Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

The Autobots have claimed Earth as their new home and have forged an unstable alliance with the members of a multinational military unit called NEST, led by Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) and Major Lennox (Josh Duhmel) in order to curb the increasing Decepticon presence on the planet. And in the shadow of this intergalactic war, Starscream, Megatron's (Hugo Weaving) second in command, plans to raise his former commander in order to unleash the silent menace behind the rise of the Decepticons: The Fallen. Meanwhile, Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) wanting to live a normal life, leaves for college and hopes to leave the robotic war behind.

Sequels nearly always fall short of their parent films and this one's no exception. This one's full of juvenile sexual humor, flashy action sequences and tired story-lines which populate the two-hours. Gone is the tension that makes each scene anticipated in order to drive and fuel the story. Frank Capra (of It's a Wonderful Life fame) says this of spectacle: "You can only involve an audience with people. You can't involve them with gimmicks, with sunsets, with hand-held cameras, zoom shots or anything else. They couldn't care less about those things. But you give them something to worry about, some person they can worry about, and care about, you've got them." This film's main concern is the story's dressing, it's embellishments, rather than the compelling human drama of the previous installment. Even the peril to our robotic heroes fails to be worth watching due to the lack of goodness, appropriateness, like-ability and consistency in character. And without the human element, regardless of the fact they are non-human in essence, the Cybertronians mostly exist as screen space only. Granted, slick and sexy screen space, but not enough for an emotional connection.

As exceptions go, however, the presence of one of my favorite story motifs is probably why I don't chuck this one on the pile of discs (some which I plan to shed from Click's Flix after this project) affectionately named "The Stack." This is the motif where the hero, or heroes in this case, is sacrificed for the greater good making all the difference for the plot. In this film's case, Optimus Prime (regardless of the fact he's the only one that can kill The Fallen) sacrifices himself to save Sam, whose purpose is to find the Matrix of Leadership in order to keep it from the Decepticons and save the world. Seemingly, all is lost at that point. But in order to obtain The Matrix, capable of starting any form of Cybertronian Tech, Sam himself must die for his mission. Because of this, it inspires in the audience a full measure of devotion as well as the will to fight for what is righteous and good with the will to sacrifice all for the greater good. This film executes this motif flawlessly and does what the majority of its package should have: puts the needs of the plot forward and uses the mechanics of filmmaking to enhance it instead of showcasing the spectacle.

So it's not the best film of all time; I must be honest, though, it's not the worst. Perfect to iron to, work out to, read to, study to or anything else that requires less concentration because there's little profundity. So, Chill-ax, and take it for what it is: spectacle only; a good story it is not.

****

In: Tyreese Gibson

Out: Shia LeBeouf

Coming Soon: Bobby