TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION REVIEW!!! SERIES RE-VISIT

Initial release date: June 27, 2014

Studios: Paramount Pictures/Hasbro Studios/Di Bonaventura Pictures

Tagline: Prepare for extinction.

Plot: After an epic battle, a great city lies in ruins, but the Earth itself is saved. As humanity begins to pick up the pieces, a shadowy group emerges to try to take control of history. Meanwhile, an ancient and powerful new menace set its sights on Earth. A new group of humans, led by Cade Yeager, helps Optimus Prime and the Autobots rise up to meet their most fearsome challenge yet: a worldwide goal of good vs. evil.

Cast

Mark Wahlberg - Cade Yeager

Stanley Tucci - Joshua Joyce

Kelsey Grammer - Harold Attinger

Nicola Peltz Beckham - Tessa yeager

Jack Renor - Shane Dyson

Titus Welliver - James Savoy

Sophia Myles - Darcy Tinnel

Bingbing Li - So Yueming

TJ Miller - Lucas Flannery

James Bachman - Gill Wemblay

Thomas Lennon - Chief of Staff

Peter Cullen - Optimus Prime

Frank Welker - Galvatron

John Goodman - Hound

Ken Watanabe - Drift

Robert Foxworth - Ratchet

John DiMaggio - Crosshairs

Mark Ryan - Lockdown

Reno Wilson - Brains

Writer: Ehren Kruger

Director: Michael Bay

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, language and brief innuendo (165 minutes)

After giving the third movie, Dark of the Moon, another watch, I realized that the end of that movie honestly would've wrapped up the series or a trilogy nicely. I've only seen both Age of Extinction and the 5th movie (The Last Knight) only once when I initially reviewed them. From what I remembered before giving them a second look, these movies were where the series started to take a slight nose dive. And, after watching Age of Extinction, even though this movie is slightly okay, it definitely wasn't nearly as good as the first three movies.

Transformers: Age of Extinction is pretty much an over-long okay movie. Just like the first three movies, the action sequences are decent and the visual effects still look good for the most part. This sequel is also very long which sometimes makes Age of Extinction drag a bit. I don't mind long movies to an extent and there are long movies that are really fast-paced. Well, Age of Extinction isn't one of them!

The latter half of the movie is non-stop action, which is good for the most part. But, this movie does lack some of the excitement that the others delivered. So, Age of Extinction can be entertaining, yet they could've shortened it a little bit. Also, one of the saving graces of this sequel is Stanley Tucci, who is great in every movie he's in! He also has a few moments where he can be quite humorous.

I will be writing up my updated take on The Last Knight ..... this take will be very short! Also I'll be giving Bumblebee another look and hopefully will have the next couple takes ready to go soon!!

Here are some fun tidbits for Age of Extinction!

• Bay had resisted including the Dinobots in previous movies, as the writers hadn't come up with a convincing in-story reason for why giant robots, who (according to the first few movies) seek to maintain a low profile by disguising as everyday vehicles and appliances, would take a metallic form of giant reptiles who went extinct eons ago.

• According to the filmmakers, Wahlberg performed 90% of his own stunts.

• Originally, Bay wasn't going to direct a fourth movie, but had an experience that changed his mind. After Dark of the Moon, Bay finally got to visit the Transformers ride at Universal Studios. Upon seeing fans waiting three blocks for the attraction, he wasn't ready to leave the franchise just yet.

• Dwayne Johnson was offered the role of Cade Yeager, but declined due to scheduling conflicts with the 2014 movie Hercules.

• This movie was part of a deal that Bay agreed with Paramount in exchange for financing Pain & Gain.

• Almost all the marketing showed only the Dinobots. However, they show up for only 15 minutes of screen-time.

• Transformers: Age of Extinction grossed $245.4 million in North America and $858.6 million in other countries for a worldwide total of $1.104 billion. Despite being a hit, it was considered by several box office analysts to have fallen well below expectations.

https://youtu.be/dYDGqmxMZFI