Today’s Prayer Focus
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MOVIE REVIEW

Transformers: The Last Knight

also known as “Transformers 5,” “Transformers: El último caballero,” “Transformers: O Último Cavaleiro,” “Transformeri: Posljednji,” See more »
MPA Rating: PG-13-Rating (MPA) for violence and intense sequences of sci-fi action, language, and some innuendo.

reviewed by: Raphael Vera
CONTRIBUTOR

Moral Rating: Average
Moviemaking Quality:
Primary Audience: Teens Adults
Genre: Sci-Fi Action Adventure Sequel 3D IMAX
Length: 2 hr. 29 min.
Year of Release: 2017
USA Release: June 21, 2017 (wide—3,900+ theaters)
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Relevant Issues
Extraterrestrials

What does the Bible say about intelligent life on other planets? Answer

Are we alone in the universe? Answer

Does Scripture refer to life in space? Answer

questions and answers about the origin of life

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bravery / courage / self-sacrifice

being a hero

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Featuring Mark WahlbergCade Yeager
Anthony HopkinsSir Edmund Burton
Josh DuhamelColonel William Lennox
Stanley TucciMerlin
John TurturroAgent Simmons
Ken WatanabeDrift (voice)
Gemma ChanQuintessa
Omar SyHot Rod (voice)
Steve BuscemiDaytrader (voice)
John GoodmanHound (voice)
Laura Haddock … Vivian Wembley
Santiago Cabrera … Santos
Isabela Moner … Izabella
Jerrod Carmichael … Jimmy
Liam Garrigan … Arthur
Martin McCreadie … Lancelot
Rob Witcomb … Percival
See all »
Director Michael Bay
Producer Michael Bay
Ian Bryce
See all »
Distributor
Distributor: Paramount Pictures Corporation. Trademark logo.
Paramount Pictures Corporation
, a subsidiary of ViacomCBS
Corporation, a subsidiary of ViacomCBS

“For one world to live, the other must die.”

After the last war between the Autobots and the Decepticons (“Transformers: Age of Extinction” 2014), Optimus Prime left Earth and the TRF, a military unit commanded by Colonel Lennox (Josh Duhamel), was formed to capture or destroy all the remaining Transformers on Earth. Fortunately Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg) is still around to defend them, and, after a quick confrontation with the TRF, Cade escapes without noticing that an ancient talisman proffered to him by a dying Autobot has latched onto Cade, for reasons unknown. As it happens, the Decepticons, still led by the nefarious Megatron, are in search of that very same talisman.

Deep in space, Optimus Prime reaches his destination, the ruined remains of Cybertron in order to confront his maker, the being called Quintessa (Gemma Chan). The battle is brief, and Quintessa soon purges Optimus’ old programming and enlists him to find a ‘staff of power’ hidden on Earth that will allow her to bring Cybertron back to life, but at the cost of Earth’s existence.

Enter Oxford Professor Vivian Wembley (Laura Haddock), who has personally never believed that the stories of the ‘heroes of old,’ such as King Arthur, his knights and Merlin are true. Little does she know, but centuries earlier, a Transformer had given the wizard Merlin a staff that, in the wrong hands, will usher in the end of the world. Soon events beyond her control will bring her and Cade Yeager on a collision course with the mysterious Sir Edmund Burton (Anthony Hopkins) who may hold the key to finding the ultimate weapon, before it is too late.

An overly convoluted storyline? Certainly. Unfathomable decisions by our government and military? Naturally. A newly invented history of man involving Transformers in ages past? Of course! But none of this will come as a surprise to you if you have seen the Transformer movies before. Now wrap this story within massive CGI effects around a new world-threatening framework, and you have the latest in the series, “Transformers: The Last Knight.”

Perhaps the most ‘cheesy’ or lamely written entry of the series, some of the dialog needs to be heard in order to be believed. This newest Transformer film also has its share of questionable material that parents of younger children should be aware of.

Objectionable Content

Language: Heavy. The Lord’s name is taken in vain just over a dozen times—G*d (7), Chr**t (1), Oh my G*d (5). Crude language and curses included: sh** (32), son-of-a-b**** (1), b*t*h (6), as* (12), d**k-head (1), dam* (2), h*ll (9), pis* (1), skan* (1), cr*p (1), friggin’ (1), scrot*m (2), su*k (1), and bl**dy (1). The slang mo-** was heard twice, and the Spanish curse ‘p_to,’ which can be as offensive as the f-word, was heard once when spoken by a young girl. The demonic word ‘succubus’ is mentioned once, but, given the context, makes no sense at all. The obscene gesture of a middle finger, signifying the f-word, is done twice. We should not be surprised that this type of language flows so freely from our youngsters, when they are exposed to it in all forms of media—this movie included.

Sexual innuendo includes Cade remarking that Vivian is wearing a ‘stripper dress,’ followed by her offering to take it off if it makes him so uncomfortable. Later, while Cade and Vivian are ransacking a room, some old ladies are misinterpreting the sounds and words coming from them as signifying they are having sex. The ladies are searching the newspaper personals section for a man for Vivian, when one suggests “or a woman.” Sir Edmund receives a call from a lady wishing to ‘snuggle,’ but rebuffs the proposal. Vivian describes the male form suggestively during class, and a Transformer practically drools when he talks about slathering himself in oil. The juvenile innuendoes heard are actually less than some of the other Transformer films, but still remain at a level, to especially be avoided by kids and pre-teens.

Violence: Heavy. On the same level as all Transformer movies, people are caught in the crossfire during robot battles, as well as crushed, buried under debris, dragged by horses, set on fire, pierced by arrows, stuck down by swords, strafed from the air, shot at close range, exploded, and some fall seemingly to their death. Mostly bloodless, the scenes involving many people dying are shot from a distance, so no individual deaths can be seen. The overall peril is frequent, as with any war, and this one’s stakes are the life of this world. A mostly decayed body is focused on when a tomb is opened, and Earth can be seen being scraped by Exo-Cybertron in the early stages of remaking our world. The violence level is too intense for younger children.

Sex/Nudity: Minor. The young woman Izabella (Isabela Moner) is shown running toward the camera with her cleavage on display, and the camera likewise lingers on Vivian’s legs when she is first introduced, and later on her body, when she is in her tight dress. Kissing is shown twice, but more related to the danger of the moment than romance. Cade is seen shirtless, when he is trying to track the talisman, now in liquid metal form, that begins flowing about his body, ultimately ending up by his groin. Vivian is visibly flustered by his shirtless display, suggesting that no women were involved in the scripting of this movie.

Lessons

Transformers movies typically supply just enough exposition to set up the action scenes, but two topics worth noting and discussing here involved chastity and false idols.

CHASTITY: Sir Edmund remarks that Cade, despite his gruff exterior, has the qualities of a Knight, including the fact that he is chaste. Vivian presses the issue to learn that Cade has, in his own words been “saving himself.” We are meant to share in her mocking disbelief, and Cade’s embarrassment, as though this was a bad state in need of a remedy.

PURITY—Should I save sex for marriage? Answer

How far is too far? What are the guidelines for dating relationships? Answer

What are the consequences of sexual immorality? Answer

The Word of God wants us to treat our bodies as a holy temple (1 Corinthians 3:16) and, in this way, live life to the fullest, as we honor our Creator. However, this will require heeding God’s instruction.

“Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy.” —Romans 13:13

“Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul.” —1 Peter 2:11

SEXUAL LUST—What does the Bible say about it? Answer

Also see: lust and lascivious living

IDOLATRY: When Optimus first confronts Quintessa, she quickly gains the upper hand and reminds him, “I made you. You are mine to command!” Compare this to the only true God, who despite being our Creator has given us the freedom to follow and obey him or not. The consequences are another matter, but still our choice.

“I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the LORD your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him…” —Deuteronomy 30:19

“And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” —Acts 2:21

Is Jesus Christ the answer to your questions?Discover the good news that Jesus Christ offers


Paradise or Pain? Why is the world the way it is?If God is all-knowing, all-powerful, and loving, would He really create a world like this? (filled with oppression, suffering, death and cruelty) Answer

“Transformers: The Last Knight,” despite the top-notch effects, is a poorly conceived and executed film. Following a similar template from the others, this movie hits a new low when it comes to believability. Why does the TRF distrust the Autobots and Cade, but negotiates with Megatron? Why would the ‘maker,’ who holds the life of all Transformers in her steely hands, need a staff of power or even let it get stolen in the first place? Who would design a ship with an obvious weakness that would make the Death Star’s vulnerable exhaust port look like fool proof construction? There are more problems, but I digress.

To sum up, “Transformers: The Last Knight” has the feel, if not the look of a 2½ hour long cartoon feature that was given a blockbuster, live-action screen budget. I do not recommended it, unless you are going only for the special effects.

Violence: Heavy to extreme / Profanity: Heavy / Sex/Nudity: Moderate

See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.


Viewer CommentsSend your comments
Negative
Negative—I like action movies, and, sure, I can enjoy a sci-fi movie without getting overly spiritual about it, because it is made up, BUT they have gone over the top with this movie. Just like so many movies these days. Making the Transformers as evil looking as they can make them, even bigger, more insanely powerful, destructive and bad attitudes. The main one at the end, looking as much like a gigantic demon as anything in movies looks, I found myself constantly looking at the ground, so I didn’t have those images in my mind.

And one thing that frustrated me from the first 5 minutes was the over sexualizing the first child actress, and they made sure they said she was only 14. Showed her cleavage intensely in the beginning, then at least 2 more times, then her legs. Sick enough they do this with women, but children, that is even more sick. And they start with a child, then go to a woman, even positioning the child as the “sex symbol” first; they always have in this movie. Then the female actress, of course, they made it worse with her, however not as bad the whole time as the previous female actresses in the other Transformers. They also made a reference to her finding a boyfriend or a girlfriend, whichever was their attitude. They even made it sound like her and the main actor were upstairs having sex when they were looking for something and the 3 older women were listening; one even said she had to go peek! See all »
My Ratings: Moral rating: Extremely Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 3
Stephanie, age 43 (USA)
Negative—I believe that the review that was published on this site is spot on, the only point that really disturbed me and was overlooked by this review was the fact that the whole plot of the movie was steeped in an Illuminati-esque organization / secret society and witchcraft. The story line made this type of occultist organization look cool and alluded to ancient secrets that only “special” people are privy to.

The group is called “Witwiccans” and have access to all of the most powerful and influential people, even claiming that real life heroes like Harriet Tubman, and all sorts of politicians and famous people are apart of this cult. I think that children and especially preteens could be deceived into thinking this type of activity is “cool” and would be willing to sell their soul or take oaths to join.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Very Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 4
Dionne, age 38 (USA)
Editor’s Response—Thanks for bringing the “Order of the Witwiccans” to our reader’s attention. The story also implies that the family name “Witwicky” is linked to the Witwiccans. I agree that the secret society element of the story may be a matter for concern, as you described. Promotion of the occult seems less clear. Here’s some background supplied by 2 different Transformers wiki sites:

The Witwiccans are a faction introduced in Transformers: The Last Knight—a secret society tasked with protecting Merlin’s descendants, they’ve known about Transformers since the Dark Ages.

“During the Dark Ages, they are discovered by the human ‘wizard’ Merlin, who promises to keep their existence a secret. In 484 AD, however, Merlin calls upon the knights’ aid to help the forces of King Arthur defeat the Saxon hordes. The knights agree, and bestow ownership of the staff upon Merlin, coding it to his DNA.

Note that according to the story, Merlin is a fraud; he has no real magic or occult power; it is only Transformer technology that makes it appear Merlin has supernatural power. Also, the staff is not occult wizardry; it is Transformer technology.

“When Merlin passes away, the knights [Ancient Autobots] entomb his body, with the staff still in hand, in their ship, which they relocate to the bottom of the ocean, standing guard over it in stasis. Knowing that someday, Quintessa will come for her staff, and that that day will be marked by the emergence of a thirteenth and last knight, the Order of the Witwiccans is founded to watch over Merlin’s descendants. Over the following centuries, more and more Transformers will arrive on Earth and interact with humanity, but their presence is covered up by the Witwiccans.”

In a story whose primary audience seems to be preteen boys, it is a bit disconcerting that the authors of the Transformers saga chose to include the name Wiccans (referring to the Wicca religion) in combination with a secret society, as these things are both real and spiritually dark. It would be very sad indeed if this led some naive, confused kids down a path of spiritual darkness.

SEE these resources on our site: • What is Wicca? Answer • Learn about Wicca and Paganism and followers of Christ can help deceived minds

► For me, a more concerning issue about “Transformers: The Last Knight”, that no one has so far mentioned, is the film’s promotion of a variation on ANCIENT ASTRONAUTS claims. This is clearly more likely to deceive a greater number of people than the above mentioned concerns. This deception is actively used by some godless people in modern society to explain away Biblical miracles and events—and the claims of many religions.

It was developed in the 20th century and has particularly been used by some whose worldviews are Evolutionism/Atheism or New Age (or both). Its starting point appears to be with atheist author H.P. Lovecraft. Years later, this pseudo-scientific idea was famously promoted by Erich von Däniken (Chariots of the Gods) and others.

The claim is that extraterrestrials with advanced technology came to Earth in ancient times and were mistaken for gods, angels and supernatural activity—and that out of these encounters with naive and unsophisticated humans (who misunderstood what they witnessed), humans began to worship these aliens—and the world’s religions (including Christianity) are the end result.

Many sci-fi books, movies and TV shows have used and promoted this dangerous concept which, when accepted, leads people directly away from Biblical truth about Earth’s Creation, mankind’s place in God’s plan, Earth’s history of wicked rebellion against the Creator, and the record of His judgments. It is likely that this deceptive worldview was inspired by the Enemy of God and all mankind, and its use will likely be further developed in the future.

Movies that use and seductively promote the ancient extraterrestrial encounters fantasy include…

If nothing else, the mere CONSTANT REPETITION of this view of history in entertainment media is causing it to become embedded in the minds of billions of people, making it somehow seem to them less ludicrous than it really is. Discerning Christians know that we and God have an Enemy who is the father of lies who seeks to deceive the whole world.

PLEASE share your observations and insights to be posted here.