A Reel Review: BUMBLEBEE

An often-overlooked fact about the ongoing TRANSORMERS franchise is that it stands as the rare, if not the only occasion, where the merchandising came before any big and small-screen adaptations. The toys that transformed into robots reached peak popularity in the 1980’s with an animated series; a series that was and is so popular that fans immediately rebelled against the live-action films of the mid 2000’s due to their updating and departures from the cartoons. Perhaps finally aware of the rage of the 40-year-old men who are still demanding to see those cartoons on the big screen, the filmmakers behind BUMBLEBEE, the sixth live-action film in the franchise, take everything back to the 1980’s. 

Charlie (Hailee Steinfeld), is an 18-year-old girl who is a wizard mechanic while mourning the loss of her father and adjusting to life at home with her stepfather…when she encounters Bumblebee; a soldier of the Autobots who has taken refuge on Earth after the fall of his planet Cybertron. With his ability to speak damaged and his memory wiped clean from combat, Bumblebee and Charlie form a bond and look to thwart the efforts of two evil Decepticons to bring their army to Earth, while avoiding a secret government organization after their alien technology…led by Agent Jack Burns (John Cena). 

The plot of BUMBLEBEE is simple; avoid capture and stop the efforts of the bad robots to bring more bad robots to Earth. To beef things up, the bulk of the film focuses on the bond between Charlie and Bumblebee, with both characters sharing similarities. Both Charlie and her new friend are outcasts and very much feel alone, and their adventures in avoiding peril in human and robot form bring them closer together and they both make strides in natural ways. There’s a lot of heart going on here, and for the most part it works as a lost puppy tale. 

The simplicity definitely harks back to episodes of the old cartoon (fans wanted it, they got it), and the two main characters drive this car forward. Steinfeld is great as usual, and Bumblebee comes to life with some clever body language and well-timed physical comedy. Perhaps for the first time in the TRANSFORMERS stint on the big-screen in live-action form, we actually care about what happens to the humans and the robots. 

Setting the film in 1987 works to its advantage, as director Travis Knight saturates the film in the pop culture of the time, making it a fun nostalgic trip to the past. The robots for the most part are back to their old designs from the cartoon (a major sticking point of the previous films), with popular characters such as Optimus Prime, Soundwave, Starscream, and Shockwave returning in their old animated skins…although they all amount to cameos. The visual effects are fantastic although the rock-em, sock-em robot battle scenes are still tough to follow with way too much goddamn shaky camera crap, and the film also gets bogged down here and there with one to many annoying characters who don’t contribute much. There are also a few instances of stupid things happening…but it’s far from a dealbreaker. 

Hailee Steinfeld, in her first film loaded with visual effects, does an excellent job in acting against things that were not there on set…and she sells it perfectly. She also does great work in selling us as a troubled teen girl. John Cena is one-note and gruff in his role as the commander in pursuit of the robots, but for the character it works. 

The odd part about BUMBLEBEE is that even though it breaks continuity with the 2007 film, it also borrows a lot from it and it’s hard to tell if this is supposed to be a hard reboot/reset or a true prequel. But on its own it functions just fine and has a lot in common with movies of the 1980’s which had a lot of children meeting strange visitors and having fantastic adventures. This is a throwback in many ways and should keep the cartoon fans happy for a while. 

BOTTOM LINE: See it