Australian Penthouse

Paramount Pictures

Director:  Michael Bay
Stars: Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, John Turturro

by Dave Kozicki

MUCH has changed in the two years since the original Transformers rocked our world and introduced audiences to the shapely midriff of Megan Fox (How to Lose Friends and Alienate People). After defeating the evil Megatron, mankind and the Autobots formed an uneasy alliance known as N.E.S.T., patrolling the Earth for Decepticon infiltrators and dealing with them when necessary.

Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) is enrolled at university where he struggles with his long distance relationship with Mikaela Banes (Fox), his overbearing parents, and a fragment of the energy rich Allspark, embedding generations of Autobot history into his fragile human brain.

Much like the original movie, Sam possesses the secrets of boundless energy, and must be protected from an ancient and vicious threat known as The Fallen, the original Decepticon, an entity that harbours cataclysmic plans to resurrect Megatron and, in doing so, destroy the human race.

Someone should tell Michael Bay that a long run-time doesn’t mean a better movie. Revenge of the Fallen is longer than it needs to be, and suffers the same problems as Bad Boys II: peaking too early, and running too long.

After the heart attack-inducing intensity of the first hour, and an exhilarating showdown between Megatron and Optimus Prime, there’s a distinct lull as the film attempts to regain lost momentum. That said, the action sequences showcase some of Michael Bay’s best work; the production values are off the charts. Bay cannily provides broadscope framing, so that each aspect of the billion-colours, flashing metal fight scenes can be followed easily (and enjoyed).

Australian soap actor Isabel Lucas features in a small role reminiscent of  fellow Australian Rachael Taylor’s tech whiz, Maggie, in the original film. In fact, the Anthony Anderson/Rachael Taylor dynamic provided much-needed comic relief in the original and it’s the absence of a similar dynamic in this movie where Revenge of the Fallen really suffers. Instead, animated Autobots, Mudflap and Skids—’street’ robots with dialogue that is forced at best and unnecessary at worst, prevail.

Fan favourites Soundwave and Jetfire get a look in (Soundwave is rebooted as a satellite, which a nice touch), and Decepticon defector Jetfire provides a few chuckles, with John Turturro (Do the Right Thing, The Big Lebowski) picking up the vocal assist  as ex-Sector 7 Agent Simmons.
As far as popcorn cinema goes, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen follows the sequel formula. It’s bigger and bolder, and the special effects (along with Megan Fox’s hotpants) are impressive enough to soften the film’s uneven pace and excessive length. Cutting around 40 minutes of filler would have made this a tight-paced and definitive action film as opposed to a decent-enough sequel.
4 out of 5 stars

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