Transformers

Post by **Graham Kennedy** » Sun Jul 15, 2007 7:32 pm

So has anybody seen Transformers yet? And if so, is it any good?

DBS · Post by **DBS** » Sun Jul 15, 2007 7:52 pm

For my money it was ... interesting.

They really did a fairly decent job of setting up the actual conflict, and it more or less is logical. The Bad Guys aren't just doing it for the sake of being evil, they just want power and don't care who gets hurt in the crossfire. Humans deserve what they get because they are not advanced.

If you can stomach the ludicrous amounts of American product placement, and the usual American military chauvenism (albeit to a lesser degree, since the point is that the Transformers are more advanced, we still end up rooting for the cavalry to arrive...).

You don't get the idea that other countries exist except for a little consternation about the usual "baddies" in the beginning. Multiculturalism and internationalism basically amount to a few token minorities and one or two accents. As far as gender relationships go, the female characters are actually important to the story, but they were nonetheless cast to provide eye candy for teenage American boys.

With those caveats, however, it was enjoyable and entertaining enough. I personally wouldn't pay for full theater admission again, but it would be worth seeing as a rental or in a second-run theatre ...

Sionnach Glic · Post by **Sionnach Glic** » Sun Jul 15, 2007 9:59 pm

I thought it was good, not great but good.
DBS pretty much summed it up there, I would personally wait to rent it on DVD when it comes out.

Foxbat · Post by **Foxbat** » Mon Jul 16, 2007 3:21 am

... having just missed out on the Transformers as a kid (dammit it all...) I knew the basics of what was going on. What I expected was short on plot, long on action and CGI. I got exactly what I expected, so I was entertained. One of the hardest parts for me personally was trying to keep track of which 'bots were on which side when they got into close range combat.

I was not offended by the corporate sponsorship. It's America, and Hollywood, and it's about $. I knew it going into it, and I expect it will be that was for a majority of the modern movies I intend to see in the reasinable future. Doesn't mean I have to buy anything...

JudgeKing · Post by **JudgeKing** » Mon Jul 16, 2007 10:38 am

All I can say is: Make a sequel Michael Bay. We liked the destruction and action.

The Wormhole · Post by **The Wormhole** » Mon Jul 16, 2007 1:32 pm

The movie was better than I expected it to be. My only real complaint is that they didn't really develop the Decepticons at all. The movie goes on for too long before Starscream finally shows up. And they could have spent less time on that awful teenage romance story with its dreadful dialogue. Actual quote from the movie "You think I'm shallow, don't you?" "I think there's more to you than meets the eye." I groaned over that, and I think I heard a few other groans in the theatre.

Still, bad romance and a collection of other lame lines aside, it's an entertaining movie, with some really cool action scenes. Also, the scene in the middle when the Autobots arrive on Earth is a damn cool scene and one of the best in the movie.

Foxbat · Post by **Foxbat** » Mon Jul 16, 2007 2:53 pm

I did like the 'Evil Jock Concubine' quip though...

The Wormhole · Post by **The Wormhole** » Mon Jul 16, 2007 3:01 pm

Foxbat wrote:I did like the 'Evil Jock Concubine' quip though...

I'll admit, I did laugh over that one. That was good.

Space Ghost · Post by **Space Ghost** » Mon Jul 16, 2007 6:02 pm

I have to admit that going into it, I had very low expectations. But I was pleasantly surprised.. it was pretty good. And that's saying a lot because I HATE Michael Bay. I was also fortunate enough to see it in a digital theater and it looked great!

Varthikes · Post by **Varthikes** » Tue Jul 17, 2007 12:56 am

I saw it a few weeks ago.

I REALLY enjoyed it! There was a great mix of humor, awe, and action. A great Bush joke. There may a few things that might make you cringe, but those, to me, are minor.

If you do see it, be warned of some crude humor.

Bryan Moore · Post by **Bryan Moore** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:47 pm

I have zero desire to see it, despite liking the series to an extent as a kid. It just doesn't look well done.

celeritas · Post by **celeritas** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 12:25 am

i think i'll probably go see it this saturday. but before that i'm going to watch the 1986 movie again and see spock kill starscream.

RK_Striker_JK_5 · Post by **RK_Striker_JK_5** » Wed Aug 01, 2007 3:57 am

Been a trans-fan since 'the time of the beginning'. When the G1 series was a week-long special in 1984. 23 years, a lot of toys, lots of comics, episodes...

I loved it. Another facet of the mythos. Peter Cullen's voice was perfect. The Autobot camaradie(sp) was nice. Little touches here and there made my day as an old-school fan, while keeping it fresh. the designs rocked and... well, I actually could tell what was going on.

Sam and Mikaela join the short list of cool humans in the TF multi-verse. As well as Lennox, Epps and Secretary of Defense John Keller. and to me it was actually refreshing to see a government official and the US military shown as competent and not pigheaded.

Oh, and the toys, for the most part, rock.

Blackstar the Chakat · Fri Aug 10, 2007 3:48 am

It was a great movie. I just wish we saw more of the Decepticons. We didn't see too much of them until they began going after the Allspark in the final battle. Also, I love that the military people weren't all incompetent idiots. In fact one of the goverment guys supported the heros instead of going "but they might be a threat to national security".

The 'American military chauvenism' as someone put is partially because the military was involved with the film, providing many of the military vehicles in it including two of the three CV-22's in service, F-117s, C-130, and C-17s. They also let this crew film at the Pentagon, the first since the 9/11 attacks

Oh, and I don't think the product placement was too bad. Besides the movie came in under budget because of it. Now consider that they used special effects in 90% of the move, and took 38 hours for each frame of animation.

Not only is the animation awesome, it wasn't heavily emphasized on except in a few intro scenes. And the Transformers were awesome because they moved fluidly and they just felt real. And during the process of designing these bots all the parts of the robot actually fit in the car(that's why Jazz was so tiny).

Oh, and here's an interesting tidbit, for the scene with Scorponok bursting out from the sand and attacking the soldiers, the effect was achieved by detonating primer cord under the sand. The explosions would be in close proximity and very dangerous to the actors in the scene so before the scene was filmed, Michael Bay told the actors to run and keep running no matter what happens or else they could seriously be injured or even worse, killed. As a result, the look of panic on the actors' faces as they flee from Scorponok in this scene is 100% genuine.

I can't wait for the sequals. Yes, they greenlighted two sequals. Many of the major actors have already signed on, and although he hasn't signed on(for leverage) Michael Bay already has some ideas including an aircraft carrier transformer. (I don't know who that'll be or how they'll pull it off).

This is the best movie this year, and it will be one of my top 5 favorites

celeritas · Post by **celeritas** » Fri Aug 10, 2007 3:53 am

i might go see it tomorrow...i've been putting off watching movies for a long time now.

Transformers

Transformers

What I thought...