'Transformers One' vs 'Despicable Me 4': Bet on the Robots
Plus: 'Music By John Williams.'
Now Streaming: As soon as Despicable Me 4 arrived on Peacock, I watched it and was reminded why I don't really care for the series: it's the humans!
I'm perfectly fine with the Minions. They rely on physical comedy, and their silly antics remind me favorably of classic Looney Tunes cartoons. Every time they appear on screen in Despicable Me 4, they make me smile, and their rampant recklessness and perpetual smiles are infectious. Their nonsense language, devised by voice artist Pierre Coffin, also means that children around the world can relate to them.
They are, however, only the supporting characters, and are in service to their master, Gru, voiced by Steve Carell, who moved easily from the role of The Villain into The Hero as the adoptive father of three girls, husband to Lucy (Kristin Wiig) and father of an infant. Cuteness abounds in the Gru houshold, even as they go on the run from the evil new villain, Maxime (Will Farrell, sliding smoothly into his Dastardly Voice) and his girlfriend, Valentina (Sofia Vergara), who doesn't get any memorable dialogue, which is a pity, since Sofia Vergara is quite funny on talk shows and on television.
As franchise installments go, it's as pointless as any of them and exists solely to extend of the life of said franchise. (And to make money: it's grossed nearly one billion dollars worldwide.) It's made for children, of course, but the Gru family on the run fails to excite adults who may be watching. Only the Minions continue to amuse.
The animation is good, and looks wonderful in 4K on Peacock TV. Bonus: Peacock gathers all ads together at the beginning of the movie, just like in a movie theater, and then plays the movie without further interruption. I wish every streaming service did the same. [Peacock TV]
The better bet this weekend is Transformers One, which debuted today on Paramount Plus. I have the ad-supported version, and it played with a single ad before it began and then played in brilliant 4K. I've have little time to watch the ad-supported version in recent months, so I don't know if that's their standard plan, like Peacock TV and, I think, Hulu, or if it only applies to brand new releases.
I'd heard good things about the movie during its theatrical release in September, and it's getting awards buzz too. Now that I've seen it, I can understand why.
The live-action Transformers series began with what my critic friend Scott Weinberg called 'akin to the sound of 10,000 drum kits being thrown down the stairs of a skyscraper,' or something like that (apologies for not being able to find his review, but I thought of that review after watching every one of the Transformers films, except for Travis Knight's Bumblebee (2018), starring Hailee Stenfeld.
So, I'm not a fan of the movie series, but I loved Transformers One, directed by Josh Cooley (Toy Story 4, which was fine, as far as unnecessary and undemanded sequels go). The screenplay is credited to Eric Pearson, Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari, who all have experience working on live-action franchise films, so they have some familiarity with the game of respecting the intellectual property that is the foundation.
They don't touch that bedrock, except to establish it, and then they create characters who talk like human beings and interact like friends, engaging in banter that is often sparkling and witty, but never nasty. This is a family film, after all, intended for children, and it's easy to see children responding to the way the characters talk to each other, joke with each other, and lightly make fun of embarrassing situations they've shared in the past.
In that friendly atmosphere, we see repeated demonstrations of their friendship in action, which is cool to see. It's a great combination of humor and action in dialogue, body language, and actual action.
It's also a testament to the writers and Josh Cooley and the voice actors and the editors that the humor lands with great comic timing. All the lead roles are voiced by celebrities, which sometimes goes wrong if the actor cannot deliver what's required of experienced voice actors. Happily, Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry have great chemistry as best friends, Scarlett Johansson provides beautiful balance as a platonic friend to them both, Steve Buscemi aces his role as an initially antagonistic character, Laurence Fishburne has a terrifically deep and resonant voice as a heroic character, and Jon Hamm is always fun as The Big Bad.
I was also impressed by the character designs, which make it easy to identify different characters with different abilities and size, as well as the production design, especially all the gorgeous landscape and incredible detailing of every scene.
Transformers One is a sheer pleasure to watch and is highly recommended. [Paramount Plus]
It's easy to forget that Disney Plus showcases documentaries, but Music By John Williams, directed by the reliable Laurent Bouzereau, recently debuted, and it's an easy recommendation.
Without breaking any new ground, it's a fresh reminder of the importance of a good musical score -- Bouzereau plays two scenes with and without music, and the difference is amazing -- as well as the role of good timing and happenstance, which largely explains how John Williams got into the film industry, first by way of television, and then a fortuitous pairing with a rising director named Steven Spielberg.
Quick to acknowledge each other, it's a splendid relationship, but the documentary also reminds of all the other films and musical themes that Williams has composed, which is remarkable to contemplate. Music By John Williams flies by in 105 minutes and is guaranteed to spark memories and rewatches of favorite movies from the past 50 years. [Disney Plus]