Transformers: The Movie (1986)

How do you make a transforming robot movie work with its dedicated fan base? An inspiring soundtrack, loveable characters, a hint of tragedy and no product placement!

Transformers: The Movie follows the ongoing battle between the Autobots and the Decepticons which is then dwarfed by the arrival of the planet-consuming Unicron (Orson Wells), all through the eyes a new addiction to the transformers family; Hot Rod (Judd Nelson). We begin with the noble Autobots planning to re-take their home planet of Cybertron from the villainous Decepticons. After a party of Decepticons apprehends an Autobot ship, we end up with the all too familiar setting of a battlefield on earth; Megatron (Frank Welker) and Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) leading waves of familiar faces from the television series into a terrifically animated dance of explosions, lasers and shrapnel. As we near the end of the battle, an epic duel ensues that ends in the tragic fall of Optimus Prime. During the aftermath, we see Unicron, out in space, swallowing the two moons of Cybertron. As the remaining Autobots venture to Cybertron to rescue their friends, Unicron enlists the help of the fallen Megatron, now the re-born Galvatron (Leonard Nimoy), to hunt them down in pursuit of the all-powerful “Matrix of Leadership”. We follow our cast to a multitude of planets before they finally end up face-to-face with Unicron, where they triumphantly overcome their darkest hour and reduce the planet killer to a giant floating head, drifting through the cosmos.

Transformers: The Movie is an absolute treat for both fans of the original cartoon and newcomers to the series. With a cast of fantastic voice actors, including the timeless Peter Cullen, the masterful Frank Welker and the magnificent Orson Welles, in his penultimate performance. With so many legendary characters making an appearance, it was inevitable we were going to lose a few, but seeing some of our beloved transformers fall in battle, some of which have been with us since the very first episode, well, painful just doesn’t quite cover it.

The soundtrack is perfectly displays a collection of 80’s power ballads that would make any audience member power slide towards their screen. Stan Bush’s “Dare” and “The Touch” drive forward climactic and inspirational moments throughout the film and purposefully tie together everything visually with the same feeling that made us want to travel through time with Huey Lewis and The News in 1985. We even hear an appearance from “Weird” Al Yankovic during a hectic battle scene, contributing to the madness and sheer unpredictability of the Transformers universe.

If I was to find a negative with this film, it would be the introduction of the two brand new characters; Hot-Rod and Cup. This film that is a direct link back to the original series and doesn’t bother re-introducing many of its characters to viewers. For a film to use this mentality but then also attempt to use brand-new characters as a window for the audience, it’s counterproductive and results in these never-before seen characters feeding off the nostalgia of the pre-existing characters.

In summary, Transformers: The Movie brings forth everything we loved about the original transformers franchise, with some new additions sprinkled on top. The eruption of emotion, nostalgia and love for the characters can only be matched by the care taken by the animation and sound design teams. Truly a spectacle to behold for any fan of the robots in disguise.

4.5/5 - Lights, Sounds and Transforming Action!