Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is the second live-action Transformers movie from Michael Bay, starring rising talents Shia LeBeouf and Megan Fox. Now LaBeouf’s name may evoke images of croissants, French maids and Paris (not Hilton), but the kid’s the real deal.

His second-in-command, a Ms Megan Fox, had a breakthrough performance in Transformers and returns for some much-needed sex appeal and several slow-motion “Baywatch” runs. The first Transformers film created a new standard for special effects CGI as Michael Bay conjured up an epic action sci-fi blockbuster from the popular ’80s animated series. The second edition, Revenge of the Fallen, runs with the same loud, metallic clash of machines and humans, except this time it’s bigger, louder and longer than the original – not necessarily a good thing.

Now many sequels have fallen into the trap of going with more of the same in a bad way… having witnessed theme park rides such as Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Indiana Jones & The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and Spider-Man 3. The pressure to appease the video game generation with stunning CGI and candy-coated visual effects has led many sequels into no-man’s land, where characters are merely filler for high gloss special effects. Let’s face it… Hollywood sequels are played by the numbers. When a franchise gets a bite… another 2 or 3 hooks get added to the line. Unfortunately for the most part, Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen is another victim of something known as BCCS (Bloated Cash Cow Syndrome).

Shia LaBeouf reprises his role as Sam Witwicky, the likable American kid, whose life is pretty much the same as when we were introduced to him – except he now has a life size Transformer Camaro named Bumble Bee parked in his garage, Megan Fox as his smoking hot girlfriend, Mikaela Banes and a shard of the Allspark. What made Transformers a smash hit was Sam Witwicky’s pubescent, yet humanistic story as he got his first car, fell in love and saved the world with the help of Optimus Prime – not a pill. In Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Michael Bay makes the Transformers the stars: Sam’s got the t-shirt. Now it seems strange for the title characters to become a supporting cast, but it just works better that way for a live-action movie starring convertible “robots”. All masterpieces tap into timeless human traits and trying to identify with massive metallic machines is a trip down alienation lane for most people. Transformers 2 doesn’t have the same build-up as the original, and this puts new audiences in the deep end along with our favourite Decepticon, Megatron. Transformers slowly immersed us into a suspense of disbelief and the sequel starts where Transformers left off without the original even having the decency to give us a wink with a “To Be Continued…”. Although many would say dropping the remains of Megatron into the ocean in Part 1, wasn’t the U.S. Navy’s best work.

The CGI is glossy, realistic and some of the fight sequences are nothing short of mesmerising as shimmering metallic objects clash and explosions fill the air. The problem is that it’s difficult to actually see what the hell is going on – even worse than The Bourne Ultimatum! Yes, an Autobot is fighting a Decepticon, but Bay is so entrenched in close-ups that some sequences are as good as peering down a metallic kaleidoscope after knocking back a six-pack. The film also encounters problems with its script, which accommodates too many new Transformer characters. The new machines out-muscle characters established in the first Transformers and don’t have as much personality or depth, opting for “Sandleresque” humour in favour of intelligence. The plot swirls around Megatron’s resurrection, an ancient Egyptian artifact and Sam’s Allspark convulsions. It’s slightly jumbled, but defaulting to the good versus evil denominator also seemed to do the trick for the animated series. This works most of the time, as you try to make sense of the plot until the climactic skirmish. Human characters from the previous movie are dotted here and there with another comedic turn from John Turturro, salutes from Josh Duhamel and Tyrese Gibson and a cameo appearance from Rainn Wilson.

Transformers 2 has a familiarity that extends beyond the first Transformers movie. Executive Producer, Steven Spielberg and Shia LaBeouf, have direct links to Indiana Jones & The Crystal Skull so it’s not surprising that Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark gets a tip of the hat in Revenge of the Fallen’s story. After all, if you’re dealing with aliens, ancient civilizations and Egypt… you’re probably watching a Spielberg blockbuster. Revenge of the Fallen also feels a little bit like King Kong and Matrix Revolutions as it also tries to imitate its more-worthy predecessor with a strong reliance on CGI. If that’s not enough, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, also gets a shoe-in with Isabel Lucas filling in for Kristanna Loken. Revenge of the Fallen doesn’t have the novelty factor anymore and it’s difficult to appreciate 150 minutes of the same formula. Transformers 2 is only a disappointment when contrasted with the first live-action Transformers. If you can look past its flaws and survive the CGI onslaught you’ll find that Michael Bay, Steven Spielberg, Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox actually manage to keep this sequel light, upbeat and entertaining.

If Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen was the first installment in the series, it probably would have lauded more praise. Following in the wake of a movie like Transformers is never going to be an easy task… remember the trajectory of The Matrix? At the end of the day, Revenge of the Fallen is like Matrix Reloaded was… similar, yet not nearly as groundbreaking as Part 1. If you were blown away by the original, then you’ll get your money’s worth from Revenge of the Fallen with its epic battles, shiny textures and light humour, but it won’t leave you expecting much from Transformers 3. As far as bigger, louder and longer sequels go… this is one of the better ones – so don’t go in expecting the world and you’ll have a blast.

The bottom line: Rehash.

Release date: 24 June, 2009

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