Every Transformers movie, ranked worst to best

The Transformers Have been around as a live-action franchise since 2007, but when you look at the best movies in the series, there is a huge discrepancy when it comes to their success critically and commercially. For many years, it was these Transformers Movies are critic-proof, meaning that reviews may remain overall negative, but the movie may still make a massive box office, with Dark of the moon And Age of extinction Each breaking the $1 billion mark (via Box Office Mojo). However, even though a movie may make a lot of money, that doesn’t always mean it was a good movie or a good experience for the movie-going public.

Regardless of the Transformers Movies In order of release, chronologically or best to worst, Michael Bay directed five live action films, three starring Shia LaBeouf and two starring Mark Wahlberg. However, Bay then stepped away and the franchise went in a different direction with a prequel in it Bumblebee And the 2023 movie Transformers: Rise of the BeastsWhich both occur before the Bay movies in the Transformers Timeline. The franchise also has animated films from the 1980s to 2024 among its ranks. However, when compared, the Transformers Movies ranked come in varying levels of success.

9

Transformers: The Last Knight (2017)

Michael Bay’s latest installment was a misfire

At planned to quit making Transformers Movies after Age of extinctionBut he returned in 2017 with The last nightThat ended the main franchise. The biggest reason this movie failed to move the franchise forward is the box office. Until it came out, it seemed fan fatigue had stepped in. for years, Transformers Movies are critic-proof and made money no matter what reviews said. However, with The last nightFans agreed with the negative sentiments. This movie got the Lowest reviews of the franchise, with 16% for critics and 43% for fans on Rotten Tomatoes.

The story of the movie reveals that the Transformers have been on Earth since 484 AD and even dealt with the wizard Merlin. It also continued the story of the military hunting transformers down into the present day. Alas, no movie in the original franchise made that little money, grossing just $605 million worldwide, on a reported $260 million budget ( via Box Office Mojo). The shared consensus was the movie had a thin plot and over-relied on special effects. While the action was as massive as ever, Transformers: The Last Knight Didn’t really have much heart and was Bay’s disappointing swan song for the franchise.

8

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)

Bay’s first sequel was a big step down

After the well-received first movie, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Went in a very different direction. The first movie was, at its heart, a story about a boy and his car. The sequel brought back the boy in LaBeouf, but it really didn’t focus on him as much as on the explosive action. The movie introduces the powerful Transformers Villain, the ancient Decepticon, the Fallen, who wants to destroy the sun and all life on Earth. The premise could have made for an epic sci-fi movie and a worthy follow-up TransformersHowever Too much CGI, product placement and an overabundance of action overshadowed any story.

The movie also received Criticism for using Megan Fox as little more than a sex symbolAnd this objectification of women followed the franchise through the Bay Area. Bay used IMAX cameras to shoot some of the action sequences, and it looks impressive, but it would have had more impact if the audience was connected to the plot. Another major problem with the movie was the comic relief with Skids and Mudflap, a racially insensitive addition to the Transformers lineup. The movie received one Oscar nomination for sound mixing but also won three Razzies, including worst director.

7

Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)

Mark Wahlberg’s first movie divided audiences

when Transformers: Age of Extinction was announced, it pleased old-school fans of the franchise. That’s because the Dinobots were coming, and the idea of ​​getting Grimlock on the big screen was very exciting. However, what ended up being an over-bloated movie. The story added a lot of human enemies, which often Foreshadow the arrival of the Dinabots. This included Kelsey Grammer as a rogue government official who has a CIA black ops team that hunts down and kills all Transformers – Autobots and Decepticons alike.

LaBeouf is gone, with Wahlberg as the new star. However, this replaces the popular “boy and his car” storyline with a generic “one father who wants to protect his daughter” plot. Furthermore, to see the rogue government agents team up with a Decepticon in lockdown and then create a new robot weapon using Megatron’s brain patterns, they have to look less than intelligent than the new villains. The dinobots looked great, though The movie has an over-reliance on actionA trait that has constantly plagued the franchise. While the movie broke $1 billion at the box office, it also won two Razzies in seven nominations.

6

Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)

The best of Michael Bay’s Transformers sequels

Transformers: Dark of the Moon brought back LaBeouf for his latest turn as Sam Witwicky, but this time Fox is gone, replaced by Rosie Huntington-Whiteley as his new love interest, Carly. Unfortunately, Bay continued to use the women in the movie as eye candy and that was about the extent of Carly’s role in the action. The movie also chose not to really focus on Sam anymore, which is one reason why LaBeouf left the franchise, feeling that his character didn’t mean anything to the story anymore (via The Guardian).

however, Dark of the moon Delivered more of the goods that made the first movie so great. The action sequences are more cohesive than in Revenge of the fallenAnd the jokes land better too. A lot of celebrated actors are also gravitated towards the blockbuster movie Dark of the moon Sports a supporting cast including John Turturro, John Malkovich and Frances McDormand. It was a pleasant surprise to see them crop up periodically throughout the 154-minute movie, which saw the Autobots’ former leader Sentinel Prime return, only to betray them and join forces with Megatron.

5

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023)

The maxims add to the fun

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Did what Age of extinction Has for old-school franchise fans: it promised the arrival of some beloved characters from other properties and this time it paid off. It was the Maximals, led by Optimus Primal, and his team because they had been hiding on Earth for centuries after the planet-devouring Unicron destroyed their world, and they had time-traveled back in time with the Transwarp Key. They’ve been hiding it for centuries, but when a museum comes into possession of half the key and accidentally activates it, Unicron sends his Terrorcons to retrieve it so he can start consuming worlds again.

While it almost sounds as confusing as The last nights story, it actually works here. That is because This movie has the best man cast of any Transformers MovieWith Anthony Ramos as a former soldier named Noah who wants to protect his family. He is joined by Elena (Dominique Fishback), a museum employee fighting for self-respect. This movie has a lot of heart, and it’s Noah and Optimus bonding that shows how great of a leader Prime is, even if previous movies showed him as more violent and destructive. About the best Transformers Ranked movies, this was the best major motion picture since the original.

4

The Transformers: The Movie (1986)

The original animated movie devastated a generation

Transformers: The Movie is a movie continuation of the original 1980s TV series, but audiences do not need to have seen the show to enjoy the film. The film has an extremely prestigious cast, as Orson Welles voices Unicron, a villain and original character from the release of 1986. The film’s hand-drawn animation is so detailed, and the voice acting is on another level of its peers. Transformers: The Movie is a lot of fun and a great piece of nostalgiaBut it also shows that the franchise was messy and convoluted long before Bay got his hands on it.

Non-stop action and fighting fill the film from start to finish, and even for fans of the TV show, it’s hard to make complete sense of what’s going on. Despite Transformers‘ Overwhelmingly popular in the 1980s, the movie only made $5.8 million worldwide on a budget of around $6 million (via Box Office Mojo). Word of mouth condemned it when parents revealed that Optimus Prime died in the movie, leaving kids upset. however, Transformers: The Movie Has picked up a cult following and its critical reception has improved dramatically over the years Transformers Movies ranked.

3

Transformers One (2024)

This animated movie brilliantly explores the origins of Optimus and Megatron

Transformers one Enters the franchise in 2024 by exploring the origins of Orion Pax and D-16, the robots that become Optimus Prime and Megatron. Although the two were at the center of several previous ones Transformers movies, the animated adventure adds new layers to them to make it feel fresh. Viewers get to watch as Orion Pax becomes more of a hopeful leader and maintains a positive outlook on the future of Cybertron, while D-16 succumbs to the hatred brewing within when Cybertron’s secrets are revealed.

On top of the brilliant story that explores the backstories and motivations of Megatron and Optimus Prime, Transformers one Brilliant thanks to its comedy, animation and action. The humor of the movie lands more than expected, and it is not overbearing or unnecessary. with Toy Story 4Directed by Josh Cooley, it’s an excellent look at the film as the bots explore Cybertron. And when it comes time for the robots to fight in Transformers oneUltimately, the action delivers the thrills that fans expect after the live-action movies.

2

Transformers (2007)

Michael Bay’s first movie is The Test of Time

2007s Transformers Started a multi-billion-dollar franchise, but when you look at the Transformers movies ranked, None of Bay’s others are more entertaining than the original. The first film captivated viewers from the first shot. A tracking shot of the Cube in space narrated by Optimus Prime gave off a sense of wonder that none of the sequels ever did. Transformers is a faithful adaptation of the source material, and the action is not overdone. More than anything, the film has some creative casting. Bay brought back Peter Cullen, the original voice of Optimus Prime, and cast Hugo Weaving as Megatron.

Transformers Also smartly focused on a man in LaBeouf’s Sam Witwicky. Make him a central figure and develop His relationship with Bumblebee and Optimus Prime really helped advance the story. The action is also great, as the franchise hasn’t started the overwhelming non-stop battle scenes of later movies yet. Seeing the Transformers morph was something new and fresh. It also picked up three Oscar nominations and impressed critics enough to keep it off the Razzies.

1

Bumblebee (2018)

The franchise reboot honored the G1 roots

Bumblebee It was a huge surprise to the audience, and some may have been shocked that it was connected to the overall Transformers Franchise. The film is a relatively quiet family movie, and it focuses on Charlie Watson’s (Hailee Steinfeld) bond with Bumblebee, giving the film more of a human element than any in the franchise since the original. It beats the 2007 film at its own game, viz Charlie’s relationship with the yellow transformer is more engaging and moving than even Sam’s was. Transformers Was supposed to be a boy and his car, but action overshadowed it. Bumblebee Indeed was the story of a girl and her car.

Six movies in, the series finally featured its first well-written female character as well, because Charlie wasn’t just a love interest or a sex object. She is mature, smart and entertaining. Along with one of the franchise’s best human characters, comparatively modest action and a well-crafted screenplay, Bumblebee Was a brave direction when looking at the best Transformers Movies ranked, what Received the best critics’ scores of the entire franchise, with 90% on Rotten Tomatoes. This was the movie that showed how important people were to the telling of the stories, making it the best of them Transformers Franchise.