Bumblebee

Starring: Hailee Steinfeld, John Cena, Angela Bassett, Justin Theroux, Pamela Adlon, John Ortiz, Jorge Lendeborg Jr.

Director: Travis Knight

Opening on the planet Cybertron, which is under siege by the evil Decepticons. B-127 is sent to earth by Optimus Prime to create a base to shelter the incoming Autobot refugees. Unfortunately for Bee, he lands in the middle of a training op led by Agent Burns (John Cena). After evading attack, Bee is attacked by a Decepticon who alerts the others of Bee’s whereabouts. Forced into hiding and disguised as a VW Beetle, he soon finds himself in the possession of Charlie (Hailee Steinfeld) on her 18th birthday. Charlie, who loves working on cars, discovers Bee’s identity. Two Decepticons, Shatter (Angela Bassett) and Dropkick (Justin Theroux) arrive on earth searching for Bee and enlist the help of the Military, which includes Agent Burns, to find Bee’s location. Charlie is forced to do everything in her power to keep Bee’s whereabouts a secret while keeping the military from turning Bee into scrap and ultimately saving the earth from the Decepticons. Where has this Transformers been the entire series? I had long given up on finding enjoyment in the series but if they continue in this direction, I’m back on board. The best thing they did was keep Michael Bay as a producer only and hire Travis Knight. While he has never directed a live action film before, you wouldn’t know it as he jumps very easily into the live action realm. The action is clear and you can follow it, the exact opposite of Bay’s chaotic direction in the previous films. In fact, every Bay film making trademark is gone, a much needed and refreshing change. The most important thing that Knight's involvement brings is the heart that was very much present in Kubo and the Two Strings. Credit is also due to screenwriter Christina Hodson, who delivered a script way better than a film like this deserved. Hailee Steinfeld also continues to prove her talent. She gives the movie her all, shining in many emotional beats, culminating in a speech where she talks about her dad's death. You don’t expect moments in movies like this to be as well done as they were in this one. John Cena is also fun, getting more of the funny moments and often asking the questions audiences usually ask, to poke holes in movies like this. Yes, it still is formulaic and there is never the sense of actual tension. But this was much better than it had any right to be and I’ll take it. B