Throwback Thursday Review: 'Despicable Me 2'

Sorry for the delay but I put this review on the back burner in order to publish my early thoughts on Spider-Man: Homecoming. However, this week I'm reviewing Despicable Me 2 to coincide with the release of Despicable Me 3. Next week I'll be finishing out my Spider-Man reviews with a Throwback Thursday Review of The Amazing Spider-Man and Recollection Reflection Review of The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Reviews that will appear throughout July include Throwback Thursday Reviews for Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Inception, and Shaun of the Dead, a Triple-R Review over Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and reviews of new releases War for the Planet of the Apes, Dunkirk, Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, The Emoji Movie, and Atomic Blonde.

'Despicable Me 2' Review

Nominated For: Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song "Happy" (written by Pharrell Williams).

In Despicable Me 2, Gru has grown accustomed to his transition from dishonorable baddie to adoptive dad when he's approached by the Anti-Villain League to help bring down a mysterious, malevolent force. Gru then teams up with adept agent Lucy Wilde to go undercover and ascertain the identity of the heinous wrongdoer behind it all.

Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud reprise their respective roles as co-directors of the sequel, which is also penned by returning writers Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. Paul and Daurio escalate their parody to the realm of secret spies and dating in addition to furthering their entertaining examination of parenting. The duo ensure the script feels familiar to the first with habitual heart and humor that made the precursor successful in the first place. 

The comedy's certainly catered towards children as the Minions are bestowed a raised profile before their Minions movie. If you're entertained by these yellow creatures, then you'll get your fill of their shenanigans and they do actually have a more poignant purpose this time around. Elsewhere, the animation's an improvement over the original due to a bigger budget and progression of technology but Illumination's renderings don't compare to Disney or Pixar's masterful work. The storytelling's substandard with accustomed aspects all around the animated field but there's enough sentiment for Despicable Me 2 to coast off.

Steve Carell lends an outrageous, over-the-top goofiness and a does of sentiment to Gru that sticks the landing while Kristen Wiig joins the fun as the loopy Lucy Wilde. Her dynamic opposite Carell remains one of Despicable Me 2's prime points as the two extrapolate an oddly entertaining pairing.

Miranda Cosgrove, Dana Gaier, and Elsie Fisher all reprise their roles as Margo, Edith, and Agnes embodying the endearing attitudes that made them memorable in the first place. The sisters consistently and convincingly portray the encapsulating attributes of children that in-turn enables the sentiment of the story. 

Meanwhile, Benjamin Bratt hams it up as the insanely masculine El Macho but doesn't bring much to the character aside from an eccentric personality. Russell Brand's elderly Dr. Nefario also isn't ingrained too deeply in the script but has a few memorable moments to shine.

 

In summary, Despicable Me 2 is almost equally endearing as Despicable Me but it never quite reaches the endearing elements of the original. The story's sweet, the characters are charming, and the jokes land but there's not really a purpose to the madness other than furthering the franchise.

Film Assessment: B-

'Spider-Man: Homecoming' Review

Spider-Man: Homecoming is set two months after Peter Parker's exciting encounter with the Avengers in Captain America: Civil War. Parker's returned to his humble home of Queens, New York so that he may balance his life as an average high school student and the friendly, neighborhood Spider-Man under the watchful eye of Tony Stark. Trouble emerges when Parker discovers salvaged alien tech exchanging hands on a black market to be utilized in a series of heists and Peter realizes it's the opportunity of a lifetime to garner Stark's praise and prove he's deserving of joining the Avengers.

Spider-Man: Homecoming is drastically different from any of the wall-crawler's previous outings for a number of reasons. One, it's the first time the web-head's had a chance to swing around the greater Marvel Universe and I felt the MCU references and tie-ins were handled rather tastefully. Two, none of the other Spider-Man movies have really dealt with Peter Parker's time in high school and Homecoming hits that ball out of the park, not to mention how refreshing it was to see a Spider-Man movie that wasn't bogged down with the long-established origin story.

Jon Watts directs Homecoming in the vein of a John Hughes teen comedy, going as far to give one of those memorable movies a shout-out. From beginning-to-end, Watts is able to place viewers on the ground level of the Marvel Cinematic Universe while in the headspace of a teenager facing difficult dilemmas. Watts maintains the upbeat attitude well into the two hour thirteen minute runtime considering Homecoming is one of Marvel's funniest ventures yet!

Most of the humor is situational, derived from practical occurrences Spidey's never really found himself in before, and the screenplay penned by Watts, Johnathan Goldstein, John Francis Daley, Christopher Ford, Chris McKenna, and Erik Sommers makes great use of these moments as strategic sources of comedic relief. The writers find inventive ways to playfully prod at the web-slinger as circumstantial comedy continually comes to the surface and the fresh take on Spidey is oddly the most faithful swing from source material audiences have ever seen. 

Spider-Man has always been one of my favorite superheroes so I can't express how delighted I was to finally see him realized to his fullest potential. I've never really been a fan of Tobey Maguire's take on the web-head and Andrew Garfield's portrayal of Peter Parker just didn't seem nerdy or awkward enough. I was hopeful Holland would deliver both sides of the troubled teen based on the glimpse we got in Civil War and boy was I right (more on that in a moment)! Almost everything about this iteration reminded me of the classic comics and hearing Michael Giacchino's orchestral arrangement of the trademark theme as a backdrop to the Marvel Studios intro gave me chills.

Homecoming's action doesn't slouch either with some satisfactory sequences interspersed amidst the high school drama. While there's not anything that will hold a candle to the airport battle in Civil War (something I'm unsure will be surpassed till Avengers: Infinity War at the very earliest), I was earnestly entertained from start-to-finish. Among other technical components, there's competent costuming, proficient production design, and the visual effects made Spidey's web-slinging, swinging, and wall-crawling appear to be incredibly authentic. 

Despite my overwhelming enthusiasm, I had a few concerns about Homecoming based on the marketing material and am relived to see none of my worries translated to the big screen. For starters, the trailers relied so heavily on Tony Stark that I was slightly concerned the movie might as well. I was never in the mindset this would be Iron Man 4 but I did feel the movie might lean a little too heavily on that crutch or RDJ would take over all the scenes he shared with Holland. Just so you don't walk into this movie thinking it's the Stark show, I'll inform you that a majority of his scenes have been prominently featured in the trailers but there's enough under the table that you won't feel cheated.

I also thought the trailers seemed to reveal some pressing plot points but rest assured, there are some terrific twists left in store. If you haven't seen any trailers though, I would avoid them if at all possible. Oh, and that image included above that's been prominently displayed in nearly every trailer IS NOT featured in the movie in any capacity so I'll let you know that now rather than be disappointed while watching the flick.

The final source of unease materialized when I saw the suit Stark fabricated for Peter had a seemingly infinite number of convenient features. However, they serve a story purpose and weren't nearly as excessive as I thought they would be instead coming off as a couple bells and whistles to top things off. 

One thing that definitely won't let you down though is Tom Holland's turn swinging around New York. Holland expertly embodies the crucial characteristics necessary to portray the dual identities Peter Parker and Spider-Man. Holland exhibits an authentic awkwardness and excitability to his Peter Parker that's never as over-exaggerated as Maguire or unbelievable as Garfield. Not to discredit the actors who came earlier but Holland brings a youthfulness the predecessors were never able to.

His Spidey has a energetic exuberance about him that any teenager with those powers would display, he's more enthusiastic than Maguire but he doesn't get too quippy like Garfield. To make matters even better, Holland is the youngest actor to portray the web-head to date. Despite being 20 years of age, Holland sells the youthful nature of Parker and you'll buy into the fact he's in high school. He also demonstrates some extraordinary acting chops opposite more experienced actors, never getting overshadowed by RDJ, Marisa Tomei, or Michael Keaton but challenging them all to play ball. 

Surrounding Holland are an excellent assortment of adolescent actors who each offer eccentric personas around Midtown High including the likes of Jason Batalon, Laura Harrier, Zendaya, Tony Revolori, Abraham Attah, and Angourie Rice as the nerdy Ned Leeds, lively Liz Allen, madcap Michelle, brash Flash Thompson, aloof Abe, and bratty Betty. Batalon in particular stood out as not only a fantastic friend but an endearing presence. Laura Harrier's Liz locates a tricky balance between being the popular senior and Peter's down-to-earth captivating crush while Zendaya doesn't have much to do but snap snide, sarcastic remarks. 

Donald Glover also has a minuscule supporting role outside the high schoolers, worth noting simply because of the actor's profile right now. Especially when you compare his screentime to all the speculation surrounding his casting. However when onscreen, he showcased trademark charm that I can't wait to see him wield as Lando Calrissian in the untitled Han Solo spin-off. 

In the adult camp, Marisa Tomei reprises her role as a youthful iteration of Aunt May and I've gotta say Tomei's May makes her mark. She's unique when compared to the precursors based on age alone, which factors not only into some humorous gags but also weaves its way into the narrative. This May is looking out for Peter not only as a maternal figure but also in trying to help Peter with his social life and I liked how she factored into Peter's story.

Along his journey, Peter receives muddled mentorship from Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark and Stark's assistant Happy Hogan, played by Jon Favreau. RDJ puts forth a cool disposition, exhibiting the confidence that gravitated audiences towards Iron Man in the first place while Favreau's Happy is as charming as ever. Oddly enough, I think Favreau may have had more screen time than RDJ but both are excellent in the capacities utilized. 

Meanwhile, Parker finds himself up against the villainous Vulture portrayed by none other than Batman himself, Michael Keaton. Keaton's a high caliber actor so the gravitas he carries onscreen enables Vulture to be menacing and his alter-ego Adrian Toomes to come across as a relatable everyman. Keaton flies Marvel forward in terms of their universe's villains by depicting a multifaceted malevolent force. He's not quite up to the heinous heights of Loki but don't discount the Vulture on his status as a B-level member of Spidey's rogues gallery. 

Spider-Man: Homecoming won't be in theaters till July 7th but you'll definitely want to conserve your web-fluid so you can swing into theaters for this one. In the meantime, I highly recommend checking out Baby Driver if you're searching for something to see this weekend (you can read my review by clicking on the blue hyperlink). To spin all my thoughts into one contrived cobweb, Spider-Man: Homecoming is easily the most entertaining incarnation of the web-head since Spider-Man 2. Glad you finally made it home Spidey!

Film Assessment: A-

'Baby Driver' Review

Nominated For: Best Film Editing, Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing.

Baby Driver follows the antics of Baby, a gifted getaway driver, as he meets a lovely diner waitress and seeks a way out of the criminal world upon falling in love. Once he's payed off his debt, Baby's brought in for one last job that puts his love, livelihood, and freedom on the line.

Edgar Wright is one of my favorite filmmakers working today because he consistently puts out unique quality content and I can confidently say Baby Driver doesn't disappoint. Baby Driver is the first film to be written and directed by Wright following his departure from Ant-Man, so it's understandable that quite a bit of pressure surrounded Wright on this project. Thankfully, Wright proves he's not out of gas though as he rampantly revs his creative engine and shifts gears to bring audiences a heist film unlike no other.

Baby Driver differentiates itself from the rest of its genre by becoming a jukebox musical straight from the get-go thanks to a kickin' soundtrack. From beginning to end, Baby Driver is driven by music with marvelous meticulously staged set pieces and mere movements choreographed to near perfection. When the action accelerates, the music crescendoes with an encroaching accelerando that will have your heart racing. Wright's song choices not only suit the stunts but often times fit the circumstances of the story as well. The soundtrack featuring the likes of Queen and The Beach Boys enhances the events in a way I'm unsure an orchestrated score possibly could, even though Steven Price composes high caliber pieces for the transitional sequences. 

Every single frame of Baby Driver was conscientiously constructed with the intention of not only matching music but popping with a visual flair you'll be hard pressed to find anywhere else this summer. The editing's exceptional, the cinematography captures the pristine and grungy look of Atlanta perfectly, the color palette's as rich as La La Land, and the practical car chases have more hustle and bustle than any Fast and Furious entry. Also don't discount the auditory arena as I'm assured the sound design showcased won't be topped this year.

To top all of this off, Wright's script is roaring with heart, humor, and unpredictability. You'll think you know exactly how things are gonna play out but Wright will boldly blindside you time and time again till the story seems like it's spiraling out of control. Wright keeps a steady hand on the wheel though, taking audiences on a wild ride they won't soon forget. One element I was rather impressed by was how Wright naturally incorporated the rockin' tunes into his high flying narrative. I always admire when music is not only integrated in a film to sound cool but to serve a story purpose and Baby's funky playlist helps drown out the hum of Baby's tinnitus. But Baby doesn't just listen to these tracks to help him function. He has a clear appreciation for every ditty on his infinite iPods and they fully form Baby as a compelling character. There's a lot more under the surface of Baby than meets the eye and Elgort communicates it all with a poignant balance. 

Ansel Elgort portrays Baby with a cool-headed charm and straight-faced silence. Those may sound contradictory but Elgort makes it work. I believe Elgort is stepping into the leading man phase of his career and I can't wait to see what he has in store. Opposite Elgort, Lily James's Debora exhibits the attitude of the southern sweetheart and will delight the audience the second she strides in the background humming "B-A-B-Y." As for their chemistry, Elgort and James set off a spark the moment they step into frame together with their congenial connection.

The tactical team amassed to pull off the heist changes from job to job but the faces you'll see a majority of the time are Jon Hamm and Eiza González's lovesick Buddy and Darling alongside Jamie Fox's deranged killer Bats. Hamm demonstrates the most range of the bunch as he snaps from a calm, collected criminal to an unhinged psychopath in a matter of seconds. In the back seat, González disdainfully files her nails with troublesome thoughts crossing her mind and Fox is dripping from head-to-toe with shameless swagger.

Kevin Spacey delivers deadpanned dialogue like no-one else as the ringleader Doc, imbuing a cold, calculating demeanor while incorporating a sardonic wit when possible. You're never sure where his loyalties lie so he's a fascinating character in this crazy car chase movie. Filling out the ensemble, Jon Bernthal ensures Griff comes across as a gruff gangster and Brogan Hall cleverly quips his way into a memorable role as Doc's snide nephew Samm.

It's not too often I finish a film eager to watch it again right then and there, but I just knew I had to back up and see Baby Driver again after my first viewing a month ago so I naturally sped into the theater again premiere night. After seeing Baby Driver twice, I'd compare the experience to cruising down an unfamiliar street. You go in search of something fresh and exciting and are pleasantly surprised to discover everything you hoped for, never missing a beat along the way. That's why Baby Driver's now my favorite film from Edgar Wright in addition to being my favorite film released this year.

Film Assessment: A+

'Transformers: The Last Knight' Review

Transformers: The Last Knight is set an undisclosed amount of time after Age of Extinction with the Autobot/Decepticon war at an all time high, despite the fact all Transformers are being hunted down by an international government force known as the TRF (Transformers Reaction Force). Optimus Prime has left Earth in search of his creators so eager inventor Cade Yeager, an apprehensive Oxford professor Vivian Wembley, crazed British Lord Sir Edmund Burton, and the enduring Autobots are tasked with exploring the hidden history of Transformers in search of an ancient object to save the world once more. 

The Last Knight is the fifth franchise entry directed by Michael Bay and will supposedly be his final foray but that's doubtful considering he's said that around the release of nearly every Transformers movie. I've now reviewed all live action Transformers flicks and spoke time and time again of Bay's strengths and weaknesses as a big budget director but I'll go ahead and mention it again in case you missed out on any of those. Bay is especially adept at delivering smashing spectacle but often falls short in telling a worthwhile story due to his insistence of prioritizing style over substance. 

Well, that's once again the case as the visual plane of these blockbusters continues to flourish thanks to commendable cinematography and astounding effects while the sound design exploded onto the scene. Bay and his crew rarely fall short in those departments and they didn't slouch in orchestrating elaborate action sequences this time around either. In fact, the action was much more bearable because I was able to better distinguish the Transformers from one another when the robo-rumbles ensued. 

Now if you thought those compliments were reassuring remarks that solidify The Last Knight as a sudden change of direction for the franchise, then you would be sadly mistaken because The Last Knight is exactly what you should expect if you're familiar with Michael Bay as a filmmaker. There's lots of explosions, slo-motion, racial stereotyped robots, cringey comedy, and overt product placement But hey, at least this time he toned down the over sexualized depiction of women a tad as there's no gratuitous shots nearly on the level of those found in Transformers, Revenge of the Fallen, or Dark of the Moon.

The Last Knight's screenplay was penned by Art Marcum, Matt Holloway, and Ken Nolan who all had a hand in story development alongside Akiva Goldsman. I can confidently say that I feel this script may be the worst of the franchise as sparse moments are shoestrung into a "plot" in hopes of setting up a sequel and Bumblebee spinoff. In hindsight, almost nothing is actually accomplished in regards to character growth or story progression throughout the entire film. There's even a scene where Megatron negotiates with lawyers for the release of some of his Deception cronies that plays out similarly to the character introductions in Suicide Squad. You'd think the leader of the Decepticons would be a bit more brash and take matters into his own hands but Bay shows us otherwise.

The trailers will lead you to believe the plot centers on Optimus Prime's turn to the nefarious Nemesis Prime ala The Fate of the Furious but that couldn't be further from the truth. If you've seen the trailers then you've seen nearly every second of Optimus Prime's screen-time and the remaining moments are composed of his conventional monologues. Everything else that happens is centered around human characters you'll either be unfamiliar with or won't care about and there's simply too much going on and it would be futile for me to pick it apart as it would make this review as bloated and unnecessary as The Last Knight itself. 

Even though it may sound like I walked into this film with the intention to berate it afterwards, I was actually holding out hope I would have a good time. Since I actually enjoy the odd numbered installments in this franchise, I was hopeful The Last Knight would carry on that trend despite the fact the marketing material did virtually nothing to excite me. However, that doesn't mean I left the theater without finding some silver linings. So I've challenged myself to break my traditional review format and share five unmentioned ones. 

Silver lining No. 1) Sqweeks is an adorable BB-8 ripoff. In all seriousness, this little robot was quite endearing in spite of his scarce screen time so that in-of-itself is admirable.

Silver lining No. 2) The Transformer Knights were able to combine into a three headed dragon Transformer. If you can't agree that that's pretty awesome then there's something wrong with you. 

Silver lining No. 3) I liked the inclusion of Josh Duhamel and a few other familiar faces to tie things back into the core Transformers trilogy and I felt Duhamel and the other returning cast members met the requirements of the script adequately. 

Silver lining No. 4) Laura Haddock, who you may recognize as Peter Quill's mother in both Guardians of the Galaxy and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, proved to not just be another pretty face for Bay to exploit, but wound up being the best female lead showcased in a Transformers movie yet. Haddock is of course relegated to the confines of a scrappy script, but she imbues enough personality into Vivian Wembley to standout among the ensemble.

Silver lining No. 5) It is nearly impossible to describe the insane shenanigans Sir Anthony Hopkins partakes in as Sir Edmund Burton, but it's apparent he's having the time of his life descending into madness. It was especially amusing to watch a classically trained actor take on such a strange role with as much commitment as Hopkins.

Otherwise, any actors I failed to mention are pretty much acceptable within the parameters of the material. Mark Wahlberg's Cade Yeager is just as grading as he was the last time you heard him tell you he's an inventor, Jerrod Carmichael probably delivers the few funny lines of dialogue as Jimmy, and the various voice actors Peter Cullen, Frank Welker, Erik Aadahl, John Goodman, Ken Watanabe, Jim Carter, Steve Buscemi, Omar Sy, and Reno Wilson all perform admirably in bringing the appropriate personalities to their respective revving robots.

Deserving of her own segment however is Isabela Moner, who offers an okay performance considering she was just playing a feisty girl determined to join the fight. What's interesting however is that if you remove her character from the movie it doesn't change a single thing and you will begin to realize you would have much rather seen her incorporated into the plot somehow or left out altogether. This is actually the case with many characters who come and go from the screen like flies.

Transformers: The Last Knight is obviously flawed but is certainly not the worst Transformers movie, actually falling in the middle of the pack when you consider how terrible Revenge of the Fallen and Age of Extinction were. In all honesty, I'm especially thankful that The Last Knight has the shortest running time in the franchise since the first and that the filmmakers were gracious enough to position their "post credits scene" at the opening of the credits. I'm crossing my fingers Paramount hires someone else to helm the inevitable Transformers 6 and that Travis Knight can shepherd the Bumblebee spinoff into less turbulent waters. 

Film Assessment: D

Throwback Thursday Review: 'Transformers: Age of Extinction'

Sorry for a late review but this week I'm rolling out the last of my Transformers reviews with a Throwback Thursday Review over Transformers: Age of Extinction and new Transformers: The Last Knight review in the coming days. Other reviews you can expect this week week include a Throwback Thursday Review over Despicable Me 2 and both Baby Driver and Despicable Me 3. The first few weeks of July will incorporate Throwback Thursday Reviews of The Amazing Spider-Man, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and Inception, Recollection Reflection Reviews of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and reviews of new releases Spider-Man: Homecoming, War for the Planet of the Apes, Dunkirk, and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.

'Transformers: Age of Extinction' Review

Transformers: Age of Extinction takes place five years after Dark of the Moon's Battle of Chicago. The US government has turned against the Autobots, hunting them alongside intergalactic bounty hunter bot Lockdown. Ambitious inventor and overprotective father Cade Yeagar discovers a trashed truck inside an abandoned cinema and brings it home in hopes of repairing the vehicle or scrapping it for parts, only to learn the truck is actually Autobot leader Optimus Prime. Yeagar is then tasked to help Prime reunite the remaining Autobots to protect mankind once more.

Age of Extinction is the fourth film in the franchise to be helmed by Michael Bay yet it feels more or less the same as his previous entries, only this time the Bay-isms have worn thin. The visual noise is dialed up to the max volume with no worthwhile story to tell underneath it. While I don't watch the Transformers movies with the expectation of seeing the greatest blockbuster of all time, I think it's sufficient to expect to an adequate story with reasonably entertaining action pulling things together. This is where Age of Extinction whimpers out because everything about Age of Extinction is overcrowded and unnecessary.

Bay allows similar problems to plague this project as incomprehensible action sequences come by the viewer one after the other, sprinkled in the midst of a human storyline you won't be invested in. Watching the Transformers fight one another is cool enough on its own so you don't need to obscure the action with egregious editing and frenetic shaky cam or even draw it out with superfluous slow-motion. For that matter, the Transformers need to be the shining stars of their own franchise. I understand that the effects are expensive but these things are practically guaranteed to be a hit oversees so you may as well pump a little more financial fuel into this gas tank. 

Are the effects incredible? Of course, the superb deafening sound design and vibrant visual effects are practically the only redeeming elements of the franchise at this point but none of that really matters if you can't draw audience interest into the onscreen insanity. While I understand the financial motive to extend the Transformers franchise with Age of Extinction, there really isn't a new story to be told with these characters. The end result is that Ehren Kruger's script is a repackaged version of the last three movies (Transformers, Revenge of the Fallen, and Dark of the Moon).

I could go on and on about the story semantics but the film really fails engaging me as a viewer. I consider myself a fairly avid Transformers fan so it shouldn't be that difficult to maintain interest when you have remarkably realized robots fighting one another but this installment nearly bored me to sleep both times I've seen it (when I first caught it on Netflix a year and a half ago and my second viewing for the purposes of this review). Instead, Bay decided that it'd be more worth the audiences' time and money to see Yeagar chastise his underage daughter over her awkward, inappropriate relationship with a twenty year old racer. 

Meanwhile, the performances don't offer much to elevate the entertainment. Mark Wahlberg phones it in as Cade Yeagar, providing little personality beyond his thinly sketched characterization of being an overprotective father and the writer's insistence to constantly remind you he's an inventor. Nicola Peltz and Jack Reynor play Tessa Yeagar and Shane Dyson with their bland romance serving as an obnoxious plot thread. Neither actor really shines as a charismatic force to brighten things or draw attention to the monotonous action. 

Elsewhere, T.J. Miller, Stanley Tucci, and Bingbing Li playfully factor into the proceedings in varying capacities. Miller's a funny surfer bro, Tucci screams quite a bit as a tech company executive, and Li fights off some henchman with proficiency. They don't do nearly enough to save the movie but provide momentary blips of something off-kilter. 

Peter Cullen, John Goodman, Ken Watanabe, Robert Foxworth, John DiMaggio, and Reno Wilson all provide sufficient voice work as Optimus Prime, Hound, Drift, Ratchet, Crosshairs, and Brains but none of these actors are really challenging themselves in any way, shape, or form considering they mostly deliver expositional dialogue. For the most part they're voicing caricatures with little personality beyond basic stereotypes. 

Frank Welker, Mark Ryan, and Kelsey Grammer fill the antagonistic camp as gruesome Galvatron, the unyielding Lockdown, and wicked government agent Harold Attinger. They make the most of the material provided but are restrained by a paper thin script. 

Transformers: Age of Extinction is indicative of everything currently destroying Hollywood, it's essentially a visual effects reel devoid of any sense of purpose other than to make money. Bay or Kruger must know this is true to some extent because there's even a line in the movie about sequels and remakes being prevalent among Hollywood these days. In summary, Age of Extinction is easily the worst Transformers movie I've seen to date simply because it's maddening to even attempt making it through the two hour forty five minute runtime without losing focus. After watching this movie, I knew one simple fact. My mind had been transformed (and not for the better). 

Film Assessment: D-