At a certain point, watching a new “Transformers” movie becomes an exercise in expectation management.
Since launching with a bang in 2007, the franchise first spearheaded by Michael Bay has spent 16 years sliding into a sludgy pit of CGI malaise many hold up as the epitome of Hollywood’s worst impulses.
The well-received “Bumblebee” may be the exception that proves the rule.
But in 2023 — when you have no one but yourself to blame for paying real, human money to a robot gorilla named Optimus Primal — it’s not unfair to wonder if the series has irreparably bottomed out.Still, the temptation to let films like “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts” off the hook via state-of-play victim blaming should be avoided.
The Hasbro franchise has long benefitted from low expectations, but the latest entry doesn’t come close to a passing grade on the massive curve we’ve already agreed to score it on.
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