You Got the Touch! You Got the Power!

I had been sitting in a ginormous movie theater last night for about an hour when I realized that I was witnessing a visual spectacle. One giant robot had just transformed from some kind of bulldozer thing and was rollerblading (really, rollerblading?) down a highway being chased by Optimus Prime. Optimus chases him down, then tackles him as they go flying off a skyway and onto another overpass below in a barrage of blasts and twisted metal. Optimus Prime (the good robot), then pummels the Decepticon's face in with his fists. Yes, they can fight with their fists. It was one of the most over-the-top movie sequences I had ever seen, and I loved it.
Last night in a suburban megaplex theatre filled with a mishmash of 18-25 year olds, I saw TRANSFORMERS. And it was incredibly good, in fact it was amazing from start to finish. The CGI animation is by far the best ever seen, and the story is almost as strong. The robots do talk a lot, which is true to the original animated series. At first I found it a little disarming, then quickly warmed up to it - this is obviously a movie that you can't take too seriously. There isn't any downtime throughout the whole movie, in fact the transforming kicks in about 10 minutes in. Another especially awesome aspect of Transformers is the Maxim-esque talent cast in the two female roles, Megan Fox in particular. Here she is, holy crap: Speaking of eye candy, this movie is dripping with it. If there's one thing that Michael Bay knows, it's how to blow things up and make cars look cool. Tons of awesome fun piled on top of really good times. The only thing this movie was missing was of course the great rock anthem "You Got The Touch" for the original 80's animated feature. Here it is in case you need a reminder, be sure to keep an eye out for the microscope Transformer. Wonder why he didn't make it in the movie? What's more kick ass than an 8-foot microscope?

Which led to this greatness:

John C. Reilly is great.
Transformers also had a ton of product placement, which I think they are getting ripped for, but I think they pulled it off. All the Autobots were GM cars. In fact, half the movie looked like a glorified commercial for the new Camaro. There was also a scene where a Mountain Dew machine, an XBOX 360 and a Nokia phone all transformed. Obviously Transformers is not going to be nominated for best picture (of all time, like the Highlander), but if you like having a fun time at the movies, it will be worth it.

Also - if you like humourous quips, yesterday McSweeney's published "A Letter to Optimus Prime from his Geico Auto Insurance Agent". Which is hilarious, you can read it here.