9 Lessons I Learned from Transformer 4: The Age of Extinction [Spoiler Alert!]

I watched Transformer 4 two times already. First with my mother and brother (I told my mother, “It’s going to be more than 2 hours…” She arrogantly replied, “Even 10 hours, I don’t care.”). And secondly with my friends (sponsored ticket). For me the movie is very good, excited, entertaining, imaginative, fun, humorous – and undeniably too long. I kind of ‘addicted’ to Transformers film series since Transformers (2007), Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009), Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) and now Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014). Seven years being faithful followers.

Do you know? On 2013, there are three possible titles for Transformers 4 which were Transformers: Last Stand, Transformers: Future Cast and Transformers: Apocalypse. But after that they revealed one last possible title, Transformers: Age of Extinction. You know the outcome already.

The movie start after the battle at Chicago five years ago when geologists discover a dinosaur corpse turned to or covered in strange unknown metal. Sixty-five million years ago, the flashback, there were beings known as the Creators “denoted many Seeds wiping out most of life on earth.” Then our new hero, Cade Yeager (acted by Mark Wahlberg), a struggling inventor and single father, come into the scene. One day he found an abandon old truck, bring it home and repair it with the hope that he may sell it. His concern is to send his daughter, Tessa (acted by Nicola Peltz) to college. He didn’t know that the old truck is none other than an injured Optimus Prime. At the same time, an elite CIA agents known as Cemetery Wind with the help of Transformer’s intergalactic bounty hunter, Lockdown, hunt down Transformers – Decepticons and Autobots – all together from the face of the earth. And so the adventures, secrets and avengers begin…

Apart from some negative receptions from my friends about this movie such as the overall directing, length and script writing, I personally find that this movie (again) must be praise for the action-packed scenes, great visual effects and Mark Wahlberg’s acting performance. I also think that this movie should be praised for its moral values. I learned:

1) To see that there is greatness and potential in everyone of us. When Cade Yeager found and bought the old truck home he didn’t know that it is the injured Optimus Prime. The rusty truck is actually the legendary leader of the Autobots! Some people that we meet or perhaps ourselves may look “rusty” from the outside but inside if we look deeper there is a great potential within us if only we let God change us from the inside out.

2) To (sometime) say “No” to good thing so that we can say “Yes” to something better. When Yeager found out that the truck was Optimus Prime, he changed his mind. He doesn’t want to report it to the government and get the reward money but instead he repairs it and work alongside Optimus because he know that there is something big is about to happen – he don’t want to miss it! How many time we missed a lots of opportunities that God have in store for us when we say “yes” too soon?

3) To be royal and faithful to our leaders. When the remaining Autobots (Bumblebee, Crosshairs, Drift and Hound) receive Prime’s command “Calling-all-Autobots!” message and then get to know that Prime is still alive – they rejoice! In their discipleship, they’re faithful to the end even that mean, to some of them, loosing their own souls (“sparks”). Ratchet, the Autobot’s medical officer, even willing to died than to reveal where Prime is to Lockdown. When Christ, our Leader, called us into the new life in Him, He wants us to be Christians that is royal (undivided heart) and faithful (obedience to His Word). We must be willing to abandon and sacrifice our lives for Him if that is required of us to serve Him. We are not just people (“Transformers”); we are Christians (“Autobots”)! 

4) To not underestimate others. After the incident at Cade Yeager’s house in Texas, the CIA hunts down both Prime and Yeager’s family. They are looking for them but they hardly find them. Attinger, the leader of the CIA said to his field leader, James Savoy, “You said he (Yeager) was a nobody!” Don’t underestimate others. Don’t underestimate what God can do through you. Throughout the Bible and even today, God is still using the nobodies (shepherds, tax collectors, fishermen, carpenters, young men and women, old people, mechanics, dancers, security guards, teachers, uneducated parents, etc.) to accomplish His purpose and plan. Are you a ‘nobody’? Good! God may use you if you trust Him.

5) To take actions even if we don’t know what lies ahead of us. Cade Yeager when he realized that he is dealing with something bigger than himself said this: “I’m doing things out of my league” – move ahead and doing his best to save humanity. He and his alien gun. When we don’t know what lies ahead of us, just move on, not by sight but by faith – take actions.

6) To realize that we can’t control our sinful nature. Joshua Joyce, the head of KSI, has perfected “transformium, a codeable, molecularly unstable metal that the Transformers are made of” and created human-made Transformers by using decoded dead Transformers’ brains. (Galvatron was created using data from Megatron’s brain). When they tested the prototypes, they soon realize that they can’t control all of them. Galvatron had manipulated and corrupts all the drones. In the same way, we sometime think that we are in control but actually we are being controlled. Maybe we are being control by our lusts, anger or whatever manifestations of sins (“Megatron’s mind and evil desire”) in our lives. Its time to let go of our sinful nature and let God through His Son, Jesus Christ, to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

7) To ask for help and to offer help when there is a need. When Optimus Prime found out that the Autobots and humans are in danger, he releases and tames the Dinobots, the Transformers’ legendary heroes. With their help, they destroy Galvatron’s army in no time. We need to be humble (even if we’re the leader) and ask help from people. And when our help is needed, like Dinobots, we must ‘rush’ to help too.

8) To love our enemies. Autobots was once an ally to the human. But after the world is peaceful and the war end, they turned against them. The human betrayed the Autobots. But what the Autobots finally do? They protect the human beings from the real enemies. This is forgiveness. If the machines are willing to forgive the humans (humorously speaking), and if Christ the righteous One are willing to die for us the sinners (seriously speaking), aren’t we suppose to forgive and love our enemies?

9) To have hope in humanity. Since the incidence in Chicago (Transformers 3), Optimus Prime has lost his faith in humanity. He even considers leaving the planet earth until Cade Yeager manages to talk and restore his faith in humanity. “We are human,” said Yeager to Prime, “we make mistakes.” He reminds Prime that it is by ‘mistake’ that he found and saved him. Yeager continues, “Have faith Prime...” And then Optimus Prime changed him mind. Though we read and hear many news about what is happenings in Malaysia and the world today such as the missing of MH370, the crash down of MH17, the war in Gaza, the persecution due to racism and religious agendas, the corruptions and human slavery, etc. – as long as God is on the throne, we still have hope for humanity. God will never leave us. God will still use us – humans that makes mistake we are – to accomplish His will in this world. Have hope in humanity because no matter how much we failed and sinned, we still bear “the image of God” within us. We are redeemable, we are savable and we can be righteous in the sight of God by grace through faith in Christ. We can be useful and we can do many good things and can make the different in this world if God’s Holy Spirit works in us. Have hope people!

Cade Yeager asks Optimus Prime, “Will we ever see you again?”

“Cade Yeager, I do not know,” he answers.

“But whenever you look to the stars, think of one of them as my soul.”

Do you know what Christ would say to us now if we ask the same question to Him?

He would say: “Be sure, I will be with you. You will know that I’m always near you.

 And whenever you look at the Cross, you know that I love you.”

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.