Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023)

[Tino]

Title: Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023)

Tagline: Unite or fall.

Genre: Action, Adventure, Science Fiction

Director: Steven Caple Jr.

Cast: Anthony Ramos, Dominique Fishback, Luna Lauren Velez, Dean Scott Vazquez, Tobe Nwigwe, Peter Cullen, Ron Perlman, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Yeoh, Liza Koshy, John DiMaggio, David Sobolov, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Pete Davidson, Cristo Fernández, Tongayi Chirisa, Colman Domingo, Michael Kelly

Release: 2023-06-06

Runtime: 127

Plot: A '90s globetrotting adventure that introduces the Maximals, Predacons, and Terrorcons to the existing battle on earth between Autobots and Decepticons.

Didn't try see a thread for this. Seeing it in IMAX 3D now.

 

[Tino]

56%. Not bad for a Transformers film.


PG-13
2023, Action/Adventure, 2h 7m
56%
TOMATOMETER97 Reviews
88%
AUDIENCE SCOREFewer than 50 Verified Ratings

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts

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 the existing battle on earth...

www.rottentomatoes.com

 

[Josh Steinberg]

The running time is closer to 2 hours than 3, so that’s a plus in my book. I keep seeing these even though I don’t particularly enjoy them - only one I haven’t seen is the first, which I hear is the best, but I just don’t care enough to watch it at home. This is strictly a “great to see a movie in air conditioning over the summer” occasion for me.

 

[Edwin-S]

It's been getting pretty weak reviews,; however, that isn't unexpected, since most reviewers will trash this just for being a Transformers movie.

 

[Wayne_j]

I just saw this and it was easily my 2nd favorite Transformers movie behind only Bumblebee. The humans were actually relatable, it was possible to follow the action scenes, and the jokes weren't cringey like the Bay films were (Even when they were released).

Did anyone else think that a certain object looked like

Spoiler

The Maltese Falcon

?

 

[Tino]

I enjoyed it even tho it’s probably my least favorite Transformer film. I may be In the minority but I loved the Bay films. This one is smaller in scale than the previous ones and derivative of earlier entries but still fun.

The male lead was good however the female lead was definitely the weakest link In the film. Loved the Hispanic/Brooklyn Vibe in this similar to Across The Spiderverse.

The 3D IMAX presentation was excellent with good 3D by the way.

 

[Jason_V]

I just saw this and it was easily my 2nd favorite Transformers movie behind only Bumblebee. The humans were actually relatable, it was possible to follow the action scenes, and the jokes weren't cringey like the Bay films were (Even when they were released).

Saw it last night and agree: second best live action Transformers movie behind Bumblebee.

This is a streamlined, more logical and contained story than anything Michael Bay ever did. The cast is relatively small, the plot straight forward (if a bit uninspired) and what the filmmakers are trying to do actually succeeds. By keeping the robot and human cast small, the movie can focus on the inter-character drama and create relationships. (Again, this isn't Citizen Kane or anything like that...but it's a big step up from the stupidity of Bay-formers.)

The stupid/borderline racist jokes and characters are gone. Megan Fox suggestively bending over a car hood in short shorts is gone. This is more of a family-friendly Transformers movie, and I think that's a wildly good thing for the franchise.

The first half of the movie spends it's time developing this world the characters inhabit and does it pretty well. The second half is action. And lots of it. How does it look? Pretty good, to me anyway. I didn't notice any glaring issues or problems. I've seen the VFX called murky...but I didn't have a problem understanding the layout of the final battle or who was who and who was doing what.

One thing really struck me about the movie no one is talking about (yet): this cast (human and voice cast) is diverse. POC are the center of this movie...the struggle of a Puerto Rican, single parent led household, for instance, carries the beginning of the movie. This didn't strike me until about halfway through the film: it crossed my mind and then left again...meaning I accepted it and moved on. Just an interesting note.

Do I think this is Best Picture material? Oh lord, no. No no no. But is it engaging and fun and a movie I'm happy to have seen? Yup. I didn't feel dirty after it like I did with most of the previous movies (I never got around to watching The Last Knight or Age of Extinction.)

 

[Tino]

One thing really struck me about the movie no one is talking about (yet): this cast (human and voice cast) is diverse

I mentioned it above in my post.

“Loved the Hispanic/Brooklyn Vibe in this “.

 

[Jason_V]

I mentioned it above in my post.

“Loved the Hispanic/Brooklyn Vibe in this “.

Indeed you did, my friend. My brain didn't process it. My apologies.

 

[Sam Posten]

 

[Tino]

And when I said this is my least favorite of the Transformers films that’s not a knock as I have enjoyed them all. It’s a small distinction.

And the

Spoiler

Maltese Falcon spoiler above was the first thing I thought of.

 

[Malcolm R]

Thursday previews were $8.8 million.

(Deadline) Friday AM: Transformers: Rise of the Beasts grossed $8.8M in previews from 3100+ locations — that’s from a fan event at 7 p.m. Wednesday and previews that began at 3 p.m. Thursday. Sans Wednesday fan grosses, the Paramount/Skydance/Hasbro sequel did $7.6M.

A recent comp is Fast X’s previews at $7.6M, which wound up doing a $28M first Friday and $67M opening weekend last month.

 

[Patrick Sun]

I never got around to the 2017 installment (The Last Knight), so I watched it a few days ago before seeing this film, and then realized I could have saved myself those 2.5 hours. LOL!

I was getting some Skull Island vibes with the Maximals in this new installment of the Transformers franchise.

The film was there to sell popcorn, and to get to the very end of the movie to set up the next thing (which I won't spoil now).

 

[Robert Crawford]

I never got around to the 2017 installment (The Last Knight), so I watched it a few days ago before seeing this film, and then realized I could have saved myself those 2.5 hours. LOL!

I was getting some Skull Island vibes with the Maximals in this new installment of the Transformers franchise.

The film was there to sell popcorn, and to get to the very end of the movie to set up the next thing (which I won't spoil now).

Yeah, but did you enjoy this movie? I'm not asking if it's a good movie, rather did the movie entertain you.

 

[Patrick Sun]

Not really, plus having Pete Davison voice Mirage wasn't a good idea.

 

[ScottJH]

Saw this yesterday in a Dolby Cinema had some great bass. I ducked out of the series after the 3rd Bay movie until Bumblebee. Thought it was entertaining. I also would put this as #2 behind Bumblebee.

Not really, plus having Pete Davison voice Mirage wasn't a good idea.

That's who that was ok. Sounded familiar but I couldn't put my finger on it.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

I just saw this and it was easily my 2nd favorite Transformers movie behind only Bumblebee. The humans were actually relatable, it was possible to follow the action scenes, and the jokes weren't cringey like the Bay films were (Even when they were released).

Did anyone else think that a certain object looked like

Spoiler

The Maltese Falcon

?

In regard to spoiler: yes. Actually wondered if that was an inside joke.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Fool me once, shame on you.

Fool me twice, shame on me.

Fool me seven times, and why do I continue to watch "Transformers" movies?

Because hope springs and all that. I remain an unabashed fan of big summer blockbusters, and every time a "Transformers" hits screens, I hope it'll be the one to finally deliver the goods.

But it never happens. "Bumblebee" was a cut above its predecessors, but it still felt like a bunch of 80s movies thrown into a blender and it wasn't better than mediocre.

Which becomes the case for "Beasts". Like "Bumblebee", it takes us into the past - though I admit I'm not particularly sure why we go to 1994 here. Perhaps there's some narrative purpose I missed.

The use of 1994 feels more like windowdressing - unexplored windowdressing, though, as the movie rarely feels like 1994. Outside of some nods to then-popular cultural artifacts - and an eye-rolling reference to Mark Wahlberg that exists solely because he starred in a couple installments - the movie feels like it could be set today.

Sure, this time period means "Beasts" lacks cell phones and whatnot, but this seems irrelevant. Horror movies benefit from pre-cell settings because cell phones are such an obstacle to tension.

But that doesn't seem like an issue here. There's nothing I recall in the story that benefits from taking place 29 years ago, and "Beasts" doesn't even explore the era in a kitschy throwback way - which I appreciate in theory, but it still leaves me confused why they bothered to go with 1994.

Whatever the case, the main issues here stem from bland characters and a dull story. Big alien robots once again battle over some powerful artifact, and semi-anonymous humans help - haven't we seen this tale already?

Yes, and the action doesn't seem interesting enough to compensate. I can care about what happens to non-human characters, but I'll be damned if I've ever maintained an emotional connection to the Transformers.

This becomes exacerbated by the period setting, as we already know Optimus and others won't die. They can't since they're in movies set later.

So there goes dramatic tension, and I never cared much about the generic humans either. Our 2 human leads seem cliche and without personality.

They exist to put a human face on matters but they bring nothing memorable to the table. Live or die? Never mattered much to me.

In the end, "Beasts" does tone down the sins of the Bay movies. It's not paced as frenetically or shot as obnoxiously, and it lacks the cheap/often borderline offensive stabs at humor Bay favors.

But we also get no real personality from the movie. It just feels made by a committee so it lacks heart, passion or any notable impact.

 

[Malcolm R]

This becomes exacerbated by the period setting, as we already know Optimus and others won't die. They can't since they're in movies set later.

This is, to me, a fatal flaw in most prequels that involve characters from prior films in a franchise that were set in the future of the same timeline. There's never any real tension or sense of danger sustained because you know all the lead characters will survive.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

This is, to me, a fatal flaw in most prequels that involve characters from prior films in a franchise that were set in the future of the same timeline. There's never any real tension or sense of danger sustained because you know all the lead characters will survive.

To be fair, "Beasts" does introduce new characters we don't know from other films, so their fates can theoretically offer tension.

However, here I don't think they do. I admit I never cared about the humans much, mainly because the movie gave me so little reason to care about them. They were so generic that they left no impact.

And as already noted, the "Transformers" movies have never been able to make me bond with the aliens. They've simply been unable to create a character connection for me.