Michael Bay: Shameless and loving it

Halfway through “Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon,” I was smiling. Partly out joy, this being the most summery of summer blockbusters I’d seen … oh, this summer, at least. But partly out of amazement, too, at Michael Bay’s shamelessness.

I mean, seriously, how can a filmmaker be both an exploiter of the female form and try to pass off bad plotting as poitical correctness at its most blatant? The moment comes near the end when, just as one of the Autobots is kicking the ass of another, our Megan Fox-substitute — supermodel-turned-uh-actress? — Rosie Huntington-Whiteley , whispers Iagolike into the ear of one of the Decepticons.

Now, I have no problem with plot stretches. But this one is simply too much because it makes no sense. The bad bots are on the verge of winning everything, and one simple little suggestion is enough to make them ignore good sense and start fighting each other? Please.

It’s clear that Bay, with the help of screenwriter Ehren Kruger, is trying to make Huntinton-Whiteley’s character part of the action. I mean, you have Army commandos, intelligence agents, Bots of all shapes and sizes and even a weirdo or two (John Turturro is back), all working hard to avoid humankind from being subjugated … or worse.

But it’s our shapely Iago who, unaccountably, makes the difference. Hey, Michael Bay the feminist! He likes woman who look good and not only can shake but kick booty.

Makes me smile just thinking about it.

Below : Michael Bay’s new secret weapon.