Sunday, August 31, 2014

Transform!...Must we?

Since 2007, the Transformers series has premiered four films, grossing over three billion dollars. Each film drew in their viewers with the promise of exploding cars, shattering buildings, and scantily clad women. They kept their promise by producing four movies chock full of the American ideology of materialism.

Everything in the films is about having the fastest, shiniest, and newest versions. As a country, America has always been one to encourage consumerism regardless of necessity. It's nearly impossible to watch 5 minutes of television without being bombarded with car commercials selling their "New and Improved" model.

Keep in mind, only the strongest and most developed Transformers can survive. It's as if director Michael Bay is trying to convince his audiences that they can only survive and thrive as a person if they indulge in the consumerism of the nation. If you do so, all your problems in life simply vanish, as long as you have that car.

An integral element of the Transformers is that they are always changing and never really keep the same form. Audience members watching the movies are thrilled when their favorite character changes into a new and improved fashion, completely forgetting how much they adored their prior appearance.  In the same manner, the American economy constantly convinces consumers into purchasing new products that are essentially identical to the last. As a nation, we are constantly transforming. Whether our next version will be better, that is unknown.






5 comments:

  1. I enjoyed the first one. I liked the direction you went with this.

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  2. This is an interesting and quite clear message sent throughout these movies, now that I think about it. In the past I had paid attention to slightly more obvious issues such as the scantily clad women and the messages they sent. Thank you for allowing me to critique these moves with a new lens.

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  3. I agree completely. I had never noticed these aspects of the films before - good analysis!

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  4. I like this analysis and I think it proves that no matter what we have, we always want more. We seem to never be satisfied and I never would have thought to see this idea portrayed in the Transformer movies. I think it is a new perspective, good job!

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  5. I think this is a very accurate analysis of modern day culture. Like you said, people are always looking for the newest gadgets and appliances to make their lives "better" even when they are often completely unnecessary. For example, people wait outside the Apple store for days every time a new iPhone comes out, even if they already own a working smartphone. This was a really interesting way to think about the film, nice job!

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