Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Review

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts reviewed by Matt Donato. Narrated by Gabriel Moss.

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts proves that Bumblebee wasn’t a fluke, and that the Transformers series is finally accelerating in the right direction. Steven Caple Jr. oversees a solid balance between paint-by-numbers intergalactic doomsday storytelling and entertainment-first Transformers action, even though it never achieves the epic scope it’s aiming for and the human side of the story can’t keep up with the robots. There’s a focus on a story with heart and heroics, and that’s never lost thanks to reigning in Michael Bay’s brand of sensationalist chaos. Rise of the Beasts returns to Transformers basics on a larger scale than Bumblebee, but never gets too big for its britches. It feels like playing with Autobots and Maximals action figures in your backyard on a weekend, lost in a smashy-fun adventure that might not save the galaxy, but is a good enough excuse to watch robots turn into cars and fight for a few hours.