Transformers: Dark of The Moon

I grew up as a disciple of Hasbro Inc. --- Transformers, GI Joe, My Little Pony, and of course the awesome Jem and the Holograms, are the stuff my childhood was made of. When I heard that they were making a movie based on The Transformers I was thrilled. Me and my fellow 80's kids still joke about how the death of Optimus Prime scarred our tween hearts forever.I really enjoyed Transformers, but I thought Revenge of the Fallen was a nonsensical mess. Apparently, so did the Transformers Movie Gods and with Dark of the Moon we actually get a -----plot and a good movie.

It's a few years after the last big battle between the Autobots and the Decepticons and our hero Sam, played by Shia LaBeouf,  is all grown up and facing a bigger monster than the Decepticons will ever be : The US Job Market. While Sam's new British girlfriend Carly, played by newcomer Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, is OK supporting her "American Boy Toy," Sam is having a hard time adjusting to the idea of settling into a nine to five gig when he's "saved the world twice!" Yeah, he's still a bit whinny.He gets his chance to get back into the action, however, when he stumbles upon a Decepticon/human conspiracy to take over the world and turn humans into slaves. Once again, Sam finds himself in the middle of the battle to save humanity, but this time they have underestimated their enemies and winning may not be an option....

Dark of the Moon is a really fun movie. I enjoyed the tie into the space race of the 1960's and the conspiracy was interesting. Everything is also bigger and the stakes are higher. I also liked that you see the devastation of war and the Decepticons feel like a real threat for the first time in the trilogy. The special effects are amazing and the action scenes put you on the edge of your seat. Also, we actually get to see the Autobots and Decepticons in their robot forms through most of the movie. My biggest complaint from the last movie is that they spent most of their time in car form and it felt like I was watching one long GM commercial.

It was also fun seeing almost all the old characters back at the rodeo and Patrick Dempsey,  Frances McDormand and Ken Jeong are great additions. Also my Trekkie heart loved the inclusion of Leonard Lemoy as the lost Autobot leader Sentinel Prime.

I did have some complaints, though. Look, this is a movie about giant alien robots so I'm not going to spend a long time on characterization, but if Megan Fox had to be replaced could she have been replaced by somebody who didn't look so awkward in scenes, could do a little thing called acting, and had just a tiny bit of chemistry with Shia LaBeouf ?

I will never understand why they didn't cast the anti-Mikaela for Sam's newest love interest. It was unbelievable enough that Mikaela would fall for Sam, but they were kids and he stepped in and became her hero, but what does Carly see in the goofy, unemployed, non hunky Sam?  Girls like Carly don't date guys like Sam. They just don't. Yes, they wanted a hot girl for the movie, I get that, but this is Hollywood. I know there is a beautiful actress out there who could have "played nerdy" and looked great doing it.

Why is Sam so depressed that he can't find a job THREE MONTHS out of college? When I graduated from college I had to take a job as a playground worker for a year. Welcome to the real world Sammy!

Also, why is Optimus Prime so bloodthirsty? He went from almost being a pacifist in the first movie to practically growling and ripping his enemies throats out and eating their still beating hearts. I know killing is a necessary evil in war, but the good guys really shouldn't be revealing in it as much as the bad guys, you know. I guess his revival in the last movie left him with a new and unimproved personality.

There were also some down right ridiculous moments. Watching Carly run through a battlefield in stilettos, wearing white, and never getting dirty, never smudging her make-up, or  never getting a hair out of place made me laugh out loud. And while we are back on the issue of the film's leading lady, I know that Megan Fox has taken a lot of hits for having the audacity to complain about her "big break," but the bum shot of Rosie in the beginning of the movie should put to rest any idea that the sexism in these movies is all in her head. Every woman in this movie is sexed up, it's even implied that all Frances McDormand's character, the very serious Mearing, is missing is a good lay. You can argue that Ms. Fox should have sucked it up, but I can see her point. The new girl Carly is so inconsequential that this movie could have been easily done without her and that's just the truth. No woman in this movie matters and it either bothers you or it doesn't.

Over all, I would recommend this movie to anybody looking for a fun time. It's a good old fashion movie, that with its plot and eye catching effects, is surprisingly more than meets the eye.