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Bumblebee Movie Review: Hailee Steinfeld & John Cena's film is the best to come out of Transformers franchise
Bumblebee Movie Review: This is the movie Transformers fans deserved right from the beginning.
Bumblebee
Bumblebee Director: Travis Knight
Bumblebee Cast: Hailee Steinfeld, John Cena, Gracie Dzienny, Vanessa Ross, Peter Cullen
Bumblebee Movie Stars: 3/5
When you combine kickass cars-turned-robots from Transformers with 80's classic Breakfast Club teenage angst, you get Bumblebee. Many have criticised Michael Bay and trashed the Transformers franchise over the years. Hence, it comes as no surprise that Bumblebee is helmed by another director, and what Travis Knight brings to the table is genuine emotions. You know it's a job well done when you feel for a robot.
Bumblebee kickstarts with nostalgia as the mighty Optimus Prime leads the Autobot resistance in a battle against Decepticons. On the verge of losing, Prime sends his trusted ally B-127 to set up camp in the planet, Earth or risk extinction. While on Earth, he comes across an angst-ridden Charlie Watson (Hailee Steinfeld), who gets B-127, now a 1967 Volkswagen Beetle, as a birthday gift. However, trouble brews further when Decepticons Shatter and Dropkick catch wind of where B-127, now aptly named Bumblebee, is and seek revenge. We also have Colonel Jack Burns (John Cena) whose alliance delves on nothing but the protection of the Earth, which gets him at odds with Bumblebee.
The factor that sets Bumblebee apart from its predecessors is emotions and all heart. Bumblebee was the most loved character in the Transformers series after Optimus Prime and Knight capitalised on that. Hailee makes a caricaturish teenager look genuine and someone you can relate to. She's in denial over her father's death and through her equation with Bumblebee, learns to be herself again. The sequences between Charlie and Bumblebee will awaken your spirits and interlaces perfectly with the action sequences. In his biggest movie to date, Cena takes his Cenation roots and adds his own wit to an extremely enjoyable character. A special mention to Jorge Lendeborg Jr. as Memo, Charlie's love interest who is as adorable as Bumblebee himself.
Travis Knight has taken advantage of Bumblebee in the finest and taken inspiration, not from Bay, but from Steven Spielberg and his cult classic E.T. Just like the equation between Elliot and E.T. leaves the cold-hearted in tears, so will Charlie and Bumblebee. The perfect ode is given to the '80s; whether it be the classic walkman with the soundtrack from The Smiths and Sammy Hagar or even The Breakfast Club climax sequence. Even the production design is top notch and takes you back to the 1980s. For all you action fans, the sequences are aplenty but it's always an added bonus when you have robots with feelings. And writer Christina Hodson balances both beautifully.
In ending, Bumblebee is the movie Transformers fans deserved right from the beginning!
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