Age of The Nerd
It has been 30 years since the best and most tearjerking Transformers movie was made. Thanks to Shout! Factory and Hasbro, the animated film is back with a special 30th anniversary edition. There’s three different versions of The Transformers – The Movie 30th Anniversary Edition; a two-disc steelbook, a two-disc Blu-ray and a DVD. The version I will be reviewing here is the two-disc Blu-ray version.
The first time I seen The Transformers – The Movie was about five or six years ago. Yeah, I know I was a bit late. A friend let me borrow his copy and the quality wasn’t that great. This time around, it was the best quality that it could possibly be. The film is 1080p HD Widescreen (1.85.1) and full frame (1.33.1). That’s right! The Blu-ray version includes a widescreen version of the film on one disc and a full from version on the other disc (also includes a digital copy). For those that are all about the nostalgia, don’t worry, even with the amazing quality the nostalgia is still there, especially with the heavy synth inspired soundtrack that includes a song by “Weird Al” Yankovic.
This animated film has all of your favorite Transformers but I do have to warn you that some of your favorites don’t last too long and this is why it’s the saddest Transformers movie out there. I’m about to go into spoiler territory for a 30 year old film…
You were warned!
During the first few minutes of the film, there’s an all out war between the Autobots and the Decepticons. The Autobots are all essentially wiped out even the leader himself, Optimus Prime. Now I wasn’t alive when The Transformers – The Movie was first released but I can only imagine how Transformers fans all over the world felt when they witnessed that shocking and heartbreaking scene. Years later, I’m still shocked that writer Ron Friedman, chose to actually kill off the most known character of the franchise.
There’s action on top of action in this film but it still manages to get a story across. Here’s the official synopsis:
The AUTOBOTS, led by the heroic OPTIMUS PRIME, prepare to make a daring attempt to retake their planet from the evil forces of MEGATRON and the DECEPTICONS. Unknown to both sides, a menacing force is heading their way – UNICRON. The only hope of stopping UNICRON lies within the Matrix of Leadership and the AUTOBOT who can rise up and use its power to light their darkest hour. Will the AUTOBOTS be able to save their native planet from destruction or will the DECEPTICONS reign supreme?
Where things get a bit jumbled up is with all of the new characters that this film introduced. Though the characters in the film are voiced by some huge names like Orson Wells, Leonard Nemoy, Robert Stack, Casey Kasem, Judd Nelson and Scatman Crothers, it can take some time to remember the names of some of the newer additions. The reason why Friedman decided to wipe out all of the beloved Transformers is because Hasbro made only made this film so they could release the next series of Transformers toys. Out with the old in with the new would be an understatement. This was explained in the very in-depth documentary that is included in the bonus features, “Til All Are One“.
The bonus features is what gives this 30th anniversary edition the power.
The Transformers bonus features are everything a life-long Transformers fan could want. The “Til All Are One” documentary gives you all the behind-the-scenes info about the film with interviews from some of the cast and crew. The documentary alone is about an hour in length (I’m not sure on exact time). Along with that you get info about the way the animation was done to even how the classic soundtrack was put together. Also included with the bonus features are audio commentary with directer Nelson Shin, story consultant Flint Dille and voice actress Susan Blu who provides the voice for Arcee; you get animated storyboards and the original trailer and tv spots. They are all great bonus features.
I was very happy with this 30th anniversary edition of The Transformers – The Movie. Though the movie obviously is a product of the 80’s it still holds up today. There’s a great story, lots of action and even shocking moments and the cast was great. You obviously can’t go wrong with this one.
I would give The Transformers – The Movie 30th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray an 8.5 out of 10.
