no over the top action,no oversexualized teen girls,no explosions all over the place just a good film with a simple plot and heart.10/10

1987, Bumblebee opens with the fall of Cybertron. As the Autobots evacuate the planet, Optimus Prime Peter Cullen dispatches B-127 Dylan O'Brien to Earth. He is to scout the planet as a possible secret base. The journey does not go smoothly. The Decepticons are one step behind him. His landing observed by a stunned military officer John Cena .Hailee Steinfeld stars as Charlie, a grease-monkey teenage loner with a tragic past. Her mother Pamela Adlon and goofball stepfather Stephen Schneider are constant annoyances. On the cusp of her eighteenth birthday, she's stuck in a minimum wage job, riding a clackety scooter to work. She spends her spare time at her uncle's junkyard, scavenging for parts to fix her beloved father's Corvette. Charlie discovers a beaten up, yellow Volkswagen Beetle. Her attempts to fix the car uncovers an amazing new friend. Charlie finds happiness in the gentle robot. But is completely unprepared for the bad-ass Decepticons, Shatter Angela Bassett and Dropkick Justin Theroux , searching for him.Bumblebee can be described as The Breakfast Club meets Transformers. The roaring eighties soundtrack and teenage girl angst is skillfully blended with the robot carnage. Christina Hodson's screenplay respects the characters. Charlie has a lot of personality. Her family and social life are thoroughly explored. Charlie finds Bumblebee at a low point. He's confused and frightened, needs help. They grow together, developing a strong bond in the process. It sounds sappy as hell, but actually works. The previous Transformers films lacked feeling. They were cold, purely visual spectacles. Hodson, who's also writing Birds of Prey and Batgirl, delivers a complex heroine. Hailee Steinfeld, Oscar nominated for True Grit, plays Charlie perfectly. Girl power is the fuel that drives Bumblebee.Travis Knight's experience as an animation director is evident here. Knight previously made the brilliant Kubo and the Two Strings. He understands how to use visual effects to express intent and emotions. Bumblebee says very little in the film. His facial expressions and mannerisms convey meaning. He goes from tender, humorous moments, to knockdown brawls. Bumblebee's smaller stature in comparison to other Transformers is used to his advantage. He has a unique fighting style that beats down larger opponents. Except for the huge opening scene, Bumblebee's fights are mano a mano. I think these are far more effective than CGI onslaughts. Travis Knight brings a vastly different style to Transformers. It's a welcome change that will definitely be embraced by fans.Bumblebee reinvigorates the Transformers franchise. Christina Hodson and Travis knight have broadened its appeal to a wider audience. Paramount Pictures and Hasbro have smartly taken a new approach. I hope they stick to this path for the next installment. There are additional scenes during the credits.

a paycheck. The action in this movie is a major step up from the sequels, you can actually tell what's going on and the visuals are beautiful and detailed. I was ecstatic to see they went back with the first generation designs. The Transformers are characters and you feel for them. If you're a Transformers fan you have to go see this movie.

heartfelt bond, which will be tested as they are hunted by both the secretive Sector 7 and a couple of Decepticons.Knight knows what makes a film truly stick with people and that is in the story and how one tells it, something he excels at. He gives his films heart, thus the relationship between Charlie and Bumblebee feels natural. The central focus is this friendship with many scenes that are charming, funny, and hit hard in the feels. Unlike the stuttering and super uptight Sam Witwicky, Charlie has a lot of spunk and pathos. While having a predictable character arc, John Cena did a nice job with his role. I love that this film is not only set in the 80s when the show came out , but lives and breathes pop cultural references and classic songs from that era including a great callback to Stan Bush . While Bay's action focuses on huge zany explosion-fests that push believability and heavily involve the human military, here the action is smaller and much more personal, strictly Autobot vs Decepticon as it should be since it was what the franchise was built on. In fact, the portrayal of the Decepticons has improved; not only can I tell them apart this time thanks to their varied designs and color schemes, but they're given more personality and actually live up to their name.The only thing that has me puzzled is the continuity as there's confusion over whether or not this is a reboot or a prequel given some conflicting elements. That being said, this is, in many ways, the Transformers movie I've been itching to see for a long time. I'd like to see more directors present their takes on the franchise and go to places both familiar and new as long as Bay stays out of the directing chair. To sum it up, Bumblebee's got the Touch.