and Transformers:
Age of Extinction
Michael Bay likes big trucks. A lot. To say anything more about Transformers: Age of Extinction would be a waste of your time — unless, of course, you happen to be a fan of Mark Wahlberg, the ever-so-watchable action hero who makes everything from underpants to aliens feel, well, human.
And that is the point of these intermittent explosions called the Transformers franchise: It’s not just about robots being human, or aliens being human, but about alien robots being human.
You see? It’s a whole different thing, kind of.
Realizing the dream of every five-year-old boy who could say “vrrrrrooooom” before “wuv,” this fourth ear-shattering experience is all about robots that are alive. They walk and they talk, even though their faces are made of machinery and we can literally see the gears at work.
They have a “spark,” says nice Alpha robot Optimus Prime — “or what we humans call a soul,” adds Wahlberg’s Cade Yaeger, a single male inventor who picked up Prime at a seedy movie theatre.
Opening with a sequence that establishes humans were at war with alien robots and the battle destroyed Chicago, we see Yaeger stroll into an abandoned movie palace in Texas, where he finds an old semi covered in dust and rags and all sorts of conveniently removable debris.
By the time Yaeger discovers his trash is interstellar treasure, we’re also aware of a new type of robot — one made by human hands, from alien metal. The genius behind this new development is a suit played by Stanley Tucci, the man who brings new meaning to the word “tailored.”
Tucci and Wahlberg bring plenty of great stuff to the screen, and even though most of the dialogue consists of “Run!” and “I’m going to kill you!” the two veterans make us forget about the clunking mechanics of the idiotic plot.
They get the Saturday-morning earnestness, as well as the heroic beats that, by necessity, must go so far over the top they can leap a tall building in a single bound.
The only real problem with Transformers: Age of Extinction is the length. At close to three hours, it’s easily an hour too long. Granted, it’s not easy to tell a story that deals with alien robots, man-made robots with alien tendencies, corporate weasels and dinosaurs — because what else can match the appeal of a big truck?
But the magic carpet of disbelief wears thin after hosting 10 car chases and countless robotversus-robot battle sequences.
I know we’re supposed to care about the robots that can turn into big trucks and U.S.-made cars, but this isn’t Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh watching Atlanta burn. This is Mark Wahlberg and a truck in Texas — with aliens and bad guys.
Somehow, the people who made the Japanese cartoon managed to save the world in under 30 minutes, hundreds of times over. Bay proves Americans like to do it bigger, longer and with a lot more money, less often.
And he thought he was making an action film. Turns out Transformers: Age of Extinction actually lives up to its title and chronicles not just the death of our bond with the Autobots, but the death of cinema, and that once-fearsome T. rex called American culture.
HE SAID:
“I’ve wanted to make this kind of film since I was six. To be there and living the moment was an existential experience.” “Michael’s not a jaded director and that’s really something for all he’s done. He has so much energy and he brings that A-game every day.” “What’s next? I was in (Glassland) shot in Ireland with Toni Collette. And I played Malcolm in a movie of that Scottish play (Macbeth) with Michael Fassbender (as Macbeth).”
SHE SAID:
“There was less green screen than I expected. All those explosions, car chases and sets were real. It was helpful but it was fun to use your imagination as well.” “Mark had worked with Michael on Pain & Gain before, so he told me the first day to be prepared, and I was glad he did. I knew my lines and the scenes and everybody else’s lines. When you get on set, Michael’s never really sure what he’s going to do next.” “Mark was my safety net. He’s such an amazing professional and he works so hard to get things right.”