Alanz Eyes

Movie: The Transformers

July 11th, 2007 - Posted by Alan Howard

Last night I went to see The Transformers with Deidre, Peter, Lucy and David.  This was the second attempt to see it, as we went last week and the lineup for it stretched out of the cinema…  So we went to an earlier session last night, which was the second week it was open, thinking that we’d have no problems getting in.  We even turned up half an hour before it, just to make sure.

Holy crap!  The line was longer than what it was last week!  For two weeks in a row, the lineup for the movie was stretching outside of the cinema.

We weren’t going to wait another week, and we were getting sick of this ridiculous popularity problem.  So we bought tickets for the next session, and as soon as the line for the 8:30pm session went in, we lined up for the 9:30 session.  But people still got to the front of the line before us! 

So there we were, lining up an hour before the movie, to make sure we were able to see it.  It wasn’t a good start.  After almost an hour of standing around talking, I realised my leg was going numb.  This was probably because of my back issue (collapsed disc in my lower back from 1993), and considering that it’s been many, many years since I’ve stood in one spot for so long it became obvious to me that my back still has its issues.

Finally we got into the cinema and I was able to sit down and relax with Deidre and my friends.  The trailers began, but I’d seen all of them already (the trailers, not the movies) and I was just wanting the actual movie to start!  The lights went down, the cinema went dark, and people started to stop talking.  Except Deidre.  I elbowed her and went ’sshhh’ and with some fading mutterings from her, the movie began.

I have to say that it was an awesome ride!  Fantastic!  The movie was a sci-fi action comedy, and the comedy was surprising in such a movie, which only made it funnier.

A couple of fun quotes:

Sam’s mom: “Have you been masturbating?  It’s ok, you know, but if you want to call it something else then maybe we can call it Sam’s Happy Time…”

Sam to a girl he likes: “Can I ride you home?  I mean…. give you a ride home?”

Lots of huge action scenes turn this into a ride to remember.  The camera work is rather shaky at times and seems to get too close to the action, and while this seems to annoy the hell out of some viewers, I thought it was very appropriate.  I mean, when you have monstrously tall robots kicking the crap out of each other, you have a lot of fast and violent action that moves all over the place.  There’s incredible noise, violence, confusion, explosions and rocket trails.  How is it ‘realistic’ to think that it all happens in a steady camera shot?  I think not, and that’s why it was made more exciting because of the camera work.

The special effects were awesome.  I read another review somewhere from someone who obviously didn’t like it and just made up lots of bad stuff, including his perception that all the robots had this glow around them that was obviously very badly done special effects.  I don’t know what kind of drugs he was on, but there was nothing like that.

A few scenes of note were:

• a Spectre AC-130 gunship was brought in to “bring down the rain” on one of the robots.  Oh my…  That plane is just awesome.  I’ve known about it for some time, but seeing it in action is amazing.  It has a number of weapons on one side, including chain guns, small cannons and even artillery.   On a plane.  So when the plane banks and circles a target, a whole world of hurt comes raining down!
• a scene showing a woman on her knees screaming in shock and terror as a 20 foot robot is running towards her from slightly behind her.  The scene keeps her screaming face (seeming to scream silently because of the noise of combat) in view as the robot somersaults over her to roll on the other side of her, the camera following the robot through its movements, all the while keeping this shocked woman’s face as the main focus of attention
• Sam trying to hide a bunch of 20 and 30 foot robots in his backyard, while his parents are peering out the window trying to work out what’s going on outside.  Seeing the robots hiding behind various parts of the house is hilarious.
  “His parents are irritating.  Can I take them out?”

Go see the movie.  You’ll enjoy it.  Try to make sure you don’t have to stand for an hour in line though…

Entry Filed under: Entertainment