Summer blockbuster season has arrived with all the logic stretching bravado that comes with Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. A bold and brash tent pole crowd pleaser, which teams Autobots with Maximals against another galactic threat to their adopted planet Earth.
With some serious character actors offering their vocal talents including Ron Perlman (Optimus Primal), Peter Dinklage (Scourge), an Oscar winning Michelle Yeoh (Airazor), and a scene stealing turn from Pete Davidson (Mirage) – this latest instalment has more heart than most of its predecessors, even if time travelling McGuffins rob the plot of all reason.
Co-written by Joby Harold (The Flash), who has producer credits on Edge of Tomorrow and Obi-Wan Kenobi, this high-octane entry in the never-ending franchise is singlehandedly stolen by Pete Davidson as Mirage. A smart mouthed Porsche shaped Autobot who bonds with Noah Diaz (Anthony Ramos), while Peter Cullen (Optimus Prime) and company face off against a mechanized planet killer amongst the mayhem.
This being the seventh film in a billion-dollar series, audiences must be wondering what else is there left to give. Thankfully, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts careens through its 2-hour running time without creating much lag. Anthony Ramos (In the Heights) is engaging alongside Dominique Fishback (Judas and the Black Messiah), while visual effects do most of the heavy lifting elsewhere.
The presence of Michael Bay can still be felt running through this incarnation, even if director Steven Caple Jr (Creed II) does a solid job of adding some essential pathos to a franchise not known for its delicacy. Stand outs aside from Pete Davidson’s Mirage, include a particularly malevolent Scourge, voiced with obvious relish by Peter Dinklage, who adds subtle shades to his villain despite the popcorn pandemonium.
For fans of the eponymous Bumblebee, who is responsible for jump starting the Transformers with his stand-alone adventure, there is also much to celebrate. As the visual effects team behind that character deserve every plaudit going, since his personality and on-screen presence offer some much needed comic relief at crucial moments.
However, this is still a Transformers movie to the core and will make serious money, as the sole purpose of the film is to entertain. There will be no life changing epiphanies, no thought-provoking moments of introspection, nor a life lesson to be learned through heartbreaking sacrifice.
On every conceivable level this is popcorn cinema made for the masses, which is certain to sell more Hasbro movie tie-ins, spawn another generation of devotees, and fill an ever-present gap in the market for mainstream cinema. All there is left to say has already been said a million times over about this Michael Bay money making machine, except whether it is any good – which on this occasion happens to be yes.
If audiences are not looking for anything other than entertainment, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts ticks all the boxes
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is out in cinemas from June 8.
