Search

Search only in certain items:

Transformers (2007)
Transformers (2007)
2007 | Action, Sci-Fi
In retrospect - this essentially becoming the template for the modern blockbuster and all - it's crazy to me how bonkers this was considered back in the day despite being almost entirely held back by its simplicity and formality. You've got almost two and a half hours to make a movie about alien robot vehicles who come to Earth and fuck shit up... and you decided to go with making most of it a rigorously exhausting expository bore? Yes it's racist and sexist and jingoistic and all that too, but that's a given with Bay. What isn't - however - is how much the action lacks any pop or clarity. There's a ton of impressive (for the time) CGI and no shortage of practical effects either but it's too shaky and overcut to really enjoy any of it. The first hour where this is a weird sci-fi/action comedy about a car that really wants to help Shia LaBeouf (who is excellent in this, btw) fuck Mega Fox is no joke worlds better than the flat action - which is tepidly amusing at best. And it's of course shameful how obviously oversexualized Fox's character is, but that's only made like 100 times worse by the fact that she's supposed to be like 16/17 in this. Not to mention the robot designs - and I realize I'm in the minority here - are ass ugly imo. Yes they're 'realistic' but they don't lend themselves to being very watchable especially during the fights. As a Bay defender, this was hugely disappointing. At least a lot of the jokes land?
  
The Fate of the Furious (2017)
The Fate of the Furious (2017)
2017 | Action
*Director's cut*
A thick protein shake of testosterone, motor oil, concrete, government tech, sweat, and smashed metal - features enough hilariously inflated machismo and mic drop one-liners to fuel at least fifty blockbusters. Obviously when going from James Wan to any other director you're going to see a downtick in visual quality, but Gray still makes this thing a gorgeous splashpad of obvious color signifiers to look at - with some of the most clean vehicle action you'll ever see. I'll always defend an unlimited number of these sequels no matter how little story there is, but it was a genuinely ballsy move to make Dom one of the villains (alongside a ripper Theron) - to which I'll convince every Diesel detractor to look at because this showcases how passionate and committed he is towards this character, every act of betrayal is played like it's physically tearing him apart from the inside. Another thing I love about this series post-fourth-one is how it features some of the coolest action superstars partaking in scenes of prolonged emotion that most other actioners would probably toss aside. Definitely the funniest installment but wtf happened to Luda here? The dude is usually charming but he sleepwalks through every scene in this one. Every gripe I do have is relatively minor considering this has sequences of a giant wrecking ball tearing through vehicles, The Rock and Statham beating their way through an entire prison, and an all-timer setpiece where dozens of cars start driving themselves tearing through the city.