Movie Review: “Bumblebee” (PG-13)
After watching the affectionate adventure film that is “Bumblebee,” it’s clear that the only thing director Travis Knight likes more than Transformers is the ’80s! In addition to more obvious winks at movies such as “The Breakfast Club,” “Bumblebee” plays like an Amblin greatest hits package, and as I’m a huge fan of that studio during that particular decade (see “Batteries Not Included,” “Harry and the Hendersons,” “The Goonies,” “Back to the Future,” etc.), I was an easy sell.
Knight, a meticulous artist who cut his teeth on animated features for LAIKA, also has a bit of fun with an ’80s-centric soundtrack paying homage to the The Smiths, Simple Minds, Steve Winwood, and Rick Astley, just to name a precious few.
What’s also easy to warm up to here is that after over a decade of Bayhem-infused “Transformers” carnage, someone finally made a “Transformers” movie that feels like it’s more in touch with its target audience. Translation: No pimp-bots, no half-naked girls straddling motorcycles, and no Decepticons teabagging John Turturro. Not that those things don’t have a place. They simply don’t feel at home in a “Transformers” movie.
With the 1987-set “Transformers” prequel “Bumblebee,” Knight and crew opt to pull at the heartstrings a bit with this “E.T.”-like tale of 18-year-old Charlie (Hailee Steinfeld) and her bond with a beguiling Transformer masquerading as a VW bug. With Decepticons and a bitter military man (John Cena) hot on his trail, though, Bumblebee will have his work cut out for him. Thankfully, he has a selfless human friend in lovable Charlie to look out for him. And Charlie, in turn, has secret crush Memo (played by Jorge Lendeborg Jr.) looking out for her. Together, this trio will do their best to keep each other safe all while setting out to protect the planet from a most villainous foe.
Make no mistakes. Knight doesn’t completely ditch the explosion-heavy bravado of Bay’s less eloquent installments in this franchise. He simply opts to complement those explosions with a lot more heart. Furthermore, the geography at the center of his set pieces prove to be considerably more accomplished. Be it an epic battle on Cybertron, which has a bit of a “T2” future war ring to it, or a handful of robo-brawls on Earth, the action here is a welcome change of pace in that we can actually see and feel what the hell is going on.
Adding to the heart and innocence of it all is an immensely appealing Steinfeld as an awkward, fatherless teen trying to find her place in the world. In the hands of a lesser actress, her Iron Giant-like rapport with Bumblebee might have fallen flat, but Steinfeld makes us believe by way of a performance brimming with emotion and undeniable likability.
Is “Bumblebee” perfect? No. A dependable John Cena isn’t given a heck of a lot to do, and his arc is a bit obvious. The mean girls in Charlie’s life are stock and one-note, and the film offers up a fair share of cheesy moments. But no matter, because again, the core Charlie/Bumblebee bond, the skillfully executed action sequences, the fitting ’80s vibe, and the overall adorable (and playful) nature of the proceedings make this smaller scale “Transformers” movie the highlight of the franchise. More importantly, though, you can take your kids to this one and not feel embarrassed about it.
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