Transformers One

Tonight, on Paramount+, I saw “Transformers One,” which came out theatrically in September and on Paramount+ two days ago. How is this latest Transformers movie, which happens to be the first animated film since the one from the 80s?

In the 40 years since the first “Transformers” series premiered on TV, there have been so many animated TV shows, videos, and movies – plus six overhyped live-action films (plus a really good one, “Bumblebee”) – and now the fully computer-animated “Transformers One.”

This latest film of the “more than meets the eye” shape-shifting robots that sell a lot of merchandise for Hasbro is energetic and entertaining – and could have been even more, if the Paramount and Hasbro marketing departments hadn’t interfered.

On the planet Cybertron, all the locals are robots but aren’t all created equal. The elite of Iacon City, led by the charismatic Sentinel Prime, voiced by Jon Hamm, have the ability to change their appearance – while the rest, robots without the “cogs” that allow transformations, are mine workers digging up the “energon” that powers the planet and helps Sentinel Prime fight the ongoing war against invading aliens on the surface of Cybertron.

One of the “no-cogs” in the mines, Orion Pax, voiced by Chris Hemsworth, thinks there’s something out there better for him. He convinces his friend, D-16, voiced by Brian Tyree Henry, to enter Iacon City’s big race, something no cog-less robot has ever done successfully. Their audacity impresses Sentinel Prime, but not their mine supervisor, who punishes them to the lowest levels – where they meet a loquacious robot named B-127, voiced by Keegan-Michael Key, or Bee for short.

Eventually, Orion, D-16, and Bee end up on the surface, along with a tough robot, Elita-1, voiced by Scarlett Johansson. Up there, they learn some facts about the war, Sentinel Prime, and the ancient “Prime” robots who once ruled Cybertron. The truth, told to them by Alpha Trion, voiced by Laurence Fishburne, makes Orion determined to change things for every robot, while it makes D-16 feel cheated and wanting revenge.

The conflict between Orion and D-16 takes up the second half of this nicely animated movie. If you don’t want to know the “spoiler” – the one that is the focus of the movie’s marketing campaign – keep scrolling.

The movie, the advertising showed, is the origin story of the most important characters in the “Transformers” universe. Orion becomes Optimus Prime – the red is an early clue, and eventually the truck look is a giveaway. That makes D-16 the future Megatron, who becomes Optimus Prime’s arch nemesis for the franchise.

The bottom line, not knowing what I just mentioned makes “Transformers One” a more interesting movie – because without knowing, the audience is allowed to know these characters as they evolve. Sean P. Means said in his review, “With that knowledge, the audience is just tapping its collective feet, waiting for the inevitable reveal.”

Means continued, “The animated action set pieces are engaging, as director Josh Cooley (“Toy Story 4”) and his band of visual stylists make Cybertron a fully realized world with some interesting robot creatures living there.” The pacing is solid, and even if you don’t know what’s going on, you never lose focus.

“Transformers One” is a solid movie, and one that has set up a couple of sequels to explore the universe that the franchise’s diehard fans from childhood will want to see.

If you have been a fan of Transformers, this one is definitely for you. This animated film really brings people back to the Generation 1 robots that those who grew up in the 80s and they will get engaged. Check this out on Paramount+ because you will love it. Especially with a voice cast that includes Steve Buscemi, James Remar, and Jon Bailey.

Thank you for reading this review tonight. Stay tuned for the next installment of “Buddy Cop Month.”

Despicable Me 4

Tonight, on Peacock, I saw “Despicable Me 4,” which came out theatrically in July but on Peacock on Halloween. How is this latest installment in this franchise?

The sixth entry in the “Despicable Me” franchise and a sequel to “Despicable Me 3,” the film starts with Gru, reprised by Steve Carell, driving to his school, Lycée Pas Bon, for a reunion. However, he is also undercover for the Anti-Villain League (AVL) to arrest Maxine Le Mal, voiced by Will Ferrell.

Maxine and Gru have been enemies since their school days, especially after Gru sang Culture Club’s Karma Chameleon dressed as Boy George at the talent show. Maxine, who was planning to sing the same song, also dressed as Boy George, could not do so as everyone would think he was copying Gru.

Maxine has made many villainous inventions including a machine to turn people into cockroaches. Gru arrests Maxine who escapes the AVL’s maximum security prison with help from his girlfriend Valentina, voiced by Sofia Vergara, and wants revenge on Gru and his family.

The former director of AVL Silas Ramsbottom (Steve Coogan) comes out of retirement to get Gru and his family, which includes his wife Lucy (Kristen Wiig), adopted daughters Margo (Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (Dana Gaier), and Agnes (Madison Polan), and son Gru Jr (Tara Strong), to a safe house in the upscale Mayflower neighborhood.

Despite the family, incognito under the name Cunningham, try to blend in, they do stand out. Gru trying to make friends with his neighbor the affluent Perry Prescott (Stephen Colbert) fails while Lucy trying hair salon has an epic fail with burning a customer, Melora’s (Laraine Newman) hair. Perry’s wife Patsy, voiced by Chloe Fineman, invites the Cunninghams to a game of tennis, which Lucy knows is not a sign of being accepted.

The Prescott daughter, Poppy, voiced by Joey King, however recognizes Gru and blackmails him to joining her on a theft to steal his school’s mascot. Besides the three minions (Pierre Coffin) who join the Gru family, the rest are at AVL headquarters and Silas puts five into a program for the creation of Mega Minions. The program quickly ends as the Mega Minions create all kinds of chaos while trying to help.

The voice work is fun with most of the cast reprising their roles. Mini Anthikad Chhibber said in her review, “Romesh Ranganathan as Gru’s quarter master Dr. Nefario and Chris Renaud as the tough-as-nails principal Übelschlecht have a blast as do Ferrell and Vergara. Some of the sequences are inventive, especially the one with the mega minion and the Swiss cheese.”

Chhibber ended her review by saying, “Stuff keeps happening through Despicable Me 4’s 94 minutes and before you know it, the credits are rolling, which might be a good thing if you want to pounded into submission with a relentless procession of gags. Despicable Me 4 is fun while it lasts, but might not stand as a synonym for enduring.”

I think this film is just as fun as the previous installments, but might not be as good as the last one. I don’t know where I might rank this as I would have to think a lot about it. However, if you have Peacock, and you missed the chance to see this in theaters, then I would highly recommend everyone to see this film because you will have a lot of fun seeing this. If you liked the previous films in the franchise, this is not one to miss.

Thank you for joining in on this review tonight. Stay tuned this Friday for the continuation of “Buddy Cop Month.”

The Garfield Movie

Tonight, I saw “The Garfield Movie,” which was released theatrically back in May, but on Netflix in September. How is this new installment that is based on a comic strip character that had his own cartoon series in the 90s?

This is the third feature length movie based on the popular comic strip character created by Jim Davis. Just like the first two, this one was panned by critics, but is commercially successful. Robert Roten said in his review, “The only reason I went to see this is because it is being shown in 3D. I did not expect much from this movie, but I was pleasantly surprised. I laughed, and the story was compelling enough to hold my attention.”

In this new Garfield movie, Garfield is reunited with Vic, his estranged father. A vengeful Persian cat named Jinx forces Garfield, Vic, and Garfield’s dog friend, Odie, to perform a theft. Garfield, Vic, and Odie are helped in the theft by a depressed bull, Otto, who agrees to help them steal a truck full of milk (the required theft) if they will also rescue his love, a cow named Ethel, who is trapped at the dairy farm.

There are so many problems during the theft, and the getaway that follows. There is a very determined security guard, Marge Malone, to deal with, and two dogs named Roland and Nolan who both work for Jinx, who has no means of getting Vic off easy for his supposed betrayal of her.

One of the jokes in the movie is Odie. Shown as very vacuous and clumsy in the comic strip, in the movie, he is far smarter than Garfield or Vic. The depressed bull, Otto, is a true genius, who ends up running the theft mission.

Garfield is angry with Vic, who abandoned him when he was a kitten, but during the course of the movie, he learns what happened when he was a kitten is different than he thought. Vic had good reasons to keep his distance when he saw that Garfield had been adopted by a loving owner, Jon Arbuckle.

Roten noted, “This is mostly a movie for kids, but there are a few trappings for adults, such as calculated cultural and movie references. There is a good supply of slapstick comedy in the movie that is effective at times.” This film is written by Paul A. Kaplan, Mark Torgove, and David Reynolds, and is directed by Mark Dindal.

The voice cast include Chris Pratt as Garfield, Samuel L. Jackson as Vic, Harvey Guillén as Odie, Ving Rhames as Otto, Alicia Grace Turrell as Ethel, Hannah Waddingham as Jinx, Brett Goldstein as Roland, Bowen Yang as Nolan, Nicholas Hoult as Jon Arbuckle, Garfield and Odie’s owner, Cecily Strong as Marge Malone, Snoop Dogg as Maurice, a blue Maine Coon cat, and Jeff Foxworthy as a bird that gets electrocuted.

I was curious about checking this movie out because I have never seen any of the other Garfield movies, and I have seen the cartoon series and read the comic strips growing up. I know critics are thrashing this, but I personally found myself enjoying this movie. I think this is a family film everyone can check out and enjoy. If you have an ad-free plan on Netflix, you can watch this no problem. Otherwise, you will have to find this film somewhere else.

Thank you for joining in on this review tonight. Stay tuned next week for the continuation of “Buddy Cop Month.”

Blue Streak

“Blue Streak,” released in 1999, is pretty high in the buddy cop genre, in the same territory as “Lethal Weapon.” It has the usual stuff for a cop comedy, including the necessary Dunkin’ Donuts product placement, but it’s put together with style – ant it’s made around a Martin Lawrence performance that deserves comparison with Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy, with a little Mel Gibson’s insanity in the middle of the action.

The movie starts with a high-tech caper scene. Jewel thief Miles Logan, played by Lawrence, and his team put together a complicated plan with illegal entry, alarm system work-arounds and steel getaway cables. As predicted, everything goes wrong, and Lawrence is cornered on a construction site with a $17 million diamond. He tapes it inside an air duct, is arrested, and goes to prison.

Two years pass. Once released, he finds his old girlfriend, played by Tamala Jones, isn’t happy to see him. (“I didn’t come to visit you for two years. Isn’t that a sign?”) There is worse news. The building under construction turns out to be a police station, and the diamond is hidden inside. How can he get it? He tries to get to the burglary department on the third floor by impersonating a crazy pizza delivery guy (the highlight of the movie). That’s not a great idea, but he keeps improvising and is somehow mistaken for a real cop. Soon he’s out on the street with a partner, played by Luke Wilson, who is from the traffic division and excited to be working with a pro like Miles.

You can tell that Miles isn’t a usual cop. It doesn’t take long for his partners to find out that his name and badge number isn’t in the system. Roger Ebert said in his review, “But he's so confident, and so ruthless in roughing up suspects, they assume he's a genuine law enforcement officer of some description, who has infiltrated the department.” His superior, played by William Forsythe, loves everything about him and starts debating about his true identity. FBI? Internal Affairs? CIA? Ebert said, “The movie, directed by Les Mayfield ("Encino Man"), doesn't settle for the gag that Miles is a thief impersonating a cop. It takes that as a starting point and wrings laughs out of it--for example, in a funny scene where Miles walks in on a convenience store holdup that's being pulled by an old criminal buddy of his. While the other cop covers them from a distance, Miles engages in a desperate and unorthodox form of plea-bargaining.”

If the old friend, played by Dave Chappelle, doesn’t expose him, Miles will promise him $10,000 and only one night in jail. Ok, $20,000? Ebert admitted, “I've seen enough car chases to last several lifetimes, but I like a good one when it's handled well, and the action in the last act of this movie is not only high-style, but also makes sense in terms of the plot.” Good casting of villains is important in action comedies (remember Joe Pesci in “Lethal Weapon 2?”), and here the evil Peter Greene is a convincing antagonist. Ebert noted, “The villain always has to be the thankless straight man in a plot like this; he's never in on the joke, which is the joke.”

Martin Lawrence is a comic actor with real talent, not always shown in the best way. “Bad Boys,” his buddy cop movie with Will Smith, was not a career high point, and it took a certain thought to make another one. However, “Blue Streak” works. True story: during production, Martin Lawrence went jogging on a hot day with a wool hat on and passed out from heat exhaustion. He woke up three days later and had to learn his motor skills again because he was slurring. A movie like this is evidence that, given the right material, he has a real gift. Hopefully he learned to be careful with the jogging.

As I stated last week, I saw this movie with a couple of cousins when I visited Pakistan in 2005. I found this movie to be really funny, but I didn’t see it from beginning to end. A few years ago, I decided to see the movie and I love this movie a lot. I know this wasn’t well received, but I think this is one of the funniest buddy cop movies ever made. The lines are just some of the most quotable. See this movie for yourself and you will get some good laughs, I promise.

Next week, I will be looking at two movies that are based on characters from books, but I think they are really good in “Buddy Cop Month.”

The Glimmer Man

“The Glimmer Man” is a 1996 formulaic Hollywood action film that’s about what you think.

Robert Roten said in his review, “This film is so derivative I could go on for paragraphs about all the other films it borrows from. Suffice it to say it is a formula copy buddy film about uneasy partners.” Steven Seagal, who specializes in Kung Fu movies, plays the Glimmer Man, a former government agent who is now a cop. His partner, who is uneasy about Seagal’s Buddhist methods and his unknown past, is played by Keenan Ivory Wayans.

Several times during the film, Seagal calls Wayans “Grasshopper,” a reference to the TV show “Kung Fu.” There are some funny lines in the film and the two protagonists work well together. Roten noted, “Seagal, who only has a glimmer of acting ability, can't quite master this role, but Wayans does well enough.”

Director John Gray moves the story fast enough so that you don’t mind the plot holes a lot. Most of the fights are well-staged and well-shot.

Roten noted, “There are numerous killings, including some gruesome ritual murders. There are also a couple of Hollywood cliché killings in which people fall from high places and are impaled on sharp objects.” This wouldn’t be an action film without one of those kills.

This is a very violent film. Roten mentioned, “One of the killers is a standard Hollywood Christian type (a closed-minded, wacked-out murderer). Catholics get tired of being portrayed this way. It would be nice if Hollywood picked on some other group for a change.”

By the way, the plot has to do with a government conspiracy to use a serial murderer’s methods of operations to eliminate some people who know too much about an illegal government work.

If you like Hollywood action films, I guess this one is average. If you don’t, then don’t see this one, because action is all it has.

One of my former friends lent me his VHS copy of this film and to this day, I don’t know what to make of it. I’m not sure if I hate this movie or think it is ok because of everything that occurred. This is the only Seagal movie I have seen and I don’t know if this was the wrong one to start on. I don’t recommend this movie because I don’t know if anyone will like this or not. I don't think anyone talks about this movie because it's probably one of those that you forget very easily.

Next week, I will be reviewing a funny action film that I saw a part of overseas then watched years later when I was exercising in “Buddy Cop Month.”

Bad Boys: Ride or Die

Tonight, I finished watching “Bad Boys: Ride or Die,” which came out theatrically back in June but on Netflix last month. How is this new installment in the franchise?

This may be a shocker, but a nearly 30-year-old franchise could have helped this past summer’s box office.

“The Fall Guy” and “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” didn’t do well in the box office, “Bad Boys: Ride or Die” succeeded in delivering the success that hurt the movie studios early in the summer.

Not to say that this fourth movie in the franchise staring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence is persuasive, but more of the fact of how entertaining it is.

It is just action, which is meant for audiences to just enjoy for the runtime and forget about everything that is going on.

George M. Thomas said in his review, “It doesn’t hurt that Smith and Lawrence slip into their on-screen personas of Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett as easily as if they were a pair of well-worn Nikes. The chemistry has always been evident between the two as they play off one another with a comfort level not seen with most co-stars. Ultimately, that represents the strongest aspect of the series as a whole, but after so much time it would be easy to assume that chemistry has dissipated.”

What isn’t true is that “Ride or Die” may be the best film in the franchise since the first film back in 1995. Thomas commented, “Directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah put their stamp on the franchise with the third film after taking the mantle from Michael Bay (who makes a cameo), but with this one, their comfort level with their subject matter and stars shows in this tight, breezy effort.”

Thomas continued, “With a script from Chris Bremner (“Bad Boys For Life”) and Will Beall (“Aquaman”), the film plays to that chemistry – the word play and the macho-fused affection between the two characters. It does so against the backdrop of jaw-dropping spectacle that explodes off the screen, but wisely acknowledges that these two dudes are now into their 50s and still playing superhero cops.”

That’s not believable, but it’s fun, and this time around, the original crew mostly returns, with a few exceptions.

One is Joe Pantoliano’s Captain Conrad Howard, who was murdered in the last film. He returns through a video to tell that his death wasn’t really what it looked like, revealing that superiors in the Miami Police Department are responsible and trusting Mike and Marcus to uncover it.

That takes them back to their past, including having to get help from Mike’s imprisoned son, reprised by Jacob Scipio, to lead them through something that is not their expertise.

This isn’t going to be easy and there are so many explosive scenarios as they are on their trail. For those wanting to join them, it’s not one to miss.

For Smith, this is a chance to redeem himself after his thrashing of slapping Chris Rock. For Lawrence, who hasn’t been seen much, it makes him one of the people to talk about again.

For the audience, it’s a chance to go into something for a couple of hours for some enjoyment.

If you have been a fan of the other movies in the franchise, this is one not to skip over. The only problem with this film is that you need to have a Netflix plan that doesn’t support ads because of some licensing issues, but this is a film to check out. If you have a Netflix plan that doesn’t include ads, then you should see this film. Otherwise, see if you can find it somewhere else. This is an enjoyable film and definitely not one to miss.

Thank you for joining in on this review tonight. Stay tuned this Friday for the continuation of “Buddy Cop Month.”

Eraser

It helps to have a short attention span while watching “Eraser,” the 1996 Arnold Schwarzenegger movie. For example, the part late in the film where Arnold is shot through the left shoulder. He grabs his shoulder and smirks. From the bullet’s point of entry, we guess his shoulder bone is broken and there is a lot of muscle damage. Immediately afterward, Arnold is in a fight to the death with the villain, played by the late James Caan, on top of a shipping container that has been lifted high in the air by a crane. The heroine, played by Vanessa Williams, is also on the container, and she falls off. However, Arnold is able to grab her out of the air. He holds her with his right, and supports the weight of both of them with his left hand and arm. That’s nice trick after getting shot in the shoulder by a bullet. However, if you think way back to the movie’s second big action scene, near the beginning of the film, Arnold and Vanessa are the targets of a nail bomb, which explodes, driving a spike right through Arnold’s right hand – the one he later holds Williams with. Roger Ebert said in his review, “A guy like that, he could play basketball on bad ankles for weeks. How does he do it? I guess he has plumb forgotten the spike through his hand. There have been a lot of distractions, like being attacked by alligators at the New York City Zoo, and falling out of an airplane without his parachute, and shooting at a Boeing 727 with a handgun.” Arnold is amazingly calm under this threat. After he shoots the alligator through the head, he tells it, “You’re luggage!” The plot of “Eraser” is about Vanessa Williams as Lee Cullen, an employee of a defense contractor who comes across evidence that a secret cabal inside the U.S. government is illegally transporting advanced weapons systems. Particularly, they’re selling the Rail Gun. Charles Russell, the director of the film, explained that the Rail Gun are “hyper-velocity weapons that shoot aluminum or clay rounds at just below the speed of light.” That is 186,282 miles a second. What happens to aluminum and clay rounds shot at that speed? Ebert said, “They don’t pulverize or anything, do they? That muzzle velocity doesn’t cause overheating or anything, I suppose? At least there’s no recoil when the bullets leave the guns at just below the speed of light. I know that because at one point Arnold holds a Rail Gun in each hand (including the injured right one) and fires them simultaneously.” What is amazing is that Charles Russell wants us to believe these guns are believable. In his press notes, he elaborates:

“These guns represent a whole new technology in weaponry that is still in its infancy, though a large-scale version exists in limited numbers on battleships and tanks. They have incredible range. They can pierce three-foot-thick cement walls and then knock a canary off a tin can with absolute accuracy.” Ebert said, “If I read this correctly, he is talking here about the battleship model.”

Ebert continued, “My curiosity is awakened. To heck with the secret government plot–I want to see the U.S. Navy shooting clay bullets at just beneath the speed of light through three-foot cement walls at canaries. And I want to stay for the credits: “No canaries were harmed during the filming of this motion picture.” But I digress. “Eraser” is actually good action fun, with spectacular stunts and special effects (I liked the sequence where Arnold shoots it out with the Boeing 727) and high energy.” Arnold plays his usual heroic character, an ace operative in the federal Witness Protection Program, and Vanessa Williams is a good partner, running, jumping, fighting, shooting, kicking, screaming, being tied to chairs, smuggling computer discs, and looking great. There is also fun when Arnold contacts an old friend named Johnny C, played by Robert Pastorelli, from the Witness Protection Program. Johnny is an ex-Mafia guy, now working in a drag bar. When Arnold finds out the illegal arms are being shipped from docks controlled by the union, Johnny goes to his uncle, Tony Two Toes, who looks cruelly on anybody moving anything through the docks without union approval. Soon Johnny, Tony Two Toes, and other Mafioso are spying on a Russian ship that’s being loaded. They have the following conversation:

Tony Two Toes: Those dirty commies:

Underling: They’re not commies any more. They’re a federation of independent liberated states.

Tony Two Toes: Don’t make me hurt you, Mikey.

Ebert ended his review by saying, ““Eraser” is more or less what you expect, two hours of mindless nonstop high-tech action, with preposterous situations, a body count in the dozens, and Arnold introducing a new trademark line of dialogue (it’s supposed to be “Trust me,” but I think “You’re luggage” will win on points). Thinking back over the film, I can only praise the director’s restraint in leaving out the canary.”

This is another enjoyable Schwarzenegger flick that everyone should watch. Especially with the lines he says. Every single one of them will be on your favorite Schwarzenegger lines list. That’s what’s so fun about watching Schwarzenegger movies are simply for the lines he says and for the action, because every single one of his action films are enjoyable. This is fitting for a buddy cop movie seeing how him and Williams really have good camaraderie that you believe. Check it out and enjoy yourself.

Next week I will be looking at a film that my friend lent his VHS copy of to me to watch, but I don’t know what to make of it in the continuation of “Buddy Cop Month.”