Blu-ray Review: Transformers The Last Knight
Transformers 5: The Last Knight
Paramount Pictures 2017
PG13 | 2hrs 34 mins | Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi
HD | 1080P | Dolby Atmos | Dolby TrueHD 7.1
4K | 2160P | HDR10 | Dolby Vision | Dolby Atmos | Dolby TrueHD 7.1
1.90:1 Aspect Ratio
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Isabela Mona, Laura Haddock, Anthony Hopkins, Josh Duhamel
Directed by: Michael Bay
Ratings & Reviews
Please see here for my comments on reviewing movies.
My ratings are simple being marked out of a maximum of 5+. My reviews are biased towards the technical production aspects of the film with brief comments about the story line. Extras, sorry, that’s just not my ‘bag’.
Not having 4K or Immersive audio yet what did the 1080P24 version look like? very good, and the sound? excellent.
Entertainment: 4+
Video: 5
Audio: 5
Technical Review – HD Blu-ray
The movie provides excellent contrast and vivid colors at all times. From the inky blacks of space to the bright daytime shots. Closeups provide excellent detail with very natural skin tones. Details, be they of the transformers, buildings or CGI environments look excellent throughout the movie. I was never once aware of the CGI created characters, environments or effects not looking as if they were part of the real environment. Having said that, I felt that Cybertron was a little ‘overdone’. How far CGI has come these days and how far will it yet go? Images were often very colourful without that ‘cartoonish’ look. Compression artifacts were non existent and I cannot imagine just how good the 4K Atmos version must look and sound.
The most distracting aspect of this movie, no pun intended, was its continual changes between three aspect ratios. Michael Bay may have felt that it enhanced the production value, I just found it very annoying adding nothing, in my opinion, to the image or feel of the movie..
UPDATE – 5/6/2018: I just watched the movie in 4K HDR. All I can add is that the image was very sharp, dazzlingly colorful with wonderfully saturated colors, very dynamic with outstanding contrast and extremley detailed, particularly each and every transformer character.
The Dolby Atmos track defaults to Dolby TrueHD 7.1 in my system. Even without Atmos the 7.1 DolbyTrueHD the mix sounded outstanding. All channels being very active with good front image placement and fairly aggressive use of all the surrounds. Dialogue was clear and precise at all times with tremendous use of the 0.1 sub channel that regularly rocked the room with the explosions from the general mayhem and destruction, to the various fire power that was unleashed at regular intervals. A real feast for the ears.
Story Overview
I found the first 30 minutes required more than my full attention to follow the rapidly changing storylines; maybe I’m just getting old! However it soon settled down and the next 2 hours never dragged for a minute.
With Optimus Prime gone, the whole human race is now at war with the Transformers who continue to arrive at earths front door. Arriving on earth eons ago they left something very precious stolen from their creator Primus, the secret to saving the world, and it now lies buried with the famous magician, Merlin. The solution to finding him, yes you guessed it, a gaggle of English Ladies and Gentry who team up with the Americans to solve the riddle and come to the worlds rescue; and so arrives an Oxford Professor, an English Lord, an American inventor and of course Bumblebee.
Having much of the story set in England, the writers took license with the use of lots of British humor and phrases adding a comedic side to the story. I especially liked the butler Cogmans’ character. As usual there are several heroins that save the day, Laura Haddock and Isabella Mona, and the usual array of small ‘cute’ transformers like Sqweeks and Wheelie, ready to amuse and warm your heart (or satisfy your boyish humor)!
As the movie came to its climatic ending I was momentarily fooled into believing that this would be the last one; well, that thought was pushed right out of my head in the closing scenes.
The Last Knight, the last one……never, so long as these movies keep making box office records.
I just wonder how much BIGGER they can continue to make these movies, each one standing on the shoulders of the last?
Looking for a more detailed story and character analyses? Check out THIS REVIEW.
See my other Blu-ray reviews here. More coming soon.
