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★★
Directed by Michael Bay
Starring Mark Wahlberg, Anthony Hopkins, Laura Haddock, Isabela Moner, and Jerrod Carmichael
Film Review By Niall Maggs
Essentially, Transformers: The Last Knight is the same as the other four entries in the Michael Bay series, and could be seen as an easy cash grab to the audience, if they have experience with the Transformers movies. The plot is pretty much the same: the world will be destroyed if the Autobots don't kill the Decepticons. Sound familiar?
First off, Mark Wahlberg gave a fun performance that lightened the mood and tone of the movie, which made sure that the audience enjoyed themselves, for the most part...It introduced new characters and new transformers, which was possibly an attempt to bring something fresh to the series, but honestly just felt like the viewers were watching the same film for the fifth time, that made the flick feel boring and unoriginal.
It doesn't feel as though there is much passion or enthusiasm in Bay's direction, as it felt cluttered, crammed and quite hard to understand at parts, because he introduced multiple subplots in countless locations. But what's worse, is that it gives Bay a bad reputation, even though he doesn't deserve it. The film would receive a better reception if he gave the audience a unique and interesting storyline, with less of the awkward humour, and more of the funny humour, as there is quite a lot believe it or not!
Also, Transformers: The Last Knight got quite irritating to watch with shaky camera shots that forced too much on to the screen at one time, again, reinforcing the crammed atmosphere. This will impact the audience's viewing experience, obscuring what they actually see.
Some of the characters were extremely annoying. Isabela Moner's character was frustrating and tedious, which was nothing to do her with her performance, it's great, but her character was thinly written, and given a poor script to work with (by Art Marcum, Matt Holloway and Ken Nolan) and overall, wasn't necessary, as she didn't drive the story along, and didn't really impact the narrative or the outcome in any way.
Obviously, because it's a Transformers movie, it would be a crime to not talk about the special effects. How are they? Well of course they're brilliantly crafted, with entertainment left, right and centre, keeping the audience involved, and are aesthetically mind blowing! If you take your children to watch this, I guarantee they will have a great time! The special effects team did a great job, on this one (Craig Tex Barnett and co.) it's just a shame we couldn't really see what was going on due to the cinematography, done by Jonathan Sela, which was quite dull.
As always, there is cheesy and awkward humour, but for the first time in the series, some of it was actually quite funny! Cogman the crazy robot (Jim Carter) was hysterical, and made every scene he was in amusing and hilarious, and stole the show every time! Jimmy (Jerrod Carmichael) was also extremely comical, and always lightened the mood, with his silly humour and outbursts! The same with Anthony Hopkins, generating laughter from the audience due to his impatient wit!
In the end, Transformers: The Last Knight was quite a lot of fun, with gripping action and funny humour, but lacked a unique and original storyline which made the movie feel dull, and samey, with a lot of awkward humour paired with good humour, which made it feel inconsistent, while the editing was choppy and didn't feel smooth at all. A recommendation to anyone who doesn't like to take movies too seriously, and for people who love to have a great time at the cinema, regardless of the quality!
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