Transformers (2007)

A yellow Camaro that talks through its radio gives the best performance in Transformers. That’s a compliment to Bumblebee and a problem for everybody else. The robots are a blur of gray metal, so when they finally brawl you can’t tell who’s punching who. It runs 144 minutes and burns a strange amount of that on soldiers, hackers and John Turturro shouting in a hallway. But Shia LaBeouf is honestly funny as Sam, a nervous teenager trying to impress Megan Fox’s Mikaela with a car that keeps picking its own songs. Optimus Prime’s first full transformation is a real goosebumps moment, the kind that turns grown adults back into kids. Michael Bay does what Michael Bay does: low angles, sunsets, explosions, slow-motion flags. It made $709.7 million worldwide and audiences gave it an A CinemaScore. A 6.4 because it’s dumb fun with a heart, and the dumb half runs long. $156 says a car radio skips on you this month and you glance around for a robot.

What works: Bumblebee’s charm, Shia LaBeouf’s nervous comedy, and the first big reveal of Optimus Prime.

What doesn’t: The robot fights are a blur of gray metal, and too much of the long runtime goes to side plots nobody asked for.

Who it’s for: Anyone who grew up with the toys, or anybody who wants a loud summer movie with a surprisingly sweet car at its center.