Transformers (2007)
Dir. Michael Bay
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Jon Voight, Josh Duhamel, Megan Fox, Peter Cullen
Screened: Arclight Hollywood's first showing, Monday July 2nd, 2007 at 8p.m. in the Dome!!!!
Quotable: "There's a Fiesta over there with racing stripes."
I feel like I could write a lengthly thesis on Transformers right about now. I got so excited watching this movie I needed a condom. There was no doubt half way through that I needed to see it again. Not in a week or a month or when the DVD came out, but like now. Split the screen and start it over on one side so I can watch them side by side!! Get in line immediately after the credits stop and buy the first available ticket kind of see it again. Sitting at work the next morning (as I am) and thinking about playing hooky so I can go see it right now kind of feeling. I want my toys out of storage and go buy the new video game kind of infection. My mind is in full on Transformers mode and nothing else out there will satisfy me!!
As I said, this might get long, so if you want to skip ahead and know what I think, you're already too late. You should be in your car on the way to the theater as of 5 minutes ago. Transformers is perfect. Just fucking perfect. Take note comic book movies, this is how you adapt a beloved childhood property. I was floored the entire time. It is funny, reverent, action packed like no action you've seen, touching but not preachy, and just so freaking cool!! It is a home run, a touchdown, and a 300 game at your local lanes all wrapped up into one. In short, the best modern action film ever.
But this experience goes back farther than pulling into the parking structure last night. It begins 23 years ago as a 9 year old boy walks through the Toys R Us in Santa Rosa, CA, his eyes wide at the sight of all the red and purple packaging of a new toy line called Transformers. This movie is about remembering that day when my Mom bought me my first Transformer and I raised my little hand and chose the Autobot Bluestreak. He was a silver Datsun Z that played a role in the cartoon and probably in the price range. After all, we can't just start with Optimus Prime! Learning how to transform the toy and in the years to come just doing it without the instructions for each new toy I got. This is about playing with Prime and Soundwave and having all my Dinobots ambush Starscream as he came around the corner of my bed.
This film is more about my youth than any other franchise out there. The comic book movies, well that is more high school. The Simpsons coming out, that is college all the way. Star Wars is important and beloved, but I was 2 to 8 when those came out. Transformers was dead center on my radar. This was my youth, my real youth. Generation 1 was my generation. Learning about Transformers is like reading the biography of the young Uncle Busu.
Where to even begin with a review. This was the first showing in Hollywood so it was packed and there were news crews everywhere. I got photographed a number of times as I sat in the auditorium of the Cineramadome. They were waiting outside for interviews after the show as well. The crowd was pure fanboy. Every other person there had on a Transformers shirt. Even Elijah Wood was in the house. I was hoping he would sit next to me so I could be like "Transform it to the max Frodo!" and then give him a high five. Didn't happen. In the courtyard outside the theater they had 4 of the Autobot vehicles on display. Fucking cool. You definitely felt like you were at an event.
Before the screening, one of the producers, Tom DeSanto stood up and said a few words. I largely ignored him as my mind drifted back to the Comic Con 2 years ago when they had this big rig and trailer painted up like Prime parked in the convention center. And then last year I got my magent with the release date on it. I've been waiting awhile for this one. Finally the room went dark and the first trailer rolled. J.J. Abrams. Cloverfield. I've said too much. Coolest trailer I've seen in a long time.
After the Paramount logo faded away, we get this credit: In Association with Hasbro. The room erupted with laughter and cheers. It was here, really here. After some narration, the film opens in Qatar at a U.S. military base. This is the stuff we've been seeing for awhile about the first Decepticon attack. The infamous transforming sound hits our ears as the attack begins. You get an array of transforming sounds throughout, but this first one is a direct copy of the cartoon version. A lot of respect was paid to the old stuff, but more on that later.
The film never slows down as we're introduced to Sam (LaBeouf) and his family. Sam's parent's are hilarious in the movie, as is Sam. The humor plays exceptionally well throughout, which is not one of Bay's strongest attributes, but I was laughing out loud a number of times. Even the piss jokes worked and were already being quoted by guys in the bathroom. The plot unravels as you find out Sam's connection to the plot and learn of the Decepticons intentions. I gotta admit, the plot works. It is intricate to a degree, but easy to follow. The story is lean and focused.
What really struck me about this is at its core, this is an Autobot story. It is about Bumble Bee and Prime and Jazz etc. The baddies are there and I've heard complaints about the lack of Megatron, but it kept the story true for me and I liked it. It wasn't a Spiderman 3 look at all my villains kind of thing. It was about the heroes for a change. We spend most of the film with Sam and his new pals and it works. Yeah, would have liked a little more Starscream kissing Megatron's butt kind of moments, but they did throw in a "you've failed me again Starscream" line which was satisfying.
The details and connections to the cartoon are what really pulled my strings. Obviously everyone involved made themselves familiar with what would turn the fan on while setting up a new timeline and reinventing the universe. Jazz break dances as he transforms. Bumble Bee is parked next to a VW Bug in the car lot and "stiff arms" it. "Autobots, roll out!" There were so many nods I felt like this movie was an old friend already.
The movie winds up with a giant robot battle the likes of which your eyes cannot handle. Remember when CGI was crap? Not anymore. I'm still not even sure what I witnesses, but it was intense. I felt like my face was melting. If you have a medical condition, you might want to check with your doctor before the final reel. No citizen of Cybertron is left untouched. Sadly one Autobot doesn't survive.
Visually, the effects are first class. Bay does a lot of stuff practical and it shows. As a former FX guy, I would've loved to have been on set for this one. Blowing that bus in half at full speed. Fuck me. Just amazing stuff. And then the digital blends in perfectly. I was worried the robots were a little too busy from drawings I saw, but it was necessary for the plot and the physics of what they are. Sometimes the fights got confusing when they were in close quarters, but it rocked. Prime is the best looking design for sure. They rebooted the look, but kept him very recognizable. The transformations are mind blowing. There is a fighter jet sequence with Starscream going back and forth from his two forms in the sky that is one of my favorites. And hey, killer transforming Mountain Dew machine!! Even the battle damage evident on Prime's body at the very end is realistic. ILM, when are you guys gonna get some respect right?
This movie took my expectations, slammed 'em to the ground and said, "Psst. You call those expectations?" Michael Bay has committed some egregious cinema crimes in the past (Armageddon still one of the worst films ever) but damn you Mike if you're not almost pulling back even on this one. I mean, you did it. You nailed this movie from the start and I owe you dinner or something, cause this flick is gonna roll on my TV for decades to come. He even took a dig at himself with an Armageddon reference and I liked it. My God, I like a Michael Bay film. I should feel so unclean, but it is awesome!! I only have one gripe and that is that Josh Duhamel's character should've had a hotter wife. I mean, that guy is the definition of pretty boy. That's it. I loved everything else!
Why are you still reading this??!!! Go, go now! I'll meet you there.
Both adult and kid at heart Unlce Busu give Transformers 10 out of 10 Energon cubes.
Dir. Michael Bay
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Jon Voight, Josh Duhamel, Megan Fox, Peter Cullen
Screened: Arclight Hollywood's first showing, Monday July 2nd, 2007 at 8p.m. in the Dome!!!!
Quotable: "There's a Fiesta over there with racing stripes."
I feel like I could write a lengthly thesis on Transformers right about now. I got so excited watching this movie I needed a condom. There was no doubt half way through that I needed to see it again. Not in a week or a month or when the DVD came out, but like now. Split the screen and start it over on one side so I can watch them side by side!! Get in line immediately after the credits stop and buy the first available ticket kind of see it again. Sitting at work the next morning (as I am) and thinking about playing hooky so I can go see it right now kind of feeling. I want my toys out of storage and go buy the new video game kind of infection. My mind is in full on Transformers mode and nothing else out there will satisfy me!!
As I said, this might get long, so if you want to skip ahead and know what I think, you're already too late. You should be in your car on the way to the theater as of 5 minutes ago. Transformers is perfect. Just fucking perfect. Take note comic book movies, this is how you adapt a beloved childhood property. I was floored the entire time. It is funny, reverent, action packed like no action you've seen, touching but not preachy, and just so freaking cool!! It is a home run, a touchdown, and a 300 game at your local lanes all wrapped up into one. In short, the best modern action film ever.
But this experience goes back farther than pulling into the parking structure last night. It begins 23 years ago as a 9 year old boy walks through the Toys R Us in Santa Rosa, CA, his eyes wide at the sight of all the red and purple packaging of a new toy line called Transformers. This movie is about remembering that day when my Mom bought me my first Transformer and I raised my little hand and chose the Autobot Bluestreak. He was a silver Datsun Z that played a role in the cartoon and probably in the price range. After all, we can't just start with Optimus Prime! Learning how to transform the toy and in the years to come just doing it without the instructions for each new toy I got. This is about playing with Prime and Soundwave and having all my Dinobots ambush Starscream as he came around the corner of my bed.
This film is more about my youth than any other franchise out there. The comic book movies, well that is more high school. The Simpsons coming out, that is college all the way. Star Wars is important and beloved, but I was 2 to 8 when those came out. Transformers was dead center on my radar. This was my youth, my real youth. Generation 1 was my generation. Learning about Transformers is like reading the biography of the young Uncle Busu.
Where to even begin with a review. This was the first showing in Hollywood so it was packed and there were news crews everywhere. I got photographed a number of times as I sat in the auditorium of the Cineramadome. They were waiting outside for interviews after the show as well. The crowd was pure fanboy. Every other person there had on a Transformers shirt. Even Elijah Wood was in the house. I was hoping he would sit next to me so I could be like "Transform it to the max Frodo!" and then give him a high five. Didn't happen. In the courtyard outside the theater they had 4 of the Autobot vehicles on display. Fucking cool. You definitely felt like you were at an event.
Before the screening, one of the producers, Tom DeSanto stood up and said a few words. I largely ignored him as my mind drifted back to the Comic Con 2 years ago when they had this big rig and trailer painted up like Prime parked in the convention center. And then last year I got my magent with the release date on it. I've been waiting awhile for this one. Finally the room went dark and the first trailer rolled. J.J. Abrams. Cloverfield. I've said too much. Coolest trailer I've seen in a long time.
After the Paramount logo faded away, we get this credit: In Association with Hasbro. The room erupted with laughter and cheers. It was here, really here. After some narration, the film opens in Qatar at a U.S. military base. This is the stuff we've been seeing for awhile about the first Decepticon attack. The infamous transforming sound hits our ears as the attack begins. You get an array of transforming sounds throughout, but this first one is a direct copy of the cartoon version. A lot of respect was paid to the old stuff, but more on that later.
The film never slows down as we're introduced to Sam (LaBeouf) and his family. Sam's parent's are hilarious in the movie, as is Sam. The humor plays exceptionally well throughout, which is not one of Bay's strongest attributes, but I was laughing out loud a number of times. Even the piss jokes worked and were already being quoted by guys in the bathroom. The plot unravels as you find out Sam's connection to the plot and learn of the Decepticons intentions. I gotta admit, the plot works. It is intricate to a degree, but easy to follow. The story is lean and focused.
What really struck me about this is at its core, this is an Autobot story. It is about Bumble Bee and Prime and Jazz etc. The baddies are there and I've heard complaints about the lack of Megatron, but it kept the story true for me and I liked it. It wasn't a Spiderman 3 look at all my villains kind of thing. It was about the heroes for a change. We spend most of the film with Sam and his new pals and it works. Yeah, would have liked a little more Starscream kissing Megatron's butt kind of moments, but they did throw in a "you've failed me again Starscream" line which was satisfying.
The details and connections to the cartoon are what really pulled my strings. Obviously everyone involved made themselves familiar with what would turn the fan on while setting up a new timeline and reinventing the universe. Jazz break dances as he transforms. Bumble Bee is parked next to a VW Bug in the car lot and "stiff arms" it. "Autobots, roll out!" There were so many nods I felt like this movie was an old friend already.
The movie winds up with a giant robot battle the likes of which your eyes cannot handle. Remember when CGI was crap? Not anymore. I'm still not even sure what I witnesses, but it was intense. I felt like my face was melting. If you have a medical condition, you might want to check with your doctor before the final reel. No citizen of Cybertron is left untouched. Sadly one Autobot doesn't survive.
Visually, the effects are first class. Bay does a lot of stuff practical and it shows. As a former FX guy, I would've loved to have been on set for this one. Blowing that bus in half at full speed. Fuck me. Just amazing stuff. And then the digital blends in perfectly. I was worried the robots were a little too busy from drawings I saw, but it was necessary for the plot and the physics of what they are. Sometimes the fights got confusing when they were in close quarters, but it rocked. Prime is the best looking design for sure. They rebooted the look, but kept him very recognizable. The transformations are mind blowing. There is a fighter jet sequence with Starscream going back and forth from his two forms in the sky that is one of my favorites. And hey, killer transforming Mountain Dew machine!! Even the battle damage evident on Prime's body at the very end is realistic. ILM, when are you guys gonna get some respect right?
This movie took my expectations, slammed 'em to the ground and said, "Psst. You call those expectations?" Michael Bay has committed some egregious cinema crimes in the past (Armageddon still one of the worst films ever) but damn you Mike if you're not almost pulling back even on this one. I mean, you did it. You nailed this movie from the start and I owe you dinner or something, cause this flick is gonna roll on my TV for decades to come. He even took a dig at himself with an Armageddon reference and I liked it. My God, I like a Michael Bay film. I should feel so unclean, but it is awesome!! I only have one gripe and that is that Josh Duhamel's character should've had a hotter wife. I mean, that guy is the definition of pretty boy. That's it. I loved everything else!
Why are you still reading this??!!! Go, go now! I'll meet you there.
Both adult and kid at heart Unlce Busu give Transformers 10 out of 10 Energon cubes.
