Review: Fun 'Transformers: Rise of the Beasts' is a celebration of big budget mediocrity
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
3 out of 5 Stars
Director: Steven Caple Jr.
Writers: Joby Harold, Darnell Metayer, Josh Peters
Starring: Anthony Ramos, Dominique Fishback
Genre: Action, Sci-Fi
Rated: PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence, and language
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) – Studio Synopsis: Returning to the action and spectacle that have captured moviegoers around the Returning to the action and spectacle that have captured moviegoers around the world, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will take audiences on a ‘90s globetrotting adventure with the Autobots and introduce a whole new faction of Transformer – the Maximals – to join them as allies in the existing battle for earth.
Review: I wasn’t particularly optimistic as I made my way south on the freeway. I loved the Transformers as a child (my cousin was absolutely bonkers for it), but the appeal barely lasted past the original live-action film. Sure, it was amazing to see the characters portrayed in a more realistic way, but when the thrill evaporated it became increasingly apparent that the script was atrocious. And it only got worse.
Until it got better in 2018 with “Bumblebee.” Yes, I hate John Cena’s performance, but everything else about the film was enjoyable. So, there was a little good will left for the franchise to burn. And then, only blocks from the theater, my tire shredded. My tiny Batmoblie turned into a massive paper weight. I was too close to the theater to simply skip the movie. I set out on a mission to see “Rise of the Beasts” and I was going to do just that. Even if I was now primed to hate it.
I didn’t hate it.
Set in the mid-90s, “Rise of the Beasts” might be connected to “Bumblebee,” but in a universe that is so convoluted and filled with contradictions, I’m not sure that it matters. Besides, the setting feels more like an excuse to needle drop hip-hop classics from the era than a necessary aspect of the narrative. That’s fine.
The gimmick for this film is that there are now giant robot creatures based on wildlife known as Maximals (which might be an improvement over the BotBot name they were given in the animated spin-off). The Maximals, led by a gorilla robot named Optimus Primal, possess a magic rock that a giant, world-eating robot Unicron (not a unicorn) wants to use to teleport through time and space. That rock has been hidden on Earth. When it is accidentally activated, a beacon alerts Unicron’s minions of its location. Optimus Prime sees the beacon too. He wants to use the stone to travel back to his home world of Cybertron.
Prime is something of a curmudgeon who dislikes Earth and its inhabitants. He’s not pleased when Noah (Anthony Ramos) and Elena (Dominique Fishback), our human characters, get mixed up in the plot. Will Prime be able to set aside his disdain and trust them? Will the universe be devoured? Will Noah and Elena fall in love? Will the Autobots ever get to go home? Will there be a mid-credit scene? Why is War Machine in this movie?
"Rise of the Beasts" is goofy, ridiculous, and probably the best Transformer live-action film ever made. That’s not a high bar, but that doesn’t make the statement any less true. It’s a bit weird that there aren’t any Decepticons, but Unicron’s lackeys are essentially the same thing. I wouldn't call it essential, but it was at least entertaining.
