Now, back to those characters for a moment. I would like to just say they were completely and utterly mishandled, but that would be overly simplistic. The humans are cardboard with zero depth. Megan Fox is almost human — she could possibly be a CGI effect, I am not sure. Of course I am kidding, but she is not convincing at all, especially with her glassy stare and singular expression. LaBoeuf does not fare much better in this film as the bulk of his role seems to be running around screaming "OPTIMUS!" It is a shame, as I think he has a good future, but he is not given anything to work with.
The supporting cast is not all that great either. Sam's parents are saddled with some goofy sexual innuendo, lame jokes, and pot brownies. Yes, very funny, but not really. I guess John Turturro playing the now former head of Sector 7 in the first film fares a bit better here; he is still goofy, but not quite as over the top. The rest of the human cast are just there to spit out a clever one-liner or deliver a brief line of exposition.
As for the robots, themselves? They sort of look familiar, but they are not always acting quite right. Optimus Prime seems all too content to take a Decepticon life with extreme prejudice. The scene between a scheming Starscream and Megatron strikes more as a bit of fan service than character development. Then there is the case of Skidz and Mudflap. Why? Was George Lucas consulted on how to add comical sidekicks that are devoid of comedic value? These guys are utterly worthless. Slang talking, gold tooth having, illiterate robots? Really? What were they thinking?
All right, we know the story is bad, we know the characters are thin, and we know the robots are not quite right. Is anything in this movie good? Yes, there is some good, but it is borderline enough to make it worthwhile.
So, what's good?
If there is one thing Michael Bay is good at, it is blowing stuff up. Nobody can stage an action sequence quite like he can. Unfortunately, action scenes are about all he can do, forget about any character work. On this level, the action in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is spectacular. Although the outcome is easily predictable, the action shows us things never seen before. He definitely put all the money on the screen (although I would not have been against putting some more into the writing). As good as the action is, it is the surrounding content that will ultimately define whether it is good or not. In this case it is not good.
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