don't waste your time with this movie.
TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN (2009) 1½ stars out of 4. Starring Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, John Turturro, Ramon Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Josh Duhamel, Glenn Morshower, Kevin Dunn, Julie White and Isabel Lucas, with the voice talents of Peter Cullen, Hugo Weaving, Tony Todd, Mark Ryan, Frank Welker, Anthony Anderson, Robert Foxworth and Mike Patton. Written by Ehren Kruger & Robert Orci & Alex Kurtzman. Directed by Michael Bay. Rated: PG-13. Running time: Approx: 150 mins.
In "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," director Michael Bay uses a sensory overload of volume and images to pound his audience into submission.
This overlong and overblown sequel is littered with excess to the point that you simply surrender to the nonsense on screen and go with the flow.
It's a movie where you put your brain on idle and continually check your popcorn level.
This second "Transformers" outing is filled with action, yet still seems like a dog running in circles chasing its tail - it's going nowhere, but rapidly.
At a little more than 2½ hours, "Revenge of the Fallen" carries a lot of unnecessary baggage. It is as if Bay decided he had to show every penny of what he spent.
The movie is formulaic and routine, which suits Bay's directorial style. Creativity is anathema to this by-the-numbers mechanical director.
Bay borrows liberally from such films as "Gremlins, "The Matrix" and the "Star Wars" franchise. If anything original appears on screen, it is wholly by accident.
The saving grace is that "Transformers," like its predecessor, does not take itself too seriously - up to a point.
Humor flows throughout the first two-thirds of the film, then it switches tone and becomes a somewhat straight "Blackhawk Down"-like war film.
That is another of the film's failings: It lacks a consistent tone, continually shifting from comedy to thriller to near spoofery.
Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox lead the cast. His forte is displaying controlled panic. Hers is to look pretty and improve the scenery.
John Turturro also returns, and is overly hammy to the point that you feel embarrassed for the guy.
"Revenge of the Fallen" is dumb fun, a live-action cartoonlike feature that is straightforward escapism.
It is a pointless sequel that is clogging up multiplex screens.
And, unfortunately, no power exists in the universe to transform this movie into anything else.
Bob Bloom is the film critic and DVD reviewer at the Journal & Courier in Lafayette, Ind., and reviews DVDS for Gannett ContentOne. He can be reached by e-mail at bbloom@jconline.com or at bloomjc@yahoo.com. Bloom's reviews also can be found at the Journal & Courier Web site: www.jconline.com
Other reviews by Bloom can be found at the Rottentomatoes Web site: www.rottentomatoes.com.
TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN (2009) 1½ stars out of 4. Starring Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, John Turturro, Ramon Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Josh Duhamel, Glenn Morshower, Kevin Dunn, Julie White and Isabel Lucas, with the voice talents of Peter Cullen, Hugo Weaving, Tony Todd, Mark Ryan, Frank Welker, Anthony Anderson, Robert Foxworth and Mike Patton. Written by Ehren Kruger & Robert Orci & Alex Kurtzman. Directed by Michael Bay. Rated: PG-13. Running time: Approx: 150 mins.
In "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," director Michael Bay uses a sensory overload of volume and images to pound his audience into submission.
This overlong and overblown sequel is littered with excess to the point that you simply surrender to the nonsense on screen and go with the flow.
It's a movie where you put your brain on idle and continually check your popcorn level.
This second "Transformers" outing is filled with action, yet still seems like a dog running in circles chasing its tail - it's going nowhere, but rapidly.
At a little more than 2½ hours, "Revenge of the Fallen" carries a lot of unnecessary baggage. It is as if Bay decided he had to show every penny of what he spent.
The movie is formulaic and routine, which suits Bay's directorial style. Creativity is anathema to this by-the-numbers mechanical director.
Bay borrows liberally from such films as "Gremlins, "The Matrix" and the "Star Wars" franchise. If anything original appears on screen, it is wholly by accident.
The saving grace is that "Transformers," like its predecessor, does not take itself too seriously - up to a point.
Humor flows throughout the first two-thirds of the film, then it switches tone and becomes a somewhat straight "Blackhawk Down"-like war film.
That is another of the film's failings: It lacks a consistent tone, continually shifting from comedy to thriller to near spoofery.
Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox lead the cast. His forte is displaying controlled panic. Hers is to look pretty and improve the scenery.
John Turturro also returns, and is overly hammy to the point that you feel embarrassed for the guy.
"Revenge of the Fallen" is dumb fun, a live-action cartoonlike feature that is straightforward escapism.
It is a pointless sequel that is clogging up multiplex screens.
And, unfortunately, no power exists in the universe to transform this movie into anything else.
Bob Bloom is the film critic and DVD reviewer at the Journal & Courier in Lafayette, Ind., and reviews DVDS for Gannett ContentOne. He can be reached by e-mail at bbloom@jconline.com or at bloomjc@yahoo.com. Bloom's reviews also can be found at the Journal & Courier Web site: www.jconline.com
Other reviews by Bloom can be found at the Rottentomatoes Web site: www.rottentomatoes.com.
