Despite Michael Bay’s greatest efforts, the TRANSFORMERS movies have never been about telling Oscar-caliber stories. What they have been about is explosions, cars and giant fighting robots looking sexy as humanly possible. Just in time to stuff the stockings of home theater enthusiasts everywhere, Paramount is releasing the first four entries in the franchise on 4K UHD Blu-ray.
Movie(s) Grade: C-
This review specifically covers TRANSFORMERS (2007), TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN (2009), TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON (2011) and TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION (2014), and how they each fare in their transition to 4K UHD. While each title is available for individual purchase, the movies themselves are essentially interchangeable in terms of story.
Autobots and Decepticons from the distant planet of Cybertron settle their differences by duking it out on planet Earth while being sure to destroy literally everything in the process. A human character played by either Shia LaBeouf or Mark Wahlberg gets caught up in the mix and fights alongside the Autobots to stop the Decepticons from taking over the planet. Explosions and general destruction ensue until Optimus Prime gives a rousing speech as the credits roll accompanied by a Linkin Park song, leaving the audience to figure out how to handle their sudden boner for America.
These films are best enjoyed with one’s brain turned off, as virtually none of the characters or actions on screen are aligned with the laws of logic. But when Bay ramps up the spectacle, he proves that he is a master of destruction.
Video/Audio Grade: A
It shouldn’t come as that much of a surprise that these films feel like they were made for 4K. With each entry featuring a story more absurd than the last, these movies would have almost no redemptive qualities were it not for their stellar visuals. Naturally, the first TRANSFORMERS suffers the most from some instances of CGI showing its age. Likewise, the quality of the computer generated effects only increases from REVENGE OF THE FALLEN all the way to AGE OF EXTINCTION. There are some scenes of noticeable grain across the board, but I’ll have to believe these moments are intentional, as the image is crystal clear the rest of the time.
The use of HDR in these movies is a welcome addition; although, it can become a little much at times. Bay’s filmography already tends to lean a little too heavily into the color saturation levels as it is. Every character is covered in a thin, but noticeable layer of Bay’s patented “Glisten Ooze™” with their mouths ever so slightly agape and the added dynamic range only makes this all the more distracting.
One aspect I could not stand in the 3D release of AGE OF EXTINCTION was the obnoxious and misused transition to and from IMAX footage. This could be seen where the aspect ratio would relentlessly change with every cut and take the viewer out of the experience. Thankfully, this has been removed from the 4K release, which actually makes it much more watchable.
The audio design is simply fantastic. In a series of films where clunking, clanking metal sounds could easily get jumbled together, I never felt like any sound effect was not there to serve a purpose. With all the visually chaotic mayhem on display, the audio never fails to keep up.
Extras: B-
The supplemental material leaves somewhat more to be desired when viewed as a collection. For one thing, only the first two films feature a commentary track. Each one does come with a decent amount of extras, but fails to provide anything new for return customers. Additionally, all extras remain on the standard Blu-ray included in each film, with exceptions for the aforementioned commentary tracks for the first two titles. However, those who are buying for the first time will have plenty to keep them busy here.
TRANSFORMERS
Special Features:
4K Blu-ray
Audio Commentary by Director Michael Bay
Blu-ray (Disc One)
Audio Commentary by Director Michael Bay
Transformers H.U.D. (Heads Up Display)
Blu-ray (Disc Two)
Our World
The Story Sparks
Human Allies
I Fight Giant Robots
Battleground
Their World
Rise of the Robots
Autobots Roll Out
Decepticons Strike
Inside the AllSpark
Transformers Tech Inspector
More Than Meets The Eye
From Script to Sand: The Skorponok Desert Attack
Concepts
Easter Eggs
Technical Specs:
4K Blu-ray
Audio: English Dolby Atmos, English 5.1 Discrete Dolby Digital, English 2.0 Discrete Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese
Blu-ray (Disc One)
Audio: English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD, French 5.1 Dolby Digital and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital
Subtitles: English, English SDH†, French, Spanish and Portuguese
Blu-ray (Disc Two)
Audio: English Dolby Digital
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish and Portuguese
TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN
Special Features:
4K Blu-ray
Audio Commentary by Michael Bay, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman
Blu-ray (Disc One)
Audio Commentary by Michael Bay, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman
Blu-ray (Disc Two)
The Human Factor: Exacting Revenge of the Fallen
A Day with Bay: Tokyo
25 Years of Transformers
NEST: Transformer Data Hub
Deconstructing Visual Bayhem with commentary by pre-vis supervisor Steve Yamamoto (multi-angle)
Deleted/Alternate Scenes
Easter Eggs
The AllSpark Experiment
Giant Effing Movie
Linkin Park – New Divide
The Matrix of Marketing
Technical Specs:
4K Blu-ray
Audio: English Dolby Atmos, English 5.1 Discrete Dolby Digital, English 2.0 Discrete Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description
Subtitles; English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese
Blu-ray (Disc One)
Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French 5.1 Dolby Digital and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital
Subtitles: English, English SDH†, French, Spanish and Portuguese
Blu-ray (Disc Two)
Audio: English Dolby Digital
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish and Portuguese
TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON
Special Features:
Above and Beyond: Exploring Dark of the Moon
Uncharted Territory: NASA’s Future Then and Now
Deconstructing Chicago: Multi-Angle Sequences
The Art of Cybertron
The Dark of the Moon Archive
The Matrix of Marketing
Technical Specs:
4K Blu-ray
Audio: English Dolby Atmos, English 5.1 Discrete Dolby Digital, English 2.0 Discrete Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese
Blu-ray (Disc One)
Audio: English 7.1 Dolby TrueHD, English 5.1 Discrete Dolby Digital, English 2.0 Discrete Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description
Subtitles: English, English SDH†, French, Spanish and Portuguese
Blu-ray (Disc Two)
Audio: English Dolby Digital
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish and Portuguese
TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION
Special Features:
Bay on Action
Evolution within Extinction The Making of TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION
Just Another Giant Effin’ Movie
A Spark of Design
T.J. Miller: Farm Hippie
Technical Specs:
4K Blu-ray
Audio: English Dolby Atmos, English 5.1 Discrete Dolby Digital, English 2.0 Discrete Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese
Blu-ray (Disc One)
Audio: English Dolby Atmos, English 5.1 Discrete Dolby Digital, English 2.0 Discrete Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description
Subtitles: English, English SDH†, French, Spanish and Portuguese
Blu-ray (Disc Two)
Audio: English Dolby Digital
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish and Portuguese Subtitles
Final Grade: B
Let’s be honest with ourselves. The majority of those contemplating whether or not to purchase any of these four movies aren’t looking for a compelling or coherent story. They want to know if the upgrade to 4K UHD justifies the investment. To put it simply: these films look phenomenal with the increased resolution and color depth, but they are still deeply flawed experiences that can often test one’s patience for the colossally absurd. If you’re looking to show off your 4K system with shiny things, explosions, and attractive people, these films are sure to get the job done.
Hello, there! My name is Preston Barta, and I am the features editor of Fresh Fiction and senior film critic at the Denton Record-Chronicle. My cinematic love story began where I was born: off planet on the isolated desert world of the Jakku system. It's there I passed the time scavenging for loose parts with my good friend Rey. One day I found an old film projector and a dusty reel of the 1975 film JAWS. It rocked my world so much that I left my kinfolk in the rearview (I so miss their morning cups of green milk) to pursue my dreams of writing about film. It wasn't long until I met two gents who said they would give me a lift. I can't recall their names, but one was an older man who liked to point a lot and the other was a tall, hairy fella. They got me as far as one of Jupiter's moons where we crossed paths with the U.S.S. Enterprise. Some pointy-eared bastard said I was clear to come aboard. He saw that I was clutching my beloved shark movie and invited me to the "moving pictures room" where he was screening the 1993 film JURASSIC PARK to his crew. He said my life would be much more prosperous if I were familiar with more work by the god named Steven Spielberg. From there, my love for cinema blossomed. Once we reached planet Earth, everything changed. I found the small town of Denton, TX, and was welcomed into the Barta family. They showed me the writings of local film critic Boo Allen. He became my hero and caused me to chase a degree in film and journalism. After my studies at graduate of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, I met some film critics who showed me the ropes and got me into my first press screening: 2011's THE GREEN LANTERN. Don't worry; I recovered just fine. MAD MAX: FURY ROAD was only four years away.
Connor Bynum // Film Critic
Video/Audio Grade: A
TRANSFORMERS
TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN
TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON
TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION
