Plot Autobots and the US military have united to form NEST, an elite unit dedicated to wiping out Decepticons. But when they catch a rogue ‘bot in Shanghai, it warns that something very bad is heading for Earth: a diabolical entity known as ‘The Fallen’.
Review A notable moment occurs during the dementedly frenetic final act of Transformers 2. A robot-on-robot fracas is unfolding around Egypt’s Giza Necropolis, with Devastator, an especially massive mechanoid comprised of several construction vehicles, set on clawing its way to the peak of a pyramid. As it lumbers up the dusty colossus, a shot tilts up to its mid-section, revealing two wrecking balls dangling down. Yes, Michael Bay, the man who brought us cyber-micturition in this movie’s predecessor, has one-upped himself: Decepticon testicles.
If the thought of that gag makes you laugh, chances are you’ll have a ball with Revenge Of The Fallen. If not… well, Bay really doesn’t care. His first and only sequel since Bad Boys 2 is, like that film, marked by swaggering confidence, wild excess and a string of bad-taste jokes. Dogs hump each other, robots hump human legs and the camera spends so much time ogling Megan Fox’s torso you start to wonder if it’s being operated by a 13 year-old boy. There are now 42 robots, including one that looks like a jaguar, one that can turn into ball bearings to access high-security areas and one in the form of a Dyson vacuum cleaner.
It all looks good on paper, as does the added-value 150-minute run time. But it’s a case of same meal, bigger portion, with the flaws of the first not only present but accentuated. You’ll be even more hard pressed at the end of this one to remember which robot’s which — there are three or four new Gremlin-esque ones that chitter and skitter about like the first movie’s Frenzy — and few get more than a scene before Bay’s attention flits elsewhere. Even the Fallen, an Emperor figure to Megatron’s Darth Vader, who can hurl tanks around with the aid of his jagged staff, is only blandly nefarious.
The plot, meanwhile, is as baffling as before, not only bringing back the abstruse Allspark but throwing in a new MacGuffin called the ‘Matrix of Leadership’. It tries harder to be funny but is actually less so, despite Shia LaBeouf working some early new-kid-on-campus schtick, Rainn Wilson amusing in a single scene as a rock-star astronomy teacher, and John Turturro doing an entertaining reprise of MIB wannabe Simmons (“What you’re about to see is top secret: do not tell my mother”). This is a film that doesn’t know where to stop — even comic-relief characters get their own comic-relief characters, like the offensively irritating Twins, who bicker in hip-hop slang, or Wheels, a turncoat Decepticon who for some reason talks like a ‘30s screen gangster.
What saves it, just about, are the effects. At times the frame is so packed with whirring cogs and twirling cranks that you could replicate the effect by staring at the innards of a domestic appliance, but when these CG moto-men from another world duke it out, the images are often so screwy it’s impossible to do anything but sit and stare. The Shanghai-set opening sequence is lunatic fun, with Optimus Prime leaping onto the face of a colossal, rampaging unicycle and ordering it to, “Pull over”. And while Prime’s later forest face-off against a trio of Decepticons suffers by comparison to a recent film’s spar between a big ape and three dinosaurs, there are more flawlessly rendered money shots in the last 40 minutes alone than in a dozen less ambitious blockbusters.
It’s just a shame there aren’t more ideas behind the spectacle, since we’re not given much in the way of compelling reasons to root for one pixelly pugilist over another. Long before the final minute it’s become a numbing, wearying viewing experience. Next time could we have less balls and more brains?
Verdict A super-sized second helping, but the novelty factor and some of the charm’s gone. Hey, at least there’s more Megatron / Starscream squabbling this time round.
Average user rating for Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen
Wanksformers
I've never really been one of those in the Micheal Bay hate camp, I enjoyed Bad Boys 1 + 2, thought the first Transformers film was good fun, The Rock a great film and the Island a decent effort as well BUT.... after seeing this my overwhelming feeling was that he should be taken out the back and shot in the head.
It's just a meaningless succession of FX setpieces, there's no real fun. feeling, meaning or anything - the last time I felt this way about an FX heavy movie was when I saw Van ... Read More
Been a huge Transformers fan since I was a about 4 years old and even thought the first movie was enjoyable despite it's problems ...but this was awful. There are so many reasons that I won't even list them. Not looking forward to the third at all now. ... Read More
might i just say that this is the best film i have seen in along long time and not just for megan fox. transformers pretty much sums up what we need in a film action, sci-fi, comedy and giant robots. if you don't like this film then you don't have a sense of humour and if you sit on a computer picking out the flaws of a truly great movie then get a life. ... Read More
Didn't think this was any worse than the first one. I didn't particularly like that one first time around but once I knew what to expect from it I found it was quite an enjoyable couple of hours. This was much of the same with fantastic special effects (I just watched G.I. Joe and that has woeful effects) but I still can't tell who's who (why are they all grey?), the twin bots were sooo annoying (and a little bit racist), and if they can disguise themselves as humans why are they all turning int... Read More
Again with the negative reviews! I loved Transformers, it took me a little while for me to really enjoy it but once I did I wanted a sequel that would rival it. Here with Revenge Of The Fallen, it's there but it does have a fair share of problems. Some of the jokes arren't that funny, the running time is a little overlong and the plot isn't genius. But it does have amazing special effects, awesome fights between the Autobots and Decptions. The cast return just without Jon Voight but they bring a... Read More
when John Tuturo is your saving grace, you have a problem
nothing against John Tuturo, he's a brilliant actor, but no film should have a supporting character as it's saving grace. While the first one was hilarious with un-forced jokes, filled with action that didn't burn your eyes and giving a story that wasn't so ridiculous and cheesy that it was unbelievable, the second pretty much failed in all these areas, and what was michael bay saying about having 'a bigger badder final showdown'? The only thing big and bad about that showdown were the massive b... Read More
whoa whoa guys, this film was an orgy of fire, destruction and Megan Fox, it was designed for every man on planet earth to enjoy and i did, i didnt go expecting a great plot, i went for the explosions and that is what this film did ... Read More
this film offended my eyes ears and feelings.i fucking loathed this with a passion.exploiting megan fox deepthroat style! the viisual effects are a disgrace,impossible to make out 90% of the time.this film has no redeeming features whatsoever.my girlfriend loved it.....DAMN HER. ... Read More
Crash bang wallop, funny parents, Megan Fox is a ride. Crash bang wallop, annoying story, two dogs shagging (WTF) crash bang wallop, can barely tell one Tranny from the other...arse getting numb. Crash bang wallop, nowhere near as good as the first. ... Read More
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