lose track of what’s exactly happening. A few jokes don’t land well. In fact, there could have been a lot more funny dialogues in the film. Lastly, D-16 suddenly turns into a negative character. Agreed he is angry upon knowing Sentinel’s truth. But it catches viewers unaware of how he becomes an altogether different person within minutes.

Transformers One Movie Review Performances:
Chris Hemsworth uses his voice efficiently for the lead character. The same applies to Brian Tyree Henry. Scarlett Johansson suits the part. Her voice is distinct and hence, anyone can guess that she’s the one behind the mic. Keegan-Michael Key does the best job and adds a lot to the film’s humour quotient. Laurence Fishburne (Alpha Trion) leaves a mark with his baritone voice. Jon Hamm, Isaac C Singleton Jr and Vanessa Liguori (Airachni) are decent.

Transformers One movie music and other technical aspects:
Brian Tyler’s music has the typical Hollywood biggie feel. Christopher Batty’s cinematography is breath taking. Jason William Scheier’s production design is vibrant. The animation, as aforementioned, is top-class and it stands out. Lynn Hobson’s editing is slick.

Transformers One Movie Review Conclusion:
On the whole, TRANSFORMERS ONE lacks humour in sufficient doses and gets unconvincing in the second half. But it makes up for these minuses with a gripping climax, fast-paced narrative and appealing animation. At the box office, it will get the benefit of reduced ticket prices as part of the celebrations of National Cinema Day.