Transformers: The Last Knight

After the last war between the Autobots and the Decepticons (“Transformers: Age of Extinction” 2014), Optimus Prime left Earth and the TRF, a military unit commanded by Colonel Lennox (Josh Duhamel), was formed to capture or destroy all the remaining Transformers on Earth. Fortunately Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg) is still around to defend them, and, after a quick confrontation with the TRF, Cade escapes without noticing that an ancient talisman proffered to him by a dying Autobot has latched onto Cade, for reasons unknown. As it happens, the Decepticons, still led by the nefarious Megatron, are in search of that very same talisman.

Deep in space, Optimus Prime reaches his destination, the ruined remains of Cybertron in order to confront his maker, the being called Quintessa (Gemma Chan). The battle is brief, and Quintessa soon purges Optimus’ old programming and enlists him to find a ‘staff of power’ hidden on Earth that will allow her to bring Cybertron back to life, but at the cost of Earth’s existence.

Enter Oxford Professor Vivian Wembley (Laura Haddock), who has personally never believed that the stories of the ‘heroes of old,’ such as King Arthur, his knights and Merlin are true. Little does she know, but centuries earlier, a Transformer had given the wizard Merlin a staff that, in the wrong hands, will usher in the end of the world. Soon events beyond her control will bring her and Cade Yeager on a collision course with the mysterious Sir Edmund Burton (Anthony Hopkins) who may hold the key to finding the ultimate weapon, before it is too late.

An overly convoluted storyline? Certainly. Unfathomable decisions by our government and military? Naturally. A newly invented history of man involving Transformers in ages past? Of course! But none of this will come as a surprise to you if you have seen the Transformer movies before. Now wrap this story within massive CGI effects around a new world-threatening framework, and you have the latest in the series, “Transformers: The Last Knight.”

Perhaps the most ‘cheesy’ or lamely written entry of the series, some of the dialog needs to be heard in order to be believed. This newest Transformer film also has its share of questionable material that parents of younger children should be aware of.

Objectionable Content

Language: Heavy. The Lord’s name is taken in vain just over a dozen times—G*d (7), Chr**t (1), Oh my G*d (5). Crude language and curses included: sh** (32), son-of-a-b**** (1), b*t*h (6), as* (12), d**k-head (1), dam* (2), h*ll (9), pis* (1), skan* (1), cr*p (1), friggin’ (1), scrot*m (2), su*k (1), and bl**dy (1). The slang mo-** was heard twice, and the Spanish curse ‘p_to,’ which can be as offensive as the f-word, was heard once when spoken by a young girl. The demonic word ‘succubus’ is mentioned once, but, given the context, makes no sense at all. The obscene gesture of a middle finger, signifying the f-word, is done twice. We should not be surprised that this type of language flows so freely from our youngsters, when they are exposed to it in all forms of media—this movie included.

Sexual innuendo includes Cade remarking that Vivian is wearing a ‘stripper dress,’ followed by her offering to take it off if it makes him so uncomfortable. Later, while Cade and Vivian are ransacking a room, some old ladies are misinterpreting the sounds and words coming from them as signifying they are having sex. The ladies are searching the newspaper personals section for a man for Vivian, when one suggests “or a woman.” Sir Edmund receives a call from a lady wishing to ‘snuggle,’ but rebuffs the proposal. Vivian describes the male form suggestively during class, and a Transformer practically drools when he talks about slathering himself in oil. The juvenile innuendoes heard are actually less than some of the other Transformer films, but still remain at a level, to especially be avoided by kids and pre-teens.

Violence: Heavy. On the same level as all Transformer movies, people are caught in the crossfire during robot battles, as well as crushed, buried under debris, dragged by horses, set on fire, pierced by arrows, stuck down by swords, strafed from the air, shot at close range, exploded, and some fall seemingly to their death. Mostly bloodless, the scenes involving many people dying are shot from a distance, so no individual deaths can be seen. The overall peril is frequent, as with any war, and this one’s stakes are the life of this world. A mostly decayed body is focused on when a tomb is opened, and Earth can be seen being scraped by Exo-Cybertron in the early stages of remaking our world. The violence level is too intense for younger children.

Sex/Nudity: Minor. The young woman Izabella (Isabela Moner) is shown running toward the camera with her cleavage on display, and the camera likewise lingers on Vivian’s legs when she is first introduced, and later on her body, when she is in her tight dress. Kissing is shown twice, but more related to the danger of the moment than romance. Cade is seen shirtless, when he is trying to track the talisman, now in liquid metal form, that begins flowing about his body, ultimately ending up by his groin. Vivian is visibly flustered by his shirtless display, suggesting that no women were involved in the scripting of this movie.

Lessons

Transformers movies typically supply just enough exposition to set up the action scenes, but two topics worth noting and discussing here involved chastity and false idols.

CHASTITY: Sir Edmund remarks that Cade, despite his gruff exterior, has the qualities of a Knight, including the fact that he is chaste. Vivian presses the issue to learn that Cade has, in his own words been “saving himself.” We are meant to share in her mocking disbelief, and Cade’s embarrassment, as though this was a bad state in need of a remedy.

The Word of God wants us to treat our bodies as a holy temple (1 Corinthians 3:16) and, in this way, live life to the fullest, as we honor our Creator. However, this will require heeding God’s instruction.

“Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy.” —Romans 13:13

“Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul.” —1 Peter 2:11

IDOLATRY: When Optimus first confronts Quintessa, she quickly gains the upper hand and reminds him, “I made you. You are mine to command!” Compare this to the only true God, who despite being our Creator has given us the freedom to follow and obey him or not. The consequences are another matter, but still our choice.

“I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the LORD your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him…” —Deuteronomy 30:19

“And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” —Acts 2:21

“Transformers: The Last Knight,” despite the top-notch effects, is a poorly conceived and executed film. Following a similar template from the others, this movie hits a new low when it comes to believability. Why does the TRF distrust the Autobots and Cade, but negotiates with Megatron? Why would the ‘maker,’ who holds the life of all Transformers in her steely hands, need a staff of power or even let it get stolen in the first place? Who would design a ship with an obvious weakness that would make the Death Star’s vulnerable exhaust port look like fool proof construction? There are more problems, but I digress.

To sum up, “Transformers: The Last Knight” has the feel, if not the look of a 2½ hour long cartoon feature that was given a blockbuster, live-action screen budget. I do not recommended it, unless you are going only for the special effects.

Violence: Heavy to extreme / Profanity: Heavy / Sex/Nudity: Moderate

See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.