Film Preview: Transformers: The Last Knight (2017)

Page Revisions:

(December 11, 2016) Original
(February 12, 2017) New Link (Super Bowl Trailers)
(March 19, 2017) New Trailer (#2) / New Poster (#1)
(April 16, 2017) New Trailer (#3)
(May 21, 2017) New Trailer (#4) / New Posters (#2-#5)
(June 18, 2017) New Posters (#6-#12)

Release Date:

June 23, 2017

Synopsis:

From IMDb: “Humans and Transformers are at war, Optimus Prime is gone. The key to saving our future lies buried in the secrets of the past, in the hidden history of Transformers on Earth.”

Poster Rating: B- / C / C+ / D / C- / F (2) / C- / C / C- / C / C-

SEE ALL POSTERS BELOW
Review: (#1) They’ve certainly got the knight aspect down and the background isn’t too shabby either. It’s still a somewhat generic design, but definitely not pointless.

(#2) The poster establishes a slight bit of mood, a slight bit of action, and a whole lot of cheapness. The poses feel unnatural and the design seems cobbled-together from lackluster pieces. (#3) An interesting battlefield shot that carries a lot of visual weight even though it has a lot of wasted space. (#4) An interesting shield design, but thoroughly worthless from a cinematic sales perspective. (#5) Like design #3, this is a more setting-intensive piece, but unlike that poster, this one feels unnatural and incomprehensibly forced.

(#6-#7) This pair of posters looks like it should be part of a much larger set, but thankfully there aren’t more designs as these are duller than even the film looks and that’s saying a lot. (#8) A garish array of colors that clash horrendously. There’s a lot of detail here, but it’s all mediocre at best. It almost looks like they’re trying to copy a Star Wars aesthetic and failing miserably. (#9) A better color structure, but still a dull design. (#10) This looks even more like it was cribbed from a Star Wars design and it makes the comparison feel cheap. (#11) A more interesting design than the previous entries, but it is only better by comparison, not as a general design. (#12) If Design #8 was garish, this is a more dully washed version of that garishness.

Trailer Rating: C- / C+ / C+ / C+

SEE ALL TRAILERS BELOW
Review: (#1) Now that we’ve firmly left the realm of modern times and embraced the future world of darkness with Decepticons endangering everyone while only the Autobots can protect them, it’s hard to tell why this series even still exists. The trailer splashes itself on the big screen like it wants you to scream and yell your excitement and line up now to buy tickets. The problem is that the trailer also offers little of valuable enticement. This is a film that looks like it’s been constructed as a money-making effort rather than a genuine piece of pop culture entertainment with a dollop of significance.

(#2) Could Michael Bay have actually grown up as a director? I doubt it, but at least he’s trying to make a film with a strong female character> Unfortunately, there isn’t enough in this trailer to suggest this isn’t more of the same.

(#3) The studio seems hell bent on plotting this out as a franchise-ending tour de force. Yet, it looks as action-pointless as the past incarnations.

(#4) I think we’ve hit peak interest in this film. This new trailer adds plenty of detail about the plot, a lot of more compelling narrative elements, but still feels like a over-saturated piece of pale pulp spectacle and action.

Oscar Prospects:

The Transformers films were once dominant at the Oscars; however, the last incarnation failed to earn a single nod and this one may not either, it all depends on the stiffness of the competition.