Movie Critics

Alright, listen up fellow humans! Whether you're a die-hard Transformers fan, or someone who still thinks "Autobots" is a type of car and "Decepticons" is a heavy metal band, Transformers One is here to blow your mind! This latest installment is a prequel, so you don’t have to be a Transformer know-it-all to enjoy it. In fact, if you’ve somehow avoided knowing anything about the giant robots fighting for our planet (living under a rock much?), this is the perfect entry point into the franchise.

Now, I’ll admit, I went into this film with one eyebrow raised. After seeing the trailer, I was like, "Oh no, not another smashing franchise being turned into a kids movie with a side of ‘jokey’ marvel humour." But let me tell you, I was wrong—like, spectacularly wrong. What I got instead was a deep dive into the tragic bromance between Optimus Prime (aka the iconic leader of the Autobots, voiced by none other than swoon-worthy Chris Hemsworth) and his BFF, Megatron (leader of the Decepticons, voiced by Brian Tyree Henry). These two start out as best buddies on Cybertron, and it’s all sunshine and space daisies until things go south faster than you can say, "Roll out!"

On the planet Cybertron, society is divided between sentient robots with cogs, allowing them to transform into vehicles, and those without, who are relegated to dangerous mining work. Sentinel Prime leads expeditions to fight off alien invaders, while miners toil in the caves for energon, which powers the city of Lacon. Orion Pax, a miner, crashes a victory race organized by Sentinel Prime to prove the miners' worth, joined by his friend D-16. Though they lose, they catch Sentinel Prime’s attention and are seemingly rewarded, only to end up in a garbage incineration facility where they meet B1-27. There, they discover a distress message from Alpha Trion, one of the legendary primes, with coordinates possibly leading to the matrix of leadership. Along with their friend Elita, they embark on a dangerous mission that could alter Cybertron’s future forever.

My only beef with this film? Can we please give Bumblebee a proper name? He's still stuck with B-127, which sounds like the serial number on my toaster.

Transformers One delivers. It’s packed with the kind of lore and character development that’ll make you care about these big ol' bots. Not to mention a well-known movie review site, Rotten Tomatoes scored this film 89%, (a score most students would love to have on their exams) and Google review, a 4.9/5. Yet somehow, it eludes me why this fantastic animation and immersing storyline has not been hitting its targets on Box Office. So get down to your nearest cinema, grab your popcorn and give these bots the TLC they truly deserve! 

Go see it. Seriously. Don’t make me send Megatron after you.