I was not a “Transformers” guy growing up. I didn’t watch the show, and I never played with the toys (I was a “Ninja Turtles” kid). I didn’t even see the 1986 animated film until a few weeks ago. As for the recent spate of live-action movies, while 2007’s “Transformers” gets by with a dusting of Amblin flair and the prequel “Bumblebee” had the right tone, the recent outings for the robots-in-disguise have largely been loud, gaudy affairs that seemed stuck in a junior high mindset of emotionally stunted boys. The plots are as incomprehensible as the action, and yet there’s also a painful redundancy where the only new twist will be the introduction of some other line of Transformers to interact with Optimus Prime, Bumblebee and some interchangeable Autobots. Is this the best this franchise can do?
“Transformers One” shows that there’s a much better world of “Transformers” waiting for audiences; one that can give little hat tips to nostalgia, but is more interested in telling its own story, relying on real jokes rather than Easter eggs, and seems to genuinely care about the Transformers as characters rather than using them as fodder for the next set piece. Instead of feeling like another toy commercial (although “Transformers One” will certainly move toys), director Josh Cooley’s movie feels like what the “Transformers” films always should have been — adventure films the whole family can enjoy regardless of any pre-existing affection for the world of “Transformers.”
In this prequel, we go back to Cybertron, but all is not well on the Transformers’ home planet. Their fearsome warriors, the Primes, have gone missing, and there is a war on the surface against the invading forces of the Quintessons. The current leader, Sentinel Prime (Jon Hamm), is off trying to find the Matrix of Leadership to defeat the Quintessons while other transformers labor in the mines to find the Energon (their food supply, basically) since the rivers that once flowed have now dried up. Our story follows Orion Pax (Chris Hemsworth) and D-16 (Brian Tyree Henry), two miners and best friends who we know will one day become the bitter enemies Optimus Prime and Megatron, respectively. Orion is constantly getting D-16 into trouble as he independently searches for the Matrix while D-16 simply wants to follow the rules and be like his hero, Sentinel Prime. Eventually, their adventure leads them to a shocking discovery about Cyberton and sets them on their adversarial path.
It’s odd to see a “Transformers” movie take the shape of tragedy, but here we are. Rather than have a prequel story drain all the tension from the film, Cooley makes sure we feel the weight of Orion and D-16’s friendship even though we know the irreparable fissure is coming. Furthermore, rather than try a cheat like wiping a character’s memory or putting them under some kind of new programming, the friction between Orion and D-16 always emerges organically. Orion is not the unwaveringly noble Optimus Prime we know but is a well-meaning-yet-reckless individual who understandably gets on his friend’s nerves. D-16’s transformation into Megatron isn’t obvious from the start, and while we may not agree with what he becomes, we can at least sympathize with how gets there. Never in the “Transformers” movies has so much care been paid to the titular robots.
The film is helped by also being genuinely joyful and fun. The banter between Orion and D-16 is charming, and Orion has a terrific foil in the ambitious and determined Elita-1 (Scarlett Johansson). But the film’s big scene stealer is B-127 (Keegan-Michael Key) who we know will become Bumblebee. In the other movies, Bumblebee is either silent or can only speak in song lyrics or quotes. Here, he’s a motormouthed goof who’s gone a little silly after years of working by himself in waste management. Excited to have new friends to hang out with, B-127 ends up as the film’s most energetic character and the one you’ll most likely be quoting as you exit the theater.
The infectious joy that runs through “Transformers One” is so foreign yet so welcome we’re left to wonder why it was notably absent in the other movies. Perhaps the live-action films felt that the human actors had to carry the emotional beats because we were never going to fully care about big CGI robots. Perhaps the 1986 movie never had a chance because it was too preoccupied with killing off old Transformers and introducing new ones. For whatever reason, they largely kept missing the notion that the Transformers should be worthwhile characters who have a story that can do more than robot punching. While “Transformers One” does have a few action scenes, the film’s best moments belong to the character relationships.
After almost 20 years of “Transformers” movies (and more if you go back to the 1986 film), it feels like Paramount and Hasbro have finally found the better version of what these screen adaptations should be. Bringing in an old Pixar pro like Cooley (who previously directed “Toy Story 4”) certainly doesn’t hurt, but there’s a charming willingness to throw out of the tone of the live-action films and their juvenile humor. “Transformers One” is made for kids, and yet it feels far more mature than any of the Michael Bay outings.
Rather than a cheap cash-in or another forgettable franchise installment, there is finally more here than meets the eye.
A Paramount Pictures release, “Transformers One” opens exclusively in theaters on Sept. 20.
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