The Transformers comics contain thought-provoking storylines and great characterisation. The reason the film is so dumb is because the director (and likely the exec producer) has no respect for the source material.
The argument that Transformers is just a toy-line is wrong, because TF has evolved into much more than that thanks to the comics.
Transformers, if done right, should have a similar feel to the Harry Potter films; dark, imaginative, and littered with vivid characters.