Transformers: Age of Extinction Review

Transformers: Age of Extinction, yet another Transformers movie, and now it follows a new character, Cade Yeager, played by Mark Wahlberg.

In the aftermath of the previous movie, Age of Extinction takes place five years later with the Transformers, including Autobots, being hunted down by the government. What follows is the typical Michael Bay plot of explosions and action sequences.

By now, you should know exactly what to expect from a Transformers movie. Even though most critics hate the Transformers movies, it still manages to make a billion dollars worldwide. Why does a movie like this keep making so much money? For one, it is mostly from outside of North America, but the main reason is that the masses know what to expect: dumb action and explosions. I have never seen a Transformers movie in theaters, because they are just not good enough to spend that much money on, but for a rental, it is worth it. What confuses me is that why do people that hated the previous movies still go watch it in the theaters? Why contribute to something that you dislike so much, and something that you know that you will hate? It is a wide spread case masochism!?

Directed by: Michael Bay

Genre: Action, Sci-Fi,

Release Date: June 27, 2014

Running Time: 165 minutes

MMPA rating: PG-13

The Good: EXPLOSIONS!, Fun action sequences, Mostly entertaining, Mark Wahlberg, Stanley Tucci is mostly funny, 

The Bad: So many dumb moments, Plot holes, One annoying character in the beginning, Nameless new Autobots, Overly long (in the theater),

Plot: 3.1/10- As with most Transformers movie plots, there isn't much of one, and the one that is there is full of holes and incomprehensible at times. In Transformers movies, the plot is almost not necessary, so you basically have to turn off your brain to enjoy it. All things considered, a few of the plot twists are not bad. 

The one problem that is cited in almost every review is that the movie is too long, and that is true to a certain degree. Yes, the movie is 165 minutes and not all of that time is necessary. However, when watching it at home, where you can take a break, get something to eat, ect. the length is not as noticeable, but if you did watch it in the theaters, then it probably felt like an eternity at times.

Characterization: 4.5/10- Cade Yeager is actually not a bad character. Making a Mark Wahlberg play a relatively smart inventor, which is somewhat against type, worked out for the best. The character’s best aspect comes from him being a father, and some of the family dynamic with his daughter, Tessa, work surprisingly well. Unfortunately, Tessa can be very annoying at times, particularly the scenes with her boyfriend, Shane, who is mostly a throwaway character.  

A character introduced later in the movie, Joshua Joyce, is surprisingly entertaining to watch, and he even has some form of development. 

As for the Autobots and other Transformers, they are forgettable in name, even if the designs are cool. Aside from the main two, Optimus Prime and Bumblebee, the rest of the Autobots look cool and have fun personality traits, but their names are so rarely mentioned, if at all, it is frustrating! 

The main antagonist, Lockdown, is a typical villain doing villainy things for villainy reasons. He had some cool moments though.

Lastly, the Dinobots, and as expected, they are basically an afterthought to cash in on the nostalgia of the viewers.

Action: 8.0/10- The action is Transformers main draw, and while not exceptional, it is exactly what you come to expect: explosions! All of the set pieces are big and over-the-top with quite a bit of slow motion. Nothing in the action direction is original, but it is not bad either.

Acting: 5.4/10- Mark Wahlberg does a surprisingly good job with the material that he was given. He has a natural likability about him that made his character likable enough. Even though Stanley Tucci is given some terrible dialogue at times, he manages to make his role entertaining to watch. Kelsey Grammer goes full clichéd government bad guy as he phones in the role. The rest of the cast ranges from forgettable to occasionally annoying, like Nicola Peltz.

Special effects: 7.5/10- At times, particularly the opening scenes, the special effects seemed to be lacking, while other times they looked fine. Considering the money this franchise makes, you would think that the special effects would be the best of the best, but I suppose it would make money regardless of what Bay does.

Soundtrack: 5.0/10- Steve Jablonsky's score is the type of soundtrack that neither adds nor detracts from the movie, hence my rating, because it is entirely forgettable.

Humor: 7.6/10- As with most Michael Bay movies, his humor is hit or miss, which is heavily dependent on your taste in humor. For me, it made me laugh, even if the humor was not clever at all.

Entertainment Value: 7.9/10- Entertainment is what Transformers delivers on best, and that is what is delivers yet again. It is utterly stupid throughout, but it is still entertaining, providing you did not pay more than a couple of dollars to watch it. One notable negative is that the movie does drag in places.

Overall: 6.3/10- Full of explosions, action, and plot holes, Transformers: Age of Extinction is everything that you have come to expect in a Transformers movie. If you did not like the previous ones, then why the heck would you watch this one? 

Closing comments: What baffles me about the Transformers movie is that people pay to see them, knowing full well what to expect after the first two, and yet they are still angry about paying to see it when they end up hating it. 

Recommended for: If you liked the previous Transformers movies,

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