‘Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts’ Movie Review: An Excellent Action Flick And The Best Since The Original
Photo from Paramount Pictures
From Joe Peltzer
It turns out that when you focus on quality with a solid story and likable characters, pepper it with fantastic action, and don’t try to do too much, you end up with an incredibly entertaining film in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, the best entry in the series since 2007’s original.
In the film, when the world-devouring Unicorn (voiced by Colman Domingo) sends his Terrocon henchmen to retrieve the powerful Transwarp Key, it’s up to Optimus Prime’s (voiced by Peter Cullen) Autobots and the newly-discovered Maximals to team up with their new human partners (Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback) to save the world. Aside from the fact that the whole “I’m going to eat the world” villain seems to be present in so many different properties, Rise of the Beasts delivers a simplistic story that always has the larger threat of Unicorn lurking in the background while the focus rightfully turns to the Transformers and the human characters. Unicron’s strongman Scourge, voiced by the incredible Peter Dinklage, is vicious and convincingly ruthless. Both Ramos and Fishback are stellar here, each bringing humor, heart, and exhibiting excellent chemistry. Ramos’ story is a bit more emotionally padded with an ailing brother, allowing him to spread his emotional wings a bit more. Their characters of Noah and Elena are highly likable and relatable, a huge plus for a series that hasn’t always been successful in that regard.
The Autobots roll in and immediately send nostalgic chills through your body, led once again by Optimus with Bumblebee the clear fan favorite, but new characters Arcee (Liza Koshy) and Mirage (Pete Davidson) are welcome additions. Davidson in particular is killer in his role, his dialogue hip and hilarious while often forcing audible laughs. The writers definitely went all-in on the raunchy humor with Davidson that is sure to please a young crowd and it borders on feeling forced without every crossing, though it is generic potty humor. He’s not alone in delivering the humor, however, as Ramos has some delightful exchanges and Fishback’s emotive performance is hard not to smile at. Once the Maximals arrive, voiced most notably by Ron Perlman and Michelle Yeoh, it’s a nerdy dream come true for fans of the source material and, specifically, the animated Beast Wars series.
It’s all packaged into a fun globetrotting story that features some stunning settings and crisp visual effects work; the fights between the Transformers have never looked so good, especially in the third act. Ramos’ character receives a surprising boost when fighting alongside his new alien friends, a move that is a fresh twist on what we usually see and leads into an ending that cannot be missed. This isn’t a film that gets crazy into the lore or tries to bite off too much more than it can chew, rather it embraces the characters on the page and recognizes the audience’s desire to connect with them, and for breathtaking action. Steven Caple Jr. absolutely knows what he’s doing with it all and the result is an excellent, edge-of-your-seat summer blockbuster that proves the series has a ton more in the tank.
Did I mention I got emotional about a certain Autobot?
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts hits theaters on June 9th, 2023.
Rating: 4/5
