Transformers: A Children's Movie?

For a long time Transformers were thought of as toys for children and nothing more, but this past summer that all changed. Previews started to appear for a Transformers movie that left many people puzzled. How could anyone make a full-length, PG-13 movie about plastic action figures?

Obviously Michael Bay, director of Pearl Harbor, could. With the help of Steven Spielberg he created an action movie that seemed appealing to all audiences. Intrigued by the entire buzz surrounding the movie, I rented it for my family. When we finally got around to watching it, we were in for quite a surprise.

The opening scene was of an army base in the Middle East. An attack helicopter was allowed into the base, but was under suspicion. Suddenly, the helicopter started to change. It transformed into a huge robot that decimated the camp and started hacking into the Department of Defense computer files. All the while guns are blaring and people are getting injured. Blood was never shown, though, which could be positive. The rest of the movie followed a similar pattern.

The violence was to be expected, but there was more objectionable content than that.

The main character in the movie was Sam Witwicky, played by Shia LeBeouf. His parents are completely oblivious to most of the world and are mainly just a source of comedy, which was disappointing.  the love interest in his life is a scantily clad girl named Mikaela Banes. I was surprised that a movie geared toward a younger audience would portray females in such a way, since the reasons for his attractions are almost all physical.

The movie also contained a fair amount of language and crude humor. Some crude humor and language should be expected from a PG-13 movie, but I was not expecting it from a "children's movie."

The story line was interesting, though, especially for me since I had no past experience with Transformers. Apparently there had been a battle going on between Transformers for years and it had come to earth in an attempt to find the Allspark (a source of life for mechanical beings). The humans are dragged into the conflict in an attempt to save their world from the evil Transformers, otherwise known as the Decepticons, led by Megatron. Some good Transformers join the struggle and a war ensues.

In the end it seems like Transformers was not for children, but an older audience. While the storyline and acting were decent, the objectionable content made the movie not appropriate for all ages. The ultimate choice is for parents and kids with good judgment. Transformers was rated PG-13 for a reason and should be avoided by parents with younger children.

- Freeman Bendfeldt