Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts Avant Premiere In Peru & Movie Review

The Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts Avant Premiere in Peru was held this weekend in three cities: Cuzco, Tarapoto and Lima (the capital). Being the very first movie that was able to be filmed in ancient Machu Picchu, it got a lot of attention not only by local Transformers fans but also general public, media and official tourism agencies. Nothing like a mix of big transforming robots with ancient Inca culture in a blockbuster!

You can read a non-spoiler review of the film after the jump. Was Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts what fans were expecting? Let’s find out… with no spoilers.

That being said, this newsie of yours had the chance to attend the event. The theater was specially decorated for the occasion with special displays of Haslab Unicron, Beast Wars, Optimus Prime and modern figures from Museo Transformers (located at the same mall). Attendants were treated with snacks and beverages from Cuzco and a beautiful performance of traditional dances by @winaypaq.peru and the presence of Hasbro and UIP Peru representatives and selected guests. Our local Transformers Peru collector group was surprised by the official Peruvian Tourism Agency with a silver Autobot medal as a recognition for our support to the movie and franchise.

Let’s roll:

• Plot and pace: A great decision to make this movie to last around 2 hours. The movie feels so well paced and you get engaged in the story easily without unnecessary fillers. It starts hot and I mean really hot, then we go a bit slower but with some really touching moment with nice fun scenes, and then we enter into a carnival of action and fight scenes. They kept the feeling and engaging plot they got in the Bumblebee movie but with a generous doses of explosions, fights and violence that we enjoyed in the Bayverse era. A fun movie with a simple plot but really enjoyable for general public, not only Transformers fans.
• Characters: We got a pretty decent cast of Autobots and Maximals with a great time slot on screen which made our beloved robots the main stars of the film. Some of the characters have a few lines, but they are more action than words, so each of them have great moments on the screen. Not much character development in general, but each character played his/her role well for what it was needed. Noah is my favorite human partner of the live-action movies now. His friendship with Mirage is one of the most fun and touching parts of the movie. A great duo indeed.
• CGI & Special Effects: Have to admit the animation felt a bit less polished than previous Bayverse movies, but can’t call it a bad job. Action scenes were fluid, fast but enjoyable and easy to watch and we have quite so much time of robots in the film that I prefer that over super polished animation for just a few minutes on screen.
• Photography and direction: If there’s something that has been a constant in movies with Peru and its culture it’s that we are usually represented as Mayan, Aztecs or Mexican. Kudos to director Steve Caple Jr, for his amazing job at showing the beauty and majestic of Machu Picchu (first movie ever filmed in the citadel), Cuzco and Peruvian jungle in all their glory. Transformers has taken our culture to the world. One detail that made the audience stand and shout was the use of Quechua, the ancient Incas language, as well as some Peruvian slang in some dialogues. I hope all fans around the world will consider coming to Peru to enjoy our landscapes and mountains. Indiana Jones may learn a thing or two about this movie.
• Music: I’m a rock and heavy metal guys all the way. Not that I dislike Rap or Hip Hop but it was not the music I grew up with in the 90’s (salsa and other Latin rhythms were more popular here by that time), so the soundtrack was a new experience for me… and I was completely satisfied. The tunes go well with all the scenes and sound in the right moment and special remark with “On My Soul”. I expected it to play just in the credits, but the song was inserted in the perfect scene and time in the film and I can’t take it out of my head now. The score and orchestral music was top as usual with any other Transformers film, another fine work which really helped to rise emotions over the movie.
• References: G1, Bumblebee movie, Bayverse, you can find all for everyone here. Not only in the dialogues but in the music. You will be brought back to the 90’s in all possible way.
• Continuity: I won’t go deep here. Just go a watch the movie and decide for yourself, but there are tons of surprises, specially with one of the last scenes that will give us a lot to talk about on the boards. While it’s recommended to watch the Bumblebee movie first, ROTB is still enjoyable and easy to understand without it.
• Veredict: As a Transformers fan and humble Peruvian citizen I give it an absolutely non-objective 100/10. Now, just as a regular movie fan, I would give it a solid 7/10. It’s a great change of vision for a Transformers movie. It’s not a masterpiece but it’s a fun movie to watch with friends or family. I’m sure most fans will be pretty satisfied with Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts. Get ready to roll out and maximize on your favorite theater!