Movie Review: “Bumblebee”

If you’ve maxed out fresh ideas in a franchise, one way to rekindle the fun is to go back in the past and do a prequel. 

That’s what the people behind the “Transformers” films decided to do with “Bumblebee.”

“Bumblebee” takes us back to 1987, when everything goes to hell on the planet Cybertron and the Autobots (about to lose a civil war to the Decepticons) make preparations to leave for earth. Autobot leader Optimus Prime sends a scout to earth — B-127, who crash lands in California, has a run-in with government agents, and is pursued by a pair of Decepticons. 

The yellow-and-black transformer takes the shape of a 1960s-era Volkswagen Beetle and soon befriends a teenage girl named Charlie Watson (Hailee Steinfeld) after she discovers the Beetle under a tarp at a salvage lot. 

The story is like a robot version of “E.T.” wrapped up in all the conventions of an action movie and a teen melodrama.

Charlie lost her father to a heart attack, has to deal with an all-too-sugary stepfather, and is something of a brooding outcast among her peers. She finds solace tinkering with an old Corvette she and her dad tried to get running when he was alive. 

There are a number of plot points pulled from “E.T.” I won’t get into them all, but Charlie has to keep the B-127 (who she soon refers to as “Bumblebee”) under wraps in her family garage. He eventually gets from the garage into the home’s interior, and inadvertently trashes the house.

Charlie also has to keep the robot away from nefarious government operatives (led by Agent Burns, in what was likely the “easiest money” actor John Cena has ever made). 

There are 80s songs strewn throughout the narrative, along with references to the movie “The Breakfast Club.”

I’ll admit I’m a fan of the “Transformers” movie series. I know movie-goers often deride the cheesiness of the previous entries in the franchise, but I enjoy the silly fun. 

“Bumblebee” has a narrowed focus from its predecessors, and I thought this latest outing was entertaining — even if it lacks in the plausibility department.

Director Travis Knight (who started a cutting-edge stop-motion animation company that produced the animated film “Kubo and the Two Strings”) delivers a film that fits in with Michael Bay’s universe, while at the same time paying respects to the first generation of toys and animation. 

He breaks down the retro designs in “Bumblebee” in this IGN video:

You need to check your brain at the door when you see “Bumblebee” (as with previous “Transformers” movies). Be that as it may, I found the overall production enjoyable. 

Hailee Steinfeld did a yeoman’s job with the material (the script was written by Christina Hodson — which underwent a rewrite by “The Edge of Seventeen” scribe Kelly Fremon Craig). Despite the fact that it is a cheeseball action movie, her performance was one of the best things about “Bumblebee.”

If you are looking for something fun to see at your local multiplex this holiday season, you could do worse than “Bumblebee.” While it isn’t high art, it is mindless entertainment that captures what a “Transformers” movie should be (and could be without director Michael Bay at the helm). 

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