Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #307 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-12-03
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: Surround Sound, Widescreen, PAL
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 143 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
As sci-fi action blockbusters go, they don’t come much bigger than Transformers. Maybe it’s because of the subject matter: it’s based on a toy line from the 1980s, concerning giant robots from outer space engaged in a civil war that pits the heroic Autobots against the evil Decepticons. They have the ability to disguise themselves as vehicles and other mechanical objects, transforming back into robots when it’s time to stomp each other senseless. As a premise, it’s rather silly. But it’s also very simple, and that’s why it works.

The heroes are truly heroic: the noble and powerful Autobot leader Optimus Prime is one of the most iconic characters of the 1980s, and getting the original voice actor (Peter Cullen) to give him life was a stroke of genius. The villains, meanwhile, are just plain evil: Decepticon leader Megatron (voiced by Hugo Weaving) is motivated by absolute power, and his soldiers are not above a bit of wanton destruction to achieve their goals. Mix in a bit of mysticism in the form of the Allspark, the source of life for all Transformers, and the result is pure cinematic magic.

It’s not a perfect film: there are some characters and sub-plots that are unnecessary and which go nowhere, and at almost three hours, it’s a lot of movie. But the Transformers themselves, rendered in CGI, have a very realistic size and weight on screen, and look particularly good as they switch from one mode to the other. Moreover, director Michael Bay is smart enough to realise that appealing to kids doesn’t mean pandering to them--the cutest robot on screen is a manic little psychotic killer with the apt name Frenzy. The humans in the film, meanwhile, keep the film grounded, whilst never detracting from the real robot stars. Unlike The Matrix trilogy, which tried to be too clever, or The Lord of the Rings films, which were too clever, Transformers is probably the best science fiction epic since the original Star Wars trilogy. --Robert Burrow

Synopsis
Based on the Hasbro toy line that initially captivated kids in the 1980s, director Michael Bay's TRANSFORMERS finds two warring bands of shape-shifting alien robots renewing their intergalactic conflict on Earth. While the Decepticons, followers of the malevolent Megatron (voiced by Hugo Weaving), strive to take over the planet, the Autobots, led by the valiant Optimus Prime (voiced by Peter Cullen), are intent on protecting humanity. When young Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) discovers that his new car is really the Autobot Bumblebee (voiced by Mark Ryan), it sets the stage for a massive giant-robot showdown. A shining example of the Hollywood summer blockbuster at its best, TRANSFORMERS combines stunning CGI effects and thrilling action sequences with drama, humour, and a touch of romance. Featuring a large cast that includes Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, Jon Voight, John Turturro, Anthony Anderson, and Rachael Taylor, the film is anchored by LaBeouf, who always displays an engaging Everyman charm, whether he’s running from colossal robots, interacting with his well-meaning parents (hilariously played by Kevin Dunn and Julie White), or pining for his gorgeous classmate (Megan Fox). While some TRANSFORMERS purists may be dismayed by certain aspects of this bold big-screen adaptation (Bumblebee is a Camaro instead of a Volkswagen), the movie balances its spectacle with an admirable amount of substance, giving it an appeal far beyond pre-teen boys and their nostalgic Autobot-loving elders.

Customer Reviews

Overall, extremely enjoyable
First off let me state I am *NOT* a fan of the 80's Transformers. Even as a kid I never got into it, and the retro factor doesn't work me. I keep reading reviews from die hard fans who slate this for not being 'true to the original'. I have a few things to say to the biased people:

The moment I saw a 30 foot robot turn into a handheld pistol, I would of walked. Some things are acceptable in cartoons, this isn't acceptable in modern films. The cartoon versions would of looked rediculous if they were ported straight into this, and the constant Saturday morning cartoon villain vs hero archetype would NOT have worked. Basically what the old school fans wanted was the original Transformers film from the 80's to have a sequel. Average joe does not want to have to immerse himself in hundreds of hours of cartoons, comics, and toys just to understand a film. Get over it. Like many remakes nowadays, this HAD to evolve, like Spider-Man, X-men, Superman and Batman Begins. It's a 'reinvention' of a classic, not a remake.

Regardless of all of that, I was extremely excited about this film. I have no idea why, I can't explain it. Each trailer did just enough to whet the appetite, without giving away huge chunks of the overall experience (as is often a problem nowadays). With that said, I went into the cinema with low expectations, and was shocked and amazed in the best possible way.

Quick synopsis: the Transformers are a race of advanced robotic life forms from a planet outside of our solar system. They have been struggling with a civil war for thousands of years between two factions: Autobots, led by the heroic Optimus Prime, and the Decepticons, who are headed up by the evil Megatron. Both factions have to come to Earth in search of the Allspark, the cube that creates their form of life. The good guys want to keep it safe and restore their world with it, and the bad guys... well they wanna do bad guys things with it.

Transformers is one of those films you can just enjoy. You don't need to sit down and really think hard, read between the lines, or listen to commentary on the DVD afterward to fully understand. Bottom line - its a double barrel shotgun-o-fun aimed directly at your brain.

The first thing you have to do (and this helps) is suspend belief. At its core, this is quite simply a cartoon transfered and updated for the big screen. The robots have emotions, expressions, and yes, they have eye lids and lips. Not a big deal. I found this to be a bonus, as I loved some of the more comedic scenes involving the Autobots.

The cast is both the films strongest point and its weakest. Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox give excellent performances, whereas some of the scenes with Anthony Anderson and John Turturro are just plain annoying. I don't blame the actors at all, but more the fact that they had these terribly stereotypical roles to fill and had bad dialogue given to them.

Another problem is that this jam packed cast can make it feel like it's taking too many directions at once. You literally jump between scenes involving different sub plots involving Sam and Mikaela (Shia/Megan), the army guys, then to the hackers and the secretary of defense, and then suddenly back to the kids. The end result works, with all of the characters being involved in the final scenes together in some way or form, but it does make for a fairly exhausting track for your mind to stay on.

The robots are simply mind blowing. The CGI involved in this film was handled by ILM, famous for the work on Star Wars, and it shows just how far they've come from the 70's using stop motion techniques. One quote mentioned that 'Ironhide has more working graphical parts on his two cannons than some of the other robots have on their entire body', and it shows. The care and attention to detail is incredible, especially given the fact that these guys had a budget half of Spider-Man 3, which was overall a sub par film by way of effects (and in general, in my opinion).

Michael Bay is notorious for his use of 'big boom' work. He fills his films with as much real carnage as possible, using any excuse to blow stuff up. In this film? It works. Every vehicle shot is 100% real, without the use of added effects. From Humvees being thrown around in explosions to collisions on a highway. Even when the robots are duking it out and smashing up civilization in the process, it looks and feels real.

The only thing I can really complain about is it's length. It is a long film. That's not a problem to me, but I know a lot of people that I could show this film too that would become bored extremely easily during its filler segments. I also have a feeling it could of done with being made even longer, in a way - the robots didn't get as much screen time as the fans would of liked, but I suspect that was Spielbergs influence as producer, as he is all about earth shattering events revolving around a handful of people.

Bottom line? At the very least rent it. I got excited from a franchise I cared very little about, and it's totally turned me into a Transformers fan for life.

And don't get a pirate copy or a downloaded version - this film can only be done justice in full juicy glory of DVD quality. If you have HD capability, I envy you, because I think this may be the ideal film for some serious eyeball candy.

Extra tip: Watch after the credits roll for a sneaky bit of extra footage, leaving the film open for an almost certain sequel.

Transformers redefines what a mega-budget blockbuster looks like
What a movie! Transformers must be one of the best summer flicks of the year. Michael Bay and his team have brought one of my favorite childhood memories to the big screen and blown us all away with the most incredible cartoon adaptation. Though I belong to the Transformers generation (1980's) I was never really hooked up with the franchise and couldn't recall any of the transformers names aside from Opitmus Prime and Megatron if you had asked me. Having seen the trailer I went to see the movie knowing that I was in for some eye candy special effects, but not so sure of the overall story. But as the transformers slogan goes the movie was "more than meets the eye".

Knowing more or less what the main theme of the ever-changing saga of the transformers is, I though this movie had many reasons to turn out silly and have nothing more to offer that visual effects... I mean we are talking about robotic aliens, with human emotions, simplistically separated into a team of goody good autobots and the all-evil deceptions. In a nut shell I thought it would be an fun take on the transformers cartoon and toy line at best... but it's so much more.

It has actually avoided the cheesiness of most "America under attack" movies focusing on the human characters as well as the transformers. Fresh characters presented with a touch of humor that each has his/her own gravity in the story and aren't just fillers to help the plot unfold. Shia LaBeouf as Sam Witwicky does a great job at becoming the underdog we all sympathize for, who ends up becoming the hero (reminding us how we all felt for Peter Parker in the first Spider-man movie). It is action packed from beginning to end but you never get enough of it. The visuals are astonishingly well made not distracting from the movie with thoughts "that looked fake" and besides the effects, there are many scenes with great visual interest. I enjoyed the music and sound effects (especially the transforming ones) and as a hole the movie worked so good.

I for one am not ashamed to admit my excitement over this movie. So Michael Bay, if you're reading this, congratulations, you somehow made a great film with room to spare. And for the sequel that is sure to be in the works, just give us the robots and their humans. They're not only fun, they might just tug a heart-string or two. A must see for all ages and genders, shapes and sizes!

Blast from the past
Wow a blast from the past grew up with the robots back in the 80's, didn't think the film would do so well.

Well talk about blown away ending up going to see it in the cinema 3 times as it was so fab, and soon as the dvd came out, i had to buy it again fab that more and more dvds are having subtitles for us deaf film fans.