Lesson 143: Bumblebee – Finding a Fresh Voice

The Filmlosophers, Eddie Villanueva, Chad Riley and Spencer Williams, get a bit retro with this week’s spirited review of Bumblebee (2018). Set in the late 1980s, the film stars Hailee Steinfeld as the original teenage “owner” of the fan-favorite, speech impaired Transformer. Directed by Travis Knight from a script by Christina Hodson, this latest entry in the critically maligned franchise co-stars John Cena and features the voice talents of Peter Cullen, Dylan O’Brien, Angela Bassett and Justin Theroux. The big question this time around isn’t really about the storyline or characters…it’s whether or not audiences even want to spend money on a franchise that’s been the source of so much disappointment for a decade or more.

Listen in as we slice, dice, dissect and recombine our thoughts about the spinoff film, which is produced by Steven Spielberg and Michael Bay. Has it transformed us into true believers once more, or merely reminded us of the deceptions of the past?