Transformers One (Steelbook) [4K Ultra HD]

Director: Josh Cooley

Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry, Scarlett Johansson (VOICES)

Release Date: December 17, 2024

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Film Rating: 9/10
Disc Rating: 8/10

Synopsis:

TRANSFORMERS ONE is the untold origin story of OPTIMUS PRIME and MEGATRON.  Better known as sworn enemies, they were once friends bonded like brothers who changed the fate of CYBERTRON forever. The first-ever fully CG-animated TRANSFORMERS movie, TRANSFORMERS ONE features a star-studded voice cast, including Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry, Scarlett Johansson, Keegan-Michael Key, Steve Buscemi, with Laurence Fishburne, and Jon Hamm.

‘Transformers One’ tells the origin story of sworn enemies Optimus Prime and Megatron in a time where they were close friends known simply as Orion Pax and D-16. Joining the pair during the days of Cybertron, they must undertake an epic adventure together which will change both of them in drastic ways and eventually lead to the two leaders on opposing ends that we all know so well. As the real nature of their lives and existence is revealed through their adventure, it sends the two key figures on varying paths leading to the principles and conflict that will follow each for ages to come.

Directed by Josh Cooley (Toy Story 4) from a screenplay written by Eric Pearson (Thor: Ragnarok) and Andrew Barrer & Gabriel Ferrari (No Exit) from a story by Barrer & Ferrari, Cooley does a wonderful job at the helm of ‘Transformers One’ guiding along the heartfelt and explosive animated prequel. The film’s voice cast includes Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Brian Tyree Henry (Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse), Scarlett Johansson (Sing 2), Keegan-Michael Key (The Super Mario Bros. Movie), Steve Buscemi (Monsters Inc.), with Laurence Fishburne (John Wick: Chapter 4), and Jon Hamm (TV’s Landman) along with more, and the majority offer solid and capable performances in each of their respective voice roles doing a nice job of balancing familiar traits with a different vibe that aligns with the younger versions of these iconic characters.

‘Transformers One’ is simply magnificent and one of the best films of the franchise in decades! A beautifully animated, heartfelt and explosive look at the previously unexplored origins of two best friends who would eventually become enemies on varying sides of future conflicts, the animated prequel tells the story of the pair working together during the days when Cybertron still thrived and explores what eventually led to the unavoidable rift between the two as secrets are revealed that cause them to question their entire existence and purpose. It does a tremendous job of staying true to the soul of each character and their personalities, while differentiating between the characters they were at this point in their lives and the ones that they would eventually become, while also offering our first in depth look at Cyberton as the key setting in a ‘Transformers’ film back when it was still largely thriving; something that probably wouldn’t be possible in a live-action film for budget reasons alone.

Not only is ‘Transformers One’ jam-packed with plenty of beautiful animated visuals and action-packed excitement throughout, but it goes out of its way to allow the emotion and heart at the core of the tale to truly shine as these longtime friends begin to take different positions on their lives and their worlds begin to shift dramatically, all while never shying away from showcasing the initial love and brother like bond that they share before everything begins to get complicated. The animated film also offers a look at some other key characters from the franchise before they became the heroes (or villains) that we know and the balance it keeps between the heart and action is commendable; never detracting from the emotion while simultaneously never allowing the tale to become the slightest bit dull or slow in the process.

Overall, ‘Transformers One’ is an absolute blast and easily one of the best films in the franchise since the last animated feature film in the ‘80s, something that’s no small feat, especially for someone like me that has found the live-action films a consistent guilty pleasure (I honestly enjoy them all a great deal, even if they can’t all be considered “great films” by any means) and it delivers a thrilling, heartfelt and beautifully animated ride into a time when enemies were as close as brothers and Cybertron was still a world that they could call home. ‘Transformers One’ is definitely highly recommended if you haven’t yet had the pleasure, especially for any fans of the ‘Transformers’ in general whether it be the original animated series, recent live-action films or all of it, because ‘Transformers One’ offers something for everyone and does a magnificent job of making it all work splendidly.

VIDEO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘Transformers One’ features a full 2160p Ultra High Definition presentation with Dolby Vision and HDR-10, presented in its original 2.39:1 Aspect Ratio. The video presentation looks outstanding as a whole and provides a sharp, clean and gorgeously detailed presentation from start to finish that’s absent of any faults or issues to be uncovered throughout. Detail is marvelous on everything from character specifics to the beautiful animated surroundings of Cybertron. The Dolby Vision HDR enhances many of the already vibrant colors including character coloring and the intricacies of the world itself, while black levels are deep, clean and absent of any problems. Overall, this is a phenomenal Ultra High Definition presentation that dazzles at every turn and should absolutely thrill fans as well as first time viewers.

AUDIO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release features a Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 channel compatible) soundtrack. Please note that this review pertains solely to the Dolby TrueHD 7.1 audio presentation. This multichannel soundtrack is quite a treat itself and it offers a clean, crisp and hard hitting audio presentation throughout that repeatedly contributes to the fun and excitement onscreen. It constantly utilizes all seven available channels in order to send a whirlwind of music, action effects and dialogue, plus a great deal more regularly zipping throughout the various speakers, while never allowing any dialogue or other audio elements that might be occurring simultaneously to become distorted or rendered problematic. Overall, this is a fantastic Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 compatible) soundtrack that impresses throughout and should easily excite viewers.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘Transformers One’ includes a nice collection of bonus content in the way of some behind the scenes Featurettes including ‘In The Beginning’ (running approximately 10 minutes in length), ‘World Building on Cybertron’ (running approximately 9 minutes), ‘Together as One’ (11 minutes), ‘The IACON 5000’ (approximately 6 minutes) and ‘The Battle for Cybertron’ (9 minutes).

*Please note that the above images are taken from the Blu-Ray disc included in the 4K UHD Combo Pack and resized. They do not represent the quality of the 4K Ultra HD disc itself and will additionally suffer quality loss as a result of .jpg compression. Larger versions of each image can be viewed by clicking on the image. All images and content included on the 4K UHD & Blu-Ray release are the property of their respective owners.

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Film Rating: 9/10
Disc Rating: 8/10

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‘Transformers One’ is Now Available to Own on 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray Combo Pack, Limited Edition 4K UHD Steelbook, DVD & Digital from Hasbro & Paramount Home Entertainment

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You can purchase ‘Transformers One on 4K UHD Steelbook at Amazon HERE!

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