Transformers: The Movie 20th Anniversary Special Edition
Posted by Robert Fure (robert@filmschoolrejects.com) on December 7, 2006
Release Date: November 7, 2006
Shnikes! Now I don’t know the age of all you people out there, but odds are you either grew up with Transformers, were introduced to new Transformers, or had your kids begging for Transformers toys. Well it all started way back when with some cool ass robots that changed into cars or planes or takes or even dinosaurs. Who didn’t love the Transformers?
Transformers The Movie has been a little hard to get lately. It was out on VHS back in the day, which I still own, and had a crappy DVD release in the 90’s. But now it’s been done right. The movie gets a sweet 2-Disc release with Full and Widescreen versions (Note: Stop watching full screen people, you’re missing 12% of the movie) and has been fully restored and remastered. They even do a cool side-by-side to show how much better it looks.
You also get some trivia, cast and crew commentary, trailers, fan commentary, test footage, photo gallersy, an episode of the show, a Sneak-preview of the live action 2007 movie (with Steven Spielberg talking, oooo), a trivia game, three featurettes, trailers, more commentaries, deleted and alternate footage, animated storyboards, US and Japanese Toy commercials, scramble city commercials and Easter Eggs! Whenever you see an Autobot or Decepticon symbol, try to select it and get your reward!
So what does all that mean? This disc is freakin sweet. It’s loaded. And it’s cheap. This is a perfect stocking stuffer to any fanboy or anyone who wants to relive a bit of their childhood.
As for the movie itself, it follows the war between the good Autobots and the evil Decepticons. The Decepticons have the upper hand as the movie begins and rule Cybertron, the Autobot home planet. But noble leader Optimus Prime is ready to lead an assault to reclaim Cybertron. Too bad for him the treacherous Megaton knows the plan! An epic battle spans Cybertron, the depths of space, Alien planets and Earth as the Autobots and Decepticons battle. But that’s not enough!
Unicron, a planet-sized transformer with an appetite to match is on his way to Cybertron! He enslaves Megatron and some of his forces and turns them into his horseman and makes them even more powerful. But get the proud Megatron be forced into subserviance? Can hotshot HotRod mature enough to help save Cybertron? Can Unicron be defeated? And what of the Matrix of Leadership? Who shall carry the torch?
All in all, this film is awesome. I love it. But then again, I’m a bit of a geek. But there’s a lot to love, considering it features the voices of Judd Nelson, Peter Cullen, Leonard Nimoy, Robert Stack, and Orson Welles. And any fan of GI Joe will recognize the voice of Cobra Commander as Starscream!
A real winner of a DVD set and for the price, it can’t be beat. If you have any interest at all, or anyone you know does, forget Netflix, forget Blockbuster. Own it.
Film Grade: A-
DVD Grade: A+
On the Upside: A great slice of childhood action that is entertaining and fully restored to brilliant picture color.
On the Downside: It’s dated, most notably in the soundtrack, but you just may dig it, especially Weird Al Yankovic’s “Dare to be Stupid!”
On the Side: Peter Cullen, the original voice of Optimus Prime, will be the new voice of Optimus Prime in Transformers, being released in July 2007.
Your planet eating reviewer,
Robert “More than meets the eye” Fure
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