You wouldn’t believe the sheer controversy and criticism that has followed this movie ever since it’s release. Controversy and criticism that, I must confess, I firmly trusted and believed. But then I actually watched the movie. In the end, I’d have to say that Transformers 2 is not a bad film.
Sure, the underlying themes and messages of the story are not very well developed. And it’s true that the third act of the film grinds, falters, and climaxes in an undeniably short and shallow face-off. And I know that the Transformer nationalities and accents make no sense. Seriously, why on earth would an ages-old Decepticon have a Celtic accent?
And what the heck was with the Autobots named Skids and Mudflap? It’s like Michael Bay was trying desperately hard to come up with two characters that were exceedingly stupid, pointless, twisted, and offensive, all at the same time. And they really hold the movie back. Why couldn’t they have put two characters in their place that were, you know, actually cool?
But I digress because, at the very least up until the mid-act climax of the film, Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen is both well-structured and well-shot, making for a very cool and intense first act and a half. It’s very flawed, and yet, at the same time, a whole lot of fun. And there’s nothing particularly wrong with that.
This film is a guilty pleasure for me. Maybe its because I love giant robots beating the shit out of each other, who knows?