THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
Hasbro’s The Transformers was one of the most beloved cartoons in the 80s that it felt the hype could not be topped, until a movie made that possible.
PLOT
1986’s The Transformers: The Movie takes place in a fictional 2005 where Megatron’s evil Decepticon army has completely taken over Cybertron, whereas Optimus Prime and the heroic Autobots have established two different moon bases as well as their own city on Earth. The war between both opposing sides of alien robots have peaked when the former hijack a supply shipment. It leads to a lengthy battle on Earth, and leads to many casualties. Surprisingly, both Optimus & Megatron are severely wounded in their last duel. When the Decepticons retreat with their leader, Optimus would pass on the Matrix of Leadership to Ultra Magnus, believing the relic’s power will light the Autobots’ darkest hour, all before passing away. Megatron would however be abandoned in space by Starscream, only to be recruited by the planet sized transformer Unicron. He reincarnates him under the new name Galvatron and in exchange, wants the matrix destroyed knowing it can destroy him. Shortly after Galvatron kills Starscream for his betrayal, Unicron consumes Cybertron’s multiple moons that had Autobot bases where human ally Spike Witwicky was last seen with Bumblebee. On Earth, Spike’s son Daniel is protected by Magnus and the remaining Autobots in Autobot City (Hot Rod, Blurr, Arcee, Kup, Perceptor, & Springer and the Dinobots). When Galvatron launches another attack, the protagonists escape in separate shuttles only to crash land on different planets. Hot Rod, Kup & the Dinobots land on Quintessa and get held in kangaroo court by Quintessons until a mischievous autobot named Wheelie helps them all escape with a cruiser. The other half of the group land on the Planet of Junk which get followed by Decepticons and in the process, Galvatron takes the matrix from Magnus hoping to use it against Unicron. They also get chased from Junkions until Hot Rod's group arrives and saves them. Through the universal grreeting, they find common ground in stopping Unicron and the Decepticons. Elsewhere, Unicron transforms and swallows Galvatron for his attempt of treachery since he was incapable of using the matrix like he wanted. He then pursues Cybertron, but the autobots lead a rally when crashing into him. Upon the wreckage, Daniel saves his dad and other captured autobots from being further digested. And on the other hand, Hot Rod takes the matrix from Galvatron and destroy Unicron from within, evolving into Rodimus Prime in the process. The film ends with the autobots retaking Cybertron with the remaining decepticons in disarray, while Unicron's severed head orbits the planet.
THOUGHTS
It was a pleasure to watch the very first cartoon series in my childhood before the live action movies redefined the franchises in the 21st century. So this was only pregame of entertaining sci fi insanity that would ensue for years to come and it doesn't disappoint. You just know you're in for something fun with alien robots fighting each other. Director Nelson Shin knew this and capitalized in making it as epic as possible too. I mean the second familiar faces go down for the count 1/3 into it with constant fight scenes, you know the stakes are higher than previous episodes. Of course, no one was prepared for the death of Optimus Prime. Even though this moment would be undone in the following season, it doesn't change the shock value that you feel for the first time. It stung like a bee sting because Optimus had always enough wisdom and compassion to pass on, creating all the inspiration needed to get through another day. You definitely don't feel this without Peter Cullen's commanding voice performance. Without him, it felt like we can never get another batch of that. That all changed upon the realization that the next generation of leaders can be different from the predecessor. I did fall for the idea of Ultra Magnus due to how Robert Stack presenting him to be stern enough to know what to do when the going gets rough, but it was Hot Rod all along that had the it factor more than the former. It took a while for me to understand why it was Hot Rod all along. As an adult, I've come to understand that he deserved to be a Prime he was headstrong & confident 24/7 which is essential in getting through obstacles. This works thanks all the youth & maturity actor Judd Nelson brought to it all fluently. It was even cool for the Witwicky family to be part of the fight as in have exo-suits which were way cooler here compared to Rise of the Beasts because it felt more natural in being part of the narrative. Since the heroes are set to do right, you know we're gonna see some villains do some bad. The biggest of them all was Unicron and with a captivating voice performance by Orson fucking Welles, it was unbelievable. This being was the embodiment of chaos at every second possible because it ain't everyday you see a planet sized robot eat other planets. And the fact he was able to transform was the most unhinged moment I've ever seen at that point of the franchise. On top of that, he was able to give an upgrade to he series' most iconic villain. We already know Frank Welker makes one hell of a menace as Megatron, especially since he actually kills Optimus, but I have to admit Leonard Nimoy was a fine choice as Galvatron because he felt like a brand new force of nature. He put his his strength to good use, but his greatest mistake was believing he can be the only one to obtain power for himself. Rodimus put him in place for that and the rest was history. Of course, this movie did not end the franchise since the wars never ended, but it did teach us to keep going & keep fighting when you know you can. I mean I totally picked up on that when hearing 'The Touch' by Stan Bush. This movie is still hella fun in my eyes, but I can admit there are things that haven’t aged well. For example, how did nobody detect Laserbeak snooping around the moon base? If 2005 is supposed to be a year of advanced technology, there should’ve been a camera to spot the enemy. And how come no one got sucked into the vacuum of space in the beginning of the ambush? Even though both parties wouldn’t feel pain of that due to being alien robots, they should still be sucked away for continuity’s sake unless the ship has a mode that prevents that which they don’t bother admitting. The same goes when Unicron consumes Galvatron. And was Unicron even looking for the abandoned Decepticons or just conveniently recognized who they were upon first encounter? I know Unicron needs disciples, but it’s hard to believe he can summon something that was dying. Also, how come tried fighting to be new leader of Decepticons? I mean it’s not like Starscream delivers in leading them to success before and they know it. I then gotta ask how come Hot Rod didn’t know of the universal greeting like Kup does? I mean it’s a dumb way to point out the latter is a veteran in comparison. Ignore this, then you’ll still love this movie the way I have as a kid. In short, The Transformers: The Movie is an animation classic for going as grand as it could at the time, arguably making it the franchise’s best that the live action follow ups would kill to be. Whichever kind of fan you are, see this now.
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