While we are currently living in an era of every comic, TV show, game and Twitter thread being exploited and turned into a feature film, you only have to look a little ways into the past to see that this is not a new phenomenon. There seems to be a greater chance these days that a creative figure with a passion for the intellectual property will come on board and try something innovative with the property. Sometimes we get unlucky and have a studio with no concept of what makes the material interesting imposing mandates to hopefully attain a quick profit. In the case of the 1986 cult favorite The Transformers: The Movie, it is a little of column A and a little of column B. At this point, The Transformers had been on the air for two years after its debut in 1984 and built quite a following of young fans who were enthralled by the war between the Autobots and Decepticons. Hasbro wanted to cash in and use the film as a way to refresh the toys with an “out with the old, in with the new” mentality. This lack of care proved fatal at the box office, but the film has gained a new legion of fans over the years.
Upon its release in 1986, The Transformers: The Movie quickly gained a reputation as something of a fatal blow to childhood innocence. Nelson Shin was brought on board from the series to direct the film with as much care as he could bring to the story, but he was powerless against the forces at Hasbro who ruthlessly demanded the death of key characters that that they had no idea were so beloved. The film begins simply enough in the “distant future” of 2005 as the Autobots, led by the heroic Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen), are doing their best to put up a fight against the malicious Decepticons, led by the loathsome Megatron (Frank Welker), on their home planet of Cybertron. From the very beginning, there is a dizzying amount of action as the groups square off with one shocking loss after another ratcheting up the stakes in a truly nerve-wracking way for a movie marketed to children. The action is well constructed with each blow registering as something with significance. For scale and emotional stakes alone, the movie sets itself apart from the series fairly swiftly.
The fascinating wrinkle in the standard warfare between the two factions comes in the form of Unicron (Orson Welles in his final film role), a planet-sized Transformer consuming entire worlds and making his way to Cybertron. While this is not the most prestigious role for Welles to leave us with, his iconic voice gives a bit of extra gravitas to the villain even when its manipulated. The story is an intriguing one that touches a bit on what happens when there is a power vacuum and individuals are expected to step up. If you have managed to stay spoiler-free for the last 35 years, I am not going to change that now, but by splitting up this large ensemble into different factions you get more interesting character moments. One of the major downfalls of the Michael Bay live-action Transformers films is the lack of connection you have with the characters. Their lack of recognizable designs makes for a very messy viewing experience. This animated film, on the other hand, takes time to carve out some distinct personalties for both sides when it can which makes the action that much more impactful.
At less than 90 minutes in length, this narrative really moves along at a breakneck speed, often to the film’s detriment. We are dealing with some really interesting characters so it might have been nice to get even more personality-driven scenes along the way. Those that we do get are the most memorable. While a bit of an oddball detour, when Hot Rod (Judd Nelson) and Kup (Lionel Stander) get taken prisoner by the Quintessons you get some fun moments between the two while worrying if they are going to be devoured by the Sharkticons. The voice work provided by the ensemble is pleasing all around with no one standing out as a major weak link. The music present throughout is a blast of extremely 80s nostalgia, which is fun at first but is so unyielding that it starts to grate on one’s nerves after a while. A little quiet never hurt anybody. Despite the circumstances under which the film was developed, The Transformers: The Movie is a fun affair that should please fans of the franchise. Even if you shed a few more tears than you expected.
Video Quality
The Transformers: The Movie comes to 4K UHD Blu-Ray with a dazzling and vibrant 2160p transfer with both HDR10 and Dolby Vision in the theatrical 1.85:1 aspect ratio. First things first, it is important to note that while this film was shown in 1.85:1 theatrically, the original aspect ratio is intended to be 1.33:1 as it was released on home video and aired on television. The accompanying Blu-Ray disc includes the 1.33:1 Full-Frame version, but those who want to watch the film in 4K will have to watch the widescreen presentation. Both discs are derived from a new 4K restoration that used a new scan from the original 35mm film elements which means even those who own the previous Blu-Ray will see an improvement with this new release. The amount of information sacrificed on the top and bottom of the widescreen presentation seemed minimal without any truly egregious flaws to these eyes, but admittedly I have not watched the film as many times as more ardent fans. The preferred thing would have been to have both aspect ratios presented in 4K, but at least Shout! Factory gives the option to watch the OAR on Blu-Ray.
Putting aside the framing issues, this new 4K presentation is phenomenal. Given its age, it is fair to say that it does not have the seamless qualities that we have come to associate with modern animated films, but the beautiful cel animation gives the film a special pulse often lacking these days. This new 4K restoration gives the film a nice boost in basic textures and details. Some of the haziness present in past home entertainment releases is cleared up immensely to reveal a beautiful base source material. This disc does show off improvements in line stability, especially in character outlines, as well as in minor details within the frame. This presentation retains the natural film grain of the material with everything appearing with natural suffusion and no instances of clumpy or unnatural grain. As is to be expected, original cel dust remains but instances of unwanted debris and damage is all but eradicated.
Where this disc really shines is in the implementation of the HDR. The colors present in this transfer are practically leaping off the screen with the wide range of hues permeating the frame. Each color is presented with a bit more nuance so that everything appears a touch more natural. This also goes toward increasing the depth of field by a nice margin. Black levels are very strong with no hint of compression artifacts or digital anomalies of the sort. The improvements in the black levels are especially pleasing given the fact that so much of the film takes place in the background of space. The white highlights are handled with more stability in a way that never fails to impress. There does not appear much in the way of aliasing or other digital nuisances, Overall this is a transfer free of major encode issues. This is a stunning 4K UHD Blu-Ray presentation that marks a visually splendid upgrade from the Blu-Ray.
Audio Quality
This release boasts both an immersive DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that really packs a punch, as well as a DTS-HD 2.0 MA stereo track that is no slouch either. There is a significant amount of activity in the low-end due to the various fight sequences and other kinetic moments. Dialogue comes through clearly without getting overwhelmed by any competing sound effects or score. The music in the film is very effective in getting you pumped up in a way that make the film feel alive. Say what you will about the dated quality of the music, but these songs really pack a punch and keep the energy up. Atmospheric effects are deeply immersive and convey a real sense of depth to the locations. The surround track engages all of the channels with panning effects and environmental sounds that sell a fully fleshed-out world. Shout! Factory has delivered a crackerjack audio presentation that brings this adventure to life quite nicely.
Special Features
Shout! Factory has provided The Transformers: The Movie with an optional sleek new SteelBook that is truly lovely in person. The front artwork is a nicely animated depiction of Hot Rod with the Matrix of Leadership radiating out, and the rear features Galvatron in a fearsome pose on a ship with the film’s tagline above him. The interior sports a depiction of Unicron moving through space. This SteelBook package also includes four art cards from the film. Photos of the SteelBook and art cards can be found at the end of this review.
- Audio Commentary: Director Nelson Shin, Story Consultant Flint Dille and Star Susan Blu (Arcee) provide a pretty entertaining commentary track in which they give insights into the story, relay anecdotes about the performers, discuss the darkness and the leaps in logic in the film and more. There are some bouts of silence but overall this is a worthwhile track.
- ‘Til All Are One – Retrospective Documentary: A 47-minute piece in which the cast and creative team deliver amazing information about the development of the story, the outside influence, the initial reactions, capturing the vocal performances, the themes of the story and more. This is a really wonderful supplement.
- Featurettes *Spoiler Alert*
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- 2016 Stan Bush Acoustic Performance: A ten-minute piece in which Bush reflects back upon his contributions to the film, developing the song, and more. As the title suggests, there is also a performance from Bush. There is some overlap from the retrospective documentary.
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- The Death Of Optimus Prime: A five-minute piece in which some of the cast and creative figures discuss the monumental decision to kill off the beloved character and how fans reacted to it.
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- Transformers Q&A: A 13-minute featurette in which the cast and creative team answer questions such as their favorite scenes in the film, favorite characters, what they would transform into if they could, the reason for the rock soundtrack and more.
- Feature-Length Storyboards: An option to watch the film in storyboard form is provided here.
- Deleted Scenes: Twelve minutes of unused material is provided here in storyboard form with bookends from the finished film to see where they material would have fit in the story.
- Original Theatrical Trailers: Two trailers totaling three minutes are provided here.
- TV Spots: Six minutes of television spots are provided here.
- Brand-New Cover Art Gallery by Matt Ferguson: Sketches of various characters are provided here that you can flip through with your remote.
Final Thoughts
The Transformers: The Movie was made with the most blatant of money-hungry intentions, but the end result remains a lot of fun for fans even in the face of a occasionally chaotic plot. The action in the film is top notch along with the beautiful animation that works so well with this material. The voice performances are stellar from the big names in the ensemble to the talent only known within the voiceover world. Shout! Factory is celebrating the 35th anniversary in style with a brand new 4K UHD Blu-Ray release that features the film with a stunning A/V presentation and a nice array of special features all in a beautiful SteelBook packaging. While the lack of the Full-Frame presentation in 4K may be a dealbreaker for some, this package is impressive enough that I would easily recommend it to any fan. Highly Recommended
The Transformers: The Movie 4K UHD Blu-Ray SteelBook Edition will be available to own on August 3, 2021. The standard edition will be available on September 28, 2021.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Shout! Factory has supplied a copy of this set free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
