I don't mind the need to put more action into a sequel because they can't just repeat the E.T. formula of BUMBLEBEE again. Obviously we are all hoping the screenplays aren't as stupid as Bay's films -- keeping the human characters contained to a minimum would be smart.

https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/transform ... -follow-up

Hey looks like they managed to do it!

https://variety.com/2023/film/reviews/t ... 235632703/

Glad to hear that Bumblebee wasn't a one-off. quality-wise. Just a shame that the only started making good Transformers movies long after Bay had thoroughly made audiences sick of the brand.

Will be very interesting to see how it fares both here and overseas. I can tell you they still have a lot of kids excited, Theo is all into it as are other kids in his class. Pivoting this more of a family film is smart, though the budget is still pretty high if that $200 mil number is accurate.

7/10

This was solid. I mean, eventually it turns into your typical modern Hollywood product where the human engagement drops off and you're left with just an endless stream of interchangeable (if easily comprehensible) action scenes -- but for the most part this was an agreeable flick for Transformers fans. Not a TON of people there, but everyone who was clapped at the ending reveal, and seemed delighted by the fan service. Also a hilarious call back to the "racist robot" of the Bay years at one point.

Looked like it did just as well as FAST X on Thursday night previews so that is probably a decent sign. Should play well with audiences though BUMBLEBEE didn't really ignite after good reviews, so it's probably a case of it trying to overcome the stigma of being associated with "an old franchise" at this rate.

Your opinion is about what mine was, Andy. It lacks the warmth and charm of Bumblebee (thanks mainly to a pair of underwritten human leads), and the climax is the usual F/X porn nonsense (although well-staged), but it was entertaining enough for fans of the original cartoon. It just baffles me why Bay went SO over the top with destruction porn and his typical brand of leering sexism and foul racism in a franchise that has always been aimed squarely at kids, and why Paramount didn't put their foot down about it (oh, right, the billions inexplicably generated by them). I would see another one, but I think the franchise has been bled dry by Bay's awful films, so the tepid response to both this film and Bumblebee was due less to their quality and more to just the fatigue anyone feels when a movie series has been chugging along for over 15 years.