I guess in an age where people of my generation, as adults, treat new takes on comic book movies and Star Wars as if they were as rousing and meaningful as a David Lean epic, it’s not too much of a surprise to see a continued effort in delivering Transformers to the big screen with a certain demographic in mind. That said, in a somewhat self-reflexive move, Transformers One takes the brand that started as a toy line, then various cartoons, then a live-action movie series, back to its animated form. With that in mind, while the initial ads suggested something far more fitting for the younger audience this was always meant for, there is, in fact, more than…I expected, allowing Transformers One to deliver enough goods to go along with my questions concerning how an origin story works for robots.
As noted, the film details the early lives of Optimus Prime and Megatron, characters fans largely known as sworn enemies. In this film, while still on their home planet of Cybertron, before they were Optimus and Megatron, they were known as Orion Pax (Chris Hemsworth) and D-16 (Brian Tyree Henry), two nobody robots who work in the mines and are best friends. Things all change when a headstrong Orion decides to enter himself and his buddy into a race to prove they are more than just regular miners. It’s not quite the success Orion had hoped, and while they are exiled as a result, the two, along with a few other familiar Transformer characters (Scarlett Johansson’s Elita-1 and Keegan-Michael Key’s Bumblebee), discover a secret that puts the fate of all Cybertron in their machine hands.
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This is the sort of film that manages to improve as it goes along. While there’s a charm in seeing the early portions of this film play out like you’re watching a child’s imagination of what it’s like to see them play with their toys come to life, it’s also the sketchiest portion of the film. Without Peter Cullen’s familiar vocal tones as Optimus Prime, one does begin to wonder just how much artistic integrity is really put into a feature like this that now packs one of the many Chrises and seems to have little else on its mind than an excuse to watching animated robots fumbling around.
However, this movie does end up offering more than what’s presented at the outset. Not unlike what we’ve seen in another notable franchise, seeing how Optimus and Megatron (names they eventually assume once given the power to transform) eventually take separate stances on how to handle morally complicated situations is not unlike the relationship between Professor X and Magneto. As silly as that may sound (and no, I don’t feel I need to delve into the backstories of both Cybertron and 1940s Europe), it adds a level of depth that proves to be challenging and compelling material to see in an animated Transformers film.
Along with co-writers Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari, MCU regular Eric Pearson had a hand in the screenplay, and the film is directed by Toy Story 4’s Josh Cooley. Whether or not these were always the “right people for the job” (whatever that means), the fact that an emotional arc revolves around the personal stances taken between best friends and leads to the entire Autobot-Decepticon conflict is about as interesting as it gets for a feature film geared toward a younger audience, yet fully embraced by hardworking filmmakers daring to do something with an IP that’s been continually expanded upon.
For their efforts, the cast is mostly decent. I still miss the notion of having a wider variety of actual voice actors instead of just star power. Still, I get the business behind it all, sad as that may feel. With that in mind, Hemsworth doesn’t aim for a Cullen impression but doesn’t do much beyond hiding his Australian accent. Henry has the more compelling role; with it, the actor brings more to what the part offers, which is welcome. Otherwise, whether it’s Johansson or Jon Hamm, there’s not enough flourish that makes any of these roles sing vocally, aside from the command of a Laurence Fishburne or the fun of an irritable Steve Buscemi as Starscream.
Of course, the other exciting element should be seeing Transformers One embrace the animation element for the sake of fun action-adventure sequences. On that front, it largely delivers. I can’t say the action on display hits any highs that are nearly as memorable as other animated action movies such as the Spider-Verse or Incredibles films. However, there’s still enough creativity going around in the realm of machines that can turn into vehicles and weapons. That said, while I can appreciate an even more simplified version of these characters compared to the over-busy Michael Bay-directed versions (which Bumblebee thankfully toned down), I still can’t say I’m all that pleased by the overall character designs. Despite ILM’s best efforts to build something new, I still find myself mixed on these looks compared to the classic 80s cartoon.
Other than that, all I have left are questions about how Cybertronians work. Much like my questions concerning Pixar’s Cars universe, I want to know how robots age, what’s the root of their personalities, how that was established, and if there are baby transformers? More importantly, what decides whether or not one Transformer is self-aware enough thanks to some form of AI(?) vs. the non-living machines they use as tools? I guess 40 years of lore likely has answers to at least some of these questions (which only scratches the surface of my curiosity). However, my larger point is wondering what kind of embrace Hasbro wants to take on in the future of Transformers media.
I’m glad Transformers One has worked out for the better, but there seems to be only so much one could do following this story (though I’ll be happy to be proven wrong). Similarly, the live-action films only seem to be doing so much before running out of room to grow (the next stop is Transformers vs. G.I. Joe). I’m glad there’s a workable story here, and it accompanies a well enough made animated feature. Ideally, if the persistence that comes from the initial Bay-directed films being so successful, the efforts to keep this whole enterprise going will start genuinely being more than meets the low expectations.
Transformers One opens in theaters and IMAX on September 20, 2024.
