By Ryan Stephens
Summer blockbuster movies rarely get outside the comfort zone; profitability and creativity do not go hand in hand for this season. However, the craze for summer movies in 2014 shows that there might be a change in the notion with record lows in the box office. According to The New York Times, the profits made from summer movies in 2014 dropped fifteen percent since 2013, hitting a new low that summer rarely sees. This change could mean a few things: either 2014 had a bad showing, a recession of the film industry, or the audiences finally want to give up the high action, mentally draining vignettes of testosterone. However, while some go on to blame the movies as being the cause behind this, the ones that did well earned it.
Among one of the highest grossing films of 2014 so far, Transformers 4: Age of Extinction continues the Michael Bay explosion and gun fest by starting a new trilogy. One could describe it as bold and audacious, in the same way one would describe a McDonalds hamburger. No one doubted that Transformers 4 ended up doing much in the way of progression for a trilogy plagued by blandness and the most shocking, unapologetic xenophobia shown on the big screens since Birth of a Nation, which famously depicted the Klu Klux Klan in a favorable light. However, the series always understood the spectacle more than the depth and the action remained at the forefront. With Transformers 4, it builds upon everything that the series promised and even develops the often ignored parts of it.
Directed by Michael Bay, the film stars Mark Wahlberg and the titular Transformers (voice acted by Peter Cullen, John Goodman, Ken Watanabe, and Joe DiMaggio), and a several-pages-long list of visual effect artists. For a Transformers narrative, it tosses it up by ditching Shia LaBeouf and going with a more typical Michael Bay narrative, with Wahlberg being a father scorned by his government. Somehow, the story raises the stakes to unexpected heights, from Paris, Texas to China. The typical jingoistic, military praising story of most Transformers movies goes for a decidedly international approach by making the Americans the bad guy for once. One could chalk this up to the increasing presence of Chinese investors in film, but it poses as a welcome change nonetheless.
Overall, Transformers 4 stands out among the series it belongs in, being one of the best films among its peers. However, a majority of other people do watch movies other than one series. As far as Transformers 4 stands when compared to other movies, the description one would find when trying to explain the highlights of the movie equate to how a synopsis of a well done visual effects reel. The plot comes off as another processed piece of schlock that does very little mentally, working more as a thin string that keeps the effects together. While the elements of film are nearly non-existent in this one, such as the entire visual language, it makes up for it with what could be described as a tone-deafening yell of computer generated explosions and mass destruction on a biblical level. Those going to seek such an experience will certainly be delighted as what typically comes with the so called “popcorn movies”, however real moviegoers truly had a real popcorn movie with the next film.
Continued in Part 2