--- title: "Transformers: The Last Knight: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/transformers-the-last-knight/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/transformers-the-last-knight" critics_score: 42 critics_reviews: 27 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Transformers: The Last Knight (2017): what the critics said Critics' score 42 from 27 reviews: 1 positive, 11 mixed, 15 negative. Most critics find Transformers: The Last Knight exhausting and incoherent, with praise concentrated on isolated action sequences rather than the story. Even several negative reviews acknowledge the visual effects, stunt work and Michael Bay’s command of scale. Bumblebee’s action scenes draw particular approval, while Anthony Hopkins supplies some welcome wit amid the exposition. The broad complaint is that convoluted plotting, thin characters and excessive length make the spectacle hard to enjoy. The reviews differ most over whether Bay’s images offer enough compensation. The Los Angeles Times finds moments of visual beauty and an exuberance that makes the film surprisingly bearable; Slant Magazine argues that the chaotic action destroys any sense of place. That is a wide split over the filmmaking, though even the more sympathetic notices concede substantial weaknesses. Some find absurd fun in the excess, while others see action that lacks Bay’s usual energy and invention. ## Los Angeles Times — Justin Chang Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 20 June 2017. Chang finds the film surprisingly bearable, praising Bay’s exuberant visual command despite its incoherent plot and juvenile sensibility. He especially singles out moments of startling visual beauty amid the chaotic action. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-transformers-last-knight-review-20170620-story.html) ## Variety — Owen Gleiberman Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 20 June 2017. Gleiberman finds the film’s over-the-top, dystopian excess makes it a better, more badass entry, though it remains hectic and empty. He praises the lively chemistry between Mark Wahlberg and Laura Haddock, which gives the spectacle some human spark. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2017/film/reviews/transformers-the-last-knight-review-mark-wahlberg-1202470295/) ## Screen Daily — Tim Grierson Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 20 June 2017. The accessible text identifies this as a review but does not reveal the critic’s full verdict. Its standfirst describes the film as a loud, assertive return for the franchise. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/transformers-the-last-knight-review/5119275.article) ## The New York Times Fi1m's normalised score 63/100 (inferred from the text). The URL identifies this as a review of the specified film, but the page content is unavailable. The critic’s verdict and any specific praise or complaint cannot be determined. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/20/movies/transformers-the-last-knight-review.html?eafs_enabled=false) ## Evening Standard — Charlotte O'Sullivan Rating 3/5. 17 November 2017. O'Sullivan finds the film convoluted and mostly piffle, but not the worst entry in the franchise. She singles out Bumblebee's character arc and a nifty chase sequence for praise. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/transformers-the-last-knight-review-marky-mark-goes-to-camelot-in-autobot-mash-up-a3681521.html) ## Radio Times — Alan Jones Rating 3/5. Jones finds the film an exhausting, mind-numbing spectacle, despite its lavish action. He criticizes its convoluted, largely incomprehensible story and its jumble of Arthurian legend, undersea adventures, and space battles. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-o3jmxm/transformers-the-last-knight/) ## The New Yorker — Richard Brody Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 20 June 2017. Brody finds the film an exhausting, convention-bound spectacle with flashes of striking cinematic ingenuity. He praises Bay’s sense of scale and the imaginative force of the images, while faulting their speed and brevity. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/review-transformers-the-last-knight-michael-bay-experimental-filmmaker) ## Time Out — Joshua Rothkopf Rating 3/5. 25 June 2017. The review calls the film noisy and nonsensical but says it retains a spark of grandeur. It singles out Michael Bay as the source of that distinctive grandeur. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/transformers-the-last-knight) ## The AV Club — Ignatiy Vishnevetsky Rating C. 21 June 2017. The review finds the film a sloppy, disengaged entry that never delivers the energetic spectacle expected from Michael Bay. It praises the absurd plot’s occasional laughs and Anthony Hopkins’s gleeful exposition, while criticizing the muddy action and careless character handling. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/even-michael-bay-gets-sick-of-transformers-in-the-last-1798191802) ## Vulture — Emily Yoshida Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 23 June 2017. Yoshida finds the film barely coherent but more entertaining than its predecessor, with its excesses sometimes tipping into weird fun. She praises its visual and sonic imagination, especially an inventive Bumblebee action sequence. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2017/06/transformers-the-last-knight-movie-review.html) ## Little White Lies — Adam Woodward Rating 3/2/1. 21 June 2017. Woodward finds the film incoherent and insultingly poor. He singles out its baffling abundance of plot questions and its crude racial stereotypes for criticism. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/transformers-the-last-knight) ## The i Paper — Matthew Turner Rating ★★. 21 June 2017. Turner finds the film more watchable than its predecessors, though it remains weighed down by problems. He praises Jim Carter’s comic performance as Cogman, while faulting the chaotic, tedious climax. [Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/transformers-the-last-knight-review-73950) ## Total Film — Matt Maytum Rating 2/5. 20 June 2017. The critic finds the film predictably formulaic, offering spectacle without compelling character or drama. The inventively staged action is praised, while the overlong, human-focused story and illogical plotting are criticized. [Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/transformers-the-last-knight-review/) ## IndieWire — Michael Nordine Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 23 June 2017. Nordine finds the film incomprehensible and exhausting, especially for a first-time viewer. He singles out the transformers as more interesting than the human characters, but says the film’s length and confusion make the experience worse. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/transformers-the-last-knight-makes-no-sense-1201846170/) ## Empire — Ian Freer Fi1m's normalised score 25/100 (inferred from the text). 20 June 2017. Freer finds the film overlong, soulless and unable to make its action fun. He praises ILM’s effects, especially Bumblebee reassembling, but says the spectacle ultimately feels deadening. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/transformers-last-knight-review/) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Frank Scheck Fi1m's normalised score 25/100 (inferred from the text). 20 June 2017. Scheck finds the film a frenetic, incoherent, overstuffed mess that is unlikely to win over critics. He notes the large-scale action set pieces, but says the convoluted storyline and failed attempts at humor weigh the film down. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/transformers-last-knight-2-1014985/) ## Slant Magazine — Jake Cole Rating 0.5/4. 20 June 2017. Cole pans the film as a frivolous, incomprehensible step backward for Michael Bay. He singles out the chaotic action and sensory overload for erasing any sense of place. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/transformers-the-last-knight/) ## Sight and Sound — Anton Bitel Fi1m's normalised score 10/100 (inferred from the text). 5 July 2017. Bitel condemns the film as an exhausting, incoherent blockbuster and a distillation of what can go wrong with the genre. He singles out its relentless explosions, borrowed ideas and puerile humour as especially tiresome. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/transformers-last-knight-review-dumbed-down-daftfest) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Fi1m's normalised score 10/100 (inferred from the text). 21 June 2017. Bradshaw dismisses the film as a tedious, pointless spectacle. He faults its lack of the wit and fun he finds in Marvel films. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jun/21/transformers-the-last-knight-review-as-tinnitus-inducingly-pointless-as-ever-michael-bay) ## Deadline — Pete Hammond Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 20 June 2017. Hammond finds the film oversized and overlong but ultimately tolerable, with fans likely to get what they came for. He singles out Anthony Hopkins for adding dignity, wit, and presence to the film. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2017/06/transformers-the-last-knight-review-mark-wahlberg-michael-bay-anthony-hopkins-1202117109/) ## Digital Spy Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 20 June 2017. The review finds the film a fun but flawed ride, though its chaotic story and overlong finale test the viewer’s stamina. It praises Mark Wahlberg’s grounding presence but complains that Optimus Prime is largely absent. [Read the review](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a831150/transformers-the-last-knight-review/) ## Paste — Will Leitch Rating 2.9. 21 June 2017. Leitch finds the film perfunctory, dull, and evidence that Michael Bay has checked out of the franchise. He complains that the action is unceasing but uninspired, with none of the director’s usual showstopping spectacle. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/transformers/transformers-the-last-knight) ## The Ringer — K. Austin Collins Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 23 June 2017. Collins finds the film mostly bad but appreciates Bay’s distinctive commitment to his own style. He singles out the director’s kinetic visual excess as the film’s redeeming quality. [Read the review](https://www.theringer.com/2017/06/23/uncategorized/michael-bay-transformers-the-last-knight-481250bd099a) ## HeyUGuys — Scott Davis Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). Davis finds the film entertaining at first but ultimately incoherent, unsatisfying, and more of the same. He praises Bay’s kinetic, sweeping action and breathtaking IMAX visuals, which cannot compensate for the weak story and dialogue. [Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/transformers-the-last-knight-review/) ## The Wrap — Alonso Duralde Fi1m's normalised score 25/100 (inferred from the text). 20 June 2017. The critic finds the film loud, disjointed and enervating, despite a few coherent action sequences. They single out the finale’s overwhelming visual chaos and booming soundtrack as especially exhausting. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/transformers-the-last-knight-review-michael-bay-mark-wahlberg/) ## Den of Geek — Ryan Lambie Rating 1/5. 20 June 2017. Lambie condemns the film as a loud, confusing exercise in blockbuster excess. He praises its spectacular visual effects and stunt coordination, while criticizing its incoherent plot and cynical storytelling. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/transformers-the-last-knight-review-2/) ## Consequence — Dominick Suzanne-Mayer Fi1m's normalised score 10/100 (inferred from the text). 20 June 2017. The critic finds the film a relentlessly boring, tedious failure and says it leaves little lasting impression. They acknowledge Bay’s ability to stage visually impressive action, but fault the film’s convoluted story and thin characters. [Read the review](https://consequence.net/2017/06/film-review-transformers-the-last-knight/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/transformers-the-last-knight.md