Review Summary: Buzzes along to a stronger and surprisingly more emotional beat.
In the 21st century alone, I don't think there's been a franchise nearly as infamous and reviled as the Transformers. Sure, back in 2007, the original film was seen as a novelty and was thought of as new and unique. Then the sequels came and the haters multiplied. Everyone believed Michael Bay had completely ruined what was a kid-friendly franchise. After The Last Knight finally showed signs of business fatigue, the studios and writers finally decided to do a soft reboot (even though its' actually a prequel). By bringing in animation director Travis Knight (LAIKA Films founder and director of Kubo and the Two Strings), and a different, gentler approach, can they finally get this series right?
In an interesting turn of events, the answer is yes. Bumblebee is what the franchise needed all along. A more low-key, retro and character-driven vibe makes the film honest-to-goodness fun. Now, with the kid-and-his-unique pet storyline in play here, does it seem a bit too reminiscent of E.T. and The Iron Giant? At a few points, yes it does. But, the familiar plotline works wonders in injecting much-needed heart and soul into this particular installment.
Hailee Steinfeld's casting here is a definite positive. She brings energy, wit and a convincing adolescent relatability to Charlie. You know an actress does a great job when she helps you care for her character, and she does a wonderful job interacting with just about nothing on set. Meanwhile, as a military leader, John Cena seems to be having fun but is given a bunch of very corny lines. There's no question that he's ideal for a part like this, but if only the writing for his character was stronger.
Of course, it wouldn't be a Transformers movie without robot battles. And there's a handful of them in this tale. However, the filmmakers this time give a fairer balance between the characters and the action. It's only towards the end that the action scenes seem to extend the runtime a little bit. There's a computer-generated scene at the beginning on cybertron that sets up Bumblebee's story fairly well, but its' also relatively (and wisely) quick by the franchise's standards. As the main Decepticons, Angela Bassett and Justin Theroux are appropriately villainous. Optimus Prime (voice of Peter Cullen) makes a couple of appearances too.
There's also a handful of memorable light-hearted moments here too. You feel like you want to jump in and be a part of Charlie and Bumblebee's misadventures. The 80's setting, while not a new concept for movies in recent memory, proves to be very effective. 80's music is used to help Bumblebee try to communicate with Charlie in humorous ways. Meanwhile, Steinfeld is given a catchy song for the end credits ("Back to Life").
Sometimes the script descends into cartoonish territory, but not quite overbearingly so. Yet, it soars at all the right moments. A few emotional scenes where Charlie looks for comfort from Bee are well-executed. The filmmaking crew also does a wonderful job giving the robot a somewhat intimidating yet innocent look. Instead of the more rough-edged version we've seen in previous films, this version of Bumblebee carries soft, shy blue eyes and much more convincing empathy.
Considering the main plot points, as I mentioned before, there are a couple of obvious scenes that seem like they exactly mirror E.T. or The Iron Giant. Let's just say if you've watched those movies, you'll know the moments when you see them. And, for an entry that seems more aimed towards younger crowds, the foul language is still a bit too excessive (even though there are no f-bombs like some of the previous films awkwardly have).
Knight was definitely the right man for this job. His attention to character and emotional connections was long overdue for this dying series. And while Bumblebee has its obvious potholes, it still succeeds solidly in being an emotionally-satisfying, charming, and exciting movie that does deserve its' buzz (pun intended).
My Score: 7.7/10
Content Concerns for Family Viewing: Bumblebee is rated PG-13 for "sequences of sci-fi action violence". The rating is appropriate, as there are a handful of scenes that are likely to be too intense for younger moviegoers (I would say anyone under the age of 10). The opening scene is a battle scene on Cybertron, with the Autobots and Decepticons ripping each other apart and destroyed. As the robots fall to earth, they cause pretty strong explosions (a few other fiery explosions occur too). Two humans are killed (they are vaporized and turned into a stream of transparent, clear slime). The military fire guns repeatedly at Bee and the Decepticons in a few scenes. Bee destroys a few cars. Characters are injured (a little blood is shown on faces in a couple of moments). In one scene, Bee is hung by his hands and is tortured by two decepticons for information. One character apparently breaks his arm (he's seen with a cast at the end).
Language is also a bit of an issue here. "Oh g**" and "oh my g**" are the common offense, as it's heard nearly 30 times altogether. We also hear one unfortunate use of "J----!" Besides that, we hear the s-word (two times clearly, one mouthed), h*** (nine times), d*** (five times), and one use each of a**, "balls", "crap", and "rupture your freaking spleen!". Charlie disobeys and lies to her mother a handful of times to protect Bee. She sneaks out a few times too. A kid is shown vomiting after the family car spins around a few times. A group of girls are outright mean to Charlie and make an unfortunate joke out of her deceased father. Charlie and a possible love interest react unwisely with revenge by throwing toilet paper and eggs at one of the girl's houses (before Bumblebee gets in on it and destroys her car). One guy strips down to his boxers at one point to dive off a cliff. Some girls wear form-fitting attire.
