|
|
|
Transformers: The Movie - 30th Anniversary Edition
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray ALL - America - Shout! Factory Review written by and copyright: Anthony Arrigo (20th November 2016). |
|
The Film
 Chances are good if you talk to any child of the 80's about their favorite animated TV shows, “Transformers” (1984-1987) will be among the first titles said. Back in the days when kids could sit in front of the boob tube all afternoon and consume one episode after the next, shows like “Transformers”, “He-Man: Masters of the Universe” (1983-1985), and “G.I. Joe” (1985-1987) ruled the world. Because the creators were eager to get their shows into syndication, episodes were cranked out like assembly line product; kids ate them up as quickly as they could be aired. Lots of episodes also meant lots of characters, specifically lots of NEW characters. Don’t forget, these cartoons were little more than 20-some-minute promotional tools for toys. Hasbro can only sell Optimus Prime so many different ways. The decision was made to take the series to feature length. “The Transformers: The Movie” (1986) hit theaters in between the second and third season of the cartoon show, with the intention being “out with the old, in with the new”. Excited by the prospect of getting kids to force their parents into buying more action figures, Hasbro commissioned an absolute slaughter of the old guard. Fan favorites, secondary characters, and anyone else seen as fodder were laid to waste as new Autobots and Decepticons (some just redesigned) were brought in during the course of the film. In regard to one major death, kids of the 80's still point to that moment as soul-crushing. Many of the choices made for the film were seen as controversial - and still are to this day. Set in the future year of 2005, twenty years after the end of the second season, there is a major threat looming in space as Unicron (Orson Welles), a planet-sized transformer, moves from world to world consuming entire civilizations. On Cybertron, the Decepticons rule, led by the villainous Megatron (Frank Welker). Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) sends an Autobot supply ship to Earth for the Energon needed to execute their counter-offensive against the Decepticons. Unfortunately, a Decepticon spy spots the Autobot ship and it is soon taken over by Megatron and his lackeys. A great battle ensues on Earth at Autobot City. Megatron and his Decepticons gain the upper hand and nearly wipe out all of the Autobots until Optimus Prime arrives with reinforcements in tow – not that he needs them. Prime manages to take out almost all of the Decepticons single-handedly, but during a fight with Megatron the two of them are mortally wounded. Prime dies, but not before transferring the Matrix of Leadership to Ultra Magnus (Robert Stack). Megatron, meanwhile, has been jettisoned from the Decepticon ship along with the rest of the wounded. Floating through space he comes across Unicron, who agrees to rebirth the Decepticon leader if he will hunt down the Matrix and acquire it for him. Megatron reluctantly does so, and he is reborn as Galvatron (Leonard Nimoy). The remaining Autobots, now led by Ultra Magnus, fight a series of interstellar battles against new races of robots until finally meeting up with the Decepticons once more. This time the battle is bigger than the both of them, however, when Unicron threatens to consume all of Cybertron and rule the universe alone. This movie is dark. Like, real dark; especially for a kid’s movie. I know it’s a popular trope to have the heroes on the ropes until the moment when something magical happens and they defeat their enemies but, holy hell, Hasbro decided to obliterate the Autobots at almost every turn. The Autobots require serious backup in order to vanquish the Decepticons who, conversely, seem to handle themselves just fine. They even manage to kill Optimus Prime which, ok, you figure he’ll be reborn and make some triumphant return later in the film. Nope. He’s dead. Hasbro only saw fit to resurrect him in the third season of the cartoon series after so much fan backlash. And they should have. You don’t go killing off He-Man and expect everyone to be cool with Man-At-Arms taking up the mantle. Still, this film saw Autobots being annihilated at an alarming rate, leaving virtually no hope for our heroes. Kids may have been rightfully frightened, but as an adult I can appreciate the darkness at play here. No kid’s film today would dare go to some of the places this film does. Ostensibly this may have been made for children but the themes and strife and seemingly insurmountable obstacles are more tailor-made for older audiences. Hasbro didn’t want to simply introduce new characters and hope kids would take to them; this was their way of saying “All of your heroes are dead. Play with these new ones.” Savage. The casting of celebrities in voice acting roles can sometimes take me out of a film, usually when it’s a celebrity who is more famous for their looks than their voice. Like, Angelina Jolie is gorgeous but do her pipes really add much to an animated feature? Here, the creative powers employed actors with some real grit in their throat, guys like Robert Stack, Orson Welles, Leonard Nimoy, and Scatman Crothers. I could listen to Robert Stack read a phone book and it would still sound menacing. Here, as Ultra Magnus his voice is commanding and resolute. Welles voice-over work was the last project he did before his death in 1985, with many of his lines being synthesized due to his deteriorating condition. Still, his Unicron is imposing and filled with gravitas, like an old sentinel that has searched the stars for eons. There isn’t a weak link among the entire voice cast. I probably saw this film when I was a kid but, if so, that would’ve been thirty years ago. In that time I’ve seen most of Michael Bay’s live-action features for the series and I have to say, while those pictures have impressive visual effects, I got more enjoyment out of this “old” animated picture because it focused almost exclusively on the war between Autobots and Decepticons, with minimal human involvement. There’s some little kid named Daniel (David Mendenhall) that is included so kids have an avatar on screen. Otherwise this is a full-scale robot vs. robot war that is able to feel epic and huge in scope thanks to the minimal limitations of animation. Don’t think of this as a kid’s movie by any means.
Video
Shout! Factory has been heavily touting their new 4K transfer of the original film elements – and for good reason. The 1.85:1 (or 1.33:1, depending on which disc you choose) 1080p 24/fps AVC MPEG-4 encoded picture is going to be a revelation for those who have watched the film on various formats over the past thirty years. As one of the bonus features explains, extensive work was done on every frame of the movie to enhance detail and restore the vivid color palette. This is a ground-up remaster, with great care put into restoring the integrity of the picture while also retaining film grain and definition. Dirt and debris have been almost entirely eradicated, with only a few instances cropping up. Colors are bold and wonderfully saturated. Some scenes appear a little cleaner than others, though given the work done here any variances are likely inherent to the source. The widescreen image is a cropped version of the full-frame picture. I chose to watch the widescreen version and found no issue with headspace or framing, nothing obvious at least, so unless you are a diehard purist who refuses to allow any picture to be missing I would suggest watching it as such. The movie looks more cinematic.
Audio
The English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround sound track (48kHz/24-bit) is a real winner, brimming with activity and totally immersing viewers in this big, endless battle. Fidelity is exceptionally strong, with the rocking theme song blasting out with force. The music for this movie is awesome, filled with metal and cheesy 80's cuts and sounding like such a product of the times. Dialogue is very clear and balanced, even when the action ramps up and guns are blazing. Subtitles are available in English SDH and Spanish.
Extras
The film is spread out on two discs but all of the bonus features have been relegated to disc one. There, you can find an audio commentary, a retrospective documentary, featurettes, storyboards, and promotional materials. The first disc features the widescreen version of the film, the second disc includes the full frame open matte version of the film. The film’s audio commentary features director Nelson Shin, story consultant Flint Dille, and voice actor Susan Blu (Arcee). “’Til All Are One” (1080p) is a documentary that runs for 46 minutes and 32 seconds. Expect to hear all kinds of refreshingly candid recollections on the making of this film from some of the creative powers, from Hasbro’s mission of death for new toy lines to voice work, drafts, those awesome songs, and the film’s reception. “Transformers: The Restoration” (1080p) is a featurette that runs for 7 minutes and 16 seconds. The technicians who worked on the film’s new 4K transfer take you behind the scenes to explain every step of the process. Very interesting stuff. “Rolling Out the New Cover” (1080p) is a featurette that runs for 4 minutes and 49 seconds. The artist who did the new artwork talks a bit about getting such a coveted gig. “Featurettes” (1080p) contains the following: - “The Death of Optimus Prime” featurette runs for 5 minutes and 2 seconds. - “The Cast & Characters” featurette runs for 10 minutes and 2 seconds. - “Transformers Q&A” featurette runs for 13 minutes and 3 seconds. Animated storyboards (1080p) are included for the following: - “Fishing Scene” runs for 2 minutes and 9 seconds. - “Battle” runs for 4 minutes and 31 seconds. - “One Shall Stand, One Shall Fall with Deleted Sequence” runs for 5 minutes and 27 seconds. Two original theatrical trailers (1080p) run for 3 minutes and 5 seconds. A selection of eight TV spots (1080p) runs for 5 minutes and 52 seconds.
Packaging
The two –disc set comes in a standard Blu-ray keep case, with each disc housed on a hub opposite the other. The cover art is reversible; both are awesome. A slip-cover is included on first pressings. Additionally, there is also a steelbook packaging available for a limited time, if you’re into that sort of thing.
Overall
Tons of fun, fully restored, and packed with bonus features this newest release of “The Transformers: The Movie” from Shout! Factory is an easy recommendation for fans of the series. The 4K transfer alone makes this set a winner.
|
|||||
|