Transformers Reviews: Our Verdict on Every Film

My Transformers reviews rank the series in three tiers: strong (Bumblebee, Transformers One and Transformers from 2007), mixed (Dark of the Moon, Rise of the Beasts and the 1986 animated movie) and weak (Revenge of the Fallen, Age of Extinction and The Last Knight). These are my opinions, and the reasons follow film by film. For the full order from first to last, see transformers movies ranked.

How do I judge a Transformers film? The way a mechanic judges a car: does the job get done, and can you see how. A good set piece shows you where each robot is, what it is trying to do and what it costs. A bad one is a pile of metal parts that are impressive one at a time and unreadable together. Practical stunts and real locations count for a lot with me, because they give the computer animation something solid to sit next to.

Yes, in my opinion, Transformers (2007) is a good movie, and the reason it holds up is scale. Transformers 2007, directed by Michael Bay, took $709.7 million worldwide on a $150 million budget according to Box Office Mojo. The story is a teenager, Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf), and his first car, which happens to be Bumblebee. Around that sit the Decepticon strike on a US base in Qatar and the hunt for the AllSpark, with Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime and Hugo Weaving as Megatron. John Turturro as Agent Simmons adds the comic relief. At 144 minutes it is long, but, like a first car, the first Transformers is easy to forgive.

No, in my opinion, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) is not a good movie. Transformers Revenge of the Fallen, also directed by Michael Bay, runs 150 minutes and spreads itself across the NEST task force, Sam leaving for college, an ancient master called the Fallen (voiced by Tony Todd) and a shard of the AllSpark that brings household appliances to life. Each idea needs room, and none gets it. It is also, paradoxically, a huge earner: $836 million worldwide on a $200 million budget.

Of the three later Bay sequels, Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) is the best for me. Transformers Dark of the Moon has a good hook, a crashed ship on the far side of the Moon and the Apollo 11 mission that secretly went to investigate it. Leonard Nimoy voices Sentinel Prime, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley joins as Carly, and the film opened in 3D and IMAX on its way to about $1.12 billion worldwide. My verdict is mixed, because the ideas outrun the final act.

Transformers Age of Extinction (2014) reset the human cast around Mark Wahlberg as the inventor Cade Yeager, with Stanley Tucci and Kelsey Grammer. Lockdown, the bounty hunter working for the Creators, is a strong antagonist. At 165 minutes it is the longest of the live action films, and it took about $859 million of its $1.10 billion from outside the US. My verdict is weak, mainly on length.

Transformers The Last Knight (2017) opens in 484 AD with Merlin and the Knights of Iacon, then adds Anthony Hopkins as Sir Edmund Burton and Gemma Chan as Quintessa. It is the most ambitious of the five Bay films, in my opinion, and the most overloaded. It earned $605 million worldwide on a $217 million budget, with only $130 million at the US box office.

Bumblebee (2018) is my pick for the best Transformers film, and Transformers One (2024) is second. The Bumblebee movie, directed by Travis Knight, is set in 1987 California, with Hailee Steinfeld as Charlie Watson, John Cena as Colonel Jack Burns and a yellow Volkswagen Beetle doing the heavy lifting. It runs 114 minutes, shot around San Francisco and Vallejo, and it knows exactly whose story it is. It made $468 million on a $135 million budget.

Transformers One, directed by Josh Cooley, is my second pick. This animated spin-off follows Orion Pax (Chris Hemsworth) and D-16 (Brian Tyree Henry) before they become Optimus Prime and Megatron, and the Cybertron design gives the film a look of its own. It grossed $129 million on a $75 million budget.

Transformers Rise of the Beasts (2023), directed by Steven Caple Jr., is a mixed verdict. The 1994 Brooklyn setting, Anthony Ramos as Noah Diaz and the Peru locations are real strengths, and Ron Perlman and Michelle Yeoh bring the Maximals to life. The return was thinner: $441.7 million worldwide on a $195 million budget.

The Transformers: The Movie 1986, directed by Nelson Shin, is mixed to good. It runs only 85 minutes, features Orson Welles as Unicron and Leonard Nimoy as Galvatron, and grossed $10.9 million worldwide. Perhaps the best reason to watch it is the Stan Bush song "The Touch" over the Vince DiCola score.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) was the most successful by box office, at about $1.12 billion worldwide, ahead of Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) at $1.10 billion. The full table, with budgets, is in transformers box office.

Overall, the franchise is a hit, though a fading one. Every film with a listed budget grossed more than that budget worldwide, and two passed $1.1 billion. Studios do not publish marketing costs, so I cannot say how profitable the later films were. Both Transformers One and Rise of the Beasts earned well under half of what Dark of the Moon did.

There is no next Transformers film to review yet. TheWrap reported on October 6, 2026 that Michael Bay is in early talks to direct, with Steven Spielberg overseeing and Jason Fuchs writing, and that Shia LaBeouf is not returning. The film has no title, cast or release date, and its status is in development. Follow it at new transformers movie.

If you are new, start with the Bumblebee movie, then follow transformers movies in order. To see which service carries each film, check where to watch transformers.