Transformers: Dark of the Moon

That's one small step for man. One giant robot leaping over my head.

Don't worry, my twisting of Neil Armstrong's famous proclamation will make sense once you read my review of Transformers: Dark of the Moon. It's the third film for the toy franchise, and the first to be shot largely in 3D.

Without the Decepticons running about, the heroic Autobots devote their time to quashing the schemes of human villains. On a trip to Chernobyl, they find a piece of The Ark, flagship of their former leader Sentinel Prime (Leonard Nimoy). Its arrival on the moon started the space race, especially the Apollo missions. On it is the means to build a "space bridge" between Earth and the Transformers' dead world of Cybertron. To get the bridge going, the Autobots bring the older Prime back to Earth.

Sentinel gets the bridge going all right, but for the Decepticons instead! When it's all said and done, the Autobots will wish they hadn't made Sentinel Prime again. Pun intended.

While the last film Revenge of the Fallen was swamped by too much of a good thing, director Michael Bay balanced everything out this time around. What does that mean? While the franchise's traditional robot smashdowns are present, they won't make the audience beg "enough, OK!" They'll just look at the film's marvelous visual effects and just go "wow, yeah!"

Aside from the effects, the cast gives in some fun performances. Cast newcomer John Malkovich and series veteran John Turturro both steal their scenes with ease. Patrick Dempsey, as the human villain Dylan Gould, makes for a perfectly despicable character. Point being, the cast has kept itself from letting the robots delegate them to background noise.

Instead of letting you decide whether to see it in 3D or on Flatscreen, I'll just say bluntly that Transformers: Dark of the Moon needs to be seen on a big screen first. That's how amazing it is.

Jethro's Note: To describe a few choice visual effects moments would take up too much time. Let's just say there's a lot.

Cars 2

Oh noes! The world's ending! Pixar's finally made a stinker! It's called Cars 2, the sequel to the film once regarded as Pixar's biggest stinker! And it has run out of gas at the starting gate! At least, that's what professional critics have made it out to be. By Jethro's point-of-view, it's still a fun day at the races.

Everyone remembers Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson), the rookie race car whose exploits were told in the first film. Well, Lightning's taken a pit stop and allowed his tow truck buddy, Tow Mater (Larry the Cable Guy) to take the spotlight.

In Tokyo to help Lightning with a worldwide race, Mater bumps into super-spy Torque Redline (Bruce Campbell). Torque's supposed to meet with his British counterpart, Finn McMissile (Michael Caine), but it's Mater who accidentally takes his place. The agents have discovered a plot by a gang of lemon cars to discredit a new alternative fuel and they need Mater to help stop them. That's all fine with Mater, until he realizes how his antics have gotten to everybody, especially Lightning.

Available in both 3D and Flatscreen formats, the film still gives you a wild ride even without 3D. The film's action scenes, especially the racing scenes, are well edited and animated. They're so fun that they'll easily keep one's attention off their watch and on to the screen. Now only if some other action movies can learn from them.

Amongst the new characters to the cast, the best one is the Italian F-1 Francesco Bernoulli (John Turturro). He maybe a jerk, but he's a jerk in an entertaining way. Fillmore the Bus (Lloyd Sherr, replacing the late George Carlin) makes for the best of the returning supporting characters. The rest of the old cast also have their good moments, even if they don't speak.

Whereas last year's Toy Story 3's story stuck with its audience for a long while, Cars 2's story sticks with its audience for the afternoon. But at least the old car's still working, and that's important. Besides, with a new hilarious short staring the Toy Story characters, it's got something that makes it worthwhile for that afternoon.

Mr. Popper's Penguins

Who needs complicated plots made more complicated by big action scenes? Director Mark Waters' (The Spiderwick Chronicles) latest film, Mr. Popper's Penguins, doesn't need them. As a result, it's a perfectly silly family film.

Tom Popper (Jim Carrey) is a divorced realtor who's more concerned with acquiring the Tavern on the Green than with connecting with his own kids. The elderly owner, Mrs. Van Gundy (Angela Lansbury) won't just sell it to anyone, even if this anyone's father was a world class explorer. When old Tom Sr. dies, Tom Jr. is left with a little "souvenir."

It's a crate with a penguin. A live penguin. Another crate follows with five more penguins. All of them have their own little quirk. His kids decide he's the coolest dad ever, especially after he turns his penthouse into an ice box. Only zookeeper Mr. Jones (Clark Gregg) is not convinced that him keeping penguins is a bright idea. But how'll Tom convince the world that these flippered folks are much more than mere pets?

If the name sounds familiar, then it's because the basic premise was milked from the Atwaters' Newbery Honor Book. Somewhere, I imagine a few purists overcome with murderous rage over what Hollywood's done to it. It's an overreaction, really, to what is a good-natured film. I mean, one of the penguins is named Stinky, but the jokes for this penguin aren't that crude at all.

Speaking of the penguins, they're the real stars here. They're quirky enough to delight kids and some adults with their antics, especially the one named Nimrod. The filmmakers used real penguins along with CGI penguins and it's an accomplishment that the digital birds don't stand out like a sore thumb.

As the human star of the show, Jim Carrey made a good Mr. Popper. Even without being manic, Carrey was still an amusing character. His assistant, Pippi (Ophelia Lovibond), was also a fun asset to the cast. It was also a surprise to see Angela Lansbury here; it was a delightful surprise because she still knows how to steal a few scenes.

It's fortunately not in 3D, although a few scenes would fit nicely with the format. With that out of the way, Mr. Popper's Penguins finely balances silliness and heart. It's a good time to be had for a nice afternoon. And for those who want to see the Scrat cartoon that came with Rio, you now get another chance.

Green Lantern

After multiple blockbusters staring Superman and Batman, another DC Comics star got his own adventure greenlit. Yes, I do mean greenlit, because this guy's named Green Lantern.

Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds) is a test pilot whose idea of a test flight is to turn it into an actual dog fight. This gets on everybody's nerves, including the boss's daughter Carol (Blake Lively). And then, he's summoned to meet the dying Abin Sur (Temuera Morrison).

Abin Sur is a Green Lantern, one of 3,600 space cops armed with a magic ring powered by willpower and imagination. They're employed by little blue men called “The Guardians of the Universe” and one of them, Parallax, has now become an ugly yellow mass powered by fear. Hal inherits the alien's place in the Lanterns, but he's not the most popular of the bunch, especially with chief Lantern Sinestro (Mark Strong). To prove them wrong, Hal must beat Parallax and his minion, the human scientist Dr. Hammond (Peter Sarsgaard).

As Hal, Reynolds does his best and gets a few laughs. Unfortunately, he's restrained by a big story that itself is a bit restrained. The end results seem more like "uhh...OK" than "ooo...ahh!"

But what about the obligatory blockbuster effects?

The obligatory blockbuster effects range from great to adjust over time. The best effects were for Parallax, the wildly diverse background Lanterns, and their ring power constructs. The effects that need time to adjust to are the digital suits worn by Reynolds, Strong and Morrison. Sometimes, they clash badly with their human heads; mostly, though, they fit like a digital glove.

It's still a watchable film, although it might not be the one you'd expect. Let's hope with the exposition out of the way, Green Lantern's next big screen adventure will shine brighter.

Jethro's Note: Oh yeah. And it's also in 3D.

Super 8

Back when Iron Man 2 was out, there was this trailer for a film called Super 8. It involved a train crash, something busting out of a train car and not much else relevant to what the film was about.

Well, flash forward a year, and now you'll know what it's all about.

It's 1979, and Joe's (Joel Courtney) been crushed by his mother's death in a steel mill accident. He spends his time hanging out with his friends filming a cheesy zombie pic. One night, the group assembles at a train depot for a big scene. They think they've struck big when a train passes by. Just as they start filming, the train flies wildly off the tracks thanks to one tough pickup.

At the wheel is their still alive science teacher, Dr. Woodward (Glynn Turman). Why would he do a thing like that? Perhaps it has to do with something the train's been carrying. Something that's been making people and appliances vanish. And something so big that the military's come to town. It's up to the kids to find out the answers.

Conceived by J.J. Abrams, it's intended to emulate the works of its producer, Steven Spielberg. Anyone who's seen The Goonies and E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial should know what to expect.
Those who haven't should try to see at least one of those films.

Instead of a lifeless zombie, this is a lively...well, not a zombie. Its life comes from its ensemble, both kids and adults. The kids, in particular, act like kids and not the products of clueless adults. The adults initially come across as harsh, but when they reveal themselves, the audience can perfectly emphasize with them.

As with Jaws, the nameless alien is actually half-effects and half-camera work. Initially obscured by cinematographer Larry Fong, and enhanced by the two editors, the monster is perfectly scary. When it finally shows up in full force, the tension is not lost. It certainly isn't.

If made in the 1980's, this would've fit right in. But now, it's nice to know that an excellent film such as this can still be made for $50 million. When the no-budget pic finally debuts in the end credits, it makes the experience well worth it.

X-Men: First Class

Jethro's Note: What's this? A summer blockbuster with no 3D? Shocking.
Actually, it's not that shocking. But, that's a story for another day.

For its latest entry in the X-Men franchise, Fox decided to go back to where it all began. Literally.

As with 2000's X-Men, the new X-Men: First Class opens in Auschwitz when a young prisoner magnetically bends a gate. This is Erik, later Magneto, whom sinister Dr. Schmidt (Kevin Bacon) has nasty plans for.

Years later, now played by Michael Fassbender, Erik searches for the doctor, now named Sebastian Shaw. Shaw and his associates plot to escalate the Cold War into a Nuclear War so mutants can take over. Because of this, the CIA wants to catch Shaw too, and they've recruited Charles Xavier (James MacAvoy) to help them. They then recruit a few young mutants, the first X-Men, to help in the fight.

Of course, those familiar with Marvel Comic knows what happens next (sort of). But with director Matthew Vaughn ("Kick-Ass") calling the shots, how it happens is the good part.

What makes it good is the ensemble cast. They have great chemistry together and know how to stand out. Amongst the X-Men, the goofy Banshee (Caleb Landry Jones) and the brainy Beast (Nicholas Hoult) are highlights; meanwhile, the evil Azazel (Jason Flemyng) makes a formidable villain. But the best of them is a hilarious one-scene, one-line cameo from a certain clawed mutant.

With nice effects enhancing its action scenes, this prequel firmly passes the entertainment test well. This is a class worth taking. 'Nuff said.