The most fun when you call each other Transformers: The Beginningis to hide that the franchise is rather drawing to a close at this point in history. Since the first adaptation by the explosive Michael Bay in 2007 – remember, the one who liked to film Megan Fox in slow motion – the saga has given rise to six other films. Except that the box office has been in free fall for ten years to the point where the Rise of the Beasts of 2023 remains the least profitable of the series with 427 million dollars accumulated worldwide.
However, Hasbro and Paramount cling to their license like a mussel to a rock and they will have tried everything to convince us that Transformers is still cool. A mess of announcements (including a very recent one on a possible crossing with Godzilla !), a spin-off, two imitation reboots, one of which should open with a crossover with GI Joe… The saga has transformed into Jean-Claude Dusse, convinced that due to a misunderstanding, it will end up working.
We will never know if the project was thought of as an honest creative ambition or as the last chance attempt ; still it is that Transformers: The Beginning arrives in the form of the ultimate flirting technique. Come on, we can give him a date at the cinema, it doesn’t commit us to anything. Especially since the first feedback during its presentation at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival, as well as in its various previews, suggested that Josh Cooley’s film (Toy Story 4) was a real success.
Before the Autobots and the Decepticons, the film tells the story of two best friends condemned to basic labor on their planet Cybertron. But the call of adventure and the discovery of a well-kept secret will push towards their destinies those who will soon be called Optimus Prime and Megatron.
Mechanics too well oiled
If we could fear an opus that was far too focused on humor for what it intended to tell – the beginnings of a future fratricidal war – in view of the various trailers, it is ultimately nothing of the sort on the entire footage. The comic aspect is present, without being intrusive and, above all, it fits naturally into the personality of the protagonists (BADASSTRON!!) and knows how to step aside when the situation requires it. The Beginning shows mastery of his emotional tempo and allows time for everything, both funny and dramatic.
A less childish part than one might have suspected, but which does not intend to camouflage its family vision, like what the franchise has always represented to greater or lesser degrees (the Bumblebee episode in particular ). Certainly, it is not with Transformers: The Beginning that the cliché of animated films intended primarily for children will disappear. On the contrary, its form seems to have been chosen to seduce young audiences with visual and narrative propositions that are sometimes too simplistic.
Visually, if the background and the aesthetic of the Transformers do not lack detail, the artistic direction is shown more than once to be extremely smooth with animation that lacks texture from one scene to another, including at the level of the faces. Graphically, we can jump from one very rich sequence with advanced 3Dto a sequence reminiscent of basic animated series from morning youth programs with more primitive forms. The most telling example remains the difference in dressing between the main heroes, well defined, and the secondary roles built on the same mold.
Same story on the screenplay side which tends to take some shortcuts on the moral transformation of its characters and several plot conveniences. The plot never tries to lose us with unexpected twists and turns, preferring travel the marked paths to the point of making us laugh when we have to hang up the wagons with the lore, often choosing the most literal way of explaining the why and the how. The dialogues have no depth and only over-explain what we see on the screen.
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Optimistic Prime
If it seemed important to us not to attenuate these poorest aspects of the film, it is just as important to admit that none of everything that has been said above really harms this Transformers: The Beginning. Could the film have been more ambitious in content and form by using animation as a springboard towards the craziest ideas, like the last Spider-Man with Miles Morales ? Obviously. Could he have shown more depth in his exploration of the universe? Also. However, the experience nonetheless remains exhilarating in the general feeling.
We are easily drawn in by this story of friendship which goes wrong against a backdrop of adventure with funny and endearing characters. An affection well helped by the vocal casting (we saw the French version) who have a lot of fun with the lines. The good mood is quickly contagious. The pace is maintained from start to finish and the footage renews itself sufficiently from one scene to another so that we don’t feel the time passing. If we blame him for his shyness about one’s potentialthe fact remains that Transformers: The Beginning manages to offer us a different idea per sequence, so that we never have the feeling of going in circles in front of a story that is not moving forward, on the contrary.
We are witnessing real entertainment that aims to please its audience, from the smallest to the largest, far from the overly cynical or uninspired approaches of its live action counterparts. The floodgates are working, the action is gaining momentum, and we could do with a little extra boost at the end. Yes, we’re finally having fun again with an opus Transformers. The film could have been better, but in the meantime, it already knows how to be goodand given what the franchise has become, that’s already a lot. The beginning of a new animated saga? We hope so.
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