The Energon Pub

[Burn]

You could look at them as children who haven't yet received discipline, ie, proper programming.

Sure the AllSpark gives life, but just how intelligent is that life?

[Droopz]

I really want a MountainDueatron figure.

[skeletal13]

Saw it at the screening at the Tivoli in St. Louis last night, and was blown away. This and Pirates 3 are the best films so far this summer.

For the naysayers calling this "GoBots: The Movie": hate to disappoint you, but this is TF all the way!!! They nailed the nuances and comraderie of the original series (especially Ironhide and Ratchet), there are plenty of G1 references for the diehard fans, TONS of action, and it was a lot more adult than I thought it would be (be prepared to explain a few things if you have kids). Overall, NOT disappointed with the film, except Hugo Weaving's vocal performance as Megatron - I don't feel that he did it any better than Frank Welker, and I feel that Frank should have been given the part.

I definitely plan on seeing it again next week... maybe opening day. The sequel can't be sooner, and now I feel compelled to buy a whole lot of toys!

[skeletal13]

I really want a MountainDueatron figure.

Me, too!

[Craven Knight]

Am I the onlyone who was reminnded of Isengard out of Lord of the Rings when they showed us Cybertron?

Didn't make me think of the metallic, spacey, scifi world from the cartoon at all.

[rktekto]

you know how we said michael bay raped our childhood? well... to michael bay, i have this to say: I SUBMIT MYSELF TO FURTHER SODOMY!

[Galvatronus]

Saw it last night. IT WAS AWESOME!!!! Everything I had hoped and more ot be honest.

My friend and I got to the theatre, where the sneak preview was playing, about 4.5 hours early. Crazy you saw. Well after they filled to huge theatres full of people they ended up turning away over 200 people so wait a few hours didn't bug me at all.

I thought the story and the characters were very well played out. I was surprised to see just how funny it was in the beginning. Shia reallt took the show in those regards, IMHO.

I'm taking my nephews to see in Monday night at 8 and will see it at least 2 more times after that. Well worth the wait.

[brbolin]

Another positive!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070629/review_nm/bv_review_film_transformers_dc_3;_ylt=AukGnIyF4FPqzl91k3xXuE0F1vAI

Or, if you prefer not to click...

By Kirk Honeycutt
Fri Jun 29, 2:24 AM ET

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - "Transformers" is a dream for fanboys, with vehicles that whiz and whir into alien robots, spectacular sci-fi stunt chases, glistening military hardware, overheated computer software and brainy, hot girls who love Popular Mechanics.

It's a Michael Bay movie based on a Hasbro line of toys that perfectly captures adolescent fascination with mechanical things you can take apart and put back together.

The movie is noisy fun, with characters and plot lines kept simple and flashes of comedy that hit home more often than not. Most importantly, the filmmakers have shrewdly selected their young cast. Shia LaBeouf is one of the hottest young actors on the planet at the moment, with the surprise hit thriller "Disturbia" and excellent lead vocal performance in the animated comedy "Surf's Up" already behind him in 2007. Megan Fox and Rachael Taylor add terrific sex appeal in roles designed to emphasize female capability and intelligence. And singer-actor Tyrese Gibson and Josh Duhamel are the smart-looking military dudes who take on the aliens at street level.

The movie's appeal will definitely expand beyond fanboys and sci-fi addicts to include older "kids" who grew up with the Transformers toys and comic books. DreamWorks and Paramount should be well-rewarded for their deep-pocketed faith in this potential franchise with a global hit.

This is not the first cinematic outing for the mechanical warriors. A 1986 animated movie was based on the original "Transformers" television show, which was based, of course, on the popular multiform robot toy line. It didn't go over well at the boxoffice. (That tooner, incidentally, was set in 2005.) But now Bay and an army of visual designers have successfully re-imagined a photorealistic world in which these Titans can believably clash.

The best thing in the script by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman (from a story by Orci, Kurtzman and John Rogers) is how a teen plot line gets tied into the fate of the world. Young Sam Witwicky (LaBeouf), who's nerdy but funny and sort of cool, gets a mysterious car from his dad, a banged-up '76 Chevy Camaro that he only later discovers is an alien robot. Now that's an intriguing way to get a girl's attention!

That girl, with the arresting name of Mikaela (Fox), has been in school with him for years but never really noticed him. One day she accepts a ride from him and finds herself caught up in a war of the worlds. Seems an ancestor of Sam made a discovery in the Arctic Circle that prompts the bad guys -- sorry, robots -- to target Sam, who unknowingly holds the key to mankind's survival -- if he hasn't already sold it on eBay.

Two robotic races -- the evil Decepticons and the heroic Autobots -- hide out on Earth as cars, trucks, 18-wheeler tractors, Hummers, jets or even a boom box before grinding and expanding into their robotic essence. These are CGI-errific moments, courtesy of Industrial Light + Magic, that will have fanboys leaping from their seats. All these techno creatures have feelings and emotions, you understand, which leads to the film's most amusing moment, when Sam's Camaro performs wheelies after his girlfriend "insults" the car. Its radio also plays tunes that fit the mood!

The filmmakers create three other sets of characters: A group of computer hackers headed by Taylor and Anthony Anderson, who no less than the U.S. Secretary of Defense (Jon Voight) desperately appoints as his "advisors"; surviving military members of an alien attack on a U.S. base in the Middle East, lead by Duhamel and Gibson, who somehow wind up duking it out with the aliens in downtown Los Angeles; and shadowy anti-alien agents lead by John Turturro.

The snarl of action and story lines is sometimes awkward, but at least the audience can identify with characters wherever the robots choose to rumble. No faceless multitudes screaming and fleeing here as in the Godzilla movies of old.

Clearly, none of this would work if Bay had not adroitly coordinated the stunts, animation and characters, both real and mechanical. Thanks goes to a team of editors, who have made good sense of all the action. On the debit side, sound levels are all too high, and the score pushes harder than necessary.

While he has long been a master of mayhem, on this occasion Bay weds his visual dazzle to material that carries the action smoothly. This is an extravaganza rather than overwrought excess. As one young boy exclaims upon seeing his first robot, "This is 10 times cooler than 'Armageddon'!"

Cast:

Sam Witwicky: Shia LaBeouf

Mikaela Banes: Megan Fox

Sgt. Lennox: Josh Duhamel

Sgt. Epps: Tyrese Gibson

Maggie: Rachael Taylor

Glen: Anthony Anderson

Defense Secretary John Keller: Jon Voight

Agent Simmons: John Turturro

Director: Michael Bay; Screenwriters: Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman; Story: John Rogers, Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman; Based on: Hasbro's Transformers action figures; Producers: Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Tom DeSanto, Don Murphy, Ian Bryce; Executive producers: Steven Spielberg, Michael Bay; Director of photography: Mitchell Amundsen; Production designer: Jeff Mann; Music: Steve Jablonsky; Co-producers: Allegra Clegg, Ken Bates; Costume designer: Deborah L. Scott; Editors: Paul Rubell, Glen Scantlebury, Thomas A. Muldoon.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

Also, neat article on USAToday:
http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2007-06-28-transformers-main_N.htm

Enjoy!

-B

[GetterDragun]

Awesome picture:

[PRiMESDESTiNY]

saw the movie last night as well and being a G1 fan, i was extremely pleased with what i saw. even my sister who hardly watched transformers was pleased. she expressed that it was better than what she expected as did i.


i do agree that the movie went a lil fast but i do like how it was straight to the point and didnt spend too much time on just one particular character. i feel with it doing that, it leaves character development open for the sequel.



the autobots and decpticons were exactly how i expected and then some. and i was a lil disappointed that jazz died the way he did and so quickly. but then again, with the way megs owned him, the way he killed him was true to form. everyone IMO was most definitely true to character.


frenzy had me cracking up the whole time. he reminds me of an advanced gremlin for some reason. just hilarious! megs also had me cracking up after him and prime fell off the building and while they were laying in the street, a person walked by megs and he said "disgusting." and then flicked the person. too funny!

all in all, im very happy with bay and how the movie turned out. the movie brought back all the memories and feelings i had when i was a child and then some.

[XeroSyphon]

IGN has their review of the movie up.
http://movies.ign.com/articles/800/800121p1.html

They gave it 3 1/2 stars out of 5

[Supreme Convoy]

Awesome picture:

Holy crap... where's that from?

[schudini]

I also saw it last night in Tampa (probably same theater).


I agree with all the above reviews, it was excellent (my 3 friends were also impressed).


However, I can't believe anyone else hasn't brought it up yet.

Transformers can be frozen + space is extremely cold = How does Starscream "fly" off into space?


I was also left with a few questions that I'll bring up for discussion.

1. How does the "coordinates to the allspark" get imprinted onto the glasses?

2. Was the Greatgrandfather Wikwiki killed by Megs or just knocked over?

3. Which TF was in the video from Mars?

4. I thought Prime wanted to merge the matrix of leadership with the allspark to destroy it. So why did it melt Megs chest?

5. (I'm forgetting it at the moment, but it was a really good one)

EDIT: I remembered. If all of our current technology comes from Megatron (as was suggested in the movie), then why would he come to earth to use the allspark to build a robot army out of our machines? In the 1800's, we only had steam technology. What kind of army could you make out of that (steambot)?
However, it might explain why the Nokia and MountainDew bots were evil -- they were based on megatron's technology. (yeah, I know, it's a stretch)


Some of the best parts of the movie...

Blackout's weapon effects on the base.

Ironhide's bazooka jump (totally rocked the theater with bass!) (He's easily my favorite. "Sam's parents are annoying..." you know the rest)

Bumblebee peeing on the S7 guy.


Speaking of BB, did anyone notice the Bee-otch air freshener hanging from his mirror? Or how about the 1971 yellow beetle that he parked next to? LOL


The A-10's and AC-130 were friggin' awesome too.

[skeletal13]

I also saw it last night in Tampa (probably same theater).


I agree with all the above reviews, it was excellent (my 3 friends were also impressed).


However, I can't believe anyone else hasn't brought it up yet.

Transformers can be frozen + space is extremely cold = How does Starscream "fly" off into space?

Maybe he's safe in alt mode, much like the Autobots rubber tires in alt mode (in the series) protected them. Or, like in Beast Wars, their alt modes allowed them to heal.

I was also left with a few questions that I'll bring up for discussion.

1. How does the "coordinates to the allspark" get imprinted onto the glasses?

They were etched in when Great Grandpapa Witwicky inadvertently activated Megs' navigation system.

2. Was the Greatgrandfather Wikwiki killed by Megs or just knocked over?

When we first see Spike in class, he mentions that his Great Grandfather was locked up because they thought he was crazy after the expedition.

4. I thought Prime wanted to merge the matrix of leadership with the allspark to destroy it. So why did it melt Megs chest?

It wasn't the Matrix in Prime's chest, but a power core. We can assume Megs has the same.

5. (I'm forgetting it at the moment, but it was a really good one)

EDIT: I remembered. If all of our current technology comes from Megatron (as was suggested in the movie), then why would he come to earth to use the allspark to build a robot army out of our machines? In the 1800's, we only had steam technology. What kind of army could you make out of that (steambot)?

You got me. I thought that he was mainly hunting for the Allspark.

[Gatkowski]

People told me to reserve judgement until I see the whole movie. So now, after seeing the easly most hyped blockbuster of the summer, I'd like to put three years of enthusiasm and anticipation into the following statement:

FAILED.

Utterly and miserably failed. This movie is simply one of the worst and most retarded flicks I've seen so far. If not THE worst. Yeah, it has great visual effects. So what? Anything that has ILM written on it should look great. It's a requirement. And even if it has great visual effects, that's all there is to it. It's like a bubblegum. You chew it for some time, pop it a few times, but in the end, you just spit it out once the flavor's gone...after about 10 minutes.

Onto more concrete things.

Plot: I understand that it was meant to be thin. Still, it's more close to nonexistant than thin. I still can't understand why something with 22+ years of background has been degenerated into this...mess. Mindless action and shoot 'em up, mixed with disturbingly superficial drama and romance, with a good chunk of vulgar and idiotic humor added. After seeing the trailers and reading the info available on the movie, I really didn't expect much. But my expectations still seemed to be too high.


Characters:

Sam: Simply a jerk. There are differences between being a clumsy fellow who still has a heart of gold and an idiotic nerd trying to look cool. Unfortunately, he falls into the latter.

Mikaela: Her only role is sex appeal, that's obvious. Too bad a movie based on one of the most commonly known sci-fi universes uses that as seller. And what does some chick has to do with a film about Transformers?

Witwicky parents: Empty cans as characters. Aren't even worth taking notice of.

Soldier dudes: Guess they were usable. They went and fired their guns.

Government dudes: The head guy who arrested Sam and Mik was the worst. If he was supposed to be the main comedy character...well, he failed. The others were okay, I guess.


Optimus Prime: The only one who could be called a "character" in the whole 144 minutes of the film. Peter Cullen did give it his all. Unfortunately, he was given too many forced and superficial lines, including his all-time motto and the others that won the web poll. But still, he did an amazing job impersonating the legendary Autobot leader.

Bumblebee: Well, he was in the film. He was more like Johnny 5 than a Transformer. Somehow, I couldn't grasp the emotional content between him and the two humans he was supposed to protect. Perhaps because in one scene he was acting like a jerk and "peed" on an S7 guy, the other, he was put there for dramatic effect (again, very superficial), just because. I couldn't really take him seriously.

Ironhide: He was for the better. Had a big gun, used it accordingly. Didn't have much screen time, but he did good in that little.

Jazz: He had everything, except style. A loudmouth jackass, who thinks he looks cool, but doesn't. Kinda liked it when Megs ripped him apart.

Ratchet: Been there, seen him. He wasn't showed enough to form any considerable opinion on.



Megatron: A plain wild beast. Not exactly the Megatron I would envision, but for a wild beast, he was perfect. Hugo Weaving also did an excellent work on his voice. He was frightful, ruthless, and really powerful. Sadly, his death was lame as hell. The monstrosity that not even Optimus Prime could defeat was taken down by human weapons. Sam just had to toss the Allspark there to finish him off. Ridiculous.

Starscream: Was used little, his voice was kinda okay...not much else.

Blackout: He was a heavy. He was the only con I was fully satisfied with. Except his death, which was, again, lame. Humans shot him down, motorcycle slidin' style. And again, ridiculous.

Barricade: Looked cool. His voice was somehow wrong though. Like it was overacted. But for the complete two lines he said, it wasn't disturbing.

Bonecrusher: OMG, ROLLERSKATING TFZ!!! Looked a little silly, and got killed off before I realized who he was. Pity. Would have watched him demolishing a military storage facility instead of watching Sam trying to win Mik.

Brawl/Devastator: Wham, boom, pow. He did his share of fighting. Too bad the scenes were so blurry you could hardly make him out.

Frenzy: One of the most irritating characters ever. Stupid voice and even stupider drunken insect-like behavior.


Overall: As stated earlier, the flick is retarded and vulgar in a bad sense. Just a few things:

- Bumblebee peeing on a human. Yeah, right, just what an intelligent, protective representative of a sentient alien race would do.

- The only one who can decipher an alien code noone has ever seen before, and which has broken into the national defense system is a fat jackass, who does computers and video games for hobby. He also knows Freddy Kruger and Wolverine. Yeah, sure. The idea is so crappy that it isn't even funny.

- Very funny family life. "Were you masturbating?" Exactly the type of humorous question you like to hear asked from someone. Especially, when that someone is you, right?

- OMG, GIANT ROBOTZ ARE HIDIN' IN OUR BACKYARD!!!! That was one of the most forced and flat scenes of the movie. If the TFs had been some sort of plusshies, I might have found it cute...

- "Okay, folks let's go away from the dam, from where we could just blast Megs and all to pieces to a densely populated city where we can kill some dozens of civilians in the final fight!" Umm, no comment.

- "Run Fore... I mean, Sam, run!" Really, why couldn't he just jump on a motorcycle, or into a car? Or a bike?

And one thing I really did like (besides Cullen and Weaving's acting) was the scene in which Blackout assaulted the military base. That was one hell of a ride. In the middle of that scene I thought like "maybe I was wrong about this movie afterall". But right after that, the trash was dumped. It was like dating a Mikaela-like chick. Cool and all, and maybe you could enjoy it, if your really wanted to, but it's just empty. It's so different from truly loving someone.

Films like Star Wars and Star Trek created entire sci-fi universes that lasted for 30+ years. In comparison, this movie could have been done easier, since the 20+ years of background material was already done. But no, it had to be some cheap bubblegum crap, that will be forgotten in 2 or 3 years. Or after the last sequel is made.

All in all, this kind of Transformers Live Action should just proceed... on its way to oblivion.

[skeletal13]

FAILED.

Wow. Harsh.

Did you even TRY seeing it with an open mind?

[Craven Knight]

TIME PARADOX!

[Sentinel Pax]

Transformers can be frozen + space is extremely cold = How does Starscream "fly" off into space?

That's what I wondered. Also, how is it they can withstand massive heat when the enter the Earth's atmosphere and survive crashing into the Earth, yet are damaged so easily by rockets?

...Because...rockets...are...uh...more practical?

[PRiMESDESTiNY]

Transformers can be frozen + space is extremely cold = How does Starscream "fly" off into space?

That's what I wondered. Also, how is it they can withstand massive heat when the enter the Earth's atmosphere and survive crashing into the Earth, yet are damaged so easily by rockets?

good point, but when they landed, weren't they inside of some type of cocoon that was protecting them?

[Craven Knight]

...how is it they can withstand massive heat when the enter the Earth's atmosphere and survive crashing into the Earth, yet are damaged so easily by rockets?

Not rockets, ultra high velocity sabot rounds... by the dozen.

[Sentinel Pax]

...Because...rockets...are...uh...more practical?

More destructive than the forces involved in an object crashing into the earth at massive velocity, and the heat involved in re-entry? I highly doubt that.

You'd be surprised. I'm kidding, of course, but I'll probably end up noticing things like that in this movie. I do that in almost every "comic book movie", so this will be similar.

[Burn]

Transformers can be frozen + space is extremely cold = How does Starscream "fly" off into space?

That's what I wondered. Also, how is it they can withstand massive heat when the enter the Earth's atmosphere and survive crashing into the Earth, yet are damaged so easily by rockets?

Megatron was frozen because he was damaged during entry (that'll teach him for not using a protoform like everyone else ...)

As for TF's being damaged by Earth based weaponary, it was only one type of Earth based weaponary which just happened to be capable of piercing Cybertronian armour.

[Chaoslock]

I saw it not long ago, and hell... it was good. The only thing that disturbed me was the decepticon headcount. Bonecrusher: lived 10 minutes... RIP.
So, the only living deceps for movie 2 are: Barricade (was forgotten on the highway); Scorponok (heavily injured); Starscream (he escaped... the Starscream way )

And: I don't know why the autobots think that the Allspark, that can create life would destroy it. I think it overloaded Megatron. So, in TF 2 (or 3) I think the autobots will face the Allspark-powered Galvatron.