When the dust settles from this 2007 summer of sequels, one movie will stand above all others. For originality and excitement and action and special effects and flat-out fun, the hands-down winner is Transformers (Dreamworks/Paramount). When all is said and done, I'll be surprised if this testosterone-injected thrill ride doesn't finish as the top-grossing movie of the year.
A generation of boys (and some girls) grew up on Transformers toys, cartoons and comic books in the '80s, and those same fans, now in their late 20s and early 30s, are ready to introduce their kids to this major touchstone of their collective childhood. Michael Bay was the ideal choice to direct the new movie. He can choreograph action and "blow stuff up" with the best of 'em, and he's always been on the cutting edge of movie special effects because of his stake in Digital Domain. On top of everything that Bay bring, however, Steven Spielberg's fingerprints are unmistakable. As Executive Producer, he has managed to inject into Transformers the sweetness, humor and sense of wonder that are the hallmarks of his best work.
For the uninitiated, there are two kinds of Transformers. The Decepticons are hell-bent on dominating the universe, and they've set their sights on taking control of Earth. Then there are the Autobots, a benevolent class of robot who prefer peaceful coexistence with humans. Both breeds have the ability to disguise themselves as cars or trucks or boomboxes or cellular phones or just about anything.
The movie starts in the Middle East with a spectacular attack on a U.S. military base by a Decepticon known as Blackout (in a second skirmish, Blackout becomes a crazy-cool robot scorpion). One of the soldiers at the base is Captain Lennox (played by Josh Duhamel of NBC's Las Vegas), a sturdy American who looks forward to holding his newborn baby girl on his next trip home. Back in the States, suburban high school nerd Sam Witwicky is angling for his first car. Played by the white-hot Shia LaBeouf (Disturbia), Sam is funny, goofy and endearing. His car, a rusted-out yellow Camaro, essentially picks him, and it turns out to be an Autobot named Bumblebee.
The story is told through Captain Lennox and Sam, who find themselves in the middle of a full-scale robot war with nothing less than the fate of humanity hanging in the balance. Not being of the Transformers generation myself (I just missed out, graduating from high school in 1983), I didn't go in knowing the mythology, but it didn't really matter. The backstory is explained just enough without bogging the movie down. Plus, this is over-the-top summer fun, not a "think piece."
The special effects in Transformers are the best I have ever seen. Since the advent of CGI, I've often come away from the movies thinking that the effects look fake. The dinosaurs in Jurassic Park, Robert Patrick as the liquid metal T-1000 in Terminator 2: Judgement Day and the ship sinking in Titanic are all excellent effects for their time, but the Autobots and Decepticons are in a different league. They look real. Period.
The robot transformations are amazing to watch. Many of them happen quickly, but there is one that is especially noteworthy. The leader of the Autobots is Optimus Prime (revered by every Transformers fan). When he first transforms from semi cab to robot, it happens slowly and with great drama. You're able to see how much detail goes into this transition as, piece-by-piece, Optimus rises in all of his glory.
There are some nifty Spielberg touches along the way. After an Autobot crash lands in a swimming pool, a little girl with a stuffed animal walks outside to see what happened. Slowly, a huge robot emerges from the pool, and the little girl's face, bathed in moonlight, is filled with awe and wonder. When Sam is courting his girlfriend-to-be (Megan Fox), his car (Bumblebee) changes stations on the radio to provide the proper mood music (like Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On"). And, most notably, there's the relationship between Sam and Bumblebee. When this yellow-and-black robot gets in trouble, you can read very human pain on its face, and there are shades of the sort of emotional bond we saw between Elliot and E.T.
The movie flies at breakneck pace toward a robot battle royale. It's Optimus Prime, Bumblebee and the Autobots vs. Megatron and the Decepticons, and this is Bay at his best. The effects are an astounding whirr of changing forms and perfectly choreographed transitions, in the midst of an incredible chase, filled with explosions and blasts and detonations. In addition to the visual effects people, the sound guys and sound editors will also be recognized at the Oscars. The squealing of tires, the metal-on-metal scraping and the rumbling of oncoming giant robots makes for a visceral, one-of-a-kind moviegoing experience.
FantasyMoguls.com Lowdown on Transformers
Original FantasyMoguls.com Projections for Transformers were for a 7.1 IMDb User Rating, $240 million in total domestic box office, 16 Top 5 points and 10 PTA points. Steve Mason's revised projections based on seeing the film and reviewing its tracking and updated release plan are as follows:
Box Office: $330 million
IMDb User Rating: 7.5
Top 5: 18 points
PTA: 7
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