by Autobot032 » Sun Jun 26, 2011 8:39 pm
- Weapon: Switch Blade Tail
I've used this argument before, and I'll use it again because it's true, logical and honest.
Bay can be blamed for the following:
- Bad attitude.
- Jerky, fast cuts that make it difficult to make out scenes and characters.
- Not giving the films enough time to flesh out characters or depth in scenes.
- Some, but not all of the sophomoric and juvenile humor. (More on this in a moment.)
Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci can be blamed for the following:
- Hack writing.
- Boring writing. (The first hour of the first film was human dramedy, with barely a whisper or hint of TransFormers in it.)
- Reusing the same old schtick, sometimes in the same film. (Star Trek. Remember Kirk nearly died on a ledge? No less than THREE times in the same TWO HOUR movie?? Really? There's no other possible danger they could've come up with? And they got that idea from Star Trek III when he kicked Kruge into the erupting planet beneath him.)
- No new or fresh ideas of their own. (They've built their reputation and career on the works of other people. Zorro, TransFormers, Mission: Impossible, Star Trek, Hawaii Five-0, all of it is their take on someone else's work, none of it original or their own.)
Bay can only go so far with what he's given. Past a certain point, he's being given only so much and he has to make it work. People have made this argument before: "Well, what about Ridley Scott? He'd never film something off of a script so weak!" and guess what? They're wrong. He has made bombs before, and if he does turn down a script...he has far more power, money and name status to allow him to say "Oh screw off. Write me something worthy of my work." Bay is very faithful to the people he works with, and when he accepts a job, it's not just for him but also for his crew. It's not just his paycheck, not just his time, it's their's. It's a team effort and he's one of the biggest proponents of "there is no I in team".
When the writers went on strike during ROTF, he went on with it. Filming what he could, where and when he could, and kept the paychecks coming to his crew, his cast, and answering to his bosses at Paramount and Dreamworks, not to mention the producers.
People look at Bay and make light of his work and mock him and tear into him, but they have no idea what it's like to be in his shoes. Plenty of people rely on him and plenty of people demand a lot of him. He answers that call, every time. Is it perfect? Of course not. Is it commendable and deserves respect? YES.
Orci & Kurtzman are your culprits, ladies and gentlemen.
The Mask Of Zorro? Excellent movie.
The Legend Of Zorro? Boring, over long and pales in comparison to the original.
Mission: Impossible III? Fun, accessible to everyone, but throwaway entertainment. Much like hollow sweets that give you nothing.
TransFormers? BORING. The human focus was too heavy. (Oh and before anyone complains about the humor being Bay's fault...I read excerpts of the first movie's novel. Chock full of crappy humor. Bay had no control over the book. What was it based on? The screenplay written by Orci & Kurtzman.)
Star Trek? Fun, accessible to everyone, but horribly flawed. The flaws become more and more apparent with each viewing. So much so that they stick out and jar you. Doesn't make the film bad, but it certainly could've been better.
Revenge Of The Fallen? A much better movie, but had Ehren Kruger helping out. Heavily flawed and awkward in some scenes, overly silly in others. I don't deny that there are serious problems with the film, but it's nowhere near as bad as critics say. (Once you see DOTM, you'll see that all of ROTF's good parts came from Kruger, and none from them.)
Hawaii Five-0? Great show, but they wrote the pilot and I have to say it was one of the weakest TV shows I've ever seen. Action, action, action, and no depth to the characters, no real background story. (It took other writers and the rest of the entire SEASON to do that.)
TransFormers Prime? Great show, loads more depth than some of their other work, but it's dark. Autobots that kill humans? Those aren't the TransFormers I remember. Sure, it's more realistic, I don't deny that, but it's not the Optimus Prime I remember. It's not the Optimus Prime that Peter Cullen turned into a hero for generations. Where is his humor? His heart? His compassion? And the episodes written by other writers make the show stronger.
Bay had nothing to do with Prime or the other properties and they all have one weakness...the writing. If you can't see that, then you're just unwilling to, and he's your scapegoat for everything and anything.
There's one positive thing about Bay leaving the movies: He doesn't have to deal with this ungrateful and self entitled fandom, anymore.
NOTE: Realize that I am not a perfect Christian, nor do I profess to be. I apologize if anyone's ever offended by me, I'm not perfect. Don't hold my posts and opinions against other Christians.
