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Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)

Posted By: denisbul

Date: 24 Sep 2011 20:34:23

Autobots Bummblebee, Rachet, Ironhide and Sideswipe led by Optimus Prime, are back in action taking on the evil Decepticons, who are eager to avenge their recent defeat. The Autobots and Decepticons become involved in a perilous space race between the U.S. and Russia, to reach a hidden Cybertronian spacecraft on the moon and learn its secrets, and once again Sam Witwicky has to come to the aid of his robot friends. New villain, Shockwave, who rules Cybertron, is on the scene while the Autobots and Decepticons continue to battle it out on Earth.

Who knew a government project could be built around secret and ulterior motives? It turns out such was just the case in the space race. Upon learning that a mysterious alien vessel crash landed on the moon, President John F. Kennedy ordered American astronauts to that celestial body's surface before the Soviets could do the same. Soon, Astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin discover the remnants of the vehicle and several massive robotic occupants. Years later, back on Earth, the Autobots, led by Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen), serve as warriors defending mankind from its most dangerous enemy: itself. They're called to the radioactive ruins of Chernobyl to investigate the suspected presence of alien technology. There they find evidence of the ancient Cybertronian vessel known as the Ark which carried precious cargo: both the former Autobot leader Sentinel Prime as well as several electronic "pillars" that were to serve as a gateway between Cybertron and another world.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)

The Transformers travel to the moon and recover both their leader and the pillars, but lurking in the shadows, watching every move, and anticipating the Autobots's actions are the Decepticons, led by the battered Megatron (Hugo Weaving), that are once again scheming to take control of Earth. Meanwhile, recent college grad Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) has a new girlfriend, Carly (Rosie Huntington-Whiteley), but not a new job. Despite his familiarity with the Autobots and his hero status, he can't find work and, to make matters worse, his parents (Julie White and Kevin Dunn) are coming to town and are sure to admonish his lack of employment. Fortunately, Carly's put in a good word for Sam, and her boss Dylan Gould (Patrick Dempsey) is all too happy to employ him. But there's never a dull moment in the life of Sam Witwicky, and sure enough the recent Autobot discovery of their former leader and the radically advanced pillars not to mention a few other surprises coming Sam's way just might work into a devious plot that could spell the end of mankind.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)

Transformers: Dark of the Moon is a tale of two movies. There's the slog of a first half and the dark, violent, exciting, and adrenaline-overloaded second half. The first half isn't a total waste. There's some critical back story, some necessary exposition, a few Transformers-standard action scenes, and several character introductions, but there's also a bit of unnecessary bad humor, a bit too much exposition, and what is sometimes an overwhelming listlessness that's more prone to put viewers to sleep than get their blood pumping into overdrive. That's countered by several scenes where things develop almost too fast and the visuals spin around almost too quickly. It definitely lacks balance, even if all of the first half seems, in essence, as if it is in and of itself a much larger counterbalance to the incessant action that defines the film's second half, for even in a movie like this two-plus hours of nonstop action would be too much.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)

The core Transformers story as it is constructed and furthered here is quite involved, very interesting, and a pleasure to watch unfold, but it's slowed down and lessened by needlessly long stretches where only a sliver of information requires minutes upon minutes of random nothingness to become revealed. The pacing is further hindered by forced comic relief, but as noted it's nowhere near as nauseating or even offensive as it was in Revenge of the Fallen. It's almost as if someone high up on the Transformers food chain demanded the movie clock in at about 150 minutes, resulting in far too much stuff on both ends of the movie that just isn't necessary. That's really the movie's main problem in a nutshell. It's too much of just about everything.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)

Then there's the dizzying destruction and robot-on-robot slaughter that defines the second half. Who knew Transformers "bled?" There's a whole lot of "bloodshed" as Autobots and Decepticons shoot, stab, and rip one another to shreds. It's the ultimate showdown and takes place on an epically large scale. The second half is basically Transformers meets 2012. Buildings crumble and explode, people are killed by the hundreds, and general chaos reigns. It looks like some high dollar alien invasion movie, which ultimately it really is, but this is very well-produced and epically-apocalyptic stuff. It's as grim as a PG-13 rating permits, as hopeless as the imagination allows it to be, as physically fatiguing as a movie may make one feel. Dark of the Moon practically places audiences in the middle of one of the most chaotic hours of action movie ever created.

The strict attention to detail is nothing short of startling, too. From the tiniest piece of background debris all the way to the realism that makes up the robots, there's absolutely nothing left to the imagination, save, of course, for the true level of human carnage and suffering that would most certainly be evident in such a situation. Nevertheless, it's all perfectly seamless. It's an awe-inspiring display of digital trickery and technological advancement, leaving audiences to wonder just how it could and no doubt will be topped in the future, not to mention the possibilities in different applications. It's at once both exciting and chilling to imagine. Michael Bay is at his personal best in this stretch, too. For as energetic and chaotic as the action may be, his camera seems to always be in just the right place, capturing the excitement in such a way as to only further enhance its effective assault on the senses. He may take a lot of flak some of it maybe justified, some of it perhaps no so much but there's absolutely no denying his pure skill as an Action filmmaker. Transformers: Dark of the Moon's final, extended Action scene will go down as one of the best ever created.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)

The common theme that runs through the movie, and that was alluded to above, is the absolute precision with which Michael Bay's vision of Transformers is brought to life. The movie is literally packed with breathtakingly gorgeous displays of technical wizardry that's so real, so convincing, that even Avatar should be in awe. Unfortunately, the movie more often than not moves by a little too fast and makes it difficult to truly appreciate the level of digital craftsmanship involved, but there are those few scenes where things slow down, the camera lingers on a robot, and the true scope of each one comes into focus. Battle damage, dents, scratches, and the intricacy of the moving internals never cease to amaze, and that these creations are so smoothly and naturally integrated into real-world environments is nothing short of breathtaking.

That's held true through the whole series, but Dark of the Moon even manages to improve on the other two films in that regard. Otherwise, Dark of the Moon proves to be a rocky ride but ultimately one worth taking. The plot when it's not taking far too long to reveal is surprisingly good and there are several twists and turns that will take audiences off-guard. The acting is nothing special but is certainly adequate, though the performances of the film's primary and secondary characters even by series newcomers like Patrick Dempsey, Alan Tudyk, John Malkovich, and the venerable Frances McDormand are simply overshadowed by the digital effects. Not to worry, though, that's exactly what the movie should be: a parade of special effects that break new ground with every click of the mouse, every save to the hard drive. Ultimately, the big winner here is the audience. It's a relief that this entry bests its predecessor. It could have been better, sure, but this is a marked improvement over Revenge of the Fallen. Everyone now, a big sigh of relief, and in harmony, please.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman (blu-ray.com)