SPOILER WARNING: I will be discussing plot points about the later portion of this film, so if you haven’t seen the movie, either watch it and come back to read this later or check out one of my other reviews! You have been warned!
Does this big-budget sci-fi extravaganza deserve to be called one of the worst films of 2014 or is it one of the most underrated films of recent memory? Let’s answer this question in my critique of:
Personally, I consider Transformers: Age of Extinction to be one of my favorite movies of 2014, as it improved upon the previous two films in the Michael Bay-directed Transformers series by raising the stakes even further for the heroic Autobots and finally giving the Dinobots the big screen treatment fans had been waiting a long time for (with the exception of their appearance in the animated 1986 Transformers movie). With that being said, let’s dive into what makes Transformers: Age of Extinction such an enjoyable cinematic ride!
Story: Age of Extinction takes place 4 years after the events of Transformers: Dark of the Moon, and in that time, humanity has turned against all Transformers, whether they be Autobot or Decepticon. Lead by the delusional and xenophobic Harold Attinger (Kelsey Grammer) and aided by the morally dubious Cybertronian bounty hunter Lockdown, the black-ops team known as Cemetery Wind has been secretly wiping out the benevolent Autobots (in addition to Decepticons), as Attinger believes that Earth will know peace only when both factions of Transformers are gone. In the meantime, struggling inventor Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg) purchases a rusty truck that he intends to strip down for parts with the intent of using the money to be able to get Cade’s young daughter Tessa (Nicola Peltz) into college. However, the truck turns out to be a severely wounded Optimus Prime, who is repaired by Cade via the latter’s mechanical smarts. However, Cemetery Wind and Lockdown soon discover this and, after a narrow escape, Optimus, Cade, and Tessa, along with Tessa’s secret boyfriend Shane (Jack Reynor) find themselves on the run. Though they’re reunited with the remaining Autobots (Hound, Drift, Crosshairs, and Bumblebee), can our heroes unravel this mystery surrounding the Autobot attacks, whilst also saving the world from mass destruction?
The multiple subplots that make up the story, while not the strongest part of Age of Extinction, are still a large improvement over the previous 2 Transformers sequels, as most of these plot threads are given (arguably) reasonable time to develop. For example, when Cade meets Shane as the protagonists are escaping Cemetery Wind, they don’t hit it off at all, as Cade is not at all pleased about the fact that Shane and Tessa have been dating behind Cade’s back for quite some time. However, as the movie progresses, Cade comes to appreciate how much Shane cares about Tessa, as though Shane can be somewhat cowardly in the face of danger at times (as seen on Lockdown's ship), he’ll nonetheless stick with Cade and put his life on the line if it means getting his cherished girlfriend out of harm’s way. This is perhaps most evident when Cade and Shane have a moment of peace before the massive Hong Kong battle and are speaking about Cade’s motivations for protecting Tessa. Cade proves to have finally accepted Shane by this point in Age of Extinction, as demonstrated when the former exclaims, “Thanks for being here today, Lucky Charms” (a nickname Cade gave Shane since the latter is of Irish heritage). However, on the more critical side of things, I feel as though the character growth of KSI head-honcho Joshua Joyce (played exquisitely by Stanley Tucci) could've been given more time to unfold, as it would make his siding with the heroes towards the end of the film that much more organic (though what we're shown in the final film is nonetheless satisfactory). Finally, the larger subplot regarding the return of the Decepticon leader Megatron as Galvatron can admittedly feel somewhat forced at certain points in the movie, considering how the protagonists already have to deal with Lockdown and Attinger. Around the time of Age of Extinction's release, I thought that, should audiences overlook this lack of consistency in storytelling, viewers might come to believe that Galvatron’s presence in Age of Extinction nicely set the stage for the next film (that being Transformers: The Last Knight, which came out in 2017), but, given what an underwhelming role Megatron had in that movie, it makes me frustrated by the wasted potential that the follow-up to Age of Extinction ended up squandering.
Cast: Mark Wahlberg as Cade Yeager is arguably one of the best casting choices this film series could have made to date, as Wahlberg’s performance, while not Oscar-worthy by any means, nonetheless manages to be convincing and engaging. His performance in the actual movie is also a massive improvement over Shia LaBeouf’s less-than-stellar portrayal of Sam Witwicky from the previous two entries in the series (though to be fair, LaBeouf was limited by the material he had to work with in Revenge of the Fallen and Dark of the Moon), helped by how this is an entirely new and separate main character that Wahlberg is bringing to life. While he (of course) instills Cade with some 'rough spots' (in-universe), Wahlberg nevertheless puts enough into his performance that viewers can still get invested in Cade anyway.
In addition to Wahlberg, legendary voice actor Peter Cullen once again breathes life into the Autobot leader Optimus Prime, who has lost faith in humanity as a result of the needless loss of so many longtime comrades and brothers-in-arms to the humans they'd sworn to defend. However, as the film unfolds, Cade successfully convinces Prime to reconsider the latter’s opinion on humanity by pointing out that making mistakes (in this case, distrusting the Autobots) is a natural aspect of humans, and that we can learn from said mistakes. Despite criticisms made against Optimus Primes’ new role and stark “contrast” from the previous incarnations of the beloved sci-fi hero regarding his personality, I think that the things Optimus does and says onscreen in Age of Extinction are completely justified. After all, what would you be like it if the people you trusted and were dedicated to protecting suddenly turned against you, while at the same time also mercilessly killing many of your close comrades that you’ve fought alongside for years? If you put yourself in Optimus Prime’s massive feet, you’d likely be feeling the same way the Autobot leader feels in various parts of the film. In general, I feel like this development in Prime is a fresh change for the character, as this makes the towering alien robot seem more 'human' (ironically speaking), and thus worth viewers’ sympathy. Even in the scene where Optimus Prime is recruiting the Dinobots to help save Hong Kong from Decepticon forces, the way he declares, “You defend my family, or die” to a downed Grimlock is somewhat justifiable, because Prime is most likely aware that time is running out for his allies that are fending off a staggering number of Decepticon drones and is thus desperate for aid. In addition, when Prime threatens Grimlock (the Dinobot leader whose allegiance Prime’s fighting for) with death if the latter doesn't help the protagonists, one could argue the Autobot leader means the Dinobots would die along with the rest of our heroes if the Seed (a special explosive with the blast radius of a nuclear weapon and the McGuffin of the film) is detonated by Galvatron’s forces. As such, Optimus Prime’s actions throughout the entire movie are understandable and defensible due to the circumstances of Age of Extinction’s story, though he thankfully still has moments where he gets to show exactly why he's the leader of the Autobots!
Besides Cade and Optimus Prime, other cast members, whether they be returning faces like the Autobot scout Bumblebee, or newcomers like Crosshairs (John DiMaggio of Futurama fame), Drift (Ken Watanabe, who I know for playing Dr. Ishiro Serizawa in Warner Bros.' Monsterverse, which started with 2014's Godzilla), and Hound (John Goodman, aka Sulley in Pixar’s Monsters Inc.) all have their moments to shine in Age of Extinction. What really sets the new Autobots apart from their allies in the previous two movies is that the new Autobots, while admittedly not the most fully developed characters, have their own personalities, as opposed to just being there to fill a certain role in the story and/or take up space onscreen. Crosshairs is the (somewhat) defiant and cynical (characteristics that John DiMaggio captures particularly well) sniper & paratrooper of the Autobots who speaks of being leader of the team himself yet, unlike the conniving Decepticon known as Starscream from the previous films, bears great respect for Optimus Prime's leadership, which is best displayed via his commentary when Prime recruits the Dinobots. Drift, on the other hand, is the samurai-like swordsman who, despite speaking quite elegantly via the use of haikus (which Ken Watanabe arguably nails, vocally speaking), can actually be quite aggressive if caught off guard, which makes for a rather amusing moment midway through the film when the Autobots, accompanied by Cade and Shane, launch a rescue mission of Optimus Prime and Tessa from Lockdown's ship and come across one of Lockdown's more 'exotic' prisoners. Finally, Hound serves as the Autobot' one-man commando unit who takes delight from the thrills of combat (which John Goodman's gruff-sounding, booming voice encapsulates impressively well). In general, the new Autobots are decidedly entertaining and have interesting characters, and the fact that, unlike many of the Autobot in the previous two films, they get a sizable amount of screen time to shine can help viewers warm up to them that much more!
However, I have to give special admiration to the Dinobots, as though I think they should have had far more screen time, they kicked a crap-load of chassis, and the designs for them were extremely creative and striking (e.g., Grimlock possessing elongated, backwards-facing horns in T-rex mode, Scorn having 3 sets of sharp spines in his Spinosaurus mode, etc.). Though they didn’t have any lines in the movie itself, in the movie's defense, it’s like the saying goes, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all”. What I mean with this quote is that if Ehren Kruger (the screenwriter behind Transformers: Age of Extinction) couldn’t come up with anything in-character or generally decent-sounding for the Dinobots to say, then why make these fan-favorites say anything at all, especially if the lines are cheesy or irrelevant to each Dinobot?
Also worth mentioning are Mark Ryan and Kelsey Grammer as the villainous Lockdown and Harold Attinger, respectively, as well as iconic voice actor Frank Welker (the voice of the 'Generation 1' version of Megatron) as Galvatron, otherwise known as “Megatron reincarnated”, as described by the diminutive Autobot Brains. Firstly, I find Lockdown to be a significant step-up from Transformers: Dark of the Moon’s Sentinel Prime, as though the bounty hunter does some despicable things throughout the movie, he still is a very cool villain to watch in action on-screen, whether it be in action sequences or dialogue exchanges (which are interesting to hear due in large part to the stand-out vocal performance of Mark Ryan). Harold Attinger, however, is one of those villains that audiences will love to hate, due to the corrupt government agent’s repulsive atrocities (i.e., commanding operations resulting in the murders of several Autobots despite the benevolent Transformer faction having fought in defense of humanity multiple times) and delusional, as well as hypocritical, beliefs. Finally, though the villainous Galvatron has limited screen-time, Frank Welker’s vocal performance makes the reborn Decepticon leader’s time on-screen more enjoyable, and though Galvatron could’ve had more screen-time and played a bigger role in the climax (in terms of combat), his status at the end of the movie really helped to set the stage for the next installment in the series. As much as I like Hugo Weaving as Megatron in the first 3 movies, if anyone can make the reborn Decepticon leader sound menacing, yet devious, it’s Welker!
Action sequences/visual effects: Like the previous Transformers movies, this is perhaps the strongest facet Age of Extinction has to offer. From a car chase throughout the Texas urban area and landscape, to the brief (but nonetheless entertaining) duel between Optimus Prime and Galvatron, to a drone ship chase between our heroes and Lockdown’s forces, to a final battle in Hong Kong where the Dinobots finally get their chance to kick chassis against Galvatron’s army, this movie’s action sequences will keep viewers invested from the start to finish of every major clash between our heroes and their malevolent opponents. However, I do wish that the fight sequences focused more on the Transformers themselves, and the actual battles could have been longer (i.e., the duel between Optimus Prime and Grimlock and the final confrontation between Prime and Lockdown). Despite this, the action in Age of Extinction is incredibly entertaining, and is certainly one of the strongest aspects of the movie.
In addition to the action sequences, the visual effects are another facet where this movie shines. This is demonstrated in how much detail is put into each Transformer, from the armored plating on their bodies to the eyes (or optics), to the fluid movements and transformations from vehicle to robot and back again (in the cases of the organic Transformers, as opposed to the man-made ones), which all help to bring these amazing sci-fi characters to astonishing life. These incredible effects can be attributed to the fantastic efforts of the visual effects giant known as Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), whose hard work in making the Autobots, Dinobots, and Decepticons amazingly realistic looking adds to, without a doubt, one of ILM’s finest works yet! However, while a common criticism of the visuals lies in the way the human-made Transformers change from robot to vehicle mode and vice versa (via converting into a swarm of pixel-like blocks) I personally don’t mind this new method of transformation. Sure, it may not be as visually impressive as the conventional type of transformations we’ve been given throughout the past 3 movies (as well as in this film) and probably could’ve been given more texture (visually speaking) to make these peculiar transformations for vehicle to robot and vice versa more convincing, but the filmmakers’ attempt at trying something new with the visual effects is admirable and helps this film to stand out that much more from its predecessors!
Music: Steve Jablonsky, who composed the score for the previous Transformers films, returned to compose the music of Age of Extinction, and though it may not be on par with the compositions of the likes of Hans Zimmer, John Williams, or John Powell, the score for this movie is nonetheless enjoyable to listen to! Easily one of my favorite parts of the score has to be the track "Dinobot Charge", which plays as Optimus Prime, Drift, and Crosshairs ride to the aid of Bumblebee and Hound (in Hong Kong) on the newly recruited Dinobots, wiping out any and all Decepticon drones that stand in their way! The music in this scene is so terrific to listen to because it fills viewers with a feeling of hopefulness, in that salvation has arrived for the protagonists with the Autobot reinforcements, and I think this makes the whole action sequence that much more thrilling; after all, we finally get to see the Dinobots in action after much anticipation to their appearance throughout the whole movie! In addition to Jablonsky’s score, the band Imagine Dragons produced the song "Battle Cry" that can be heard in specific parts of the movie, including the end credits. The song itself matches the tone of Age of Extinction very well, and is quite something to listen to, whether it be in the actual movie, or by itself. In general, the music for Transformers: Age of Extinction, while certainly not as good as the scores of, for example, the How to Train Your Dragon trilogy or the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, is yet another positive aspect of this sci-fi action film!
Overall, I found great enjoyment in seeing Transformers: Age of Extinction, as it possesses extremely impressive visual effects, engaging action sequences, well put-together music by Steve Jablonsky and Imagine Dragons, as well as admirable performances from Mark Wahlberg and Peter Cullen. While the movie may have flaws with its story and the writing of certain characters, I nonetheless strongly recommend this sci-fi spectacle for moviegoers simply looking for a fun and entertaining movie! With that being said, I give Transformers: Age of Extinction 8 wrecked KSI drones out of 10!
Next time: It's time to look back at the previous time Earth's Mightiest Heroes found themselves assembled against the forces of evil. Does this 2015 sequel deserve to be recognized as another worthy entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or does it deserve to be forgotten with the likes of Thor: The Dark World before it?
Hope you enjoyed today's review, feel free to leave a comment below (constructive criticism is welcomed), and I'll see you all very soon!
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