After 2007’s Transformers brought that franchise to the big screen via a live-action production, the next 16 years spawned six sequels/prequels/spinoffs. With 2024’s Transformers One, we go back farther in the characters’ pasts and also find the first fully animated Transformers effort in this 21st century cinematic series.

On the planet Cybertron, a substance called Energon allows some special sentient robots to also transform into various vehicles. Many lack the cog necessary to do this, and Orion Pax (voiced by Chris Hemsworth) falls into that category.

Orion finds himself stuck as an Energon miner but he dreams of better things. Along with his pal D-16 (Brian Tyree Henry) and fellow miners Elita-1 (Scarlett Johansson) and B-127 (Keegan-Michael Key), Orion launches a quest to prove they possess more than meets the eye.

Although I've seen all the Transformers movies, I don’t consider myself a fan. I was old for the toys/cartoons in the 1980s, and the films have largely been mediocre to bad.

This sent me into One with muted expectations, to say the least. The decision to forego elements on Earth and take us to the origins of Optimus Prime, Megatron and the rest might delight those who love the franchise but for those of us with less interest, the concept seemed less than compelling.

To my surprise, Transformers One ended up as a pretty good little flick. While it does nothing new and can feel like a conglomeration of nuggets from other movies, it nonetheless comes together in a lively package.

Director Josh Cooley came from the Pixar ranks. He directed 2019’s Toy Story 4 and he wrote 2015’s Inside Out. That pedigree carries over to One.

In particular, Cooley shows an ability to develop characters better than we’d expect from the Transformers franchise. Again, I don’t want to pretend that the movie turns into anything remarkable, but Cooley manages to grant the various roles more personality and spark.

Cooley also ensures that One doesn’t get dumbed down for the kiddies. Not that this turns into a deep and nuanced flick that will alienate the younger members of the audience, of course.

However, Cooley doesn’t pander to the little ones. We get no fart jokes or cheap gags that come with too many movie aimed at children.

That allows One a level of sophistication one doesn’t expect from a Transformers flick. Perhaps I should put “sophistication” in quotes due to the factors I mentioned, but One nonetheless comes with more cleverness and nods toward an adult audience than one might expect.

One never takes itself too seriously, and that means a slew of gags and funny bits. It packs loads of clever little background/throwaway jokes and keeps matters delightfully flip and witty.

We also find a fine voice cast. In addition to those already mentioned, we get folks like Steve Buscemi, Laurence Fishburne and Jon Hamm, all of whom add personality to their roles.

While I don’t want to make Transformers One sound like a classic, it does accomplish its goals. The movie provides a lively and involving mix of comedy, action and character elements that turn it into a consistently enjoyable experience.

Footnote: we get a short tag scene early in the end credits and another after their conclusion. The first offers a little bit of comedy but the second pushes toward a potential sequel.

Transformers One appears in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. As expected, the movie came with a terrific Dolby vision presentation.

At all times, sharpness excelled. The film offered tight, concise imagery without a hint of softness along the way.

I saw no signs of jagged edges or shimmer, and edge haloes also failed to appear. In addition, source flaws never created distractions.

Colors offered quality material, as the movie’s palette came across with punch. Though much of the film opted for the usual orange/amber and teal, the settings and characters came with enough variety to add spark to the proceedings. HDR added punch to the colors as well.

Blacks seemed deep and dense, while shadows were smooth and clear. Whites and contrast enjoyed a boost from HDR. This turned into a top-notch image.

Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, the movie’s Dolby Atmos soundtrack added pizzazz to the proceedings. As expected, the battle or flight-based scenes offered the greatest sense of activity and involvement, as those used the elements to swarm and move around the room in an engulfing manner.

Other scenes created a good sense of the story as well. Even basic environmental sequences worked well and delivered a nice experience.

Audio quality succeeded as well, with natural, concise dialogue. Music seemed full and rich.

In addition, effects appeared accurate and distinctive, with nice low-end response. The soundtrack suited the film and added excitement.

How did the 4K UHD compare to the Blu-ray version? Both came with identical audio.

As for the Dolby Vision image, it offered superior colors, blacks and sharpness. While the BD looked great, the UHD topped it.

Five featurettes appear, and In the Beginning runs 10 minutes, 14 seconds. It provides comments from director Josh Cooley, producers Aaron Dem, Mark Vahradian and Lorenzo di Bonaventura, executive producer Zev Foreman, production designer Jason Scheier, writer Eric Pearson, editor Lynn Hobson, head of cinematography Christopher Batty, and actors Brian Tyree Henry, Keegan-Michael Key, Chris Hemsworth, and Scarlett Johansson.

The show looks at story and characters, the shift from live-action Transformers to animation, cast and performances, what Cooley brings to the project, and animation techniques. Though it comes with some fluff, this nonetheless turns into a moderately informative piece.

World Building on Cybertron spans nine minutes, 37 seconds. This one involves Dem, Cooley, Key, Foreman, di Bonaventura, Scheier, Vahradian, animation supervisors Rob Coleman and Stephen King and visual effects supervisor Frazer Churchill.

“World” examines the movie’s depiction of the planet Cybertron and its inhabitants. Despite some of the same self-praise found in the prior show, “World” nonetheless comes with enough substance to make it worthwhile.

With Together As One, e find an 11-minute reel. It gives us notes from Cooley, Dem, Vahradian, di Bonaventura, Henry, Hemsworth, Key, and Johansson.

This brings us a look at cast and performances. It becomes another reasonably useful mix of puffery and insights.

The Iacon 5000 lasts six minutes, 26 seconds. Here we discover remarks from Cooley, Hobson, Hemsworth, di Bonaventura, Foreman, Vahradian, Scheier, Dem, Batty and visual effects producer Fiona Chilton.

As implied by the title, “5000” deals with the movie’s race sequence. It functions in a positive manner.

Finally, The Battle for Cybertron occupies eight minutes, 59 seconds. It provides statements from Hobson, di Bonaventura, Hemsworth, Batty, Cooley, Key, Pearson, Dem, Vahradian, Foreman, Scheier and compositing supervisor Alex Fry.

“Battle” gets into the movie’s climactic sequence. It becomes another reasonably informative reel.

A second disc provides a Blu-ray copy of the film. It comes with the same extras as the 4K UHD.

After 17 years, Transformers One finally brings a Transformers movie that I liked With a lot of heart, laughs and action, the film becomes an enjoyable origin story. The 4K UHD boasts excellent picture and audio as well as a decent collection of bonus materials. A pleasant surprise, this turns into a solid adventure.

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