Synopsis:
When Sam’s (Shia LaBeouf) father gets him a new car, he thinks that he can impress the local jock’s girl, Mickaela (Megan Fox). But something is different with his busted-up old camaro. For one thing, it’s giving him love advice, and another, it drives itself. Little does he know that his brand new set of wheels is a warrior in a galactic battle between two groups of sentient robots. Now Sam is caught in the middle of an age-old feud that is tied to his own past. Who will win the battle over the mysterious Allspark: the righteous Autobots, or the evil Decepticons? The fate of the world hangs in the balance and all we can be sure of is that there is more than meets the eye…

Review:

What can I say, this movie is a new look at a classic part of my childhood. How am I not going to enjoy this film? This was an awesome version of the 80s cartoon. I must say that all of the kids in the movie theater probably had no clue that this movie really is based on an old cartoon show. Here is what I thought about the robot movie of 2007:

Plot: The plot is interesting, but not overly complex. Mystical box of power lands on Earth, bad guys want it, good guys want to stop them. There is a bit of intrigue when it comes to Sam’s history and how his family is linked to the Transformer war. In the end this is a big action flick and the plot is meant to facilitate that. There is some humor in the movie, largely around Sam and Bumblebee.

Action/Effects: This movie was visually impressive. The Transformers are clearly CGI, but who cares. They just look really, really cool. I think that the movie is intended to wow you and it definitely seems to accomplish that goal. I don’t think the visuals are the only merit the movie has, but it is clearly one of its strong points.

Acting: I think Shia LaBeouf is a pretty good actor. He is a kid and he hasn’t been in that much, but everything I see him in, I’m impressed. I saw him in Disturbia and I really liked his performance there. Of course his character here is a little weaker than in that movie, but this is just an action flick. I thought that John Turturro was a little over the top in this movie. I think he’s a great actor (I love his character in Monk on USA), but he seemed too goofy, almost childish and out of place. The rest of the actors are not worth mentioning (including Jon Voight). I should note that some of the original voice talent from the cartoon reprised their roles, so that was cool.

Overall: This movie is a must-see for the big screen. I don’t think it was the greatest movie you’ll ever see, but it was definitely fun to watch. I’m on the fence about this being worth a primetime ticket, but I’m definitely for seeing it at the theater.

The Transformers - The Movie (20th Anniversary Special Edition)

Overall Rating: ****
King Kong @ IMDB

Synopsis:
Retelling of the classic action film from the 30’s. This time the big ape gets a face lift with 20th century effects and script that’s a lot longer than the last one. When an ambitious movie director, Carl Denham (Jack Black), gets in trouble with the studios, he’s forced to rush his trip to a lost island filled with mystery. He convinces an aspiring actress Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts) and the famous writer, Jack Driscoll (Adrien Brody) to join him as he heads towards the unknown. What they find on the uncharted island is a lost world and one hairy ape.

Review:
This one is a tough one. I really struggled with how many stars to give this movie. King Kong is a classic. You have to do it right and I’ll be honest. I don’t know if Peter Jackson got it right this time. This movie was long! Three hours and seven minutes long! It was all good stuff. But was it all really necessary?
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Overall Rating: ****
Frequency @ IMDB
Frequency @ Amazon

Synopsis:
Unexplained solar phenomena allow a son to speak to his father, who died thirty years before, by means of an old CB radio. But when Detective John Sullivan (Jim Caviesel) helps Frank (Dennis Quaid) survive the fire that should have killed him, the repercussions ripple through time changing the present. Now can John and Frank fix the past and save all the innocent victims of a serial killer, including his mother? The race is on as the clock ticks on the longest radio signal of all time.

Review:
I have to say that I enjoyed this one. I think mainly because I like the concept. The idea is time travel but not really. This father and son can communicate, but they don’t physically travel back in time or anything. Influence without interaction. Its a little different from your typical time warp sci-fi movie. They do get a little creative when Frank sends John evidence.
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Overall Rating:****
Serenity @ IMDB

Synopsis:
An interplanetary government will do anything to kill a young psychic who knows their darkest secret. The only thing standing in their way is the self-preserving captain of the Serenity. A small agile little ship with a crew determined to survive and reveal the truth. This is the continuation of the short-lived sci-fi series Firefly(2000/01).

Review:
I’m going to start off this one by saying that I went in with low expectations, but came out pleasantly surprised. It had everything it needed to make it a good movie, but it fell short of a great movie. I was going to give it three out of five stars, until somebody pointed out that relative to other recent space operas (i.e. the Star Wars prequels), it stood out. I have to wonder if I would have thought more of it had I watched the show, but I’ll leave that for later.
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