Adventures in Netflix: Transformers: Dark of the Moon

I'm possibly the last person to see this movie. But honestly I couldn't care less. I'm sort of surprised I even watched it. I can't say it was the greatest decision I've ever made, but it could have been much worse. I don't have all that much to say about the film so I'll make this quick. Steve Jablonsky is one of the most overlooked Composers in Hollywood, magnificent work as usual. Michael Bay makes a very busy film yet manages to make it look slick. And as always the effects artists are basically wizards. This movie was much better than the second one, and possibly better than the first (not saying much admittedly) for one key reason. The Transformers series finally chose not to take itself too seriously. Sure Dark of the Moon was supposed to be dramatic, but it took time (too much really, I'll get to that in a minute) even during really important moments to poke fun (sometimes at itself). Even the action was a little bit more imaginative. The result: gravity where it needed it, a less in-your-face vibe everywhere else. It was a bit refreshing considering it's an entire series based around toys. The time it took to do so, though, was unwarranted. This movie could have been basically the same had they cut out anywhere between 45 and 60 minutes. It was an exercise by Mr. Bay in self-indulgence. He wanted to string the (painfully simple) plot out so that he could throw in as many effects as possible. Simple as that. 3/5 stars.