Transformers Movie Review Thread (SPOILER WARNINGS)

[Code of Honor]

It's finally here, the Transformers live action movie is open.:D Everyone, post you reviews, thoughts, and discuss the film here. SPOILERS ARE ALLOWED, so to any one who does not want to be spoiled, do not scroll down!

Enjoy the movie, I know I will.

[Ondoher Prime]

not mine but from a colleague back home...
Philippine Transformers Premiere (http://cybertronphils.proboards18.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=Announce&thread=1182958517&page=1)

am very envious... can't wait for july 2...

[ANDROID PRIME]

Im going to see it tonight in toronto. cant wait, work has never gone by slower. cant wait to disscuss with my fellow canadian TFans.

[BadJeff]

Going to see it tonight too...this is going to be the longest day at work ever...10 more hours..

[devilsknight]

Just found out i won a pair of tickets to tonight's screening in Toronto...this is gonna make my day go so much more faster !

Dang man this is awesome i'm so stoked !!!

WOOOO !!!

[Nyghtwynd]

I KNOW! so freaking long till i see it tonight. Seems it'll be a mini Cybertron.ca meetup lol

[General Tekno]

Feels like an eternity until the movie screening tonight...

[Razorwing]

I don't have tonight's tickets.. but I will see it in 4 days. :D.

[Nyghtwynd]

Hahh first one back!!!

I must say it is so far the best movie i've seen this year. The CGI blew me away. The comedy from the Autobots was great, and....

JAZZ!!!! T_T He was so young...

[Razorwing]

how was Ironhide? lol.

[Nyghtwynd]

Leaking Lubricant! lol

No, that was Bumblebee. Pissed on Simmons!!!

[BadJeff]

Yep, just got back. Still numb. So F'n awesome I don't know what to say.
*SPOILER*
That little Nokia they gave a shot of cube juice was crazy. Little f'er peppering the glass n shit trying to bust out. Absolutely killer stuff!

[BadJeff]

Ironhide was SOFA KING awesome!

[MightAsWell Go4ASoda]

Awwww Charles posted first. No fair i had to take the bus. All together wasn't half as bad as i'd thought i'd be. Sure there wasn't really a plot, Just a lot of giant robots blowing shit up. But come on, who doesn't like that? *SPOILER* As for Jazz, never really cared for him anyway. and we all know Megatrons coming back somehow. Hopefully Soundwave will be in the next one.

I'm so going to see this again.

[Nyghtwynd]

Me Grimlock want to be in sequel!

Oh yes, those who saw it, what was that one trailer, the one we said might be Godzilla?

[MightAsWell Go4ASoda]

"Soundwave superior, Constructicons inferior."

They better put him in there dammit. And he better be a tape deck.

[Nyghtwynd]

AH it was Bad Robot studio or something... Google search turns up 2 thing, one i think is...

Lost, and a 2008 Star Trek movie

[MightAsWell Go4ASoda]

I'm still thinking it was Godzilla. And fuck man another Star Trek movie? Jesus, i think i'm all Trekky'd out. and we are straying way to far from the original concept of this thread.

Talking Star Trek in a TF forum? It's madness i say, MADNESS

[Nyghtwynd]

Madness? THIS IS CYBERTRON(.ca)!!!!!!

[MightAsWell Go4ASoda]

ROFL now we're on to 300. STILL MADNESS.

THIS. IS. A TF FORUM.

[Code of Honor]

Cool, cool, cool, cool, the movie was AWESOME! There were some problems, like the editing, thin plot, and lack of character in the third act... that is all. the CGI was perfect, not once did it take me out of the experience. watching Ratchet speak and Jazz moving was amazing. I find that I can't pick my favorite fight, but the coolest fight scene was Prime putting his sword through Bonecrusher's head and then cutting it off. It's also a very funny movie, most of the scenes involve Sam, but the Autobots have some really hilarious parts as well.
I'm seeing it again next week sometime, I'll have more to say after the second viewing.

Please try and keep this Transformers movie related I don't want to have to delete post.

[MightAsWell Go4ASoda]

LOL decided to actually add in the cool cool cool cool thing eh? well you're just saying what we're all thinking. That definatly was the best part of the movie. Optimus pwns Bonecrusher with a freaking sword in the head. Nothing could possibly take away the awsome from that.

[Oreobot]

I guess this is the place for discussing the comic adaption of the movie too...because the details should be the same in both.

I just read it the whole comic adaption tonight. I can't believe how many characters they killed off. And Jazz died...so why are they coming out with a repaint of him? Does the colour scheme fit into the movie somehow, because it wasn't in the comic.

I figured when they killed the minion Decepticons that the robots that carried them would get it, too, so I'm not surprised.

I see Seibertron.com posted that a sequel just got the green light, but where can you go with this storyline? They killed, like, half the cast, including Jazz and Megatron. Unless, this is a toy commercial, as in they'll introduce new characters so people will go out and buy more.

[Code of Honor]

LOL decided to actually add in the cool cool cool cool thing eh? well you're just saying what we're all thinking. Yeah, thats what my mind went to when I started typing.

I just read it the whole comic adaption tonight. I can't believe how many characters they killed off. And Jazz died...so why are they coming out with a repaint of him? Does the colour scheme fit into the movie somehow, because it wasn't in the comic. That's Hasbro, getting as much use out of the molds as possible.


I see Seibertron.com posted that a sequel just got the green light, but where can you go with this storyline? They killed, like, half the cast, including Jazz and Megatron. Unless, this is a toy commercial, as in they'll introduce new characters so people will go out and buy more. Can't wait, hopefully Summer 2009. There's many, many places they could go with the story. For one Megatron will be back, no way he's dead, Starscream, Barricade, and Scorponok were also not killed. There are a lot of characters they can bring in for both the Autobots and Decepticons. I think they have more then enough to do a trilogy.

[Oreobot]

So, if the Decepticons didn't really die,do you think that Jazz really died then? Could they bring him back or was it clear he was finished?

[Synch]

yes jazzs death was disapointing... the flick and the fights went by so fast I had trouble keeping up with some of them... Like I missed half the thing w with optimus and the sword killing that guy... I duno I must have blinked or something :D

Either way it was highly enjoyable! Though my main problems with it were...

Frenzy... I guess they had to make him all gadjety or he would be far too terminatorish :|

Man he was annoying though! I didn't really mind but all his chatter was uhg...

the allspark...

Why was it only creating bad robots?.. Shouldn't it have made some Good robots too?!??!?!...


Example... DEWBOT! (err the pop machine... ) was a evil robot I loved the throw in of him though since I love his design & the game was fun too :D



& that main s7 guy was really annoying... Who acts like that?!...

Other wise the movie was great and I didn't mind the human bits at all which is good cause it was basically most of the movie :) Sam and his chicka were great!

To put it simply ... I don't care how much of a die hard "g1" "fan" you are if you don't go see this movie in theaters even if its just on a cheap night you are a $(&*#ing moron :P

[Code of Honor]

So, if the Decepticons didn't really die,do you think that Jazz really died then? Could they bring him back or was it clear he was finished?
it's clear that Jazz is dead, along with Brawl, mistakenly named Devastator (how could they miss that), Frenzy, Blackout, and of course Bonecrusher.

[darthrage]

Is it like the underlying theme of reviewers to say that thin plot is a negative thing??

Have you seen a Michael Bay movie before??

Have you ever really noticed something really deep in the plot?? sheeeeeesh

Did the original cartoon ever have lots of depth to it in the first season??

We all know the plot by now, this movie is about the Transformers, thats the most important thing. The focus is not on a pair of glasses or a big black cube.

As long as I see photo-realistic robots battle the hell out of each other, I am happy

[ANDROID PRIME]

I Loved the movie. The autobots were spot on! i didnt think they would pull off jazz but they did. did any one notice that he break dance transforms.

I think they could have taken rachel taylor and anthony anderson characters right out of the movie and i dont think any one would have missed them. they could have used that time to develop the decepticon characters.

not enough megs starscream dialog.

Frenzy was alot cooler than I expected. I loved that they threw in the part where the human was like, hey a boom box i better bring it inside. pure g1

I didnt really understand why the allspark killed megatron. and i wish they elaborated on the sparks a bit more. also did any one find it wierd when prime was saying. "shove the cube in my chest!"

[Synch]

I was thinking it was going to lead to the creation of the matrix or something and then the autobots would all get magicly healed and repaired and maybe some upgradeds & then kick the deceps ass...

I am glad that did not happen but uh yeah...

I agree with you ... Not enough explaining going about :D Like how would some grunt like BB even KNOW how to alter the allspark?.. :S

It still sorta annoys me that it only created evil life WTF?.. :S

[Synch]

Is it like the underlying theme of reviewers to say that thin plot is a negative thing??


We all know the plot by now, this movie is about the Transformers, thats the most important thing. The focus is not on a pair of glasses or a big black cube.



It does not matter if thats what bay always does it does not make it any less right...

Yeah speaking about the glasses Just how would megatraon know where the cube is anyways?.. & imprint it on that guys glasses?.. Did the humans not find it and take it and move it some many years after that ?..

Or was the cube just stuck where it was and the humans who found it just built around it?..

That is confusing to me as well now that I think about it... I also think its a miracle that the entire time all the cops & s7 and what not guys were taking down BB & spike err sam... that the glasses did not get STEPPED ON LOL

[Synch]

Anyways don't let my biatching about a few minor details and negatives fool anyone here I enjoyed the HECK out of this movie its well worth seeing I am going to see it again next week

[BadJeff]

[ Did the humans not find it and take it and move it some many years after that ?..

Or was the cube just stuck where it was and the humans who found it just built around it?..]



The cube was in the same place it landed, Hover dam was built around it to conceal it along with it's energy signature, Megatron was moved there during construction back in the 30's.

[Synch]

ah ok thanks man I was not all too clear on that :D I found it kind of interesting that they linked Sams past family to the transformers as well I kinda liked that actually :)

What I didn't like is they said almost all our tech came from the TFS :S weird...! Oh well its still a great movie HEHEH

[Nyghtwynd]

I think i found out why the Allspark was creating evil. From what they said, most of modern technology was developed due to megatron being reverse-engineered. It might be possible that the machines touching the Allspark had Megatron's influence form that, and thus tainted the ALlspark with some evil.


Either that or Michael Bay thought it's cool.

[Nightscrabbler]

Either that or Michael Bay thought it's cool.

Actually, in the case of the AllSpark, it was Spielberg who thought bringing electronics to life and making them try to kill mankind was cool. They call it... the pulse.

[Nyghtwynd]

Actually, in the case of the AllSpark, it was Spielberg who thought bringing electronics to life and making them try to kill mankind was cool. They call it... the pulse.


Well then, I stand corrected. Regardless, that Nokia was a murderous psychopath!!

[Synch]

Yes where do all there bullets and missiles & such come from too?.. :) I can see the all spark creating life but not weapons & such ... seems sorta odd...

SHAN Hey man nice idea... that could work for me I suppose :)

[Nightscrabbler]

Yes where do all there bullets and missiles & such come from too?.. :) I can see the all spark creating life but not weapons & such ... seems sorta odd...

SHAN Hey man nice idea... that could work for me I suppose :)

What idea?

Posted my review on my personal website though www.shan.ca.TF

[Synch]

its one post up I didn't think I would have to quote it.. :P

[Nightscrabbler]

its one post up I didn't think I would have to quote it.. :P

But what idea? Spielberg's idea of bringing electronics to life? I can't stand that idea.

[Code of Honor]

I have to admit that I didn't like that idea either. It didn't even work in the movie. What was shown was cool, like the killer cell phone and the pop machine shooting cans of pop. They created these things but very little was done with it, and it was never resolved, that's part of the thin plot. The Allspark creating the Transformers and turning a rock into Cybertron is fine as an easy origin, but doing what it did in the movie just didn't work.

[C_Shewins]

Watching Transformers tonight. It seems ok from what the review off you guys. I hope it won't disappoint me. I just watched Fantastic 4 last night n it SUX big time....

[Synch]

Funny I enjoyed ff :) Though I was expecting it to be just as silly and goofy as the last one I duno why everyone figured this one would be a billion times better :S

Just ignore anything negative you have read about the movie don't even think about anything you have read about the movie other than the fact that it is good when you go see it:)

[Bumblebee78]

I just arrived from the movie theater. Here are my impressions about the movie:

+ Very interesting characters
+ CGI
+ Most of the acting is quite OK

- Product placement is quite annoying (GMC, XBOX, ...)
- Not enough character development (hopefully, the sequel will have more)

As a whole, I really enjoyed the movie. I will go see it again and can't wait for it to be out on BlueRay!

[Decepticon Army]

Oh man! Oh man! Ohhhh mmmaaannnn!!!!
What a kick a** movie.
I loved it. The transformations, the battles, the quotes, even Prime's lips I found to be great. It gave him more character and the ability to express emotions much like Optimus Primal.

I also love how they pulled in other factor's from different TF series (ie Sparks).
The VA's rocked, and I love the fact that many of the Decepticons survived and will most probably be seen in Transformers II.

Worth the 4 yrs of waiting ... ... now ... how long until 2010?

[StarwarsTF]

Hey just got back from seeing "HASBRO" I mean Transformers..wow Z ZZZZzzzz ZZZZ best two and half hours of sleep I ever had.

Just kidding, it was "OK!"

[Razorwing]

I loved it. I was AWESOME.

[Protoman]

10 out of 10, the movie was a perfect balance of humour, character and ACTION! I don't know what to say...... the audience loved it.

[GMfan]

Guess what I just saw :P

It was amazing and to make my review neutral I took 3 people with me that cover the 3 types of people who will see this film.
Viewer #1) A hardcore TF fan/collector
Viewer #2) A softcore TF fan/non-collector
Viewer #3) A neutral TF fan (doesn't love or hate)

and the final quotes from each
Viewer #1) "OMFG I'm seeing it at least 2 more times"
Viewer #2) "Holy crap remember when (insert any action scene here)"
Viewer #3) "I can honestly say that was one of the best movies I've ever seen" (and this is one of those people who usually say afterwards "it was ok, I won't want to see it again but it was ok")

I really don't know what I can say about it. Some parts were alittle drawn on but I'll shoulder that feeling to me wanting to see more robots. Some said previously that we don't know why the robots are fighting. Listen closley and you find out why, they don't throw everything at you in this movie but if you pay attention you'll catch on. Characters were well developed and Frenzy (though annoying at times) was not over done and his annoying nature kinda lives up to his G1 character including his loyalty to the decepticon cause. Originally there were things that I thought would bother me like Prime without a mouth plate, the storyline, and some (not all) of the character designs. The action was just plain mind blowing and in the end it all woked out well and couldn't have asked for a greater film and one of the best ways I've spent 2.33 hours in a long long time. Since we have a good feeling there will be a sequal, this movie sets the franchise up well as a good introductory story. The potential is there for another great Transformers film with more of our favourite G1 characters and maybe even some new and interesting characters.

[Quantum]

Holy Fuck! All I gotta say is that that was one of the best movies I've ever seen. I'm completely blown away.

I'm not sure why people are saying it had a thin plot. The plot was simple, sure, but not thin. It was consistent and believable, at least in my mind.

It was waay funnier than I thought it would be, and the CGI was unreal.

I'm totally going to see it again, more than once.

[Pascal]

Movie was good but several characters lacked characterization... that movie should have been 3+ hour long. Megatron was my favorite character in the movie.

[Robimus]

Loved, loved, loved the movie.
I totally agree that the plot wasn't thin(some people think every Sci-Fi film ever made has a thin plot).
The nicest surprise for me I think was the acting and the humor. I thought Shia LeBeouf was excellent, the actors who played his parents were great as well and John Turturro was really special(makes me want to run out and watch The Search for One Eyed Jimmy again. DISCO BEAN BABY YEAH!!!)
And what about Peter Cullen and Bay's decision to cast him, just BRILLIANT!!! The movie would not have been the same without the Prime voice we all know and love. Loved his voice over work at the start and end as well.
Writing in some lines from the G1 series and 1986 movie was a stroke of genius as well."One shall stand, one shall fall!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
ILM did a great job as all ways. They will get the Oscar for visuals for sure!!!! I hope they dont get jobbed like they did in 1999 on Star Wars Ep1. These effects are just as revolutionary as Jar-Jar and Watto were then. Like Jar Jar or hate him that was a huge step in visual effects.
In fact this film could easily be a dark horse for best picture and best directer in my opinion.
The only thing I think they dropped the ball on dramaticly was the death of Jazz(Dont hate me please.....)In this film Jazz was a nothing character( he is my favorite character ever, just not in the film)
The audience really connected with Bumblebee and his death would have meant something and had an emotional impact on people. While Jazz's death may mean something to us long time fans I think most of the audience kind of shrugged and asked the person beside them: "which one was that again?"
Anyway, to repeat, I loved the film. Nuff said.

[ohnaji]

Just got back from seeing the movie. I'm still basking in it's awesomeness. This is a great summer movie, and in my opinion will be held as a new standard for films based on toy properties.
Watching this film on opening night brings out the more hardcore fans, and that's probably the best way to view it. There were so many moments that the audience broke out in a collective fangasm, that I couldn't help but be swept up in it myself. What surprised me the most was how charming the Autobots were. Bumblebee and Optimus in particular were the most endearing. As a team the Autobots are just fun to watch. Ratchet's a medic but he kicks ass. It's a shame Jazz got killed off, but maybe for the sequel the filmmakers could bring in Blaster as his brother or something.
The Decepticons proved to be every bit as evil as they should be unfortunately they weren't on screen as much as I would've liked. Starscream had great moments, but that was all. Megs totally worked on screen, probably the best way for his character to be translated to film. It might be my imagination, but was Hugo Weaving doing his best Leonard Nimoy impersonation? Anyway, the time Optimus and Megs were battling each other was epic.
Thanks to Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg for elevating a simple toy concept to a cinematic work of art.

[C_Shewins]

Just came back from the movie. The line up is crazy...I went there almost 2 hours earlier, still only in the middle of the line up. My buddies like it a lot, they said it is the best movie for the year, but too much comedy. I think it is not bad either. Now I know why Scorponok has an ugly robot mode for his figure...he has never transform in the movie at all, probably that's why Hasbro didn't do a good robot mode for him. Bumblebee is COOL and BRAVE which makes him my favourite autobot in the movie, he stands out alot in the movie. I am looking forward to watch another chapter if there is going to be one. I give the movie 9/10.:)

[the Stealth M.C.]

Just watched the 8 pm show at Paramount/ Scotiabank in downtown Vancouver.

I LOVED IT SO MUCH. I'm still wiping the tears of joy from my face. I must have teared up 4 or 5 times. I'm so happy. That's going to take several theatre re-watches.

I hope Jazz comes back. B-boy transformation! BRILLIANT!

[pokoyg]

One of the best 2hours and a half of my life! That movie was everything I've ever wanted. And what about that soundtrack? Wasn't that amazing? Especially that music they played in the introduction and sometimes during heroic moments in the film. It was very beautiful and I still have it in my head.

I agree with some that some of the transformers needed more characterization. But that's the only drawback of having a 2h30 long movie and not a 5hour long (it would've been unreal anyways). We almost knew nothing of the Decepticons except that some of them die rather quickly (Bonecrusher, bummer cuz he was too cool). I got used to see transformers blasted into pieces and not dying (Waspinator).

I really thought Starscream would've had a bigger role in this movie (the so-call tension between him and Megatron was so-so and so brief) but doesn't matter 'cuz he'll be backk wuahahah. Also, what happened to barricade? (I don't remember) It seems we didn't hear of him anymore after the highway incident. Oh and I'm really mad that Jazz got ripped apart by Megatron like a piece of cloth, I would've liked it better if they made that moment more dramatic but I guess that was appropirate since he wasn't that much of an "important character".

Oh and was Brawl actually called Devastator? Well that got me by surprise...

Anyways 10/10, best movie of the year, best action movie ever!!! (biased opinion)

[ohnaji]

Robimus makes some great points regarding the actors. Shia was a standout in terms of his role, and the on screen chemistry he has with Megan Fox makes their parts even more significant. Loved Turturro and Voight, they brought some great panache to tertiary characters. What surprised me the most about the human roles was how much they complimented the story. There's so much joy in each performance, it's fun to watch.
I too loved it when Optimus and Megatron were seemingly repeating lines from the original 86 movie. I got shivers. When Megatron calls Sam a fleshling, I got with a huge wave of nostalgia. It was so good.
Bringing back Peter Cullen as Optimus was an inspired decision. The moment he was heard on screen, everyone in the audience I was part of screamed with glee, myself included.
I don't think Jazz needed to die in the way he did. He's a cool iconic character in Transformer lore. If an Autobot death was needed to show how evil Megatron is then why not someone like Gears (never liked that character). Jazz deserved better, no doubt.
If a film like Gladiator could win best picture, hey Transformers has a chance. I'm pretty sure the award for best visual effects is locked.

[darthrage]

amazing!! Watching it again

9 out of 10!!!

It would be 10 out of 10 if Decepticons had more screen time but that should probably be explored more in the 2nd movie.

[C_Shewins]

It would be 10 out of 10 if Decepticons had more screen time but that should probably be explored more in the 2nd movie.

Maybe Megatron is gonna be Galvatron next chapter? LOL that would be freaking awesome!!

[Nyghtwynd]

Maybe Megatron is gonna be Galvatron next chapter? LOL that would be freaking awesome!!

I'm still not conviced he's dead, considering the comic adaptation's last page of him, and the remaining peiceof the Allspark.

[AUTOMATON]

Saw the movie last night at the Laval Colossus Theatre, the place was TOTALLY jampacked with fans!!Not a single seat was left free! The movie was totally awesome with unearthly visual effects; entertaining not-so-kiddish humor(thanks to the PG 13 rated), and surprisingly good acting for this ''type'' of movie.

Having Cullen to voice Prime was worth alone the ticket price and the 2 hours lineup IMO. I really enjoyed the Autobots as a team. Decepticons are great too but suffer from less screen time. I was surprised to see that Starscream in particular hasn't got much of a role... but Megs does and that's great!

The insertion of numerous ''classical lines'' from the 1986 movie and original series brought torrents of joy, and fans(including myself) were popping at every one of them. Technically, the movie does suffer from short moment of confusion in some fight scenes(the camera is sometimes too close to the action) but that's a small drawback that translates, to some extent, the general confusion and panic of having giant robots trashing around.:D

Bumblebee was definitely a crowd-favorite, especially with non-fans. Jazz was a little bit of let down: he's almost like a shadow roaming around the other Autobots and his death brings nothing emotionally. Hugo Weaving as the voice of Megatron was a pleasant surprise: a fine blend of the original Welker's Megatron and Nimoy's Galvatron.

Overall, I'm stunned with this flick: it's even superior to what I was hoping for. As a fan, I'm very pleased but as a movie fan, I'm even more satisfied.:D All the seeds for a sequel are there at the end of the movie so bring more!!! Big kuddos to Michael Bay too, I was one of the ''infidels'' who thought he couldn't pulled it.

Please GO and see this action-packed and fun movie and bring with you at least one non-fan..he/she will be pleased too.;)

[GMfan]

I'm still not conviced he's dead, considering the comic adaptation's last page of him, and the remaining peiceof the Allspark.

Ditto, I think the Allspark may have just shorted him out and he'll be back for round 2. If its anything any incarnation of transformers has shown us it that Megatron doesn't go down so easy. I doubt he'll be back as Galvatron if at all. Even if they do chose to bring in Galvatron it won't be till the 3rd movie (where they rumor Unicron's arrival). I just don't think Unicron will work again...its been done and they should keep this continueum original.

[RED51977]

Saw the movie last night at a 9pm show and LOVED EVER MINUTE OF IT was the second best movie I've ever seen (next to the star wars saga). The movie was amazing from start to finish seeing cybertron was cool, the action was great, and of course when Prime said roll out that made the movie. Just an amazing movie experience as one of the first movies I remember as a kid was the original Transformers movie this one was like being 7 again. Planning on seeing it a few more times this week as it has a repeat value to it and try and see anything I missed from the first viewing as it's alittle bit of sensor overload.

10 out of 10

[Benzo]

just got back from seeing the movie and man oh man it was great!! this was the only movie I've ever watched that I loved from start to finish! I'd probabaly blinked like a few time during the entire movie. just couldn't keep my eyes off the screen! the acting was great and the CG was awesome! I'm gonna have to go see this movie again soon for sure!!
geez, I can't wait for the DVD to be released! :D

update: just got back from seeing it again!! so awesome!

[BadJeff]

I can't wait for the DVD to be released! :D

!

You're telling me. Can't wait to sit in the "BadRoom" and watch this one. It'll be complete sensory overload.

[Aernaroth]

Ok, first off let me say that I've been bitching and moaning about how the movie was going to hurt my soul for quite some time. That being said, I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. It was a lot better than I was expecting.

The less serious, almost humorous feel it kept at times
worked out very well, even bumblebee's radio gags made me laugh. It was a good way to do a movie about giant robots beating the hell out of eachother in a fight for survival, ironically.

I also was satisfied (not happy or overjoyed, mind you) with how the autobots were done. Despite their forms, I felt the voice acting and body language were done well enough to really make them feel like characters, rather than plot devices. I don't like any of the head designs, and I dont really like the forms, but like I said, I felt they were done reasonably well. I felt ratchet and jazz were done in a manner faithful to the originals (jazz was obviously updated to coincide more with current urban culture, but again, it worked), and bumblebee was done in a way I really liked (they did a very good job of portraying his role as a courageous guardian, IMO). The somewhat darker, almost more jaded Prime seemed more realistic than some of his more idealistic incarnations, and again, this worked for me. Ironhide's transformation (no pun intended) into a trigger-happy maniac (he reminded me of the weapons officer from Enterprise, and that's not a good thing I dont think) irritated me, but I can accept it.

The decepticons received very little characterization, however, to their detriment. Megatron was done very well by Mr. Weaving (which I did not expect), but I found his troops to be disappointing. Blackout, Barricade, and Brawl/Devastator acted as little more than rampaging monsters, which I can understand is probably to focus on the plot and the autobots, but it would have been nice to have at least some characterization for them. Frenzy I did not care for, as he resembled less of a robot and more one of the gremlins from the movie of the same name. Again, however, I can see what Bay was trying to do though.

There were a lot of areas I felt I was let down, though. Its true the movie is a summer blockbuster and a Michael Bay film, but still, I expect more than to just sit back and enjoy the explosions. Except for the Witwickys (Witwickies? I dunno), I felt the human characters felt more 2-dimensional and artificial than the transformers. The soldiers were nothing we hadn't seen before a thousand times, the cruel government agents were nothing new, and hell, there were even two strong-willed female characters with technical abilities placed to upstage the males around them. Why was Maggie even in the movie? There was really no point to her character that I saw.

Also, although some of the sequences looked good, such as the highway chase and the military base, Bay's jerky camera movements, combined with the models used for the transformers, resulted in the battle sequences looking like a tornado of metal parts most times. I think it could have been done better.

That's the majority of what I thought, at least.

[Powered Convoy]

Just saw it, way better than I expected! The movie basically made me believe the Autobot/Decepticon war was really happening.

[A_U_T_O_B_O_T]

Ditto, I think the Allspark may have just shorted him out and he'll be back for round 2. If its anything any incarnation of transformers has shown us it that Megatron doesn't go down so easy. I doubt he'll be back as Galvatron if at all. Even if they do chose to bring in Galvatron it won't be till the 3rd movie (where they rumor Unicron's arrival). I just don't think Unicron will work again...its been done and they should keep this continueum original.

Unicron has been shoved down our throats in the last couple of years. I hope that they don't use him in the sequels and add things to the story that don't need to be included. They just need to stick to the formula that has made Transformers awesome, humans, Autobots and Decepticons.

[darthrage]

just wanted to let you guys know that the 2nd viewing is even BETTER!! You pay more attention to the things around the screen

[Synch]

Unicron has been shoved down our throats in the last couple of years. I hope that they don't use him in the sequels and add things to the story that don't need to be included. They just need to stick to the formula that has made Transformers awesome, humans, Autobots and Decepticons.


there is a LONG LONG way to go before unicron comes!! maybe by TFTM #10?.. :P even then more like #20... I would think they would have to work up to it in all the movies... Plus we have really seen zilch of cybertron they would have to make it liveable again ect ect

[C_Shewins]

there is a LONG LONG way to go before unicron comes!! maybe by TFTM #10?.. :P
I don't expect there will be TFTM #10, haha. But highly expect there will be a 2nd one right now. I hope they won't put unicron in it...then it will be over for the movie, no 3rd TFTM for sure if they do it at the 2nd one. Or it won't be good anymore even if there is a 3rd one.

[protoform_ironhide]

Hi, everyone. I am new to this forum. After watching transformers, got influenced by my friends. I have decided to collect some transformers. And Yes, it is the movie that got me into this. The movie was great, but they should have more transformers' story instead of the story for the humans. I give 7.5/10. I am looking forward to see another new transformers movie, and hope it will get better.

[Crobot91]

Entertained definitely, but a bit disappointed. Too much attention to CGI detail - less is more, I guess. Very confusing at times - in terms of sequencing. Editting was bad - they could've made the movie 1/2 hour shorter (too many human characters that had no overall imapct; i.e. blond chick with fat nerd).

What really disappointed me was Jazz's death - like someone already mentioned - killling off Bumblebee would've given the movie more of an impact and would've been more felt by the moviegoers. Killing Jazz off was as bad as killing off Cyclops in X-Men 3 - poor judgement IMO...

Maybe I'm getting too old for this type of entertainment, lol... SM3 was much better IMO.

[Grimlock74]

What a great movie,i loved it from begin to end.
Optimus Prime kicked Bonecrusher's Ass,he had no chance!!!He sucked anyways,bad toy as well!!!!
I hope that they don't use that Unicorn in the next movie,been there done that!!!!
Anyways i expect to see the movie maybe two more times before next week.....

[darthrage]

Who's is going back for seconds or thirds?

I'm going a third time tomorrow with some friends and the a fourth time with my family

[jacobot]

Saw it yesterday on the way home from work:eek: ...and today(12:10 show):D ...maybe tomorrow;) ...but definately taking my kid on saturday.

Wonderful movie to get the general public on board. Just not enough straight out transformations for me though. It is either elaborate but piecemeal from all angles or so fast you barely see it. Hopefully the CGI will improve on the next movie.9/10.

[In Flames]

Wow... I haven't posted for ages. Amazing movie, 9/10, easily the best I've seen this year. However, some of the Transformers could have used more character development, most notably Jazz and Bonecrusher. They both pretty much do nothing the whole movie, then show up for a kickass fight scene and die. Whats with that? Even the other characters with non-speaking roles did more (Blackout's grudge with the soldiers, Brawl's general hatred of anything in his way.). The humans were done very well, as were most of the Autobots, especially Ratchet and Ironhide. The Decepticons "speech impediment" made them seem that much more cold, uncaring, and alien. CGI was amazing.

[skrilla 88]

I just finished watching the movie..twas bonerific :p.My only complaint i wanted to see more action with bone crusher and prime.THE DUDE POPPED HIS HEAD OFF!!!PRIME COLD BLOODED!!! o.0

Also what happened to starscream i saw him jumping from jet to jet then the scene shift to pirme and megatron is scream still alive?And how did barricade die (wasnt paying attention)

[Crobot91]

Also what happened to starscream i saw him jumping from jet to jet then the scene shift to pirme and megatron is scream still alive?And how did barricade die (wasnt paying attention)

I guess you didn't stick around for the closing credits 'cause they briefly show Starscream exiting the earth's atmosphere to who knows where...

[Benzo]

I just finished watching the movie..twas bonerific :p.My only complaint i wanted to see more action with bone crusher and prime.THE DUDE POPPED HIS HEAD OFF!!!PRIME COLD BLOODED!!! o.0

Also what happened to starscream i saw him jumping from jet to jet then the scene shift to pirme and megatron is scream still alive?And how did barricade die (wasnt paying attention)

if you watched the ending credits you'd see starscream leaving Earth's atmosphere in jet mode.

Barricade didn't die. when all the Decepticons were checking in after the allspark was located you'd see him driving on the freeway with Bonecrusher and Brawl. but that's the last we see of him..

[Grimlock74]

Wow... I haven't posted for ages. Amazing movie, 9/10, easily the best I've seen this year. However, some of the Transformers could have used more character development, most notably Jazz and Bonecrusher. They both pretty much do nothing the whole movie, then show up for a kickass fight scene and die. Whats with that? Even the other characters with non-speaking roles did more (Blackout's grudge with the soldiers, Brawl's general hatred of anything in his way.). The humans were done very well, as were most of the Autobots, especially Ratchet and Ironhide. The Decepticons "speech impediment" made them seem that much more cold, uncaring, and alien. CGI was amazing.

I agree with you on the development of the characters.I would have loved more battle scenes between Bumblebee and Barricade,i hardly saw Starscream and when you saw him it was less than a minute..Optimus Prime and Megatron"Brothers" what the hell is that all about??
Going again tomorrow afternoon to watch it again**lol**.....

[Nyghtwynd]

I actually did catch more stuff last night on 2nd viewing. I swear i saw a Luke Skywalker 12 inch doll in that hacker's room...

[Razorwing]

I actually did catch more stuff last night on 2nd viewing. I swear i saw a Luke Skywalker 12 inch doll in that hacker's room...

There was also Linkin Parks' Meteora poster in Sam's room.

[-KG-]

Incredible movie! Much better than expected!

I was really disappointed by Jazz's death. I like his design but especially his personality.

The scene outside of Sam's house is great! "that's not hiding!" lol to a bunch of alt modes in the backyard!

Excellent choice using Peter Cullen's voice. He made Prime Prime. Starscream's voice was great too for the one line he said.

My girlfriend is a TF fan but she hated the movie designs and had no interest in seeing the movie. It goes to show Bay still made a good movie because she loved it after seeing it. Especially Bumblebee and his personality.

Finally they could always edit out the "Devastator" and put in Brawl for the DVD. That way we could possibly see the Constructicons in a sequel?

[Prime Sinister]

if you watched the ending credits you'd see starscream leaving Earth's atmosphere in jet mode..

Just saw the Movie again. Hope the above was the last scene, while the credits rolled. If I missed anything else, I'll have to catch it on the DVD:o

[GMfan]

It was I stuck till the end.

[Synch]

Just saw the Movie again. Hope the above was the last scene, while the credits rolled. If I missed anything else, I'll have to catch it on the DVD:o


There were a couple of sams parents being interviewed by reporters an they asked them what they thought of the alien rumor going about :p Otherwise nothing big... I stuck around long enough to watch those cause I knew better :)

[darthrage]

Haha! Just went again for the 3rd time!

I freaking love this movie! Its awesome!

[TimothyPilgrim]

Hey guys. I'm new here but I played with the G1 toys and watched the cartoon religiously when it first ran. I LOVED this movie. I've got the same acclaims and gripes as other posters, but mainly that Prime needed a mouth plate, I still don't know what Ironhide's head looks like (kickass GMC 4500 Topkick though) and Megatron's head design sucked. I wanted Frank Welker's voice for Megatron, but I guess Hugo Weaving sufficed.

I really liked Frenzy. He reminds me of my neurotic dog. Barricade was awesome in car form, it makes me want to buy a Mustang just to mod it similarly. I loved the scene where the Autobots were hiding in the backyard, that was just comical. Sam's mom talking masturbation was hilarious. The Mountain Dew machine transformed was funny and reminded me of Maximum Overdrive. I don't recall seeing the XBox 360 though.

Best part of the movie, bar none, was when Megatron was knocked down and flicked the human with his finger into the car across the street like we would to a fly. And I found myself completing Prime's line "One shall stand, one shall fall." Suh-wheet.

I blogged about my experience at the link below. I can't wait to see it again, and again, and again. Oh, and sequels! Nice.

http://timothypilgrim.vox.com/library/post/more-than-meets-the-eye.html

Tim

[Prime Sinister]

. The Mountain Dew machine transformed was funny and reminded me of Maximum Overdrive. I don't recall seeing the XBox 360 though.


Hey Tim. Welcome aboard. The XBox attack took place just before the Mountain Dew transformation. The guy on the street fell and his new XBox grew arms.

[C_Shewins]

Hey Tim. Welcome aboard. The XBox attack took place just before the Mountain Dew transformation. The guy on the street fell and his new XBox grew arms.
Just watched my second time today, but .....
I thought that one was just a computer PC...?? Don't realize it is a Xbox.

[jacobot]

if you watched the ending credits you'd see starscream leaving Earth's atmosphere in jet mode.

Barricade didn't die. when all the Decepticons were checking in after the allspark was located you'd see him driving on the freeway with Bonecrusher and Brawl. but that's the last we see of him..


In the comic adaptation there are a few pictures of Prime throwing and snapping off Barricade's head too. Don't recall that scene in the movie

[A_U_T_O_B_O_T]

In the comic adaptation there are a few pictures of Prime throwing and snapping off Barricade's head too. Don't recall that scene in the movie

Maybe it was cut out and may pop up in the deleted scenes?

[Prime Sinister]

Maybe it was cut out and may pop up in the deleted scenes?

Can't wait for the special edition DVD.

[Robimus]

Can't wait for the special edition DVD.
An extended DVD cut would be great and hopefully out by Christmas. Comentary by Speilberg and Cullen would be awesome. I dont really want a comentary from Bay. I think he did a fine job directing but from what I've heard his love of Transformers is lacking.
And it needs to come in a metal case that transforms into Scorponok, yeah, yeah, that would be cool.

[Synch]

I'm sure we will get a directers cut version from bay as well after all this is the best $$$ making film he has done in ages. I too would rather hear more from the actors (not praising bay...) and PC & bb & even the writers would be great.

I watched that making of the transformers film it was some what interesting but it seemed like all everyone did was talk about how $(&*# great bay is... YAWN...

[TimothyPilgrim]

The AutoBlog podcast did a nice audio recap of the movie in show #70 from a car enthusiast's point of view. The guys were obviously fans too. The actual dialogue starts a little bit into the show.

http://www.autoblog.com/2007/07/11/autoblog-podcast-70/

Tim

[Exsequor]

Can someone comfirm if Prime calls Megatron "Brother" after he dies? I thought I heard Prime say that!?:confused:

[Robimus]

Can someone comfirm if Prime calls Megatron "Brother" after he dies? I thought I heard Prime say that!?:confused:
Yeah he did, I think he meant brother in the general all men (or transformers) are brothers kind of sense.

[GMfan]

He did call him brother and in the original script there were actual brothers and in the DS game that relationship is resurrected even so far as to comment on their father (Primus? Honestly its not like they reproduce, only way I can see brothers being made is if they were created simultaneously)

[Exsequor]

^ Interesting.

On another note (didn't want a whole new thread for this) Transformer as of Friday Reaches!!!! $197,905,000

$ 295,112,996 World Wide!!!





http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=daily&id=transformers06.htm

[Exsequor]

www.imdb.com (http://www.imdb.com) Lists Transfomers as # 148 All time and we are only in its 2 week! $316,590,000

http://www.imdb.com/boxoffice/alltimegross?region=world-wide

[Exsequor]

The Numbers are IN!
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/

$222,990,000 North America
Worldwide:$320,197,996

[darthrage]

Lets hope that its final domestic theatrical run ends up with something in the $300 millions

[jacobot]

Just got back from AMC... was going to see Fan4 but 10 mins in it was getting boring (no action yet) and I could hear the thundering sounds from the next theatre...needless to say I went next door and saw it for the 5th Time. It's just better than Star Wars because it doesn't happen in a galaxy far far away.................at least a $100 of that $300,000,000 is mine.

[Exsequor]

LOL

[GDkitty]

My wife was absolutely against going out to see it.. i was like 'Fine, i'll go by myself' but she said that i can't... sheesh!!

In the end, told her the next movie would be a chick flick of her choice... so we went and saw it.

I was very impressed, great character designs overall, all around a good movie.

My wife actualy enjoyed it in the end, and actualy remembered some of the TF stuff from when she was younger (the very little she watched) like the transformation sound, some of the designs/names, etc.

Didnt get me off the hook for the chick flick tho >.>

[darthrage]

My wife was absolutely against going out to see it.. i was like 'Fine, i'll go by myself' but she said that i can't... sheesh!!

In the end, told her the next movie would be a chick flick of her choice... so we went and saw it.

I was very impressed, great character designs overall, all around a good movie.

My wife actualy enjoyed it in the end, and actualy remembered some of the TF stuff from when she was younger (the very little she watched) like the transformation sound, some of the designs/names, etc.

Didnt get me off the hook for the chick flick tho >.>

why won't she let you watch it? Because you didn't wanna watch a chick flick for the next movie?

[MomofTFfan]

I got to see it in the Drive-In! I haven't been to one in AGES. I was camping with my family because I had a big family reunion on my side of the family for the week. Hubby was reading the paper in Timmies and saw ads for Drive-Ins. We went the Thursday after the show had opened. $15 carload special. So two adults, one 7 year old and one almost 3 year old. Now that's cheap! Also my daughter Annette loves TF. She lasted about an hour before she fall asleep. But she saw enough to ramble on about Bumblebee the next day. She also has the Burger King Bumblebee (and Starscream, Son got Megatron and Prime- the joys of camping and having to eat on the run) It was an awesome movie. Hubby has seen the 1986 anniversary release from last year and a few odd Cybertron episodes. It was his sister that watched the show in the 80's. I watched the show with my younger sister so we are fans. And we got to stay and watch Shrek 3. We are going to look to see if there's a Drive-In nearby. It's a great way to still get to watch some big movies and not have one of us stay home with the youngest one.

[Batman]

Yay!!!! I've seen it 3 times now!!! So has the wife, and guess what? She actually likes it!

[Nightbeat]

Been to it 4 times now. It hits one of the cheap local theaters here soon as well. Hoping to check it out yet again for under 5 bucks this time around...

Despite some flaws, it really holds up well after repeated viewings I find. I liken it the original X-men movie in that there are some flaws, but alot of them are due to the fact they have to restart a franchise and make it accessible to new fans as well as try to keep the spirit of 20+ years of continuity. It's a difficult task to say the least.

Regardless, I'm greatly looking forward to the sequel, not to mention the flood of new toys/merchandise !

[Metrotitan]

I saw it here in Japan yesterday night. It was entertaining enough, dumb as a bag of hammers, but flashy and the CGI was pretty amazing. I have been pretty "anti-movie" since seeing the first pics of the designs etc...but I walked out of the theater fairly satisfied. I sure wished they could have got the action rolling a little faster though...and FAR too many superfluous fleshlings wasting screen time. My favorite parts were the transformations and the "meet the Autobots" part where we really get a good look at them. Man I dunno why Bay was going for all the cheap laughs in every scene...I also wish the Transformers had more character...most 'Cons had one or two lines!! :(

Overall: 6.5 Out of 10. Decent start to a promising franchise.

Didn't make me wanna rush out and buy all the toys though...I'm sticking with Leader Prime and my 09 'Bee (and their Titanium counterparts) for now! :)

[Hound]

What I loved about the film was the way it brought back a sense of wonder and amazement to the transformers. There was a aura of mystery around them that wasn't immediately dispelled.

I do agree with others that they used too many human characters but the technical aspect of the movie was superb.

Update: now over $600 million worldwide with roughly half in North America and half elsewhere. Rather impressive if I do say so myself.

[Rodimus Jay]

I have seen it 5 times and absolutely loved it. Just like Hound above me, it brought back to me that same sense of wonder amazement about Transformers and why I loved them so much as a child.

I may have been the only person in the theater who teared up when the Autobots met up in that back alley and all transformed for the first time together. (I got a little more choked up when Prime transformed for some strange reason) Of course my eyes popped open wider than they usually do when I see something I like, but the sight of BumbleBee as the new Camaro just blew me away. (I so want one)

In the end the film was worth the year long wait when I first heard of the film coming out and I can't wait for the DVD! : )

[Robimus]

I just watched it for the second time last tuesday and still I love it just the same if not more. I took my daughter to see it with me(after much deliberation because of her age) but she ended up loving it as well. Note to Mr. Bay-My daughter loved every scene that a Transformer was on screen and was board in the long stretches when they were not on screen.
Things I picked up on in my second veiwing were:
Starscream taking out both Ironhide and Ratchet while Megatron was chasing Sam.
Why in the Matrix would they make Jazz say"Whats cracklin bitches"?
I missed the Autobot symbol on the cloud first time around when Bumblebee signals the other Autobots with the "Bot Signal"(a play on bat signal, tee hee) :p
Can't wait for the DVD, but the novel will have to keep me happy until then.

[autobot_roundhouse]

Awesome. Great movie, tons of action great humor from the autobots.


P.S. and Peter Cullen